Department NewSletters and UPDATES
Past Newsletters and Blog
March 2024
March 2024 History / Social Studies NewsletterFeb 2024
February 2024 History / Social Studies NewsletterJan 2024
January 2024 History _ Social Studies Newsletter.pdfDec 2023
December History _ Social Studies Newsletter.pdfNov 2023
November History / Social Studies NewsletterOct 2023
October 2023 HistorySocial Studies Newsletter.pdfDec 2022
December 2022 HistorySocial Studies Newsletter.pdfScroll down for the BPS History Department Blog to read about our previous updates!
Application Deadline: January 16, 2022
Please reach out to Kristina Pires (kpires@generationcitizen.org) or Nathalie Louis (clouis3@bostonpublicschools.org) with any questions.
BPS Youth Civic Council
JANUARY 6 -- We are working with Generation Citizen to create a youth civic council. We will select 10 BPS Youth with an interest in advocating for strong and equitable civic learning opportunities and resources throughout BPS. We hope to:
Elevate students’ voices by advising on and advocating for youth civic priorities within BPS
Provide leadership opportunities for students to experience presenting and public speaking by working with adults and youth to identify the importance of civic education and advocacy skills
Program Benefits:
Participants will have opportunities to build relationships with members of the BPS community research existing civic learning resources used in BPS; design and analyze surveys to youth and adults to understand their civic experience and needs; and develop and present a final product to share their findings and recommendations to key BPS stakeholders. You can view a full program description here.
There is a $500 program participation honorarium will be distributed upon completion of the program (May 2023)
RETHINKING IMAGES: Jennie Brownscombe’s 1914 painting “The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth” has been labeled historically inaccurate. AP Photo/Pilgrim Hall Museum
MORE RESOURCES CAN BE FOUND UNDER "CURRICULUM RESOURCES--TEACHING ABOUT THANKSGIVING"
THANKSGIVING: RETHINKING HISTORICAL NARRATIVES
November 23 ---Thanksgiving provides a great opportunity to help students understand that how we shape the historical narrative has an impact--it gives voice to some and silences others. In the past few decades, largely due to activism by indigenous peoples, many history teachers have begun to critically examine the traditional (mainstream) narrative of Thanksgiving. This New York Times "Room for Debate" Rethinking the Way We Teach Thanksgiving from 2015 provides many perspectives. How should you approach this with students? Ramona Peters of the Mashpee Wompanoag tribe provides guidelines differentiated by grade band and an teacher from Illinois argues that Thanksgiving--like everything--is best taught through an inquiry lens that includes many perspectives.
Midterm Elections
November 1 ---Midterm Elections are coming up on November 8th and we have curated a set of resources for teachers interested in teaching students about the elections, the history of voting rights, or discussing current hot-button issues in the classroom. Please check out the BPS History Dept. "Teaching the Election" Resources here!
October, 6 -- If you are looking for resources to teach about the upcoming holiday, check out our Curriculum Spotlight: Indigenous Peoples Day. Columbus Day became a federal holiday in 1937. The shift to honoring Indigenous People's Day instead of celebrating the colonizer has been controversial and offers an opportunity to examine the power of shaping the historical narrative. The curriculum spotlight examine the changing story of Columbus and the importance of incorporating indigenous perspectives in our classrooms.
We are always adding and updating resources. Please feel free to share a resource as well as comments and feedback about what you would like to see on our webpage.
Indigenous PEoples' Day
Source: National Indian Council on Aging
Maria Auxiliadora da Silva, Chuva Sobre São Paulo (Rain over Sao Paulo), 1971. Oil and mixed media on canvas. The John Axelrod Collection—Frank B. Bemis Fund and Charles H. Bayley Fund.
MFA Art FINDERS
October 3 -- Did you know that the MFA will help you find artworks to support your teaching?
The Museum of Fine Arts Boston wants to make it easier for you to find digital images from the MFA collection that can support your teaching and spark new directions of thought, learning, and connection for your students.
Follow this link to describe your topic or unit of instruction, and receive a customized Google slide deck. Art Finders centers narratives, creative voices, and perspectives that museums have historically underrepresented.
GLOBAL SCHOLARS
September 20, 2022
BPS History/SS is excited to partner with Global Scholars, an international digital exchange program connecting public school students ages 10 to 13 in cities around the world to complete a shared curriculum about solving a global problem while building student's global competence.
The program runs from Sept/Oct. to June and requires a 2 hour commitment per week.
All curriculum and materials for the program are provided as well as PD sessions to support each of the five units.
The program is free.
This year's theme is WATER SECURITY locally, nationally, and globally. Students work collaboratively to come up with possible solutions, and then share their ideas in online discussion boards with classmates worldwide. If you are interested in having your school participate or would like to find out more, contact abrown14@bostonpublicschools.org
September 2022 HistorySocial Studies Newsletter (1).pdfCONSTITUTION DAY
September 15, 2022
Just in time for Constitution Day (September 17th), iCivics and the Center for Civic Participation have released a series of 35 short videos "The Constitution Explained" beginning with one called "We the People" that provides are great overview of the series with the vision and theme of creating a "More Perfect Union" that encompasses ALL of the people.
As you are thinking about how you might teach about the Constitution, Bill Bigelow from the Zinn Education Project and Rethinking Schools has this background article: "It’s Constitution Day! Time to Teach Obedience or History?
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Source: Getty Images accessed from NPR
remembering 9/11
September 9, 2022
Commemorating 9/11: We hope all schools will observe a moment of silence at 8:46 am (or 9:37) on Monday, 9/12 in remembrance (these are the times that the planes struck). We also have a curated list of teaching resources about 9/11 featuring a 30 min. film: "What happened on September 11?
March 10, 2020
Boston Counts 2020! The Boston Public Schools History and Social Studies Department is collaborating with the City of Boston to help our students gain a deeper understanding of the history and purpose of the 2020 United States Census.
Check out our curated resources to guide your students in exploring the Census!
February 4, 2020
The Boston Teachers Union is taking part in the National Black Lives Matter Week of Action in Our Schools, February 3-7 . Check out the hashtag #BlackLivesMatterAtSchool for inspiration! See the Boston Black Lives Matter at School flyer for upcoming events. The 2020 Curriculum Resource Guide has free, downloadable lessons teachers can use to challenge racism, oppression and build happy and healthy classrooms.
February 3, 2020
The Boston Election Department seeks to engage students age 16 and older in the democratic process of voting. Becoming a Student Poll Worker is a great way for students to get involved on Election Day and empower their communities! Participants will earn a $75 stipend for the hours worked before and after school hours and an additional $30 for attending a two-hour training session. Participants also will receive school attendance credit for hours worked during the school day and can earn community service hours that you can include on your resume. Please share this opportunity with your classes!
January 11, 2020
The conflict between Iran and the United States has a longer history dating back to the 1950s. Here are some resources to contextualize the historical background that plays into the events unfolding today between Iran and the United States.
January 8, 2020
The assassination of the Iranian Major-General Qassem Soleimani, head of the elite Quds Force, in Baghdad and the firing of Iranian missiles at bases housing US troops in retaliation are pivotal current events students might be interested in learning more about. Here is a link to news coverage and lesson plans teachers can use to teach about this issue:
December 11, 2019
Mr. Dolphin's 8th Graders from the Henderson Inclusion Upper School spend some quality time with Mayor Walsh during their Civics on the Hill Day.
December 4, 2019
The BPS History Team hosted an Action Civics Kick-Off morning and afternoon session at the EMK Institute for the U.S. Senate. Join our Google Classroom to get more information about the Action Civics Projects! (Just email us for the class code!)
November 26, 2019
Josue and Natacha were proud to represent the BPS History Department at the National Council for the Social Studies Annual Conference held in Austin, TX! We presented on:
My Part of the Story: Exploring Identity in the United States
Christian Scott from the Lyndon also joined us for the presentation!
November 13, 2019
Mr. Turner's 8th Graders from Orchard Gardens get the VIP treatment on their Civics on the Hill Day. Students completed a simulation in a hearing room at the State House and then tours of the State House and City Hall.
November 5, 2019
Did you meet any student poll workers today? The BPS History Department collaborated with the City of Boston Elections Department to offer our student poll worker program for the 3rd year in a row. We had approximately 50 student poll workers representing 13 high schools across the City of Boston.
October 21, 2019
We're excited to welcome our newest team member, Gerard Tannetta to the BPS History and Social Studies Department!
September 21, 2019
Our curriculum spotlight on Hispanic Heritage Month has been updated with new links that make connections to local Latinx histories, lessons, resources, and primary source sets. We have also included an article from The Nation and a New York Times lesson plans that looks at the question: Does Hispanic Heritage Month Need a Rebrand?
September 19, 2019
We've just finalized a new document to help teachers crosswalk between the former texts that were grade 6 and 7 specific: History Alive! The Ancient World and Geography Alive! Regions and People. With the 2018 framework Grades 6 and 7 have merged into a two year World Geography and Ancient Civilizations I (Grade 6) and World Geography and Ancient Civilizations II (Grade 7), therefore requiring the use of both textbooks. Additionally, we are exploring other resources that align to the new framework.
HSS Standards to TCI Books Alignment Crosswalk Grade 6HSS Standards to TCI Books Alignment Crosswalk Grade 7September 4, 2019
We're excited for the first day of school tomorrow! If you're looking for instructional resources to start the school year, be sure to check out the resources below:
Curriculum Spotlight: Back to School
Intro Unit: Identity and Community
August 21, 2019
The BPS History team has spent the last two days presenting at the Teacher Summer Institute and the New Teacher Institute to help our teachers deepen their understanding of the 2018 history and social studies framework. As we continue to build out the website, please look back to this blog to capture of recommended highlights!
If you are looking for archived BPS History & Social Studies newsletters from 2014-2018, click here.
August 7, 2019
We are very excited to be getting close to launching our new BPS History & Social Studies website!
Looking for archived resources from the previous BPS History & Social Studies Department?
Click Here for Archived Newsletters - Click Here for Archived Instructional Resources - Click Here for Archived Blog Posts
