Browse Examples of Historical Thinking
Teaching the Reconstruction? Ford's Theatre's Sarah Jencks leads teachers through Abraham Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address and follow-up activities. [...] »
Two letters from 1800 Tripoli lead into a story of piracy, privateering, slavery, international politics, and war at sea and on land. [...] »
Historian Allida Black analyzes FDR's April 28, 1935 Fireside Chat. What ideas and arguments does FDR present to the American people? [...] »
Professor Meredith Lair examines a 1971 political cartoon and what it says about U.S. reaction to the My Lai Massacre and the trial of Lt. Willam Calley. [...] »
Challenge students to gather evidence from multiple primary sources. Here, a high school student uses two related primary sources to understand the civil rights movement. [...] »
If students lack historical context, they can miss the substance of a reading. Watch a high school sophomore use what he knows about the 1950s and 1960s to approach a diary extract. [...] »
Analyzing a source requires context for a more complete understanding. [...] »
Excite students by introducing them to primary sources that answer questions they have—not just questions you pose to them. [...] »
What do slave receipts reveal? Ever considered using similar documents to teach? [...] »
Use autobiographies to deconstruct views of slavery and historical heroes. [...] »
