American Memory Project Learning Page

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• Learn more about American history, arts, critical thinking, culture, higher-order thinking, information literacy, language arts, lesson plans, literature, media literacy, photography, professional development, research skills, and visual literacy.

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The Learning Page will help any educator use the American Memory web site to teach about United States history and culture. It provides tips and tricks for using the American Memory collections, frameworks, activities, and lessons that provide context for their use.

The Lesson Plans are a treasure trove of teaching ideas for all grade levels. If you don’t see just what you need, the Lesson Framework includes key questions and considerations for designing your own activities that include primary historical materials. Lessons can be enhanced with web-based content available by browsing the annotated list of Internet Resources. There are also collection-specific Reading Recommendations.

There are self-study materials for teachers who want to broaden their understanding of teaching history. Begin with the materials that focus on how to approach Primary Sources and you will get a general teacher overview, as well as general introductory lessons applicable to any primary source. Some of the Online Workshops would be appropriate for secondary students to try. The Media Analysis Tools can help the teacher or student researcher to look critically at materials in many formats, not just documents — tips for using oral histories, photographs and actual objects or artifacts are also part of this guide.