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History class in the spirit of the maker movement
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We're thrilled to announce a new book from CMK Press: History in Their Hands: Teaching Inquiry-Based United States History Through the Lens of Black Agency by Beth Krasemann. This book is wholly consistent with the CMK Press philosophy — trust students, empower teachers, expand opportunities for knowledge construction. The learning-by-making here just happens to be in U.S. history. Students are armed with primary sources — text, visuals, audio, and video — and challenged to socially construct meaning with their peers. Rather than presenting Black Americans as victims of white supremacy, the curriculum showcases the persistent agency and inexhaustible contributions of Black people throughout United States history. The lessons span pre-1619 to the present, with compelling questions driving each inquiry: How did enslaved people fight back? What did Reconstruction achieve? How does activism look different today than fifty years ago? The lessons are flexible — usable as standalone activities, dropped into existing units, or combined into a full course. And even if you don't teach U.S. history, the book offers a model for working with primary sources that translates across subjects and grade levels. This timeless and timely book is wholly consistent with James Loewen's Lies My Teacher Told Me — a book many of you already know and love. With America celebrating its 250th birthday, there's no better moment for this. The companion teacher website puts every primary source document in one place, with links to additional resources. Hit "Classroom Mode" and the site becomes a projection tool — documents ready to share with a class instantly. Beth Krasemann continues the CMK Press tradition of sharing the wisdom and ingenuity of great teachers with their peers. Available in paperback, hardcover, and Kindle.
For purchase orders or volume discounts: sales@cmkpress.com Sylvia Martinez & Gary Stager PS Speaking of books, don't miss our online book club session this Tuesday May 19 on Jonathan Kozol's new book, We Shall Not Bow Down. [Learn more and sign up here] |
Constructing Modern Knowledge
Join us for news, resources, and events for creative, progressive educators
Computational Making & Learning Workshops in California On the heels of his Chicago event, Gary Stager is bringing his Computational Making & Learning Workshop to Los Angeles and San Francisco in December. Computational making recognizes that the future is computational. Making things with code expands the creative canvas, supercharges mathematical thinking, and positions learners to explore the frontiers of nearly any discipline. While the maker movement gave us the ability to make things...
Hello Reader, New from CMK Press: Tinkering Time Buy on Amazon Young children are natural tinkerers. Give them interesting materials, a good question and room to experiment, and watch what happens. We're delighted to announce Tinkering Time: 30 Creative Classroom Projects for Young Engineers, Artists, and Inventors by Alice Baggett, a joyful, practical guide to bringing hands-on tinkering into preschool and PreK classrooms. Alice has taught young children for more than three decades and is...
Happy Back-to-School, Reader! Back-to-School is an exhausting, exciting time of year filled with possibility, renewed energy, and for some, perhaps even a little dread. We salute all you do each day the make the world a better place for kids. Rest assured that we have your back. While we can’t “clear your list,” we decided to share some thoughts that may “clear your mind” and perhaps, even inspire you to lean into your courage and creativity. Here are some of words of wisdom and witty tales...