Blogs I Love: Today’s Document from the National Archives
Thursday, July 8th, 2010
My friend Julie and I sat at neighboring computers this spring and shared our favorite blogs with each other.
One of the ones I have really enjoyed since then is Today’s Document from the National Archives. As the blog title suggests, each day, there is a new blog post featuring an image, document, or other item from the Archives’ collection, along with some supplemental information that gives historical information and/or context about the item.
It’s fun for us closeted history buffs, but it also feeds us a new possible primary source teaching tool each day.
When I see the posts in my Google Reader account, I see only a tiny detail from the overall image. For example, here’s a screen shot of the RSS feed from May:
All you can see of the image is a wee pair of bare feet. I instantly connect to those little feet. They remind me of my niece, who would love to go barefoot if she were allowed. The right foot is tipped to one side. They’re feet with personality.
Click through to the post, though, and the view changes. Here is the complete image you see:
Wow. Did your connection to the photograph change? Mine did. I still see someone my niece’s age, but now the context is so different. The bare feet become a sign of want, not childhood freedom. She’s taller and thinner than my niece — not as well-nourished. She has a stained dress.
What the Archives does in those small “keyhole” images in the RSS feed is invite us in, to look more closely, to gain greater intimacy with the image. When the larger image is shown to us, the intimacy stays even as the perspective pans outward.
What you can’t see in the screenshot above is that the Archives page also includes links to related images, teaching plans, and more. So if an image grabs you and connects to the lessons you’re working on, the resources are right there!
I’m a huge fan of using primary sources to jumpstart conversations and brainstorm questions, as has been shown in lots of posts and in my book for kids.
In these lazy summer days, consider how the images of the National Archives, American Memory, the Smithsonian, and more could be truncated into smaller pieces that could create a similar sense of telescoping intimacy. The delight we find in taking a micro-look at images can translate to a similar pleasure for learners of all ages.
My friend Julie and I sat at neighboring computers this spring and shared our favorite blogs with each other.
One of the ones I have really enjoyed since then is Today’s Document from the National Archives. As the blog title suggests, each day, there is a new blog post featuring an image, document, or other item from the Archives’ collection, along with some supplemental information that gives historical information and/or context about the item.
It’s fun for us closeted history buffs, but it also feeds us a new possible primary source teaching tool each day.
When I see the posts in my Google Reader account, I see only a tiny detail from the overall image. For example, here’s a screen shot of the RSS feed from May:
All you can see of the image is a wee pair of bare feet. I instantly connect to those little feet. They remind me of my niece, who would love to go barefoot if she were allowed. The right foot is tipped to one side. They’re feet with personality.
Click through to the post, though, and the view changes. Here is the complete image you see:
Wow. Did your connection to the photograph change? Mine did. I still see someone my niece’s age, but now the context is so different. The bare feet become a sign of want, not childhood freedom. She’s taller and thinner than my niece — not as well-nourished. She has a stained dress.
What the Archives does in those small “keyhole” images in the RSS feed is invite us in, to look more closely, to gain greater intimacy with the image. When the larger image is shown to us, the intimacy stays even as the perspective pans outward.
What you can’t see in the screenshot above is that the Archives page also includes links to related images, teaching plans, and more. So if an image grabs you and connects to the lessons you’re working on, the resources are right there!
I’m a huge fan of using primary sources to jumpstart conversations and brainstorm questions, as has been shown in lots of posts and in my book for kids.
In these lazy summer days, consider how the images of the National Archives, American Memory, the Smithsonian, and more could be truncated into smaller pieces that could create a similar sense of telescoping intimacy. The delight we find in taking a micro-look at images can translate to a similar pleasure for learners of all ages.
