Hist 813, September 9, 2005

Wow I am having a hard time cutting down my teaching and learning project. There are so many resources out there that it makes it hard. Today I was looking ar NARA and at the Library of Congress. They have digitized so much that almost any document could become available. I am leaning toward Nixon and the Watergate scandal. Tying it to this was a key point that many Americans began not trusting the government as much. But they I also like the unfair hiring practices documents that I found this summer while researching at the Kansas City branch of NARA.

Chapter 3-Miner book "How the Iron Must Burn"

In this chapter I learned a lot about the railroad system. My father was a mechanic for the Katy RR for 35 years so I have always had trains around me. The rise of the rail has always been a great subject to teach. I use it alot when I discuss the rise of Kansas towns and how they were chosen to be a stop along the route. Also, we compare why Kansas City continued to grow as a RR town and how Abiline and Dodge City do not grow in a comparable manner. I am in the process of gathering some Primary Sources to go along with the early rail road information I have gathered in this chapter.

Chapter 2- Miner book "Trampling out the Vintage"

This chapter dealt a great deal with the question of free or slave state. I have always shown my American History classes that it was not simply that Kansas wanted to be a free state. The Miner book enforced the fact that the decision was political. The fact that both Democrats and Republicans were trying their best to make sure the vote went their way. This is a fun concept to teach. You could go and teach this in government and show how the political process has changed or even how it hasn't changed that much. There were some good examples that I have already shared with my classes.

September 7, 2005

Hello all. I am a little in posting my blogs because I just am. I don't like excuses from my students so I will not make any now. I am Julie Dunham and I teach at Independence High School. I currently teach American and World History and coach Debate and Forensics. I have been using primary sources since I began teaching three years ago. I am involved in two grants at this time eHIKES and Project Primary Sources. Both programs have allowed me the knowledge to know where to go to find information to make history more relevant to my students.