15-Bring+History+to+Life+through+Primary+sources+and+Historical+Fiction

**Session 2: Navigation Tips**
Facilitator: Karen Lampe, Instructional Print Materials Librarian, Green Valley Area Education Agency, Creston, Iowa

What is the URL?
The URL for the Library of Congress website is [].

**What is the best way for a new user to access these resources?**
I would first suggest clicking on Teachers on the left side of the page. Then click on the See All Lesson Plans link under Lesson Plans. Then click on the Theme, Topic, Discipline or Era link. By doing this you will see the various lesson plans incorporating the American Memory resources that have already been created and classroom-tested by teachers and teacher librarians from around the country. (By the way, the other links on this page which will be helpful to you later include Using Primary Sources in the Classroom, The Historian's Sources and Media Analysis Tools. Lesson Framework gives the rationale for using primary sources, tips for selecting sources and organizing instruction, and activities to use in the instructional cycle. The Media Analysis Tools and Analysis of Primary Sources, part of The Historian's Sources, will help you teach the visual literacy part of the Iowa Core Curriculum.)

==**Then I would suggest go back to the Teachers Home and explore some of the other links: Primary Source Sets, Themed Resources, Presentations and Activities, More Classroom Materials, and See All Collection Connections. Clicking on Collection Connections will get you to the Collection Connections Index which gives you an overview of the various collections which you can access. You may also want to explore the links under Class Starters on the bottom right side of the Teachers Home page. Finally, I would go back to the home page by clicking on Library of Congress at the top left of the page or on the Library of Congress logo. Click on Chronicling America  to get to an ever-growing set of digitized newspapers. Right now selected newspapers from selected states published between 1860-1922 are completed. They are now working on 1836-1860. Now, let's go into American Memory by clicking on the American Memory  tab and Go . Once you get on this page, the search box at the top ONLY searches American Memory online collection, not the entire Library of Congress holdings. On the American Memory Home page, you can browse the collections by topic . Click on More Browse Options  to search by time period, location, or type of collection. You can also click on List All Collections . Try typing a search topic. You have a choice of list view or gallery view (pictures). Go back to the Library of Congress home page. You may want to do the following: • (For teachers of elementary students) Click on Kids, Families  and explore such things as America's Library, Portals to the World, and Everyday Mysteries. **==

==**• Just like you clicked on the tab for American Memory, click on World Digital Library (to get links to resources from around the world). I have found the Global Gateway and Portals to the World helpful. (Note the disclaimer.) Veterans History gives "first-hand accounts of veterans and people on the homefront." There are lots of other things available on the Library of Congress website, but this helps you get started. <span style="font-family: Arial,helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: normal;">"A picture is [definitely] worth a thousand words" to help students visualize actual events. The various narratives add insights into what life was like in American history. Have fun exploring a world of multiple types of resources at your fingertips!<span style="font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 19px;"> Bring history to life for and with your students! **==