International Polar Bear Day

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February 27 is International Polar Bear Day. This day offers an opportunity to pay attention to polar bears and the dangers they face due to climate warming. It is also an excellent way to engage students with real-world connections to animals, climate, environment, habitats, and more.  One way to engage students in learning is by … read more »


Get Involved In Digital Learning Day!

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 This year Digital Learning Day takes place on February 27! According to the Alliance for Excellent Education, “Digital Learning Day was started as a way to actively spread innovative practices and ensure that all youth have access to high-quality digital learning no matter where they live.” They define digital learning as “any instructional practice … read more »


Let’s Talk About: African Americans and the Vote

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Each year the Association for the Study of African American History (ASALH) announces a theme for Black History Month. The theme serves as a spotlight for historical issues and developments that are important for race relations in America.  ASALH encourages those with interest in black history to use the month of February as a time … read more »


African American History, Not Just for February!

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 African American history is celebrated every year during February. Why not all year long? African American history has existed as long as America. If you are looking to add more African American History in your classroom, there are a multitude of resources available. No matter whether you are looking for general African American history … read more »


Enhance Your Social Studies Curriculum with Podcasts

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“Social studies is like the lima beans on the curricular plate of the elementary student’s day”  Paul Fitchett Wow! Just think about the above quote and how depressing that sounds. It came from an article on the Hechinger Report website titled “How social studies can help young kids make sense of the world.” The article … read more »


Tech Tool of the Month: Mission US Part 2

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In Part 1 of this blog, you were introduced to Mission US. This free tool transports students to transitional times in US history and immerses students in historical settings. Students get to make decisions as the fictional characters. Yesterday we shared an overview of the tool. At the time of this post, there were five … read more »


Tech Tool of the Month: Mission US Part 1

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Mission US is a collection of free interactive games to engage students in learning US History. This tool was created for upper elementary and middle school students to learn about transitional times in US history. The missions immerse students in historical settings and empower students to make choices about how everyday people lived in the … read more »


Data, Charts, and Graphs Oh My!

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Keen-eyed TeachersFirst users have probably noticed a few changes on the site during the past few months. Take a look at our Special Topics pages to find several new additions, including Resources for Storage, Classroom Management Resources, Tools to Create Media, and more. TeachersFirst Edge (tools for creating) includes new categories to make searching easier … read more »


Celebrate African American History Month!

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 African American History Month began when Carter G. Woodson created Negro History Week in 1926.  It is always celebrated in February. According to the Library of Congress, it “celebrates the contributions that African Americans have made to American history in their struggles for freedom and equality and deepens our understanding of our Nation’s history.” … read more »