New Haven Museum: Primary sources for students

NEW HAVEN – The New Haven Museum and James Hillhouse High School teacher Gretchen M. Gurr, 2012 U.S. History Teacher of the Year,  will lead a primary source workshop at 1 p.m. Jan. 27.

The workshop will use the museum’s extensive collection, showing students how to use primary sources to support their projects based on the annual theme, according to a release.

The program, "Turning Points in History: People, Ideas, Events," is free and open to the public, the release said.

(Note: This workshop does not include research in the Whitney Library. Please contact the Library at (203) 562-4183 x15 or library@newhavenmuseum.org to schedule a research appointment.)

"The extensive manuscript and photographic collections at the New Haven Museum make it the ideal resource for students preparing National History Day projects," the release said.

(Top photo: “Detail of Wooster Square from 1879 Bird’s Eye View Map of New Haven. Image courtesy of the New Haven Museum.” Bottom photo: “Detail of New Haven Green from 1748 Wadsworth Map of New Haven. Image courtesy of the New Haven Museum.”)

Gurr graduated from Southern Connecticut State University with a Master's degree in curriculum and instruction, the release said . She is dead of the Social Studies Department at Hillhouse, New Haven District Curriculum Developer for Social Studies, and adjunct professor at the University of Connecticut, the release said. She has participated in the Teaching American History Grant for five years. 

National History Day” is a highly-regarded academic program for elementary and secondary school students. Each year, more than half a million students, encouraged by thousands of teachers nationwide, participate in the NHD contest. Students choose historical topics related to a theme and conduct extensive primary and secondary research through libraries, archives, museums, oral history interviews and historic sites. After analyzing and interpreting their sources and drawing conclusions about their topics’ significance in history, students present their work in original papers, websites, exhibits, performances and documentaries. These products are entered into competitions in the spring at local, state and national levels where they are evaluated by professional historians and educators.” To participate in History Day in Connecticut, teachers and students must register online at www.ct.nhd.org. There is a $5 fee for the district contest and a $10 fee for the state contest, the release said. 

The deadline to register for the district contest is Feb. 8. The district contests take place at various locations throughout Connecticut on Saturdays in March. The state contest will take place at Central Connecticut State University on April 27, the release said. The program culminates in the Kenneth E. Behring National Contest each June held at the University of Maryland at College Park. Visit www.ct.nhd.org for more information. 

Editor's note: All information in this post was contributed.