Curated OER
"You're Probably Tired, Dear Diary" - Children's Diaries during the Holocaust
As part of the study of WWII and the Holocaust, class members read a series of diary entries written by children during the onslaught of Nazi occupation. Each entry is accompanied by biographical information and discussion questions. The...
Curated OER
Teaching the Holocaust through Literature
Centered on the short story "The Tenth Man" by Polish Holocaust survivor Ida Fink, here is a solid one-day resource to support study of World War II or Nazi history, short stories, or to complement any ELA unit on The Diary of Anne Frank...
Curated OER
Diary
Keeping a journal can be one of the most enjoyable writing tasks that children engage in. They get to write about what they want to write about - not what the teacher tells them to write about! Here, young writers pretend they are a...
Curated OER
Finding Problems In A Story
Students categorize information into a problem/solving chart and examine the value of using a diary. In this problem solving and diary activity, students read portions of Dear Mr. Henshaw, while they investigate the importance of keeping...
Curated OER
Unlikely Diary keepers Using Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin
Put your class in the shoes of someone - or something - else with this lesson, which encourages writers to keep a diary from the perspective of a living creature or an abstraction. Use Doreen Cronin's Diary of a Worm and the Six Trait...
Curated OER
Samuel Pepys
Young writers examine the world of diaries. They study the diary of the famous Samuel Pepy, and discuss why it's so important. Together, as a class, they create a diary that describes what happened in school on a certain day. The catch...
Curated OER
Animal Diaries
Students read Diary of a Worm by Foreen Cronin. In this journal writing instructional activity, students research an animal and write a diary by their animal. Students apply the research they've completed in their writings. Students...
Curated OER
Activity Three: Diary of a Driver
Students explore and document historic elements of Horatio's journey by creating a fictitious journal in Jackson's voice.
Curated OER
Diaries and Memoirs
Students analyze how personal diaries and memoirs record actual events, compare and contrast diaries and memoirs from the Holocaust, and engage in journal or diary writing as a way to explore one's own feelings and self.
Curated OER
Civil War: Women
Students examine the role of women during the Civil War investigating their roles as spies, soldiers, and nurses.
Curated OER
History Matters: Making Sense of Letters & Diaries
"Making Sense of of Letters & Diaries," explores the historical importance of various types of "personal texts." Learn the general characteristics of personal texts and read various online diaries and letters of historical...
US National Archives
Nara: National Archives for Educators and Students
Site provides information on how to best use the vast resources of the National Archives. Teach and study with primary resources, an excellent way to get in touch with history. Just for fun, click on "Sign the Declaration" for a chance...
NPR: National Public Radio
Npr: Prairie Diaries
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.
Sophia Learning
Sophia: Epistolary Narration
This slideshow focuses on epistolary narration, revealing a story through letters, documents, or diaries. It defines the term, explains what to look for to identify them, gives the two perspectives, and offers literary examples: C.S....
George Mason University
George Mason University: World History Sources: Personal Accounts
Discover how journals, memoirs, diaries, and autobiographies are important historical sources. Learn how historians use these personal accounts and get other questions answered.
Hopelink
Hopelink: Writing Lesson Idea: Keeping a Journal
Explore the world of journal writing with this valuable lesson plan filled with suggestions.
US National Archives
Nara: History in the Raw
Site offers excellent reasons to approach history by using primary documents -- diaries, letters, drawings, and memoirs. Also gives teachers suggestions on where to find great sources.
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: Diary
An encyclopedia article from Wikipedia on the diary discusses the transition from the first diaries being used strictly for business to diaries being used for personal use. Also gives details on diary (or journal) writing during the 21st...
Other
Impassioned: Journals, Diaries and Notebooks
This site includes examples of diaries, journals, and notebooks in the Collection at Richard Hugo House and The Diary Library of Corralitos, California. Focuses upon the genre of diaries and journals within the practice of writing....
Discovery Education
Discovery Education: The Middle Ages
This instructional activity focuses on the importance of record keeping, in journal or diary form, by people in the past. Young scholars learn much about their lives from these documents and they study the Middle Ages as they create...
Other
Illyria: A Look at Samuel Pepys
This site gives a very brief essay describing Samuel Pepys' life and his famous diary. His self-portrait is included.