Tuesday, May 12, 2009

National Parks Services Teaching Resources

Several Government agencies offer free resources for teachers and the National Parks Services (NPS) is one of those agencies. This agency has established the “Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP)” program.The National Parks Service Provides the following explanation about this program:

According to their website, http://www.nps.gov/history/NR/twhp/about.htm,
Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) is a program of the National Park Service's Heritage Education Services office. Over the years TwHP has developed a variety of products and services. These include a series of lesson plans; guidance on using places to teach; information encouraging educators, historians, preservationists, site interpreters, and others to work together effectively; and professional development publications and training courses. Initially created in collaboration with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, TwHP grew out of a desire by both organizations to expand educational outreach.
(Quoted from NPS website)

Once more, the above quote from the National Parks Services (NPS) website best describes the agency’s initiative. I encourage you to visit their website to find lesson plans, teacher guides, teacher tools and information that will prove valuable when studying topics that reference historic events and places such as “The Trail of Tears”, “The Great Smokey Mountains” and the culture of the Gullah and Geechee people. When visiting this resource, you are sure to find information on other North Carolina Parks as well as National Historic locations throughout the Nation. http://www.nps.gov/learn/curriculum.htm.

"The Great Smokey Mountains" @ http://www.nps.gov/grsm/
"The Gullah & Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor" @ http://www.nps.gov/guge/
"The Trail of Tears" @ http://www.nps.gov/history/NR/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/118trail/118trail.htm
References: www.nps.gov

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