Website: Eagle Eye Citizen

EAGLE EYE CITIZEN is a social studies learning resource for middle and high school students.

This interactive website challenges students to solve and create using primary resources. Users can begin with the featured or popular challenge. Or, they can choose the solve or create options. To create a project, students need to sign-in using a username and password to save their work.

The teacher section includes lesson plans, assessment, ideas for differentiation, resources, quick ideas, and ways to incorporate achievement systems like badges and profiles.

Librarians will want to integrate this resource into American history, civics, and government classes. The resources are intended to develop civic understanding and historical thinking skills.

To visit the website, go to https://eagleeyecitizen.org/.

Website Review: Disability History Museum

THE DISABILITY HISTORY MUSEUM website hosts a digital collection, educational materials, and museum exhibits exploring the historical experience of people with disabilities and their communities.

The Library Collections section contains a broad range of digital objects including letters, memoirs, chapbooks, postcards, photos, cartoons, and more that shaped the experiences of people with disabilities. Users can browse by category or search the collection.

The Education section provides ideas for teaching with primary sources. The materials explore ways to weave disability history topics into history, civics, and literature classes. After exploring an overview, users can examine lesson plans and other teaching tools of interest.

The Exhibits section is currently under development.

With over 3,000 primary source documents and images to explore, librarians will find this website to be an excellent tool for weaving the historical experiences of people with disabilities into the curriculum through the use of primary sources.

To visit the website, go to http://www.disabilitymuseum.org/.

Website Review: iCivics

The ICIVICS website provides interactive learning resources including lesson plans, games, and digital interactives. With local, state, and national elections being held around the country, it’s a perfect time to promote civic learning.

Founded by Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, the website actively engages students in activities that promote democratic action.

The Play section provides a wide range of online games for youth. After completing a free registration process, learners can collect badges, follow the leaderboard, and collect impact points. Games include “Do I Have a Right?”, “Branches of Power,” “Supreme Decision,” “Argument Wars”, “Bill of Rights”, “Immigration Nation”, and more! Play time ranges from 5 to 30 or more minutes per game, perfect for a class period.

The Teach section provides standards-based curriculum units, lesson plans, DBQuests, and WebQuests along with other tools and resources for planning on a wide range of topics including Foundations of Government, Branches of Government, The Constitution, Civil Rights, and others.

Whether focusing attention on the elections or teaching to a particular social studies standard, ICIVICS is a great choice for librarians working with teacher to promote an awareness of the democratic process.

To visit the website, go to https://www.icivics.org/