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Interactive
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of American History: Within These Walls

For Students 9th - 10th
Two hundred years' worth of American history all in one house. Learn what a close examination of a single-family dwelling can tell us about what life was like during five different periods of American history: the colonial era, the...
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Primary
NPR: National Public Radio

Npr: Prairie Diaries

For Students 6th - 8th
This site from NPR is an excellent example of personal narratives from the heartland. Read and listen to excerpts from Kansans about a day in their life. What were they doing, what were they thinking, what was going on in their lives.
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Website
A&E Television

History.com: The States

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn unique facts about each American state. You can also read a more in-depth history of each state, watch videos and play a game about all the states.
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Website
Other

Tvguide.com

For Students 9th - 10th
Thorough coverage of television, news, and information about the medium that may have had the greatest impact on modern American culture.
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Lesson Plan
Discovery Education

Discovery Education: Immigration to the United States

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Great teacher resource for helping your middle schoolers learn about immigration and why people come to the United States. Help them understand the whole immigration process and why some immigrants may have complications. Includes a...
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Website
PBS

Pbs Online News Hour: Rallying for Rights

For Students 9th - 10th
April, 2006, report depicting the controversy over the stalled Congressional immigration laws. There is major disagreement over immigration in the United States. Video, audio, and text of this report are available.
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Website
Wessels Living History Farm

Living History Farm: Farming in the 1940s: Wwii Causes a Revolution in Farming

For Students 9th - 10th
Because of World War II, life changed for farmers in the 1940s. Many farmers left the farm for the cities or to serve in the military, new technologies were developed, and equipment improved making the work in fields easier and quicker.
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Website
The Newberry Library

Newberry Library and Chicago History Museum: Lincoln at 200

For Students 9th - 10th
This is resource provides information which allows users to examine key aspects of Lincoln's life and legacy, such as the circumstances of his birth, his views on slavery, and his assassination.
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Handout
Library of Congress

Loc: Performing Arts Encyclopedia: Take Me Out to the Ball Game

For Students 9th - 10th
Did you know that the song "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" is over one hundred years old? Find out why this song has enjoyed lasting popularity. Includes an image of the artwork for the sheet music of this song.
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Unit Plan
Department of Defense

Do Dea: Ap Us History: Unit 10: Understanding American History

For Students 9th - 10th
This extensive learning module looks at how themes of American history can create a better understanding of the big picture of the nation's history.
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Graphic
Digital Public Library of America

Dpla: Golden Age of Radio in the Us

For Students 9th - 10th
This exhibition explores the development, rise, and adaptation of the radio and its impact on American culture.
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Article
National Humanities Center

National Humanities Center: Teacher Serve: Catholics & the 20th Century

For Students 9th - 10th
This National Humanities Center essay discusses the movement of American Roman Catholicism into mainstream culture from a historical perspective.
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Lesson Plan
Library of Congress

Loc: Teachers: The American Dream

For Teachers 9th - 10th
With the help of digitized primary documents -- pictures, photograph, recordings, and written accounts -- students will explore and define what the "American Dream" meant for people over the course of the nineteenth and twentieth...
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Lesson Plan
John F. Kennedy Center

The Kennedy Center: Decades Mural Project

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Lesson for social studies teachers whose students are studying various decades.
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Website
Digital History

Digital History: The Birth of American Popular Culture

For Students 9th - 10th
American popular culture was many-faceted prior to the Civil War. Find out about the explosion of the number of newspapers and magazines, the many kinds of popular entertainment, and even phrenology as entertainment.
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Website
NPR: National Public Radio

Npr: Present at the Creation

For Students 9th - 10th
A compilation of stories from National Public Radio about the creation of new and extraordinary objects, films, and artwork that have shaped and continue to shape American popular culture. Explore everything from the hamburger, to...
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Website
Peace Corps

Peace Corps: Culture Matters Workbook

For Students 9th - 10th
In-depth and thoughtful look at culture and the role it plays in our lives. Site includes lessons and handouts, articles about how non-Americans view Americans, what it's like to be from a different culture, the roots of American culture...
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Handout
Wikimedia

Wikipedia: Music of the United States

For Students 9th - 10th
Very thorough resource for music in the United States. History, genres, and references can be found on this site. Includes sample audio recordings.
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Website
PBS

River of Song

For Students 9th - 10th
The lure of the Mississippi. What is it about this River that draws people to it? This exhibit is devoted to just that - the music of the river and the people that sing about it.
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Article
Other

Usa Study Guide: American Customs and Habits

For Students 9th - 10th
Concise information on American customs and habits aimed at older students. With coverage on meeting new people, introductions, speaking on the phone, eating out, tipping, and smoking. Also includes extensive internal links to other...
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Website
Other

Christmas Customs

For Students 9th - 10th
Brief outlines of customs and food traditionally found at Christmas in the U.S., U.K., the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, Austria, Denmark and France, as well as others. Common legends, games, and history of the holidays give ample...
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Website
Other

How Do I? A Practical Guide to Living in America

For Students 9th - 10th
Miami-based law firm, Immigration Law Offices, Inc., provides information for new immigrants about basic tasks, such as finding housing, making phone calls, mailing letters, opening bank accounts, learning English, finding a doctor, and...
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Website
Other

State Museum of Pennsylvania: Quilts

For Students 9th - 10th
This site features historic quilts from the State Museum of Pennsylvania. Also available are links to quilting resources, a glossary of quilting terms, and tools used for quilting.
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Website
Other

International Institute of Metropolitan Detroit

For Students 9th - 10th
A United Way organization, the IIMD serves recent arrivals in the US, and people who want to express their own ethnic heritage or learn about the cultures of other nations. On this site the IIMD lists the services they provide.