Pages from Our Past:
Local History, Literacy, and Resources for Teaching U.S. History
Lessons Plans in U.S. History created by Local History and English Teachers in Collaboration with the McLean County Museum of History
“Pages from Our Past” is a weekly column by Bill Kemp, the Museum’s Librarian, in The Pantagraph. Each week Kemp writes about a different aspect of McLean County history- from corn husking to the Civil War, soap sculptors to socialites. To date, Kemp as written almost 500 articles, and 75 of those are featured in the first edition of his book Pages from the Past: Stories from the Sunday Pantagraph.
Lesson Plans were created by teachers in McLean County for teachers everywhere.
This is an ongoing collaborative project between local History and English/Language Arts teachers and the McLean County Museum of History. Additional lessons and articles will be added periodically.
The lesson plans use Kemp’s columns as a foundation. The columns provide a solid link between McLean County and national events or themes in U.S. History.
This is an ongoing collaborative project between local History and English/Language Arts teachers and the McLean County Museum of History. Additional lessons and articles will be added periodically.
The lesson plans use Kemp’s columns as a foundation. The columns provide a solid link between McLean County and national events or themes in U.S. History.
By using these lesson plans, teachers and students will attain the following:
- Teachers will be able to enhance their U.S. History curriculum with the addition of local history components.
- Teachers will be able to see the inherent connection between history and language arts through the use of non-fiction reading and primary source materials, which these lessons and articles provide a sound basis for.
- Students will begin to understand how various events throughout history impacted local people. In doing so, students will also begin to understand how local individuals impacted regional, national, and international history.
- Students will begin to identify themselves as a member of the McLean County community. In doing so, participants will begin to understand the significance of knowing one’s local history, and how that history relates to regional, national, and international history.
Thanks to...
Author of Pages from the Past
Bill Kemp, Librarian at the McLean County Museum of History
Project Editors
Candace Summers, Director of Education at the McLean County Museum of History
Richard Hughes, Associate Professor of History at Illinois State University
Curriculum Guidance
Mike Mitchell, graduate program at Illinois State University, Department of History
Katie Bruemmer, English Literature at Heyworth High School
Webmaster
Torii Moré, Curator of Digital Humanities at the McLean County Museum of History
with support from Diane Wolf, Assistant Superintendent at the Regional Office of Education #17
Bill Kemp, Librarian at the McLean County Museum of History
Project Editors
Candace Summers, Director of Education at the McLean County Museum of History
Richard Hughes, Associate Professor of History at Illinois State University
Curriculum Guidance
Mike Mitchell, graduate program at Illinois State University, Department of History
Katie Bruemmer, English Literature at Heyworth High School
Webmaster
Torii Moré, Curator of Digital Humanities at the McLean County Museum of History
with support from Diane Wolf, Assistant Superintendent at the Regional Office of Education #17