Analyzing Objects
Porcelain
Musket Ball
Smallpox
Nail
Reaper
Shirtwaist
Transistor
Coffee
Record
Tire
Dishwasher
Dress
Stereograph
Stone
Shoe
Question 1:
Historical thinking is a way at looking at the past through the lens of a historian. To think historically we must try to place ourselves in a different time and/or place to understand the culture, motivations, and problems/solutions of different people.
Question 2:
Objects can encourage someone to think historically by helping them to question the purpose and the use of the object during a specific time and place.
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Module Id: 689
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Wednesday, March 25, 2020 - 17:08
Question 1: This object is small in size and course in appearance.
Question 2:
This object could be connected to the theme of evolving manners of warfare and weaponry in American history.
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Module Id: 955
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Wednesday, March 25, 2020 - 18:00
Question 1:
I notice that these nails are of varying sizes and shapes. The different shapes indicate that they are used for varying purposes.
Question 2:
These objects connect to themes of the development of homes and the introduction of the Transcontinental Railroad.
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Module Id: 953
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Tuesday, May 26, 2020 - 13:29
Question 1: I believe that this is a microscopic image of smallpox.
Question 2:
If this is an image of smallpox, it can connect to the theme of the impact of the introduction of diseases by Europeans on the indigenous people of the Americas. It can also connect to the development of medical technologies--specifically vaccinations.
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Module Id: 954
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Monday, June 8, 2020 - 18:09
Question 1:
I notice that this object is stone and weathered. Possibly a slave auction block?
Question 2:
If this stone is a slave auction block, it connects to the themes of slavery in America, colonial agricultural practices, and the Civil War.
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Module Id: 1039
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Tuesday, June 9, 2020 - 11:18
Question 1:
In notice that it was posted in the Confederate States of America and that it was marked as official business. It was addressed to a lawyer in South Carolina.
Question 2:
This letter could connect to the secession of the southern states to form the Confederate States of American and to the Civil War.
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Module Id: 1021
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Wednesday, June 17, 2020 - 21:38
Question 1: I notice that these are leather boots with laces.
Question 2:
The shoes can connect to the broader themes of the working class and the need for sturdy footwear.
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Module Id: 1002
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Tuesday, July 7, 2020 - 15:22
Question 1:
This dress looks as though it is the early twentieth century. The sash on the woman beside the main focus makes me think that these could be suffragists.
Question 2:
This picture to connect to the broader theme of women's rights, the suffrage movement, and constitutional amendements.
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Module Id: 1075
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Tuesday, July 7, 2020 - 19:32
Question 1:
Historical thinking is a process of asking questions, analyzing primary and secondary sources, and interpreting objects and documents to understand the perspectives and motivations of people throughout history.
Question 2:
We can use objects to encourage historical thinking because the objects helps students to connect seemingly ordinary objects to significant historical moments. A simple chair in a painting can tell an observer about the status of a family and what that family found important enough to be highlighted in a portrait. Objects helps students to understand a time period and the people of that time.
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Module Id: 689
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Wednesday, March 25, 2020 - 17:47
Question 1:
The musket ball can connect discussions on weaponry, military tactics, and the use of organized armies in the 18th century.
Question 2: Diaries, Letters, uniform metals (buttons, etc), weapons, uniforms, battlefields
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Module Id: 955
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Monday, March 30, 2020 - 16:31
Question 1:
The mass produced nail connects to the themes of Westward Expansion and the technology needed for he development of homes. As more people desired to move west, there was a greater need to be able to build homes quickly and less expensively than the homes that required expensive supplies (stone houses) or experienced/expensive skilled laborers (post and beam). With the development of technology that could mass-produce nails, the cost of the much needed nails decreased and modern framing of housing began. This allowed for houses to be built at a much greater rate of speed and alllowed for easier transitions for families who desired to move.
Question 2:
The story of the nail also related to the development of the Transcontinental Railroad. The railroad allowed for both job opportunities and transportation of goods and people farther west. These changes in the U.S. could not have been possible without the development of the mass-produced nail.
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Module Id: 953
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Monday, June 8, 2020 - 17:48
Question 1:
Smallpox can be connected to many broader themes in 18th century history including the contribution of smallpox on the devastation of indigineous Americans, the effects of the disease on trade and commerce (forced quarantines/limited supplies) , and notably, the advancement of medical practices with the development of innoculation and vaccinations.
Question 2:
One of the benefits of using disease as a lens through which to understand history is that we can try to understand the decisions that were made (the innoculation of Washington's troops) and how they effected history. We can also learn from these history lessons and compare what we know about results from the smallpox epidemic to our current pandemic.
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Module Id: 954
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Monday, June 8, 2020 - 20:26
Question 1:
This boundary stone connects to the Civil War, the debate between federalism and states' rights, and most obviously, the division of territories based on the slave trade. I lived in Northern Virginia most of my life and somehow never knew that Alexandria had once been part of DC and then was granted retrocession because of their dependence on the slave trade. The fact that the boundary of Washington, D.C. was changed--that our capital city was reduced by a third of its size--to maintain the slave trade in Alexandria illustrates how seriously the slave trade impacted the economy in Virginia.
Question 2:
I find it fascinating to see how boundaries changed in the U.S. over time. Students can use transparent overlays as they study U.S. history to show the boundaries and their changes as the nation grew.
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Module Id: 1039
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Wednesday, June 17, 2020 - 21:04
Question 1:
The mail connects to the themes of federal government vs. state government, the dissemination of information as the country expands, and the chasm formed between the north and the south on the issue of slavery.
Question 2:
Prior to viewing the resources in this module I had really never thought about the important role of the postmaster in the 19th century. As a part of the federal government, the post office had to uphold the Constitutional rights of the people to publish and disseminate political broadsides, but the tensions in the southern states made delivering these difficult. The political cartoon showing the division surrounding the Fugitive Slave Act really illustrates the tensions over states' rights.
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Module Id: 1021
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Friday, June 19, 2020 - 11:33
Question 1:
The shoe connects to the broader themes of the need for mass-produced items (such as shoes), the increasing role of the federal government, and the Civil War (including the institution of the draft).
Question 2:
Other sources that can be used to teach children about the changes in the relationship between citizens and government as a result of the Civil War are songs, speeches, maps, and campaign materials.
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Module Id: 1002
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Tuesday, July 7, 2020 - 16:03
Question 1:
The dress connects to the themes of the suffrage movement, constitutional amendments, women's changing roles in society, and women's rights.
Question 2:
I would want to examine letters and transcripts of speeches to better understand the women's suffrage movement. I think it would also be interesting to examine political cartoons of the time.
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Module Id: 1075
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Tuesday, July 7, 2020 - 19:48
Title: W. Payne
Grade Level: Elementary
Short Answer:
I think it us important to give students opportunities to investigate and analyze objects, primary, and secondary sources. Lessons could include investigations of an unfamiliar object (such as the candle mold) to teach students to ask questions and to hypothesize. I think it is also important to let students experience the messiness of history. For example, the conflicting evidence of the beliefs of Thomas Jefferson as laid forth in the Declaration of Independence and his advertisement for his missing slave. It is imperative that students connect with the humanity of people in history--not just the memorization of their names and important contributions.
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Module Id: 689
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Wednesday, March 25, 2020 - 17:54
Title: W. Payne
Grade Level: Elementary
Short Answer:
I would begin with a photo/drawing of a Revolutionary War battle. I would give students an opportunity the create questions about what they see in the picture. Then, we would formulate a list of class questions--what do they want to know about the picture? I would choose 5 -6 questions for the class to investigate (that correlate with the SOL focus). We would use a jigsaw cooperative group format to hypothesize the answer and then use primary and secondary sources to investigate and answer the questions They would then bring their results back to their home group.
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Module Id: 955
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Monday, March 30, 2020 - 16:50
Title: Investigation of Nails as a Springboard for Discussion
Grade Level: Elementary
Short Answer:
I would begin by having students observe and discuss different types of nails. They can brainstorm the many uses of nails and the necessity of nails in everyday conveniences. The teacher can then lead a discussion about how life would be different without nails. The students can observe and discuss pictures of housing before the age of the mass-produced nail citing the difficulties that each present. With partners, students can research the development of the railroad and the role mass-produced nails played in the westward migration in America.
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Module Id: 953
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Monday, June 8, 2020 - 17:57
Title: Smallpox
Grade Level: Middle
Short Answer:
In light of recent events, I think that it would be completely relevant to make connections between what the students know about our current pandemic and the smallpox epidemic. As a class I would make a chart of the effects of Covid-19 on American society. How did the quarantine effect your life personally? the economy? the supply and demand of goods (toilet paper!) the interaction between the people and the government (outright refusals to comply with governor orders) the medical decision-making (mask/no masks confusion and the varying treatment ideas). We could then make a chart of the effects of smallpox on colonial America--discussing many of these same questions. We would then make comparisons of the two epidemics--what were the results? How did they effect American society in the short and long run?
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Module Id: 954
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Monday, June 8, 2020 - 20:43
Title: A Country Divided
Grade Level: Elementary
Short Answer:
I believe a map study is integral to the teaching of the Civil War. So much change was occurring in our nation with the addition of new states and territories, that it is important for students to be able to visualize how our country was growing. Discussion of the map would naturally lead to an investigation of primary source documents that would show both the importance of slavery in the south and the abolitionist movement in the north and how the new territories played into the struggle for balance. I would also use a current map of D.C. and have students compare it to the original map that included Alexandria. I would have the students investigate why Alexandria is no longer part of D.C.
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Module Id: 1039
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Wednesday, June 17, 2020 - 21:13
Title: A Country Divided
Grade Level: Elementary
Short Answer:
As an ongoing classroom project, students can create an annotated timeline beginning with the Constitutional Convention and continuing through Reconstruction. As entries are added, the primary source images can be investigated and discussed to help the students gain an understanding of the deep rifts between the beliefs that the country was founded on (as written in our government's documents) and the systems of slavery that many depended on and how the rifts became a deep chasm that eventually tore the country apart.
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Module Id: 1021
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Friday, June 19, 2020 - 11:42
Title: Shoe--Classroom Connections
Grade Level: Elementary
Short Answer:
I would begin the lesson with the picture of a recruitment poster and would lead a discussion about the need for soldiers in the Union army. I would have the students make a list of items they think that a soldier would need. We would then make a chart together and discuss where these items would come from--leading the discussion to the need for mass-produced items and more government workers to oversee the fulfillment and distribution of the needed materials.
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Module Id: 1002
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Tuesday, July 7, 2020 - 16:11
Title: Suffrage Movement
Grade Level: Elementary
Short Answer:
I think it would be interesting for students to research leaders of the suffrage movement, both white and African American. They could write a research paper about their chosen person's views, their actions, and the results of their role in the movement. We could use primary and secondary sources to learn more about these women and their role in amending the constitution.
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Module Id: 1075
User Id: 1328
Submitted: Tuesday, July 7, 2020 - 19:54