Getting Better-The Beatles

National Council for Social Studies Conference in St. Louis!

Representing Montana in the NCSS House of Delegates

I told myself I wasn't bringing back any books or resources, so how did this happen?

Exciting things are happening in the world of education, and nothing is more exciting than spending time learning and sharing with other teachers.  Having just spent the weekend at the National Council for Social Studies conference, here are just a few of the resources I learned about in case any teachers out there wanted to explore them.  If you have other resources or organizations to recommend, please consider adding them to the comments.  The more we collaborate, the better we all get.



Resources for Geography Classes:

PeaceCorps Worldwise Schools-
Provides lesson plans, resources and more to teach about culture both within and beyond the United States.  Also connects classrooms with Peace Corps volunteers around the world.

National Geographic Giant Maps-
These maps are a little expensive but very cool and interactive.  They also come with all kinds of games and lesson plans for students.


Resources for History Classes:  
Department of State Historian-
Highlights of the website include milestones in the history of U.S. Foreign relations, historical documents and lesson plans.

Transatlantic Outreach Program-Germany-
Offers European History lesson plans.  

Resources for Global Education/Global Issues:

New Global Citizens-
This website emphasizing Common Core curriculum seeks to connect classrooms and teachers with international community organizations addressing global issues.  New Global Citizens has already vetted the organizations so you can be assured they are reliable.  The program focuses on problem solving, critical thinking, collaboration, communication, leadership and digital literacy.

Global Concerns Classroom-
This website is part of an international humanitarian organization, Concern Worldwide.  Their resources are free and emphasize critical thinking, research, analysis, public speaking, listening, consensus-building and debate.  They provide a thorough resource guide for ten world issues and each issue has a specific geographic region.  The issues are: child labor, child survival, climate change, displacement, education, HIV and AIDS, Hunger, Water and Women's Rights.

Read to Feed-
Heifer International Program in which students read books to raise money and support sustainable economic efforts around the globe.

Global Campaign for Education-
57 million children around the world do not have access to basic education.  This coalition of NGOs, think tanks, union, faith-based groups is dedicated to ensuring universal quality education for all children.  If you think every child in the world deserves an education, they have many ways to support their efforts.

The Genocide Education Project-
Offers 1, 2 or 10 day lesson plans on the Armenian Genocide.

Resources for Teacher Travel:

Teachers for Global Classrooms-
Outstanding fully funded program includes an 8 week online course in global education and a 2-3 week in-country study in any of the following countries: India, Philippines, Colombia, Ghana, Morocco and Russia.
Transatlantic Outreach Program-Germany-
Offers a two week history and culture study in Germany.