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January 2004

American Journeys
American history firsthand, for middle and high school and up.
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12, Advanced

http://www.americanjourneys.org/

CONTENT:
American Journeys is a collaborative project of the Wisconsin Historical Society and National History Day. It provides eyewitness accounts of North American Exploration and is a great resource for students and educators or anyone who loves American history.
AESTHETICS:
The sepia colors and black and white illustrations give the site an old world look.
ORGANIZATION:
There is a top navigation menu that offers access to the five major areas of the site. Each of the areas has drop down menus, table of contents or search features for finding specific information. First time visitors may want to click on the "Minimum requirements for using this site" link for a full overview about using the site.

REVIEW:
The American Journeys is a digital library that offers more than 18,000 pages of eyewitness accounts of early American exploration and settlement. The documents include a wide range of geographical, cultural, and chronological information about the exploration of North America. A complete list of the documents available can be found in the "Find a Document" section. For a quick overview of famous moments in American History, listed in chronological order, visit the Highlights section. Here you can read first hand accounts of such events as Christopher Columbus stepping ashore in the Caribbean, Pocahontas' rescue of John Smith, or Lewis and Clark's arrival at the mouth of the Columbia River. Teachers will find everything they need to develop a History Day project or simply to use the primary documents in their middle and high school classes. Included are ideas for paper or presentation topics, essays on using and interpreting the documents, sample lesson plans, and much more. Additionally, there is a section on how the digital library was built for those interested in creating and managing digital projects.

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01/28/2004