The life and experiences of Herbert Hoover are examined in this lesson from the period when he was growing up in Iowa to when he was the administrator of aid to starving and suffering children in Europe during World War I. The lesson about Hoover as a Quaker schoolboy and as administrator of the Belgian Relief Commission is based on the National…

This CD-ROM provides interactive, multimedia software that enables students to investigate many aspects of Native American and European encounters in the Mississippi Valley through study of original historical sources, including texts, maps, artworks, and archaeological finds. The Lower Mississippi Valley was chosen as the study area because of…

In 1948 archeologists verified that a now overgrown and urbanized landscape along the Saugus River (Massachusetts) was the site of the Saugus Iron Works from 1646 until 1648. That discovery led to a careful, though partly conjectural, reconstruction of the first successful integrated ironmaking plant in the colonial America. The early Puritan…

The French Quarter ("Vieux Carre" in French) is the heart and soul of modern New Orleans (Louisiana), serving as a continuous reminder of the city's Creole, colonial past. The French Quarter, lying barely above sea level, hugs the bank of the Mississippi River. Buildings with wrought-iron balconies crowd each other and the narrow…

From the outbreak of World War I in Europe until the signing of the Versailles Treaty, President Woodrow Wilson's administration proposed and implemented an extraordinary number of programs that affected people in their everyday activities. In August 1917 Congress passed the Food and Fuel Control Act, also known as the Lever Act, which gave the…

By late winter 1933, the United States had already endured more than 3 years of economic depression. During the previous summer, the Democratic Party platform had unveiled a generalized plan for economic recovery. President Franklin D. Roosevelt set about to prepare the nation to accept expansion of federal power since he recognized that the…

This lesson is based on the National Register of Historic Places registration file for the Arnold Arboretum (Massachusetts) and other source material about the Arboretum and Frederick Law Olmstead. The lesson focuses on the first arboretum in the United States, which was part of Olmstead's plan for Boston's park system, known as the "Emerald…

This unit of study (for grades 5-8 and up) about the U.S. Civil War features original documents from the National Archives and Records Administration. All the records used in the unit reflect the actions of the federal government or citizens' responses to these actions. These records were selected for their historical value, their legibility and…

Contains four articles concerning: the semantic opposition "Intense-Intesif"; vocabulary enrichment based on authentic documents; descriptions of personal characteristics and group activities; word-games promoting linguistic creativity; and various aspects of the expressions of quantity. (MES)

Describes the three methods of teaching French in elementary schools in France: the traditional, the Freinet, and the "Plan de renovation pour l'enseignement du francais." A description of a model for the l980s is given. Techniques influenced by sociolinguistics seem most suited to replace traditional methodology. (AMH)

Presents instructional materials and suggestions for using primary source documents regarding Admiral Peary's search for the North Pole. Cache notes were brief dispatches left for the press in ice hutches along with provisions and maps. Includes a photocopy of a cache note from Peary's expedition with suggested research topics and activities. (MJP)

Stories handed down from Dakota grandmother to granddaughter were rooted in a kinship responsibility to relay the culture, identity, and sense of belonging essential to a child's life. Conveyed by Native storytellers rigorously trained in oral tradition, historical "stories" have a reliability not found in mainstream oral history.…

Presents a lesson focusing on the history of slavery. Compares two systems of slavery in North America to teach students about slavery within and outside of the United States. States that the lesson uses the "Code Noir" to help students understand the similarities and differences between the systems. (CMK)

Provides information on the programs offered by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the 10 presidential libraries and record centers within NARA. Aims at educating teachers and students about the materials and services that NARA offers to encourage use of the primary materials and other resources. (CMK)

Presents a list of Web sites for students that provide primary documents and also an annotated bibliography of books for information on the topics offered in this issue of "Insights on Law and Society." Explains that the online version gives direct links and full bibliographic information for the books. (CMK)