takes students to JFK's birthplace and to the neighborhood where he grew up. It was here that JFK's parents began instilling the high standards and ambition that would make the Kennedys one of America's most famous families. Students can investigate the Kennedy's family traditions, values, and interests to consider how family culture and community shapes one's character and personality.

is a curriculum-oriented guide to the life of the famous nurse. The site uses photographs, floor plans, and the like about her home in Glen Echo, Maryland as a focal point but gives readings and suggested school assignments about her career.

examines the life of Stephen Decatur, a naval hero who died as a result of a duel in 1820, and considers the role the house he built played in the political and social scene of the nation's capital up to the 20th century.

This site walks students through the house that was the only place President Eisenhower and his wife ever called home. In 1950, the Eisenhowers, looking forward to retirement, purchased the Allen Redding farm adjoining Gettysburg National Military Park. During his Presidency, President and Mrs. Eisenhower used the farm as a weekend retreat, a refuge in time of illness, and a comfortable meeting place for world leaders.

We all know that it takes energy to provide us with the basics of shelter: heating, cooling, lighting, electricity, sanitation and cooking. To create energy-efficient housing that is practical for people to use every day requires combining many smaller systems that each perform a function well, and making smart decisions about the sources of power we use. Through four lessons on the topics of heat transfer, circuits, daylighting and electricity from renewable energy sources, students learn about the science, math and engineering that go into designing energy-efficient components of smart housing that is environmentally friendly. Through numerous design/build/analyze activities, students create a solar water heater, swamp cooler, thermostat, model house, model greenhouse, and wind and water turbine prototypes. Students should concurrently be taking Algebra 1 in order to complete the worksheet calculations.

recounts the role of this airport in aviation history and World War II. In 1931, it was among the most advanced airports in the world. From it, early aviators launched pioneering and round-the-world flights during the 1930s. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, its duties as Naval Air Station New York grew rapidly. During the 1942 U-Boat offensive, it provided air cover for ship convoys embarking from New York.

offers photos of John Marshall's residence in Richmond, Virginia. This website also describes how Marshall, who wrote 519 opinions in his 34 years as chief justice (1801-1835), transformed the Supreme Court from obscurity into a prominent, powerful institution.

examines the family and setting in Cincinnati where the 27th President and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court grew up. It includes readings, maps, photos, and activities for students.

recounts the life of our 16th president. See photos of the house in Springfield, Illinois, that Abraham Lincoln, his wife, and family occupied for 17 years. Read news accounts of his departure for Washington, D.C., from Springfield and of his funeral. Learn about the series of events that led to his election as the first president born west of the Appalachians.

describes the lifesaving stations constructed from 1871-1915 along the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Great Lakes to rescue ships in trouble. Little Kinnakeet was among the first seven constructed on North Carolina's treacherous Outer Banks in 1874.

is a curriculum-oriented guide to a home in Waterloo, New York in which several early abolitionists, women's rights advocates, and social reformers lived. The site uses photos and drawings of the house as a beginning point to lead into readings about the First Woman's Rights Convention in nearby Seneca Falls in 1848.

describes the setting, main house, and grounds of the home of our fourth President and the father of the Constitution. It also provides insights into daily life in the 19th century in a home located on a 5,000-acre plantation in the Piedmont of Virginia. The Madisons received many visitors; in fact, it was not uncommon for them to have as many as 25 guests requiring both room and board.

tells how the federal government created a network of soldiers' homes and national cemeteries to honor Civil War veterans. The 110-acre Dayton cemetery contains the remains of veterans from the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the Spanish American War, and all 20th century military conflicts.

Students learn and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of renewable and non-renewable energy sources. They also learn about our nation's electric power grid and what it means for a residential home to be "off the grid."

Students learn how engineers design devices that use water to generate electricity by building model water turbines and measuring the resulting current produced in a motor. Students work through the engineering design process to build the turbines, analyze the performance of their turbines and make calculations to determine the most suitable locations to build dams.

Students learn how engineers harness the energy of the wind to produce power by following the engineering design process as they prototype two types of wind turbines and test to see which works best. Students also learn how engineers decide where to place a wind turbine, and the advantages and disadvantages to using wind power compared to other non-renewable energy sources.

is the only place in the U.S. where a President was born, maintained a lifelong connection, and lies buried. The estate, located in Hyde Park on the Hudson River (New York), is where he was raised and where he and his wife, Eleanor, raised their five children. During his first political election he delivered his acceptance speeches from the portico of this house. Cabinet members, heads of state, royalty, congressmen, senators, and Secret Service stayed at the house during his presidency.

This interactive activity from A Science Odyssey offers a historic tour of 20th century home technologies.

This site examines the farm acquired by painter Alden Weir (1852-1919), where he summered for nearly 40 years (northeast of New City). At a time railroads were expanding, populations were increasing, and America's agrarian system was being replaced by industry, Weir was an artist who found inspiration in the quiet everyday settings of New England, and, in many ways, defined our vision of the American landscape.