Classroom Resources Infographic: Reform Movements of the Progressive Era Economics, Government and Civics, Science, Technology, Engineering and Math 9, 10, 11, 12 View this infographic as a PDF.
Classroom Resources Historical Context: American Slavery in Comparative Perspective Economics, World History 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+ Of the ten to sixteen million Africans who survived the voyage to the New World, more than one-third landed in Brazil and between 60 and 70 percent ended up in Brazil or the sugar colonies of the Caribbean. Only 6 percent arrived in...
Classroom Resources Historical Context: "Birth of a Nation" Art, Geography, Government and Civics, Literature 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+ In 1915, fifty years after the end of the Civil War, D. W. Griffith released his epic film Birth of a Nation . The greatest blockbuster of the silent era, Birth of a Nation was seen by an estimated 200 million Americans by 1946. Based...
Classroom Resources Historical Context: Life on the Trail 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+ Each spring, pioneers gathered at Independence and St. Joseph, Missouri, and Council Bluffs, Iowa, to begin a 2,000 mile journey westward. For many families, the great spur for emigration was economic: the financial depression of the...
Classroom Resources Historical Context: Mexican Americans and the Great Depression Economics 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+ In February 1930 in San Antonio, Texas, 5000 Mexicans and Mexican Americans gathered at the city’s railroad station to depart the United States for settlement in Mexico. In August, a special train carried another 2000 to central...
Classroom Resources Historical Context: Movies and Migration Art 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 Many of our most memorable images of the past come from movies. Films set in the past provide a vivid record of history: of the "look," the clothing, the atmosphere, and the mood of past eras. Nevertheless, movies remain a...
Classroom Resources Historical Context: Post-World War I Labor Tensions Economics 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+ The years following the end of World War I were a period of deep social tensions, aggrevated by high wartime inflation. Food prices more than doubled between 1915 and 1920; clothing costs more than tripled. A steel strike that began...
Classroom Resources Historical Context: The Confederacy Begins to Collapse Economics, Government and Civics 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+ By early 1863, the Civil War had begun to cause severe hardship on the southern home front. Not only was most of the fighting taking place in the South, but also as the Union blockade grew more effective and the South's railroad...
Classroom Resources Historical Context: The Economics of Slavery 9, 10, 11, 12, 13+ Like other slave societies, the South did not produce urban centers on a scale equal with those in the North. Virginia's largest city, Richmond, had a population of just 15,274 in 1850. That same year, Wilmington, North Carolina's...
Classroom Resources Historical Context: The First National Census Economics, Geography, Government and Civics 6, 7, 8 Early in August 1790, David Howe, an assistant federal marshal, began the difficult task of counting all the people who lived in Hancock County, Maine. One of 650 federal census takers, charged with making "a...perfect enumeration.....