TeachersFirst's 20th Century America (1900-1945)
The first part of the 20th Century in America takes us from the turn of the century through the end of World War 2. It is pivotal to help students understand how these years changed the country. Find resources in this collection related to the economic, social and technological milestones seen during this time. We will include resources that introduce the opening of the Panama Canal, the Wall Street Crash of 1929, The Great Depression, Mahatma Gandhi, World War I and II, the first winter Olympics, US Immigration Act of 1924, the Holocaust, Japanese internment camps, the segregation era, the Roaring Twenties and prohibition, The Ford Model-T, Lindburgh's first nonstop flight from NY to Paris, the construction of the Empire State Building and the Hoover Dam. Discover these topics and many others in this collection.
If you are looking for larger collections, view these tagged lists about The Great Depression, World War 1, World War 2, Segregation, and Immigration.
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By Popular Demand: Jackie and other Baseball Highlights 1860s-1960s - Library of Congress
Grades
6 to 12
tag(s): 1800s (72), 1900s (73), africa (137), african american (110), baseball (33), black history (124)
In the Classroom
Provide your students with this website and a good 20-minutes of exploration time. Then, enhance learning by having your class write journal entries through the eyes of the African-American baseball stars. If you are beginning the process of integrating technology, replace paper journals and have students create blogs (digital journals) sharing their learning and understanding using Telegra.ph, reviewed here. This blog creator requires no registration. With Telegra.ph have students click on an icon to upload related images, add YouTube or Vimeo, or Twitter links. Or divide the class into cooperative learning groups. Extend learning by having each group research a specific time period and share their findings with the class using an infographic tool created with Canva Infographic Maker, reviewed here.You must be registered and logged in to add items to your favorites.
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Drop Me Off in Harlem - Artsedge
Grades
6 to 12One of the nice things about this site is the easy access to the section they call "Classroom Activities." Scroll down to the bottom of any page to find it. Here they provide activities for grades 6-8 and 9-12 that are specific to grade level as well as links to lesson plans if you choose to use those. Under A Place Called Harlem, you will find the Media Player which still requires Flash, however there is so much information on this site that the media player will hardly be missed.
tag(s): 1910s (7), 1920s (15), 1930s (20), dance (26), harlem (8)
In the Classroom
Because of the sheer variety of links offered, this is an ideal lesson to spread among a class. As a culminating activity have a "Harlem Day" where students present their information. They might dress and speak as the person they studied; they might present music, poetry, or art from that time, or even create a Harlem "nightclub" to share their information.Why not extend student learning and have them create video clips using Adobe Creative Cloud Express Video Maker, reviewed here, to share on your interactive whiteboard or projector via TeacherTube, reviewed here. Other project ideas could be a blog using Edublogs, reviewed here, written from the perspective of someone living in Harlem during the great depression, or a wiki written between one of the famous artists and the president at the time (Herbert Hoover, for example). A good wiki tool to use is PBWorks, reviewed here.
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Prohibition and Temperance - OSU Department of History
Grades
9 to 12tag(s): 1920s (7), 1930s (20), drugs and alcohol (27)
In the Classroom
This site is best used as a supplementary set of resources for further exploration. Teachers might use some of the contemporary illustrations or narratives to expand understanding, or students working on an independent project might find the resources helpful. You could use TrackStar, reviewed here, to design a brief web scavenger hunt within the site to engage students and introduce the topic in a new way.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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What Are We Fighting For Over There? - Library of Congress
Grades
10 to 12tag(s): 1900s (73), foreign policy (12), world war 1 (72)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of this free lesson plan in your classroom during a unit on WWI - the documents are all very revealing and an excellent example for students of reliable primary sources.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Bound for Glory: America in Color - Library of Congress
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): 1930s (20), 1940s (14), great depression (28), images (262), photography (126)
In the Classroom
It's interesting how viewing the images in color makes the viewer feel as though the Great Depression was something far more recent - perhaps due to the dated feeling of black and white images. In a discussion of the Great Depression, spend some time comparing these images and the traditional black and white images on an interactive whiteboard or projector. Ask students about the differences and if one is more revealing or not. This can also lead into a discussion on the reliability of primary sources and the effects of seeing something rather than reading it.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Newspaper Pictorials: WWI Rotogravures - Library of Congress
Grades
8 to 12tag(s): 1900s (73), 20th century (59), images (262), photography (126), world war 1 (72)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the images on this site to supplement text in an ESL classroom. Include the images in your classroom and presentations to give students a visual concept to grasp on to while learning the terms and concepts of WWI.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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White House Historical Association
Grades
1 to 12tag(s): 1800s (72), 1900s (73), presidents (121), virtual field trips (79), white house (15)
In the Classroom
Use this site to provide background information for a unit on 19th and 20th century American history, to form the basis of a lesson or unit on the American presidency, or as a stand-alone enrichment activity for your history classroom. Lesson plans in printable PDF formats are available for all grade levelsAdd your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Picturing Modern America 1880-1920 - Educational Development Center, Inc.
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): 1900s (73), 1920s (15), history day (40), immigration (64), industrialization (11), womens suffrage (44), world war 1 (72)
In the Classroom
Use this site as an in class activity for various units in your classroom, including the early 1900's, immigration, the roaring 20's, etc. Have students complete their investigations in pairs, having a class competition to see who can get the most right! A very fun way to review and encourage critical thinking skills.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Wright Brothers Aeroplane Company
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): 1800s (72), 1900s (73), aviation (38), flight (31), wright brothers (15)
In the Classroom
Share this site on an interactive whiteboard or projector as an introduction to a lesson on the Wright Brothers and their impact on flight. Then have students explore this site independently or in small groups. Assign each group a "wing" or subsection to read and research with the intent being for them to present their findings to their peers. Enhance learning by having students create a multimedia presentation using PowerPoint Online, reviewed here. This site allows you to narrate a picture. Challenge students to find a photo (legally permitted to be reproduced), and then narrate the photo as if it is a news report that their classmates know virtually nothing about. To find Creative Commons images for student projects (with credit, of course), try Pikwizard, reviewed here. This makes the most sense if the reports and presented chronologically so students can piece together the history of the Wright brothers.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Charles Lindbergh
Grades
8 to 12In the Classroom
Open this site on the interactive whiteboard or projector and use it to introduce a lesson on the history of flight. Play the video clips for students before or after a lecture, depending on whether or not you want to preview or re-enforce the information. You will need RealPlayer or Microsoft Media Player to view the video clips.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Perilous Fight - World War II in Color - PBS
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): 1900s (73), 1940s (14), world war 2 (149)
In the Classroom
Save this site on classroom computers and use it as a learning center or station. Some of the content does have sound, so make sure to include headphones for student use. This site does have a lot of information, and would perfectly be utilized during a unit on WWII or on the evolution of aircrafts in general. Tech-geeks will love this one!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Lost Labor
Grades
6 to 12In the Classroom
Use the images on this site to create a "picture walk" in your classroom, introducing the topic of manual labor before the technological revolution after WWII. Select 10-15 of the more powerful and diverse images, hanging them up in different locations around your classroom. Have students rotate around the classroom every 30-45 seconds, jotting down what they observe and infer about each image until the entire class has completed the circuit. After the class is back in their seats, have small groups of students compare their observations and what it says about life during pre-modern technology. Then enter the group observations on Padlet, reviewed here. This is a great way to get students thinking about the content in a way that's more personal and lecture-less!Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow - PBS
Grades
6 to 12tag(s): 1900s (73), africa (137), african american (110), civil rights (194), segregation (18)
In the Classroom
True to its claim, this is an educator's site; it contains lesson plans, simulations, narratives, and picture galleries and more. The site may be useful for both American History and American Literature classes.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Digital Moving Images Collection - Early Motion Pictures - Library of Congress
Grades
7 to 12In the Classroom
Use this site as an anticipatory set or "activator" to introduce a unit or lesson on a projector. Because the clips are long, make sure to preview them to help decide whether to play the whole thing or just portions. This videos would be great to use during a study of Edison, or even the content covered in the videos. It could lead to a very interesting conversation as to the value of videos as resources, and what criteria we should judge them by.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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