TOP PICKS | 32 TOOLS
Best History Websites and Resources
Top Picks
RELATED
Print | Save as PDF
Asian Art Museum
Inventive lessons and activities integrate Asian history, art, and more
Bottom line: It offers an in-depth look at Asia’s influence on art and history and provides lots of creative tools for educators.
PebbleGo
Easily accessible, kid-friendly database for the littlest researchers
Bottom line: Delightful, safe introduction to the world of research, databases, and reporting, with interesting content and stellar supports.
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Powerful stories and media centralize African-American history
Bottom line: While there aren't ready-to-go curricular materials, this modern, well-curated, and well-contextualized digital collection is sure to inspire compelling lessons.
Smithsonian's History Explorer
Lessons, activities, artifacts, artfully presented by the Smithsonian
Bottom line: Smithsonian's History Explorer is a fantastic resource for students, families, and teachers alike; it has everything you need to fall in love with history.
Library of Congress
Dig into famed library's collection of research goodies
Bottom line: The Library of Congress delivers the best of America's past and present, and with teacher support it could be a reliable research resource for students.
PebbleGo Next
Safe nonfiction database develops students' research skills
Bottom line: Student-centric research site gives kids a just-right amount of information to build foundational research skills.
EDSITEment
Extensive humanities resource offers deep well of great content
Bottom line: The National Endowment for the Humanities has put together an outstanding place for art, history, language, and literature.
Ken Burns in the Classroom
Critically acclaimed documentaries repackaged meaningfully for classrooms
Bottom line: Top-notch documentary clips offer opportunities to expand students' perspectives, but some lesson materials might be underwhelming.
National Archives
Access U.S. history with treasure trove of docs, genealogy, and other resources
Bottom line: NARA's website wasn't designed for kids, but they can definitely use it to research and learn about history, genealogy, and the U.S. population and government.
Digital Public Library of America
Organized digital library features piles of useful primary resources
Bottom line: DPLA is at the top of the list of high-grade, online primary source collections if teachers make effective use of what's on offer.
Ford's Theatre
Site famous for its Lincoln assassination resources has more to offer
Bottom line: This site can support meaningful, primary source-driven examination of some of the most important events in U.S. history, but educators will need to dig a little.
Gooru
Personalized tool fosters exploration, teacher-led meaningful learning
Bottom line: A great portal for supplementing classroom instruction; supports independent and personalized learning.
Case Maker
Students think like detectives to gather evidence, explore civics
Bottom line: Makes the case for middle schoolers using primary sources, but this isn't gonna be a grab-and-go experience.
findingDulcinea
Aging search tool has curated resources and links to credible sites
Bottom line: It can help kids quickly find credible websites for study and schoolwork, but those resources will be a bit out-of-date.
SweetSearch
Search engine with filtered results leaves room for critical thinking
Bottom line: SweetSearch supplies valid, reputable websites that can help kids learn about a variety of topics.
Facing History and Ourselves
A wealth of resources explore racism, prejudice, and anti-Semitism
Bottom line: These valuable materials empower students to understand and address difficult ethical choices -- past and present.
Google Arts & Culture
Well-curated art and history site inspires curious learning
Bottom line: A beautifully presented one-stop shop for compellingly curated and contextualized art, history, and culture resources, but it's lacking educator supports.
DocsTeach
Historical texts, interactive activities can promote critical thinking
Bottom line: This text-rich app encourages students to conduct their own analysis of history, but the formats and graphics may prevent them from making a thorough analysis.
NYPL Biblion: World's Fair
Dive deep into treasures from the 1940 World’s Fair
Bottom line: This digital glimpse into the NYPL’s holdings is a lot to take in all at once, but it’s a rewarding journey.
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Extensive resource collection supports teaching about the Holocaust
Bottom line: As a valuable resource for anyone teaching or learning about the Holocaust, time to explore and plan is necessary in order to make the materials effective.
Zinn Education Project
Resources, lessons help teach a more inclusive version of U.S. history
Bottom line: Free downloadable resources encourage critical thinking and active learning in search of a more accurate picture of American history.
Ancient History Encyclopedia
Crowd-sourced ancient history site features extensive, varied resources
Bottom line: It's free, web-based, and regularly updated with vetted info, so classrooms can turn to this site often to kick off research projects.
The National WWII Museum - New Orleans
High-quality resources and activities offer an in-depth study
Bottom line: Materials and activities support a thorough study of World War II, making this a valuable resource for both teachers and students.
A History of Ideas
Philosophy podcast makes heady concepts accessible
Bottom line: These philosophy podcasts and videos offer entertaining introductions to key concepts and thinkers, but require some smart lesson planning for deeper learning.
Constitute
Extensive, highly searchable collection of the world's constitutions
Bottom line: Quickly and easily access almost any country's constitution, locate an excerpt, or compare governments.
Google Scholar
Academic search engine, an excellent source for credible research info
Bottom line: This smart tool can help teens locate credible material for paper and report writing, general research, and other school projects.
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
History and art intersect on the Met's vast, reading-centric site
Bottom line: This resource from the Metropolitan Museum of Art beautifully illustrates art's evolution and is great for research, but more interactivity would help balance out the text-heavy content.
The Living New Deal | Still Working for America
Archival site is a treasure trove for New Deal researchers
Bottom line: While it doesn't offer much specifically for teachers or students, it's a must-use site for primary source material if you have a unit on the New Deal or Great Depression.
Stanford History Education Group
High-quality, document-based lessons spark stellar historical inquiry
Bottom line: A gold mine of cross-curricular literacy lessons that encourage sound, research-backed strategies for reading, analysis, and critical thinking.
Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database
Deep, complex database is challenging but a peerless research tool
Bottom line: This is a highly academic site for better and for worse; it's filled with deep, research-backed resources and primary sources but is intimidating without clear guidance.