Learning from the Source: Cesar Chavez & Good Citizenship

Learning from the Source: Cesar Chavez & Good Citizenship

This activity is adapted from lessons in the Barat Education Foundation Our American Voice® program. This civics program for 4-8 graders features a spiral curriculum and emphasizes critical thinking, collaboration, and problem-solving skills as students learn the fundamentals of American democracy and work to create positive change in their communities. Overview Using Cesar Chavez as an…

painting by Alexander Calder

Today in History: Alexander Calder

Today in History–July 22–the Library of Congress features artist Alexander Calder, born on this date in 1898 in Pennsylvania. Calder’s mother was a painter and his father was a sculptor but Alexander began his career as a mechanical engineer. That early career choice served him well as an artist later when creating his first motor-driven sculptures, later…

Anne Hutchinson Preaching in Her House in Boston

Today in History: Anne Marbury Hutchinson

Today in History–July 20–the Library of Congress features Anne Marbury Hutchinson, baptized on this day in 1591 (according to the Old, or Julian, Calendar). This well-educated daughter of an outspoken clergyman silenced for criticizing the Church of England emigrated to the American colonies where she was later persecuted for her own outspoken religious beliefs. Find out more by visiting the Today in History section, then click…

Chesterwood, Daniel Chester Wood's studio

Today in History: Daniel Chester French

Today in History–April 20–the Library of Congress features sculptor Daniel Chester French, born on this day in 1850. Encouraged to pursue a career as an artist by Louisa May Alcott, French completed his first big commission for the statue The Minute Man, when he was just 25.  Find out more about this preeminent monumental sculptor who also created the Lincoln Memorial sculpture…

Lincoln Statue, Capitol

Learning from the Source: The Art of Tribute

From the Library of Congress bicentennial exhibition—With Malice Toward None—we learn a bit about the profound effect Abraham Lincoln’s death had on people all over the world. The assassination of President Abraham Lincoln on Good Friday, April 14, 1865, had a tremendous impact both in the United States and abroad. People in Great Britain, which…