Information for Teachers

Research centers provide students with an opportunity to interact with rare materials that are not usually accessible in the classroom. As students usually conduct research on their own it is important that educators scaffold historical research skills and analysis. In order to prepare students prior to their trip to a research center it is recommended that teachers spend time working on research-based skills in the classroom. Likewise, upon the return of the student with information or photocopied materials acquired from their research it is important for educators to work with students on their interpretations and analysis. Individual or small group differentiation will be necessary to ensure that all students can demonstrate competency in these vital skills.

Having students conduct their own research makes them personally responsible for their research, interpretations and analysis. Furthermore, it teaches them the valuable skills of how to use historical research centers to access archives and collections.

Aligning with the State of Connecticut Social Studies Curriculum standards, research centers working collaboratively with educators are necessary in being able to meet these standards.

Using the social studies framework are the following expectations of social studies education in Connecticut:

Connecticut Social Studies Content Standards
Grade	3-4	5-6	7-8	9-10	11-12
Content Standard 1: Historical Thinking addresses students ability to "develop historical thinking, including contextualizing, comprehending and analyzing historical literature; researching historical sources; understanding competing narrative and interpretations; and constructive narrative and interpretations"	Students will identify the main idea in a source of historical information.	Students will gather information from multiple perspectives, including archives or electronic databases, to have experience with historical sources and to appreciate the need for multiple perspectives. Students will be able to distinguish between primary and secondary sources.	Students will interpret data in historical maps, photographs, art works and other artifacts.	Students will use primary source documents to analyze multiple perspectives.	Students will formulate historical questions and hypotheses from multiple perspectives using multiple sources.
Content Standard 3: Historical Themes addresses students ability to apply their understanding of historical periods, issues and trends to examine historical themes as ideals, beliefs and institutions, conflict resolution, and human movement and interaction.	Students will explain different types of conflict, different ways in which conflicts have been resolved, and different ways that conflicts and their resolutions have affected people. Students will be able to describe and explain some of the reasons people have moved and relate to these reasons to some historic movements of large groups of people.	Students will explain how roles and status of people have differed and changed throughout history based on gender, age, class, racial and ethnic identity, wealth and/or social position.		Students will demonstrate an understanding of the ways race, gender, ethnicity, and class issues have affected individuals and societies in the past.	Students will demonstrate an understanding of the ways that cultural encounters and the interaction of people of different cultures in pre-modern as well as modern times have shaped new identities and ways of life.

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