Teaching American History provides One Day seminars for the busy teacher seeking professional development that doesn’t require days of their precious academic time. One Day seminars connect teachers with primary source documents and allow them to strengthen their content knowledge by having conversations with other teachers and a scholar. Typically, One Days are held at school districts or local historical sites, lasting from 9:00am and wrapping up at 2:15, allowing teachers to make it home for family and post-school activities. Teachers receive 8 hours of professional development time, including the reading from the course pack that is sent to the teacher 3-4 weeks ahead of the seminar.
The past year has been busy for Teaching American History and One Days! Teachers out west were provided new seminars at the Herbert Hoover Library in Iowa, Sterling College, and the Manhattan USD in Kansas, the School of Civic Leadership at the University of Texas, Austin, Alpine Schools in Utah, the Missouri Historical Society in Cass County, in Idaho Falls, Idaho, and the Overland Trail Museum in Sterling, Colorado. In the south, new seminars were hosted in Shelby and Alabaster County in Alabama. In the Midwest, we held new seminars at the Kurt Vonnegut Museum in Indianapolis, the South Indiana Educational Center in Charlestown, Indiana, the Civil War Museum in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the Trinity-Pawling School in Pawling, New York, Lakota Local Schools in Liberty Township, Ohio, and both the Southeast Ohio History Museum and Campus Martius Museums in southeast Ohio. TAH also continues to partner with regional state councils in Florida, Tennessee, and Wisconsin to offer seminars. New seminars are popping up in California next year! You can also find Teaching American History at numerous state and national conferences, such as the National Council of History Education conference in Alabama and the Texas Council for Social Studies conference in Houston.
Topics for One Day seminars are available across the history of America, and this particular year TAH is offering “America at 250: The Legacy of the Declaration of Independence”. Teachers can attend programs with the “America at 250” topic in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Mississippi, Kentucky, Colorado, New York, Texas, Illinois, and Indiana. Other popular early American topics include the “American Revolution” and “ The First Three Presidents.” School districts typically choose their topics, which can range from “Supreme Court Cases that Changed America” to “Slavery and the Constitution” and “America in WWI” to “Native Americans and Citizenship.”
Why do One Day seminars continue to draw teachers? Teachers experience professional development that is created and tailored for the district or site. They are able to dive deep into primary source documents and have a conversation with one another and a scholar, who sits at the table and learns with them. Their conversations continue over lunch and usually after the seminar ends. “I have attended several One Day TAH seminars through the years and they have all been exceptional professional development experiences” says Andy Klinker of Piketon, Ohio. “I’ve enjoyed the collegial atmosphere of each and, of course, the first-rate professors. These seminars have consistently inspired me, challenged me, and helped me become more effective in my classroom.”
School districts can get in touch with TAH to bring their own One Day to their school for their elementary, junior high, or high school teachers. 100% of the costs are covered by TAH, including lunch, course packs, scholars, and letters of attendance. These programs are crafted for each district and take three or more months to plan- so please get in touch today to plan for the 26-27 school year to elevate your social studies teachers’ professional development days!
