Maintains that most history teachers perpetuate the stereotype of the Puritans of colonial history as a dour, austere, intolerant group. Contends that recent historiography indicates that the Puritans laughed, treated Native Americans and African Americans with respect, and enjoyed music and other cultural pleasures. (CFR)

Presents a lesson plan based on the military decisions made at the Battle of Manassas, or Bull Run, in the Civil War. Provides historical background and outlines the military strategies of both the North and South. Includes role-playing description handouts and possible choices for students involved in the role-playing. (CFR)

Discusses the concept of social mathematics in which numerical information is connected to the people and issues of social studies. Maintains elementary students can learn that data represent information from the real world. Includes class activities using historical timelines, data collection, and database computer programs. (CFR)

Describes the significance of religion in India to illustrate the importance of religious beliefs as major determinants of human behavior throughout world history. Contends that the world history course provides many opportunities to help students learn about religions and religious beliefs. (CFR)

Describes a three-part videodisk set designed for teaching introductory U.S. government and history courses at the secondary or collegiate levels. Describes the content and teaching suggestions for the series that focuses on the powers of the U.S. Congress, the Presidency, and the Supreme Court. (CFR)

Describes a classroom activity in which students develop recruitment materials designed to encourage eighteenth-century Europeans to become colonists in North America. Includes instructions for developing assignment sheets and suggests student resources. Contends that this activity always enhances student motivation and enthusiasm. (CFR)

Contends that the typical approach to immigration in U.S. history may not be interesting or exciting to students. Describes an interdisciplinary program using primary sources and computer databases to encourage student participation and enhance academic achievement. Includes three appendices with information and raw data used in the program. (CFR)

Presents a lesson plan based on primary sources about the home in which William Howard Taft was born and grew up. Provides student objectives, instructional procedures, and suggested student activities. Includes two documents, two map exhibits, three student readings, and two photographs. (CFR)

Contends that end of Cold War increases need for students to understand causes and aftermath of World War II. Recommends spending less time on military aspects of the war and more time on the economic, social, and cultural impact of total war. Provides a selected list of resources to be used in a college level course on the war. (CFR)

Discusses the career and contributions of Modjeska Simkins, a black female teacher in South Carolina who became active in public health and civil rights. Throughout her career Simkins used her home in Columbia, South Carolina as an office. That home is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. (MJP)

Presents a lesson plan built around the life and career of Anna Kingsley. Kingsley was an African slave who married her former owner, acquired freedom, and became a prosperous businesswoman and landowner in the Spanish colonial territory of Florida. Includes reproductions of primary source documents. (MJP)

Profiles the career and contributions of educator and historian Lucy Maynard Salmon. Salmon's work on uniform standards for college admission became the basis of the College Entrance Examination. She developed a curriculum for elementary school history instruction that incorporated classical literature, folk tales, and biographies. (MJP)

Encapsulates learning activities that correspond to (but are not bound by) a tour of the Liberty Bell site. The activities can supplement either a lesson plan or unit of study. Instructional materials include background reading, handouts, maps, photographs, and a chronology of events. (MJP)

Praises the Laura Ingalls Wilder books for their realistic portrayal of 19th-century prairie life. Recommends using the books as source material for a variety of social studies classes. Provides a list of suggested activities collected under broad topics including housing, unusual weather phenomena, medical care, and clothing. (MP)

Many private schools accepting public and private voucher funding use instructional materials that transmit profoundly conservative values. Content of texts produced by A Beka Books and Bob Jones University Press is virtually identical to materials produced and disseminated by the Christian Right and other conservative groups. (Contains 42…