Civil War Research

Some good links to indepth resources on Civil War battles:

Historical Text Archives

American Historical Association

United States Civil War Center at Louisiana State University

American Civil War Homepage

Industrial Revolution, Immigration, Labor Unions

November 2008 :  Here are some sites with good information for Mr. Oldenbroek's classed:

IMMIGRATION

Immigration (Library of Congress):  Many kinds of resources, including pictures, interviews, and information specific to countries.  Click on the faces on the left side to access individual groups, such as Irish or German immigrants.

Ellis Island : Foundation to support Ellis Island, through which 22 million people passed from 1892-1924.

Immigration History Research Center : Extensive collection from the University of Minnesota. Take time to explore the many links on the left hand side.

Immigration to the United States 1789-1930 (Harvard University):  Excellent source for a variety of research help, including pictures, external links, and online collections.

LABOR UNIONS

Labor History Links : Over 1,000 links arranged by topic, such as sweatshops, child labor, specific events, and many, many other subjects.

Labor History Sources:  Another very detailed list of links of specific topics related to labor history from San Diego University.

INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION

Industrial Revolution (Internet Modern History Sourcebook):  Fordham University's detailed sources on the industrial revolution.

Mrs. Miller's Roman Culture Project

Here are some links to good information about Roman culture:

Medical Practice in Ancient Rome

Catacombs of Ancient Rome

BBC Ancient History: Rome (probably the most extensive site; use the search feature)

Feminae Romanae - The Women of Ancient Rome

Ancient Roman Clothing - Portal page with many specific links (men's, jewelry, shoes, etc.)

Roman Cuisine/Cooking

Julian Calendar/Time Measurement in Rome

Rome Exposed (links to information on Roman homes, cooking, games, baths, religion, etc.)

Ancient Rome for Kids (created by a teacher.....lots of basic information on specific topics)

Forum Romanum (use search feature to find specific information in this scholarly forum)

Rome: From Republic to Empire (articles and links from a college professor's site)

Social Classes in Ancient Rome

Time Traveller's Guide to the Roman Empire 

Royalty-free Roman History Clip Art  (legal and free to use)

More Royalty-Free Roman Clip Art

 

More Election Sites

As the LAST WEEK of campaigning for the 2008 election begins, here are some sites to check out.  Note the bias, or spin, of some of them:

100 of the Most Popular Political Websites : Click on links to visit a variety of sites.

Politifact : Just the facts about statements heard on both sides.

Fox News :  Compare wording, headlines, stories to MSNBC.  Is there a "spin"?

Media Research Center :  Claims to "expose liberal media bias."

World Net Daily :  What stories does this site cover?  Is it fair and unbiased?

Salon.com : Take a look at this site.  Does the coverage seem more conservative or liberal?

Rasmussen Reports : Combines many different polls in one site.

Five Thirty Eight : Projects who is likely to win.  How is the information gathered?

National Public Radio :  Opponents claim this is a liberal site.  Take a look - what do you think?

2008 Election

As the 2008 Election grows near, here are some links to valid information. It is important to check who or what is responsible for information because it could be very biased.

Project Vote Smart: Biographies, statistics, news, and basic voting information.

Chicago Tribune Election 2008 : Includes candidate profiles, pictures, up-to-date developments.

USA Today Politics 2008 : Current coverage, issues, background information on candidates.

PBS: All-American Presidential Forum : Easy-to-use and understand election information.

Time: The Candidates in Print: Looks at books about candidates, with many excerpts.

Washington Post : Another solid resource on the election.

Debate Links for Mrs. Steers

Government spending for alternative energy is this year's debate topic and here are some sites to check out for accurate and supported information:

National Forensic League : This site provides links to resources specifically for the topic.

Debate Central : Maintained by the National Center for Policy Analysis, this is an extremely useful resource, with many links to substantial information, a glossary of terms, an "ask the expert" section, and information about debate in general.

U-M Library Debate Center: Huge collection of resources and links! While some are specific to U-M's own collection, much of this site is accessible online.

Emperor Roll Call

Mrs. Miller's classes are traveling back in time to get to know some Roman Emperors. Here are some good sources to try:

de Imperatoribus Romanis: Encyclopedia of Roman rulers and their families

A Visual Compendium of Roman Emperors: Excellent source for pictures and links to information

Livius: Comprehensive list of emperors, including images.

Classic Encyclopedia: Amazingly detailed information from the 1991 Encyclopaedia Britannica!

Roman Emperors by Century : First Century appears on page. Links to other centuries. Excellent pictures, facts, links to details.

Roman Rulers : Section from Classics Unveiled web site focusing on emperors.

Pictures! Public domain images of some emperors (non-blurry...oh, and legal)

British Invaders - Mrs. Baranoski

Congratulations, Mrs. Baranoski! This is the first research post of the 2008-2009 school year! When researching your specific group of invaders, try the BBC. Click here for a detailed section on Roman Britain, here for an equally in-depth look at the Anglo-Saxon era and here for Viking/Dane information.

If you ever find yourself in London, don't miss the British Museum! In addition to housing millions of artifacts (including the Rosetta Stone), its web site has extensive information with links to examples. These are excellent resources for the artwork portion of your assignment. Click here for Roman information, here for Anglo-Saxon, and here for Viking/Danes.

Back to School!

Everyone is wondering where summer went, but we're back to school so do everything you can to start off on a positive note! Check back to this blog frequently for interesting or helpful links, sites related to specific assignments, and many other resources to help you have a successful year.

Here's just a fun site that makes anagrams. Try your name and see how the letters can be rearranged to create a funny (or perhaps insightful) phrase. My name has 3645 hits! One of the funniest was "fancy cars fumes"!

CHALLENGED BOOK REASONS (Schwaderer)

Links to sites with reasons why specific books were challenged or banned.

National Coalition Against Censorship : This, in my opinion, is the best site about censorship. Use the search feature on the left side to enter the book title and it will link to articles about specific challenges.

Banned Books Page : Created and maintained by a digital librarian at the University of Pennsylvania, this is a little bit difficult to navigate, but has information about specific books and links to other resources about banned/challenged books.

List of Banned Books from Wikipedia : This is actually a good source for challenge reasons.

Kenneth Spencer Research Library - Kentucky University : This is the catalogue of books from a special collection from 1955. For older books, this is an excellent site which includes much historical information. The link takes you to the United States section, but you can also click on other countries to see which books (up until 1955) had been challenged.

Genetics Research - Biology

Genetics Tools - Highly academic resource with information on modes of inheritance, using genetics tests, and ethical/legal considerations. Although the intended audience is physicians, there is a great deal of useful information.

Learn Genetics - Tutorial from the University of Utah. Lots of information here!

Genetics Alliance - Very good source for reliable genetic disease information.

Gene Almanac - Principles of genetics from the Dolan DNA Learning Center.

Television Past and Present - Mrs. Steers

Here are links to useful information for Mrs. Steers's TV paper:

Television History : Here is a quick 100-year timeline, but click on the other boxes for indepth looks at other decades.

Transforming Television: A PBS special from 2000 forecasts the future of television. Links to articles along the left side explore other related topics such as HD TV and Cable/Broadcast TV.

National Cable and Telecommunications Association : Organization with information about digital conversion, legislation, history, and statistics.

Digital TV: A Cringely Crash Course : PBS special report on the future of tv.

Wikipedia article on the History of Television : I hate to say it, but Wikipedia has a very solid overview of television history, with many links.

Persuasive Presentations Research (Mr. Schwaderer)

Welcome back from spring break! Just 7 more weeks until summer! Here are some links to researching issues you might choose to look into for your persuasive speech assignment:

Public Agenda : A nonpartisan, independent source which looks at a variety of issues from differing viewpoints.

Murray State University Library - Hot Topics : A list of ideas here provides many links to information on specific topics such as global warming, steroids, and file sharing. Some sources are only available for Murray students, but there are many other links to solid, fact-based information.

St. Ambrose University - Hot Paper Topics/Best Information on the Net : List of topics to research, including affirmative action, gun control, and waterboarding, with many links.

Multnomah County Libraries Social Issues : Lengthy list of topics to click on for informative resources. Topics include legalization of marijuana, racial profiling, immigration, and prayer in school.

Opposing Viewpoints at Kent District Library : Excellent resource for researching practically any controversial topic! You may need to type in your library card number.

SIRS Discoverer : One of the MEL databases, this one focuses on social issues and includes journal articles, reference book selections, and documents from well-established organizations.

Sirois - Conflicts Worldwide Research

Here are some general sites about current/recent conflicts around the world. I'll add more as I find them.

Flashpoints: Guide to World Conflicts : Search by country, issue, or updates. Has not, apparently, been updated since 2006 but there is enough good information here to identify several recent conflicts.

New and Recent Conflicts of the World : Created by the "History Guy," this is actually a comprehensive and well-maintained site with a lot of information and links. Check out the history guy's blog, which is updated frequently. The "history guy" is Roger Lee, history teacher at West Auburn High School in Washington.

U.S. Department of State Background Notes : Excellent statistics and detailed descriptions of nations.

Library of Congress Country Studies : Probably the best resource for in-depth analysis of countries

Institute for War and Peace Reporting : Interesting site whose mission is to "Build peace and democracy through free and fair media."

BBC : One Day of War : Outstanding source for much information about conflicts around the world. Use the "clickable map" to find conflicts worldwide.

Modern Genocides and Atrocities

Mrs. Miller's class is studying recent genocides and atrocities to compare with Elie Wiesel's Holocaust experience. Here are some sites that have solid information:

Human Rights Watch : The most up-to-date, comprehensive site which reports on human rights activities and violations around the world. Search by country, region, or issue. Includes photo essays, overviews, and audio/film clips.

Elie Wiesel Foundation : This foundation's site focuses more on specific crises (Darfur), but offers a good historical perspective of Elie Wiesel's work.

Invisible Children : Dedicated to the children of Northern Uganda, this organization provides information, volunteer opportunities, and support. We also have copies of the DVD to check out.

Genocide Watch : An organization dedicated to raising awareness of, predicting, and preventing genocide around the world. Clicking on a country to find links to many articles on that particular country.

Inside Tibet (BBC) : This BBC site has a clearly explained report on Tibet today. Includes many links to video, reports, and updates.

Regions and Territories : Tibet : Another excellent BBC report, this site contains much on the current crisis in Tibet and includes a historical timeline.

BBC : Sierra Leone : Excellent site about Sierra Leone's past and present dificulties. Includes many photos and video links.

Rwanda Genocide - 10 Years On : Outstanding report on Rwanda, with updates, photos, and videos.

Genocide Studies Program : Yale University's Genocide site contains links to invididual countries and regions. One of the most interesting aspects is the satellite map feature which shows a country before, during, and after genocide because you can really see the impact.

1950s Research

Here are some good sites focusing on the 1950s. I'll add more as I find them.

The Literature and Culture of the 1950s

American Cultural History 1950-1959

Comic Books of the 1950s

50s Jitterbug - A History

Rebels: Painters and Poets of the 1950s

Images of American Political History

50s Cars Changed American Lifestyle and Image

Literature Resources from Professional Development Event - February 18, 2008

Here are some links to excellent resources for finding great books to read and to share!

American Library Association (ALA): This is a wonderful starting point; you may want to spend some time just browing this comprehensive site. This is where the award books first get posted during the ALA Midwinter Meeting each mid-January.

Association of Library Service to Children (ALSC): A subdivision of ALA, this resource has many wonderful lists, including 2008 Notable Books and Recommended Book Lists.

Parent's Choice Award : A foundation focusing on non-commercial recommendations.

Independent Booksellers: Excellent annonations, specialty lists, and Book Sense newsletter.

Michigan Center for the Book : State literature resources, including "Reading Grand Rapids" list, "One Book" programs, and Michigan Notable Books.

International Reading Association: Lesson plans, calendar of special days, book discussions.

School Library Journal : The definitive review source, plus lots of articles on current topics.

Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Reader's Choice (PNLA): Ballots for students to vote for favorite books, discussion guides, ready-to-print bookmarks, and more!

National Public Radio : In-depth interviews, podcasts, and timely coverage of recent titles.

What Do I Read Next? : A fantastic source for finding similar books, titles by subject, character, setting, and a number of other fields. To access:
1. Log onto mel.org (Michigan Electronic Library)
2. By the photo of the person with a laptop, click on "See Databases from Library." If you are at home, select the first option ("See Databases From Home") and enter your driver's license number into the secure log in when prompted. You can also just enter a letter followed by 12 numbers.
3. Scroll down to What Do I Read Next?

Publishers are a relatively unknown source of author biographies, discussion guides, related materials, and even contests. Here are a couple of examples:

Random House
Farrar Strauss Giroux

Finally, many authors have creative, interactive personal Web sites! Here are a couple to get started:

Laurie Halse Anderson
Nancy Carlson

Controlled Substance Web Sites for Forensic Chemistry

Here are some reliable, up-to-date resources to consider for your project:

National Institute of Drug Abuse - Excellent starting point, with many links, fact sheets, and statistics. The right side of the page has links directly to most of the topics for this assignment.

US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) - Michigan statistics - Very interesting facts about Michigan's drug abuse challenges. Includes accounts of drug seizures and current problem areas. The main page of the DEA is also a great resource.

Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign - User friendly and full of important facts and other information.

The Partnership for a Drug Free America offers news, drug guides, and a lot of current information.

And don't forget to use the Michigan Electronic Library (MEL) for very current, valid articles from journals, newspapers, and magazines. Scroll down to Health Reference Center Academic for specific topics.