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History
50 States and Capitals - Pick a state, any state. Or pick a territory; they are here too. You'll get a page with lots of information about each area. For example, look at Nebraska, the Cornhusker State; its capital is Lincoln. See the state flag, the bird, the flower, the song, even links to other information about the state. Hey, did you know Nebraska was the birthplace of President Gerald R. Ford? You do now!
America's Story from America's Library! - "America's Story from America's Library" wants you to have fun with history while learning at the same time. We want to put the story back in history and show you some things that you've never heard or seen before. The stuff you see comes from the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The Library is the largest in the world and has millions of amazing things that will surprise you.
Archaeology's Dig - How's this for a fantastic factoid? In 1996, at a dig site in Sweden, archaeologists found what they think is the world's oldest piece of chewing gum! It was made of birch bark tar and might be over 6,500 years old. For some reason no one checked if it had lost its flavor. You'll really dig this kids' magazine on archaeology.
Aviation: The Science of Flight - The history of flight, from Leonardo Da Vinci's early drawings to today's avionics, is covered here in an engaging presentation. Discover the principles of lift and other forces that make flying possible. You'll also learn how to become a civilian, military, or commercial pilot. This site was created by students for the ThinkQuest competition.
Battle of Gettysburg - How did the war begin? Who were the major players and what were the most important battles? This heavily illustrated site will help further your understanding of the Civil War as you follow along day by day. Numerous quotes from primary sources help to give you a clear picture of the events. In the Aftermath section there are photographs of war casualties, and this section is not for the sensitive. This site was created by students for the ThinkQuest competition.
Birth of a Nation - This site won the social science division in the 1998 ThinkQuest Junior contest. You can learn all about the events of April 18-19, 1775. You remember, that's when Paul Revere rode to warn the countryside that "the British are coming!" If you're not up to speed on the minutemen, this site will give you an overview of the important names, places, and deeds. There's also a neat game on daily eighteenth-century wear for men, women, and kids. You can mix and match parts of the photos and try to come up with a complete historical costume.
Colonial Family and Community - While you're getting used to time travel, zoom into the mid-1700s to visit the Daggett farm, in Connecticut. Become a history detective and pore over clues from the Daggett's family account book. Based on the evidence there, plus what you'll see in animations and QuickTime movies, can you guess what Samuel Daggett did for a living? What was home life like for Anna Daggett and the Daggett children, Asenath, Tabitha, and Isaiah? What happened in the social, religious, and political life of the community? The real challenge comes at the end when you must decide "what's wrong with this picture?" Click on anything you think is misplaced in this illustration of the time period. (Hint: there were no cellular phones in the eighteenth century!)
Colonial Kids - For a kids'-eye view of the 1700s in southeastern Pennsylvania, hang out with this ThinkQuest Junior team, who knows all about it. They dressed up in period costume and made videos to help other kids learn what life was like before Nintendo and Pokémon. Visit the spring house, take the barn tour, discover the clackety-clack of playing marbles, and try some of the other wholesome activities. There are also crafts and recipes for those who really want a taste of the eighteenth century.
Conquistadors - Join Michael Wood as he sails back half a millennium to a time when the Americas were "new" and Spain was a superpower, a nation of crusading adventurers whose quest for gold, land and souls destroyed ancient civilizations and created the modern globe.
Copernicus Election Watch:
The 2000 U.S. Presidential Election for Educators and Students - Move on to this site for more details on the election process. Click on The Path to the White House and select any section that interests you. Try "Running a Campaign." (I had a lot of fun writing my own "mad-libs" campaign speech as President Mommy, running on a platform of cleaning up our rooms, doing our homework, and stamping out mean people). Worth a look is the Campaign Ad Critique lesson plan, also in this section. Can you spot a negative ad from one that's warm and fuzzy? Other parts of this superb site include kid-oriented looks at the major candidates and their stands on the issues.
Crossed the West: The Adventures of Lewis and Clark - In 1804, President Thomas Jefferson looked out the window and said, "Hmm, I wonder if there is a water route, maybe a river or something, that goes all the way across the continent and ends up at the Pacific Ocean? Something we could navigate with boats, so we could get supplies there, and settle, and eventually build theme parks." OK, so he didn't really say that. But he did want the West explored, and Lewis and Clark were just the guys to take on the task. Want to join their expedition and see what happens?
Daily Life In Ancient Egypt - Do you know what the ancient Egyptians believed would cure a toothache? Find out here! Read some Egyptian Tall Tales, and an original story about Ancient Egyptian Daily Life.
Diggin' Up the Facts About Archaeology - What is archaeology, anyway? Isn't it just a lot of dusty old artifacts and broken pottery? You're partially right, but learning about past civilizations can be fun, too. Find out how archaeologists work to make great discoveries such as the pyramids. Read interviews with archaeologists; then play a word search and try a quiz. This site was created by students for the ThinkQuest Junior competition.
EgyptWorld - You may be familiar with the Pyramids at Giza, but did you know these monuments are spread throughout Egypt? Take a tour of them as you explore this graphically rich site. Along the way there's a time line, various media kiosks, and games. Learn about the Rosetta stone, which gave the key to unlock the secrets of hieroglyphics. This site was created by students for the ThinkQuest competition.
History Happens - History would be much easier to learn if you could just watch a music video about, say, Pearl Harbor, the Underground Railroad, or the Civil War. Your worries are over--this historical music video site lists many of the lyrics and has Real Audio so you can hear the songs. There's also an excellent selection of links.
How We Made the First Flight - This is Orville Wright's firsthand account of how he and his brother, Wilbur, built and flew the first successful airplane. It is an interesting description of events and an important historical document. This is a great resource for any report on the topic of the Wright brothers, famous inventors, or aviation history.
Journey Through the Middle Ages - On your quest to rise from a squire to a knight you'll have to solve puzzles and answer questions relating to medieval history and castle life. The answers are all on this site, and never fear, because you'll have James the Jingling Jester to help you out with some clues. This site, created by kids, was a finalist in the 1998 ThinkQuest Junior contest.
Kidlink Small Flag Icons - Here you will find more than 116 tiny flag icons representing countries participating in the KIDCAFE and KIDLINK discussion list projects. This page loads rapidly, since the GIFs are so small. You can use these to dress up your school reports or home pages.
Mali Interactive - Take a virtual trip to a dig in Africa! Look at maps, pictures, and journals from a real excavation in Jenné, Mali.
Middle Ages Pages - Grade 8 Students pages on the Middle Ages offers information on people and topics with original artwork.
National Trust for Historic Preservation Home Page - Many historic sites are old--so how come they look so nice? Because people like you care enough to save them from deterioration. This is called historic preservation. This resource will help you find out how to save historic sites in your area.
Odyssey Online - Explore the ancient cultures of the Near East, Greece, Rome, and Egypt via cool puzzles and games. For example, click on Greece and find out all about famous Greek heroes, rulers, and athletes. Examine artifacts and see if you can guess which ones relate to athletic events or prizes. In other games, you try to put fragments of statues back together--don't forget to bring your superglue on this adventure!
Portland State University Greek Civilization Home Page - These pages have been designed by Portland State sophomores primarily for the use of middle school students (ages 11-14) investigating Greek civilization of the Classical period. They include appropriate information and maps, links to other relevant sites on the World Wide Web, and suggestions for further reading.
Roanoke: A Mystery in History - This 1998 ThinkQuest Junior finalist explores the lost colony of Roanoke Island, in what is now North Carolina. In 1586 it was a tiny garrison of 15 men, but it was later found abandoned in July of 1587. One mysterious human skeleton was found on the beach, but no other trace was found. Ninety-one men, women, and children arrived from England and started fixing up the fort so they could live in it. They had the beginnings of a thriving settlement and had begun to make friends with the Native Americans. In August, some of the colonists went back to England for more supplies. Because England was at war with Spain, no ships could be spared to resupply Roanoke until three years later. When the search party arrived in 1590, no one could be found, although a large fire blazed on the north end of the island. Where did the colonists go? Examine some of the theories at this site, and see what seems believable to you.
Technology in 1900 - You know how much technology affects your life now, what with telephones, television, computers, and other things you take for granted. What about kids living 100 years ago? What was considered high tech back then? According to this site, kids would have been drooling to get their hands on a phonograph record! And electricity really hadn't even made its way to many places yet. What predictions for the future did people make? How many of them have come true? Why did phone companies stop using boys as operators and start hiring girls instead? The answer may surprise you.
The American Experience - Gold Rush - After gold was discovered in 1848 in California's American River, the news traveled slowly. The great influx of people didn't get there until 1849--another name for the gold-seekers was the forty-niners. Find out about the "affliction" known as gold fever, the various routes to the gold fields (getting there was no picnic), and what happened when the would-be miners got there. Meet famous people from the gold rush era, and (in the Joke Space) discover how hard it is to make up humor about this period of history.
The American Experience: WayBack - Flight - Meet ten aviation personalities you¹d love to know. One of them is a commercial airline pilot who also performs in a stunt plane on her day off. There are also feature stories on the Wright Brothers and their early flights in Kitty Hawk. Read some "Scare Mail" about early airmail pilots and the hazards they faced in 1918. And let's mention the aviation jokes. Sample: "Rebecca: Did you hear about the duck that was flying upside down? Ricardo: No! What happened? Rebecca: It quacked up!"
The American President - If you need a refresher course on presidential history, try this companion site to the PBS television series of the same name. Fascinating biographies, Web site recommendations, and lesson plans make this resource a must for both students and teachers. Think you could manage a successful campaign strategy all the way from the New Hampshire primary to the November election? Try your skills in the War Room simulation game. Choose your candidate (be sure to read their biographies first, and listen to the audio advice), then select your strategies. How much of your candidate's time will be spent campaigning, and how much time fund raising? Will your ads be positive, negative, or a mix of both? How will you handle a press crisis? Can you steer your candidate to victory? This game requires that you register your "team" (it's free) in order to play.
The Revolutionary War: A Journey Towards Freedom - The Infopedia has it all. Take a virtual tour of Washington's headquarters at Valley Forge. Check a history of the American flag. There are even some colonial recipes: Yankee pot roast--yum! There are some neat games too. Answer the questions quickly in order to move Paul Revere forward to warn the colonists. Otherwise the British will win! This site was created by students for the ThinkQuest competition.
The Second World War: The Pacific Theatre - Although much attention is given to the European theater of war, this site is focused on the war in the Pacific. There's a quick summary of events as well as a time line, in-depth articles about major battles, and pages about weapons, aircraft, and aircraft carriers. There are interesting audio interviews with veterans of the war. One was only 16 when he joined up. A library of photos and a memorial page rounds out the offerings at this very special site. This site was created by students for the ThinkQuest competition.
The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World - Everyone's heard about them, but who can name them? Well, there are the Pyramids, of course, and uh hmmm. Luckily, there is a list of all of them here, along with pictures and links. Since there are not many of the ancient wonders of the world around anymore, you'll also find a list of the Modern Wonders of the World, as well as the Natural Wonders of the World. There are also pictures and links for wonders such as these: the Great Wall of China, Victoria Falls, and the Eiffel Tower.
Time 100 - The most influential people of the 20th Century according to Time magazine. From entertainers to leaders, heroes to scientist, this is a great way to take a look at the 20th Century. There is also a game to see if you can identify the top 100 from the pictures or clues given.
Travel to the Roman Empire - How much do you know about Roman emperors? You have heard of Julius Caesar, and maybe Nero--but did you know there were almost 80 more of them? The last one was a woman named Irene; in fact, she is considered a saint by the Greek Orthodox church. Explore this site to learn about 800 years of Roman rule. But the coolest thing on this site is watching "yesterday's" pictures of famous Roman sites morph into those of "today." This site was created by students for the ThinkQuest competition.
World War II, An American Scrapbook - World War II has been in the news in recent years since it has reached its 50th anniversary. One school's assignment was to develop a Web site on World War II and to get the information for it by talking to family members who had been involved in the war. They shared their memories, and here they are! You can also explore links to a number of other World War II Web sites. This site was a finalist in the ThinkQuest Junior competition. The students are from McRoberts School in Katy, Texas.
World War Web: Online World War I Simulator and Educator - World War I ) had far-reaching social, political, and economic effects. Click on Biographies and read about 12 major figures in World War I, from the principal world leaders to fighter pilots Eddie Rickenbacker (U.S.) and Raoul Lufbery (France). Check the Armory to see the weapons, aircraft, land units, and naval units on both sides. Find out how the war started and what were its outcomes. There's also a Shockwave game and links for further exploration. This site was created by students for the ThinkQuest competition.
Write Like a Babylonian - In ancient Babylonia they didn't have pen and ink, so they inscribed symbols in wet clay whenever they wanted to write something down. This language is called cuneiform, and it was used for about 3,000 years prior to the first century B.C. The clay tablets were baked in order to make them permanent. (Wouldn't it be funny to tell your teacher your homework was "still in the oven!") Type in your initials and have the ancient scribes translate your name into cuneiform.
You Be the Judge on Hammurabi's Code - Whenever people decide to form a community, they have to agree on acceptable social behavior in order for things to work smoothly. Hammurabi, the "Priest-King," ruled ancient Babylon (ca. 1792-1750 B.C.) and united Mesopotamia under a code of law. There were 282 laws dealing with a variety of crimes and abuses. Solve some of the problems Hammurabi faced; for example, what should happen if a boy slaps his father?
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