Monday, October 31, 2016

The Egyptian Book of the Dead: TedEd

Here's great review of the Egyptian Book of the Dead from Tejal Gala for TedEd.

I know we've already covered Egypt but this is worth bookmarking for next year!

 

Saturday, October 29, 2016

The Pope & the Reformation

By Zebra48bo, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=44922768
Need a hook for teaching the Reformation?

The Pope just commemorated the 500th anniversary of the Reformation by announcing that he will go to Sweden, a Lutheran country, to commemorate the event.

NPR has a good story and broadcast about the event as well as a concise summary of the Reformation itself.
 

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Understanding Synthesis in AP History

If you teach AP World, AP Euro or APUS, you might find this explanation of SYNTHESIS helpful for both you and your students.

It comes from History Haven. Thanks to Esther Artieda for posting the link on Facebook.

Saturday, October 15, 2016

Indus River Civilization: Terrific BBC Website

Here's a terrific BBC site on the Indus River. It has different areas of life to explore such as technology, games, art, etc.

You can also play an interactive trading game where you can become an Indus trader.

Thursday, October 13, 2016

The Hanseatic League: Two Clips

While it did not rival either the Indian Ocean or Silk Road trade, the Hanseatic League knit together northern Europe and the Baltics into a very profitable trade confederation.

It started in the middle of the 13th century and continued for 300 years. At its height, it included over 200 cities like Lübeck, Reval, Riga, and Dorpat.

Some of the products traded included Flemish cloth, salt, herring and furs. And Novgorod traded wax and honey.

Some historians even argue that the League was a forerunner of the European Common Market today.

Here are two short clip that summarize the importance of the League. The first takes you on quick tour of the Hanseatic museum in Bergen. And the second takes you on a tour of Lübeck.



Friday, October 7, 2016

Hindu India: Terrific Short Documentary


Teaching Hinduism?  The Himalayan Academy, which publishes Hinduism Today magazine, has a terrific 23 minute documentary about the origins and features of Hinduism.

The documentary is engaging and includes great photography. It's divided into five short parts: origins, sacred texts, Hindu society,  beliefs and practices, and finally, festivals.

One way the film engages students is by juxtaposing ancient beliefs and ritual with modern beliefs. For example, you'll see an ancient fire pit followed by clips of contemporary Hindus involved with fire worship.  You'll see a 2000 year old stone carving of a Hindu meditating in the lotus position followed by a contemporary  Hindu meditating in the same way.

According to Murali Balaji, a director of education at the Hindu American Foundation, and writing for the Huffington Post, the film was made in response  to "the problem of negative portrayal of Hinduism and India in school textbooks."

Sunday, October 2, 2016

Human Migration from Africa: Animated Map

Watch as this animated map from Business Insider shows how humans migrated from Africa across the world.

When Worlds Collide: The Columbian Exchange

Here's a fascinating 37 minute documentary about the changes, especially in ethnicity, in the Americas after the Europeans first discovered the continent.

It's a terrific introduction to the Columbian Exchange.