Teaching things: material culture in the history classroom [this publications program prepares and enables educators to use historical artifacts (i.e., material culture) in their classrooms

This Project Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities will fund the American Historical Association to develop teaching and learning resources focused on the use of historical artifacts in history education. With $199,808 in funding over a two-year period from October 2021 to December 2023, the Association will create a multi-platform publication program under the federal Promotion of the Humanities Teaching and Learning Resources and Curriculum Development program (CFDA 45.162). Products will include a booklet for teachers, two digital teaching toolkits meeting College, Career and Civic Life (C3) Framework standards for secondary and post-secondary educators, a digital object library with 3D scanned artifacts, and open educational resources including lesson plans, activities and assessments. The materials are intended to help history teachers incorporate tangible sources into their classrooms to engage students and strengthen understanding of the past. No sub-awards are planned under this Project Grant award.

Activities

The project director and specialist staff will meet throughout the one-year project term to develop the grant-funded materials. Project materials will be prepared for publication in multiple formats, including short videos, a booklet, object analyses, and lesson plans for pre-college and postsecondary students. A booklet for teachers will be developed to serve as a guide to teaching history with material culture alongside other primary sources. Two digital teaching toolkits that meet standards for secondary educators and college instructors will be developed and will include detailed lesson plans, object analyses, videos, discussion questions, assignments, assessment guides, and activities. A new digital object library will be developed that will include 3D scanned objects for classroom use and additional materials for teachers to craft lesson plans that fit their curricula.

Expected outcomes

The grant will result in a multiplatform publication program that will support the work of historians through new streams of content focused on secondary and higher education, with potentially additional applicability for public engagement with history. The project will also provide the association with a template for new publication initiatives.

Intended beneficiaries

Teachers and students in the nation?s secondary and college history classes, as well as members of the general public who have an interest in history.

Subrecipient activities

The recipient does not intend to subaward funds.]