 |
 |
"Do
not go where the path leads;
Rather, go where there is no path and leave a trail."
-Emerson
|
|
"Do
not go where the path leads;
Rather, go where there is no path and leave a trail."
-Emerson
|
Celebrate
America! presented
by |
I am pleased to announce that my Innovative Teaching web site was this week recognized as one of the top 5 Educator's Best Bets on the Web! You can view the award on my site at http://surfaquarium.com/it.htm and check out USA Today's Education page at http://www.usatoday.com/educate/home.htm.
British Leave Boston, 1776 - http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Ranch/9198/revwar/dorchest.htm
The British had occupied Boston in the hopes of breaking sentiment for a revolution before it ever spread. But the occupation became marked with a string of events which enflamed support for a revolt. By the time George Washington arrived as newly appointed General of the Continental Army, it was clear his first order of business was to free Boston from British occupation. Knowing he couldn't dislodge the powerful British Navy from Boston Harbor using sheer force, Washington asked Henry Knox to bring 80 cannon from captured Fort Ticonderoga in upstate New York to Boston. But cannon were extremely heavy and the Continentals did not have enough carriages to transport them, so Knox ingeniously put the cannon on sleds and carried them over the snow. Upon arrival in Boston, the cannon were placed on Dorchester Heights aimed directly at the British fleet. The tactic tricked the British into leaving. What was the trick? When negotiating the safe departure of the British vessels, Washington failed to mention to the enemy that he had no ammunition with which to shoot his cannon!
Other Links:
British Evacuate Boston http://www.patriotresource.com/events/bostonevac.html
The Knox Trail http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/srv/KnoxTrail/kthistory.html
George Washington Picture Gallery http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/revolution/wash-pix/gallery.htm
The Decisive Day is Come http://www.masshist.org/bh/
The Battle of Bunker Hill http://www.greeceny.com/arm/welch/bunker.htm
Two Accounts of the Boston Massacre http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/D/1751-1775/bostonmassacre/prest.htm
Boston Tea Party http://www.bostonteapartyship.com/Activities.htm
The Midnight Rider Virtual Museum http://www.cvesd.k12.ca.us/finney/paulvm/foyer.html
Lesson Idea: http://ericir.syr.edu/cgi-bin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/Lessons/Social_Studies/US_History/USH0213.html
Washington Crosses the Delaware, 1776 - http://users.rcn.com/gvalis/ggv/battles/Trenton.html
By Christmas 1776 the morale of Washington's troops had never been lower. Many enlistments were up with the new year and there was little hope they would stay to fight having endured successive hard winters and an inability to defeat the British in battle. Washington desperately needed a confrontation that would deliver a victory. So on Christmas night he and his troops quietly crossed the Delaware River from Pennsylvania into New Jersey, where they marched several miles and arrived at dawn to surprise the Hessian troops occupying Trenton. The Americans finally had a victory, and within a few days they marched onto Princeton and won there as well. Now Washington had motivation for his men to re-enlist!
Other Links:
Washington Crossing the Delaware Poem - http://www.nvcc.vccs.edu/home/preed/washXdel.htm
Washington's Letter Describing the Victory http://americanrevolution.org/delxing.html
Old Barrack's Museum http://www.barracks.org/
The Battle of Princeton - http://library.thinkquest.org/10966/data/prince.shtml
Valley Forge http://www.ushistory.org/valleyforge/
Liberty's Kids http://pbskids.org/libertyskids/
Loyalty or Liberty http://www.history.org/History/teaching/revolution/a1.html
The Flames of Rebellion http://library.thinkquest.org/10966/data/flames.shtml
Lesson Idea: http://www.somsd.k12.nj.us/~ettc/HotandCold.htm
Victory at Yorktown, 1781 - http://members.aol.com/spursfan50/davidallen/yorktown.htm
Having given up on victory in the northern and middle colonies, the British turned their sites to the southern colonies. By conquering the south, they reasoned, they could replenish supplies and slowly work their way back north to win the war. The colonists continued to fight and run through the Carolinas and the British could not easily adapt to these guerilla tactics. By the Battle of Guilford Courthouse General Cornwallis had to burn most of his supplies in order to try and speed up and pursue his American antagonists. He finally gave up and entered Virginia in the hopes of resupplying his troops and continuing the campaign. Unfortunately for the British, General Washington was notified of the situation and he raced from Rhode Island to engage Cornwallis at Yorktown while the French fleet sailed in from the West Indies to cut them off from escape. Independence was finally won!
Other Links:
Guilford Courthouse http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Bunker/8757/guilford.html
Yorktown is Won! http://www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/chronicle/episode5.html
The Battle of Yorktown http://virtualwarmuseum.com/revolutionarywarhall/BATTLEOFYORKTOWN.COM/
Yorktown Map http://earlyamerica.com/earlyamerica/maps/yorkmap/
Yorktown http://www.williamsburg.com/york/york.html
Uniforms of the American Revolution http://www.walika.com/sr/uniforms/uindex.htm
The Letter of Surrender from General Cornwallis http://researchsmp2.cc.vt.edu/cs4624/RevWar/War/Surr.html
Treaty of Paris http://www.earlyamerica.com/earlyamerica/milestones/paris/
Lesson Idea: http://www.glencoe.com/qe/qe36.php?st=211&pt=2&bk=12 (answer key can be found at http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/ushistory/tar12003/content.php4/211/5)
Star Spangled Banner, 1814 - http://www.si.edu/resource/faq/nmah/starflag.htm
In the War of 1812 the British once again attempted to impress its will on America. Forty years after losing the Revolutionary War, they marched into Washington, DC to burn it to the ground. The British Navy had also sacked Alexandria and were planning an attack on Baltimore by sailing straight down the Patapsco River. As the British fleet assembled off Baltimore's north point, Francis Scott Key and John Skinner approached them to request the release of their friend Dr. William Beanes. Since the attack was imminent, the men were detained on the ship Surprise until the battle was over so that they could not warn the citizens of Baltimore. The next morning at the conclusion of the bombardment, Key was able to see the American flag raised over Fort McHenry and he realized the British had not succeeded. Key wrote his experience viewing the attack in a poem and later shared it with family and friends. Eventually the words were set to music and it became our National Anthem in 1931!
Other Links:
Star-Spangled Banner Site http://americanhistory.si.edu/ssb/
Star Spangled Banner Sheet Music http://lcweb.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/trm065.html
Music of the Star Spangled Banner http://web8.si.edu/nmah/htdocs/ssb-old/6_thestory/6b_osay/main6b2.html
Francis Scott Key http://www.nps.gov/fomc/tguide/Lesson9a.htm
The Star Spangled Banner Flag House http://www.flaghouse.org/
Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine http://www.bcpl.net/~etowner/patriots.html
The War of 1812 http://www.mce.k12tn.net/nation_grows/lesson_6.htm
The Flag of the United States http://www.usflag.org/toc.html
Lesson Idea: http://www.learnersonline.com/weekly/archive2001/week30/
Remember the Alamo, 1836 - http://tqjunior.thinkquest.org/3548/index.html
Through the 1820s Americans had been settling in the Mexican territory known as Texas. The Mexican government wanted this migration to stop. By the 1830s General Antonio de Santa Anna led a full campaign to ensure that Texas would remain part of Mexico. Santa Anna lay siege to a fort in present day San Antonio (then known as Bexar) as part of that campaign. He had 5,000 Mexican troops with him; inside the fort were approximately 150 Americans who twice fought off attacks by the Mexican Army. Legend states that as the third attack was imminent, Commander William Travis drew a line in the sand and asked everyone who was willing to die with him in defense of the fort to cross the line. All but one man did so, and the ensuing defense of this small fort became so heroic that to this day the entire siege is known as the "13 days of glory." While the battle only lasted half an hour, it was the defining event that created support among American citizens to protect settlers living in Texas. Six weeks later at the Battle of San Jacinto, 783 Texans led by General Sam Houston defeated 1,500 Mexicans in 18 minutes time fighting to the battle cry "Remember the Alamo!"
Other Links:
Alamo Timeline http://www.drtl.org/History/index.asp
Five Hours that Changed History http://hotx.com/alamo/
The Battle of the Alamo http://pages.zdnet.com/omyshoes/Flash/id4.html
Battle of the Alamo from Survivor's Lips http://alamo-de-parras.welkin.org/archives/newsarch/bledsoe.html
Alamo History http://www.drtl.org/History/index.asp
Alamo Official Site http://thealamo.org/
Davy Crockett http://www.lsjunction.com/people2/crockett.htm
Jim Bowie http://www.lsjunction.com/people/bowie.htm
Lesson Idea: http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/tools/lessonplans/grade4/defenders/defenders.html
Gettysburg, 1863 - http://www.ibiscom.com/gtburg.htm
By the midpoint of the Civil War, Confederate Commander Lee planned to defend his homeland by invading the north in Pennsylvania. Lee reasoned that if he could set up a stronghold there he could then begin to plan an attack on the Union capital city of Washington. Because of the number of roads which all converged in Gettysburg, Union Commander George Mead decided to stop Lee there. The battle lasted for three days and was a resounding Union victory. Still, Lee was allowed to retreat back into Virginia where he could regroup and fight for another two years. A cemetery was consecrated in Gettysburg to pay tribute to all the men who died there that hot first week of July. Lincoln actually wrote his remarks on the back of an envelope, 266 words in all, while riding the train to the ceremony. Other noteworthy orators spoke before Lincoln, and it was several hours into the ceremony before he stood to make his brief speech. Yet it is these remarks that are still remembered one-hundred and forty years later. They have become known as his Gettysburg Address.
Other Links:
Three Days at Gettysburg http://www.rockingham.k12.va.us/EMS/Gettysburg/Gettysburg.html
Camp Life http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/gettex/
Battle of Gettysburg Days 1 - 3 http://www.us-civilwar.com/gettysburg.htm
Gettysburg National Military Park's Civil War Page For Kids! http://www.nps.gov/gett/gettkidz/kidzindex.htm
Gettysburg Battlefield Online http://www.gettysburgbattlefieldonline.com/
The Gettysburg Battlefield Preservation Association http://www.gbpa.org/
The Gettysburg Address Drafts http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/gadd/gadrft.html
The Gettysburg Address http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/gettyb.htm
Lesson Idea: http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/00-2/lp2006.shtml
The Charge Up San Juan Hill, 1898 - http://www.spanamwar.com/Sanjuantr.htm
Teddy Roosevelt was colonel in the 1st United States Volunteer Infantry (known as the Rough Riders) during the Spanish-American War. Roosevelt was a fearless leader who expected no less from his men. American troops were trying to dig earthen shelters at the bottom of San Juan hill to protect themselves from enemy gunfire when Roosevelt arrived with his men. He led them on horseback up the hill under heavy fire, until he reached the last line of enemy barbed wire where he dismounted and with pistol in hand proceeded to the top of the hill with his company following. The Spanish troops quickly evacuated their positions and the Americans took control of this strategic point.
Other Links:
The World of 1898 http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/hispanic/1898/
The Crowded Hour http://www.homeofheroes.com/wallofhonor/spanish_am/11_crowdedhour.html
Almanac of Theodore Roosevelt http://www.theodore-roosevelt.com/trrr.html
The Spanish-American War http://www.smplanet.com/imperialism/splendid.html
Crucible of Empire http://www.pbs.org/crucible/
Theodore Roosevelt Association http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/
Recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize http://www.nobel.se/peace/laureates/1906/roosevelt-bio.html
Icon of the Twentieth Century http://www.npg.si.edu/exh/roosevelt/index.htm
Lesson Idea: http://www.americanwriters.org/classroom/videolesson/vlp22_roosevelt.asp
Unknown Soldier Comes Home, 1921 - http://www.ibiscom.com/unknown.htm
Following the example of other countries at the conclusion of World War I, the United States established a tomb in Arlington National Cemetery to honor an unknown fallen American soldier. Four unidentified solders were selected from the battlefields of Europe and from those four one was randomly selected in a formal ceremony to be the first American buried in this tomb, representing all of the unknown American war dead from that terrible conflict. Since that time, America has honored all its fallen heroes by adding an unknown soldier from each war in which it has been involved. A visit to Arlington national Cemetery is never complete without a visit to the tomb to see the changing of the guard. Just a few yards away from the tomb is the eternal flame of President Kennedy's gravesite; another of our honored slain American heroes memorialized at Arlington.
Other Links:
Arlington National Cemetery Slide Show http://digitalpeace.org/photographs/arlington/Arlington_national_cemetery.htm
Arlington National Cemetery http://www.arlingtoncemetery.com/tombofun.htm
Unknown Soldier http://www.homeofheroes.com/moh/memory/unknowns.html
Forensic Biology at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier http://www.bxscience.edu/publications/forensicbio/specialevents/washington/f-wash02.htm
Society of the Honor Guard Tomb of the Unknown Soldier http://www.tombguard.org/site.html
World War I http://www.worldwar1.com/
John F. Kennedy Grave http://www.arlingtoncemetery.com/jfk.htm
Former 'Unknown soldier' Heads Home for Funeral http://www.cnn.com/US/9807/10/blassie/
Lesson Idea: http://webcenter.netscape.teachervision.com/lesson-plans/lesson-3199.html
New Deal, 1933 - http://www.bergen.org/AAST/Projects/depression/
Following the bubbling optimism of the 1920s and the horrible crash of the American markets, Franklin Roosevelt came into office in 1932 charged with the awesome task of restructuring and rebuilding the nation's economy. His proposal was termed the 'New Deal' because it was pitched as the opportunity for all Americans to rise above the depression and have a new chance to prosper. Key to Roosevelt's success would be his charismatic personality, which he made the most of through the new medium of radio. Roosevelt would broadcast 'Fireside Chats' in which he would speak confidently and warmly that there was "nothing to fear but fear itself." Americans would gather around their radios to hear his message and gain courage that a new era of success was coming for America. By the end of Roosevelt's tenure in office (four terms) the economy was once again robust and America had regained its economic strength.
Other Links:
FDIC Learning Bank: The 1930s http://www.fdic.gov/about/learn/learning/when/1930s.html
The New Deal Network http://newdeal.feri.org/
Photographs of the Great Depression and the New Deal http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/gdphotos.html
By the People, For the People: Posters from the WPA http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/wpaposters/wpahome.html
FDR Audio Clips http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/audio.html
FDR Cartoon Archive http://www.nisk.k12.ny.us/fdr/
Dear Mrs. Roosevelt http://newdeal.feri.org/eleanor/index.htm
The Depression News: The 1930s http://www.sos.state.mi.us/history/museum/explore/museums/hismus/1900-75/depressn/labnews2.html
Lesson Idea: http://edsitement.neh.gov/view_lesson_plan.asp?ID=304
Raising the Flag Over Iwo Jima, 1945 - http://www.ibiscom.com/iwoflag.htm
Only 700 miles south of Tokyo, Iwo Jima was a significant battle for the United States in World War II. It was D-Day, and while General Eisenhower prepared for allied forces to land on the beaches of western Europe, American troops invaded Iwo Jima in the Pacific. It was the job of the 5th division of Marines to surround Mount Suribachi and take control of it, because that's where most of the heavy gunfire seemed to be coming from. Of the 40 men who took the mountain, 36 were killed. More Medals of Honor were awarded at Iwo Jima than any other battle in United States history. And the image of those brave soldiers finally hoisting the flag at the summit of Mount Suribachi has become one of the great symbols of bravery and courage in our nation's history.
Other Links:
Iwo Jima the Full Story http://www.weathersdesign.com/iwojima.htm
Iwo Jima http://www.iwojima.com/iwojima/
Oral History- Iwo Jima Flag Raising http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq87-3l.htm
The Flag Raisers http://www.iwojima.com/raising/raisingc.htm
Iwo Jima Memorial http://arlingtoncounty.com/iwo_jima.htm
Powers of Persuasion http://www.archives.gov/exhibit_hall/powers_of_persuasion/powers_of_persuasion_home.html
What Did You Do in the War Grandma? http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/WWII_Women/tocCS.html
World War II Timeline http://history.acusd.edu/gen/WW2Timeline/start.html
Lesson Idea: World War II: An American Scrapbook http://tqjunior.thinkquest.org/4616/
Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962 - http://library.thinkquest.org/11046/
On October 22, 1962, President Kennedy informed the nation that American intelligence had detected Soviet missiles in place in Cuba, endangering American soil. He announced that in order to force the Soviet Union to remove the missiles, he had ordered a blockade of the entire island nation of Cuba. For the next week Americans, and indeed the entire world, watched nervously as the Soviet Navy sailed towards Cuba to break the blockade and enforce the will of Premier Kruschev. All eyes were on the young American President as his Soviet counterpart called his bluff. If the two Navies were joined in battle it would surely be the beginning of a third world war. Kennedy stood his ground, knowing that a the result could be a full-scale nuclear war. Finally on October 28th the Soviet Navy turned back and war was averted. The missiles were removed in exchange for American promises not to invade Cuba and to dismantle NATO missiles in Turkey.
Other Links:
The Real Thirteen Days http://www.gwu.edu/%7Ensarchiv/nsa/cuba_mis_cri/index.html
Document Archive of Declassified Files from the Cuban Missile Crisis http://www.nsa.gov/docs/Cuba/archive.htm
Cold War Missile Crisis http://www.pwc.k12.nf.ca/coldwar/plain/cuba.html
Real Audio Files from the Cuban Missile Crisis http://www.hpol.org/jfk/cuban/
Kennedy's Cuban Missile Crisis Speech http://www.historychannel.com/cgi-bin/frameit.cgi?p=http%3A//www.historychannel.com/speeches/archive/speech_162.html
Kennedy outlines the U.S. response to the Cuban Missile Crisis http://www.lib.msu.edu/vincent/presidents/jfk.htm
Navy Participation in the Cuban Missile Crisis http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq90-1.htm
Collective Memories of the Cuban Missile Crisis http://www.stg.brown.edu/projects/projects.old/classes/mc166k/missile_crisis_34.html
Lesson Idea: http://score.rims.k12.ca.us/activity/tobeornot/
First Man on the Moon, 1969 - http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/apollo11/
Ever since the Soviet Union had launched the first satellite Sputnik, Americans had felt they were in a race competing against their cold war adversary for the dominant space program on Earth. As John F. Kennedy became President, this was so much on his mind that he included a goal to land a man on the moon by the end of the 1960s in his inaugural address. Nine years later Apollo 11 orbited the moon as Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin flew a lunar module down to the moon's surface. In the middle of the night, millions of Americans climbed out of bed and clamored around television sets in their pajamas to watch the first moonwalk, view the American flag on the lunar surface, and hear those immortal words "one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Americans finally felt they had overcome the Soviet Union in the Space Race, and the world moved that much farther ahead in its exploration of space.
Other Links:
The Race to the Moon http://www.time.com/time/reports/space/spacerace.html
Challenging the Space Frontier http://teacher.scholastic.com/space/apollo11/index.htm
Man on the Moon http://www.northnet.com.au/~amcgann/website/Man_on_the_Moon.htm
A Giant Leap for Mankind http://www.life.com/Life/space/giantleap/index.html
Where Were You When..... http://www.boeing.com/news/feature/apollo11/where.html
Apollo Online http://www.nasm.edu/apollo30th/a11online.htm
Apollo 11 Lunar Surface Journal http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11main.html
Sputnik and The Dawn of the Space Age http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/sputnik/
Lesson Idea: http://www.cincinnati.com/nie/archive/07-20-99/Find More Great Resources at
Next week's topic: "Projects 2002"
Click here for rich text format (printer friendly) version of this issue
You can email URL's of high quality sites which may be of interest to our readers as well as new topic ideas and input and feedback!
Subscribe innovative-teaching-subscribe@yahoogroups.com Unsubscribe innovative-teaching-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
This newsletter may be forwarded or copied provided the header and signature information remain intact. Show a colleague what you have found in Innovative Teaching!
©2002 Walter McKenzie
