Last month, I started working as the Beneficial National History Day fellow. Here at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, I share office space with another teacher fellow, so teaching and using primary sources has, not surprisingly, been a frequent topic of conversation.  As a teacher in the School District of Philadelphia, I experience many barriers to successfully using primary sources in the classroom.  The three major ones are finding free digital primary sources, getting my students engaged in using primary sources and utilizing technology that promotes the use of these sources.

In this blog, we will explore the Digital Library, another way of finding primary sources on HSP's website - one where you will be able to "see" actual documents.   These documents may be of letters, diaries, watercolors, maps, etc. 

What are you doing this summer?  Coming to HSP, we hope!

Summer vacation is about recreation - of the sport kind and of the revitalize-your-spirit kind.  Look to HSP to help with the latter through choice of three week-long teacher institutes.  Applications are being taken now for all three, with the deadline for "Franklin's Thrift" being extended to May 1.

Is Thrift an idea that defines American qualities, or just an old fashioned concept that has no place in modern America?   What does thrift mean today?  What is its relevance in post-Recession America? 

Come and learn for yourself at a Teacher Institute on Ben Franklin's Thrift July 29 through August 2.