Happy 2024 and welcome back. We hope the winter break allowed you to rest and revitalize. This update includes resources for MLK Day, Links to the new K-5 newsletter, opportunities for professional learning for teachers, new social science experiences for students, and even a social science related job at the Capitol. 

New K-5 Newsletter ODE’s Office of Teaching, Learning, and Assessment is launching a new quarterly newsletter for K-5 educators. This newsletter will provide resources, opportunities, guidance, and ODE updates tailored specifically to support the integrated and well-rounded instruction that elementary education entails. It aims to streamline information related to K-5 academic standards and instruction into one convenient communication.  Please subscribe or share the link with K-5 teachers who might be interested.

History in the News

Discussing current events is an important component of the Oregon social science standards. Many Oregon teachers use topical news stories to connect with the past. The last few weeks have revealed the relevance of the mid-19th century to present-day discussions. For example, decisions interpreting Section 3 of the 14th Amendment will head to the Supreme Court in February. Similarly, as historians offer guidance in explaining the causes of the United States Civil War, other primary documents such as Alexander Stephens’ Cornerstone Speech and Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address can be relevant and illuminating. Combining history and current events allows students to generate questions and pursue investigations into the past. The C3 Framework and its Inquiry Arc is a useful teacher tool for organizing student inquiry into history and civics.

Congratulations to the 2023-2024 Civics Learning Project and Peter & Leslie Richter Civic Educator of the Year Amy Fifth-Lince of Liberty High School, Hillsboro “Civics education is more than just teaching a class; it is a pathway to elevating equity and an opportunity for giving voice to the multiple perspectives existing in our community spaces.” – Amy K. Fifth-Lince  Amy teaches Civics and Community Service, You and The Law, and Economics at Hillsboro’s Liberty High School. In addition to serving as social science department chair, Amy also leads the Mock Trial program and serves as faculty advisor for the school’s Gender Sexuality Alliance (GSA).

Student Opportunities

Educator Opportunities 

Retro Report - The 2024 Civics Summer Institute

Retro Report follows students in schools across the country as they grapple with, debate, and research the most complex issues facing their generation. Retro Report will produce a digital video series, including short films providing context for key constitutional and political debates with exemplars of student discourse and discussion.

This summer institute opportunity brings together 25 secondary educators to pilot interactive resources, engage in virtual classroom exchanges, and help promote the free classroom resources created in association with this initiative. Applications are due by Monday, January 22, 2024. Please contact David Olson at dolson@retroreport.com with any questions. 

Oregon Historical Society

Oregon History Day Professional Development

Presented by OHS, CRMM, and CCHS Staff. 

Monday, January 29, 2024, from 9 am–2 pm

At the Barbey Maritime Center, Astoria  

Free | Register Here

The Woodson Center

A series of five online workshops hosted by the Woodson Center 

Empowering Black History: In Theory and Practice on Wednesday afternoons from January 17th-February 21. Registration is open.

OJMCHE Teaching & Learning the Holocaust and Genocide: A 12-Part Series

Join the Holocaust Center for Humanity and the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education, in partnership with Echoes & Reflections, for a NEW, updated 12-part interactive asynchronous Holocaust educator professional development that begins January 7th. 

Through the platform of EdPuzzle and other web-based interactive services, educators will learn from Sheryl Ochayon, Project Director of Echoes & Reflections at Yad Vashem. The experience will allow educators to learn with and from each other at their own pace and will include two live sessions. 

Registration for Teaching & Learning about the Holocaust and Genocide 2024: 12-Part Series is now open Oregon Journal for Social Studies

The new Oregon Journal of the Social Studies (volume 11 number 2) has just been published. The focus of this special issue includes methods for utilizing narratives vs. counter-narratives when using visual media in the social studies classroom. The OJSS is a peer-reviewed academic electronic journal sponsored by the Oregon Council for the Social Studies. New and past issues of social studies articles and lesson plans are free for all.  

Call for Manuscripts about Social Studies Classroom Experiences New Special Column: Voices in the Classroom

Oregon teachers, school support staff, student-teachers, and students we have a new special column in our academic journal, especially for you! We want to read social studies stories from the professionals in the classroom. Submit your narrative stories of 500-1500 words on social studies classroom experiences.

The submission deadline for the next journal issue is April 30, 2024. These stories may or may not contain formal references. Send your submissions to caranok@wou.edu. 

Additionally, if you have any questions or want to share your ideas before submitting feel free to email caranok@wou.edu.

The Center for Geography Education in Oregon (C-GEO) and the Oregon Historical Society (OHS) present a three-day institute on teaching the new Social Science Standards Integrated with Ethnic Studies through a geographic lens.  A focus of the institute will be researching Portland’s Japantown– or Nihonmachi in Japanese– through primary source analysis, field work, and museum exhibit visits.  Participants will create analysis tools and a lesson plan to use in their classroom.  Application Deadline: February 29, 2024

Video and Essay Contest from The Ninth Circuit

2024 Civics Contest topic: “70 Years Later – The Legacy of Brown v. Board of Education.”  2024 marks the 70th anniversary of the United State Supreme Court’s 1954 landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education. In Brown, a unanimous Supreme Court held that racial segregation in public schools is unconstitutional. Brown v. Board of Education is widely accepted as one of the most momentous Supreme Court decisions, yet views differ regarding its impact on the law and our society.

In addressing this topic, videos and essays should discuss what impact you think Brown has had and why. The submission deadline is March 8th (with entries accepted beginning January 8th). A resources packet is available with more information. 

Visual Arts Contest from The Minoru Yasui Legacy Project and the Japanese American Museum of Oregon 

The Student Contest theme is Advancing Democracy, and it provides a great opportunity for middle and high school students to think about and share their understanding of democracy. It also encourages students to learn more about the work of Minoru Yasui. Mr. Yasui was born in Hood River, Oregon, and spent his career defending civil rights and promoting social justice. Visit the website to learn more about the contest and previous winners.

Rainier History Bee and Bowl

On February 3rd, Rainier School District hosts the National History Bee,  a quiz competition for individual students, testing knowledge of the history of all eras and all parts of the world. The National History Bee consists of a network of Regional Tournaments. Qualified students contest in the annual National Championships each year in Arlington, VA in late April. At Regionals and Nationals, the Junior Varsity Division is contested for students entirely in 10th grade and younger.

Contact Andrew Demko for more information.

Ukraine-Holodomor Essay Contest

The U.S. Committee for Holodomor Genocide Awareness is sponsoring a cash prize competition for U.S. high schools students grades 9 –12. This competition is particularly relevant for students taking classes in history, genocide studies, social studies, English and journalism. Submissions may be in traditional non-digital formats or web-based media projects. Entries are due by March 15, 2024.  To request additional information, please email ukrainecompetition@gmail.com. Further details are in the official description which also includes the teacher feedback form.

Book Review and Classroom Resources

Book Review

In October 2019, HBO’s The Watchman premiered with an opening scene depicting the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. For many viewers, this was the first time learning of this history. The massacre became required teaching in Tulsa public schools in 2020 yet remained absent in many traditional instructional materials despite being, according to the Oklahoma History Center, “the single worst incident of racial violence in American history” after the abolition of slavery. 

There are now many available books to learn more about the Greenwood neighborhood, “Black Wall Street” and the violence of 1921 Tulsa. However, Victor Luckerson’s latest book, Built From the Fire, tells a longer story of resistance and resilience. In just over 600 pages, Luckerson’s account of a lynch mob that turned into a massacre begins on page eighty-seven and takes only two and a half chapters. These will likely be the most helpful pages (chapters 6-8) for U.S. History teachers looking for a fresh description. 

The remainder of the book takes us well past the summer of 1921. Editorials and articles from the Black-owned newspaper, the Oklahoma Eagle, act as our witness through the rebuilding of Greenwood and the experience of the Black community in Tulsa and beyond. 

Educators familiar with the philosophical and political disagreements between Booker T.Washington, W.E.B DuBois, and Marcus Garvey, will be interested in how students from Greenwood, which had a BTW high school, thought about strategies of accommodation, the talented tenth, and nationalism. 

NPR has a 7-minute audio review and the New York Times and the Woodson Center also offer helpful lessons and resources for teaching the history of Greenwood before, during, and after the fire.

OHS

New Curriculum Explores How Everyday People Have Stood against White Supremacy and Hate Groups in Oregon

The 1988 murder of Ethiopian immigrant Mulugeta Seraw in Portland brought into public view the increased organizing by violent White supremacists. In response, disparate groups came together to organize against White supremacist violence throughout Portland and the Pacific Northwest.

To provide context and understanding about these events in Oregon history and their relevance today, the Oregon Historical Society (OHS) recently released the It Did Happen Here curriculum, which is free and available for download on ohs.org. This curriculum is a collaborative creation of Erin Yanke and Mic Crenshaw of the It Did Happen Here podcast, OHS, and the Western States Center.

Through this curriculum, which supports the Oregon Social Science Standards Integrated with Ethnic Studies, students in grades 9–12 explore historical context, such as policies from Oregon’s early decades as well as racism in the last decades of the twentieth century, including the rise of hate groups in the 1980s. The curriculum invites students to consider the relevancy of these histories today. Visit OHS.org/education/ to learn more!

CLP 

Provides new Elections in Oregon resources for secondary grades to help you and your students learn about the election process in Oregon. Lessons include examining the Oregon Constitution as a primary source, understanding voter eligibility, ballot measures, and definitions relating to elections, the history of voting rights, and more. 

Social Science Opportunities

Visitor Services at the Oregon State Capitol is seeking a dynamic individual who will identify and implement program-enhancing opportunities around the legislative process, the history of the legislature and the Capitol, and Oregon History. This position requires a candidate with exceptional attention to detail and experience in creating educational materials and delivering educational programming to large groups and diverse audiences. 

The Education and Volunteer Outreach Coordinator will lead a group of forty-plus volunteers who support the services and programs offered through the department. This individual is responsible for

recruitment, training, scheduling, and supervising volunteers.

Apply Oregon Job Opportunities (myworkdayjobs.com).