Social Studies

American and World History       

Rich source of links to multiple subjects including history, cultural studies, government, and social issues; homework helper in online chat room http://www.multcolib.org/homework/

HyperHistory Online (Gr. 4-12) graphical presentation in timelines, maps of people and historical events; excellent links http://www.hyperhistory.com/    click on "HyperHistory Online"

Library of Congress: American Memory   Browse over 100 collections by topic; teachers "Learning Page" with useful  lesson plans & professional development                             http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/

http://thomas.loc.gov/   An incredible wealth of resources from the Library of Congress; a selection of documents, presentations, notable Americans, explore American culture, facts galore!

National Archives & Records Administration:  sources for teaching with documents & conducting historical research   www.archives.gov      click on "Educators and Students"

National Geographic's Geography Action; student-created "sound portraits" of towns across America will illustrate a community's culture and geography    www.nationalgeographic.com/geographyaction

National Park Service: Links to the Past    Excellent links to people, places and events     http://www.cr.nps.gov

Riding the Rails: PBS's "American Experience" companion; during the Great Depression more than 250,000 teenagers became hobos, living on the railroad lines; includes timeline, map, teacher's guide, true stories  www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rails

Surviving the Dust Bowl: personal stories, New Deal initiative, timeline & map, images  www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/dustbowl

Then & Now: Michigan Historical Center has created a fabulous site for kids that includes historical & cultural information presented in an imformative & entertaining format; check out the "Then & Now" worksheet that compares expenses and wages from the 1930s to current prices & wages http://www.michigan.gov/hal/0,1607,7-160-15481_19268_20778---,00.html

Cultural Links      

Earth Calendar (Gr. 4 and up) Official national web links; an excellent cultural reference tool  http://www.earthcalendar.net

http://www.frbsf.org/currency/ Federal Reserve Bank of San Fransisco; virtual tour of currency by era; interesting and fun facts about money, money, and more money!

Gathering of Nations: largest powwow of its kind; sections on history and spiritual meaning; photo gallery   http://www.gatheringofnations.com/front.htm

It's International (Gr. 4-12) first-hand accounts of celebrations throughout the world; folktales;  photos  http://www.topics-mag.com/internatl/center.htm

Labor Studies Online: curriculum materials and resources (K-12) on almost every subject area; includes biographical studies and contemporary issues in labor  www.labor-studies.org

Nationmaster:  a collection of geographical, census and other data to view a detailed portrait of the world  www.nationmaster.com/index.ph

National Geographic: awesome interactive activities  www.nationalgeographic.com/features/index.html

United States Mint Education Initiative: offers free cross-curricular resources for teachers & parent for using coins as a teaching vehicle; lessons are aligned with standards.   www.usmint.gov/kids

White House: the president & first lady, vice president, issues & news(daily updates), history, tours; the "kids" link has games & activities, pets & more   www.whitehouse.gov

World's Fair Society (1904): learn about life 100 years ago; photos, articles, original newspaper articles, map, facts & trivia   www.1904worldsfairsociety.org

U.S. Maps           

Color Landform Atlas of the United States: (Gr. 4-12) topographic, relief, satellite, historical & other cartographic resources    fermi.jhuapl.edu/states/states.html

Nationalatlas.gov: animated, multimedia maps produced by the U.S. Dept. of the Interior  www.nationalatlas.gov

Topozone: (Gr. 4-12) interactive topographic maps with easy navigation & search capabilities, created in conjunction with U.S. Geological Survey  http://www.topozone.com/ 

World Maps

Infoplease: (Gr. 4-8) Maps that link to useful information about geographical locations and resources   www.infoplease.com/atlas/index.html

Map Library: 80,000 maps! city layouts, physical, thematic & political maps, etc. www.un.org/depts/dhl/maplib/maplib.htm

National Geographic Expeditions: dynamic maps created using GIS technology; interactive Xpedition Hall; links to grade-level lesson plans. www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions

Specialized Maps

Earth & Moon Viewer: digital satellite imagery   www.fourmilab.ch/earthview