Turn of the Century First Ladies... Who's That Lady?

Abstract:

This activity was originally created for an online, video-conference produced by the National Digital Library Program in conjunction with the National First Ladies Library. The web pages were designed to provide the participating middle schools with resources and a structure to prepare for an online Bowl Event (an oral quiz/game in which teams compete by answering questions they have previously seen and answered). Turn-of-the-Century First Ladies, our selected topic, was chosen to take advantage of the expertise of the two presenting organizations. Any topic with many "factoids" would work as well. The activity can be used in a single classroom as a cooperative learning, team project. It can also be used as a cross classrooms event in a school with multiple classrooms per grade level.
This activity could be the engaging kick-off to a deeper study of women's history. It could be part of the study of our nation's turn-of-the-century Presidents. It could be the beginning or culmination of an in depth study of the role of First Ladies in our country's past, present and future. Or, the activity could be repurposed entirely, to develop a set of understandings around a different topic. Creative teachers will determine how much time is needed for their implementation of this activity. However, it is recommended that at least an hour be devoted to the Bowl Event and five to eight hours to research and preparation.

Subject:

Humanities, Social Sciences

Grade Level:

Secondary

Collection:

Library of Congress