Good morning, welcome to our Homeschool Resources: History & Economics. Take a look at resources below and let me know if you’ve used them with your students. If so what did you think of the resources and why you liked them or not.
Follow the adventures of a lovable Chesapeake blue crab named Chester, as he learns about History and Economics. Each book in the series is broken down so that they easily fit into your daily lesson plan. Order the Print Superbundle by 9/11, and get The League of Homeschool All-Stars free.
Linda Hall Library: The Transcontinental Railroad
Grades 3-12, with parental supervision
Explore the history of the Transcontinental Railroad and the technology of Trains with this website from the Linda Hall Library in Kansas City, Missouri.
When arriving at the site an Interactive Map will load with hotspots along the Train Route to click on providing images and brief explanations. Links at the bottom of the summaries lead the visitor to more in-depth information about the topic.
Or use the left-hand menu to explore:
A Brief History of the Pacific Railway Black Powder & Nitroglycerin Couplers & Brakes Cultural Impact Locomotives Rail Cars Rail Gauge Snow Sheds Time Standardization Tunnels & Bridges Each page includes interesting articles and images concisely explaining the topic.
Continue learning about the Railroad using the links on the right-hand sidebar.
Here you will find:
Search the Railroad Journal Collection – links to the Linda Hall Library digital collection of railroad journals from the 19th century Who Was Who – Discover the people involved in early railroad transportation. What Was What – a glossary of 19th century railroad terms Maps & Plans – Explore the Linda Hall Library digital collection of railroad maps and plans. Travel Along the Pacific Railway – Take an interactive trip through time with this clever timeline that includes images, animations, and tidbits of information (needs Flash to work). Hop on the Quiz Train – Test what you have learned with an interactive multiple-choice quiz.
Add this site to your list of must-visits for your American history studies.
Enjoy!
Award-winning Mapping the World by Heart from FableVision Learning makes it easy to integrate lessons, activities, and drawing into any existing Geography Curriculum. Get your child excited about Geography with Mapping the World by Heart!
IHA: U.S. Revolutionary & Colonial History
Grades 5-12, with parental supervision
This website is sponsored by The Independence Hall Association (IHA) whose mission is to educate the public about the Revolutionary and Colonial eras of American history – as well as Philadelphia History.
This amazing site has many multi-media features that will supplement any study of U.S. History.
The IHA has created what they call a “Congress of Websites” under the umbrella of USHistory.org. Each of these mini-websites focuses on a particular topic that includes:
- American Anti-Slavery and Civil Rights Timeline
- Commodore John Barry
- Betsy Ross House
- Declaration of Independence
- Germantown
- Liberty Bell
- Thomas Paine
- Revolutionary War
- 7 Tours Thru Historic Philadelphia
- Town Criers
- Valley Forge
- Washington Crossing
- William Penn
- and many other topics!
This site also offers extensive information on Benjamin Franklin! Here’s the direct link-
This site contains thousands of pages covering all aspects of U.S. History. You can use the search feature at the top of the page, or browse one of the following topic headings in the middle of the page. Click on any topic of interest and a new page opens to an educational adventure in American history.
CCC! History Online Streaming Media
Add high-quality Video Online Streaming to your homeschool with History Online Streaming’s annual family subscription that features twelve topics, plus an abundance of support materials such as Teacher Guides, Student Activities, and Student Quizzes. Save an additional $10 with coupon code GET10 at checkout until 9/30.
Oak Hill Publishing: Constitution Facts
Grades 6-12, with parental supervision
Celebrate the ratification of the United States Constitution that happened on September 17, 1787 with the resources available at this website as well as explore other important documents in American history. When arriving at the site, visitors can begin by taking the “What’s Your Constitution I.Q.?” quiz by selecting the main image link under the navigation menu. Don’t worry if you don’t get all the answers correct. Wrong answers are explained.
After taking the 10-question quiz, there is an opportunity to do an advanced challenge with more difficult questions. Or learn all about the Constitution and the Amendments, Declaration of Independence, the Articles of the Confederation, our Founding Fathers, the Supreme Court and more by selecting a topic from the upper menu.
Not only can visitors read through the documents online, but they will find a timeline of related events, learn about the people involved with the drafting and signing of the documents, discover constitutional trivia, dig deeper into significant events surrounding the inception and implementation of the document, browse through papers of our Founding Fathers, review synopsis of landmark Supreme Court cases and much more.
Use the link under the home page main image to locate the “Fun Zone.” On this page you will find games, printable word search and crossword puzzles, printable Treasure Hunt quizzes, and online quizzes.
Check out the “The Founders Library” link in the top menu to find:
- a list of U.S. Presidents and their portraits
- reading lists and links of books and journals written by the Founding Fathers
- things invented by the Founding Fathers
- a history of the American postal system
- the content of the Magna Carta
- modern performances of the music from the American Revolution
- what traveling was like during colonial times
- Constitution landmarks such as Independence Hall, Old North Bridge, and “Old Ironsides”
- Information about the first political parties
- Constitution inspired artwork
- Fashion worn by the Founding Fathers
- Colonial currency
And just for fun, be sure to check out the “Founding Documents in Pop Culture” to see video clips of Captain Kirk and Barney Fife quoting the Preamble, The Preamble Song from Schoolhouse Rock, Benjamin Gates reading from the Declaration of Independence in National Treasure, celebrities reading the Declaration of Independence, and more.
Add this website to your bookmarked links for your American history studies.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
