Madness

Will this project ever end?!?!?!  I've spent the last 4 days glued to my computer making all the pieces for my board.  I'm happy because all of my pieces are fitting together and I have exactly what I need to prove my point.  I'm unhappy because there is sunshine outside my window and I am stuck inside.  Also, my neck is stiff, my right arm is going numb, I think I'm going blind, and I know I'm losing my mind.

Triumphant!

She replied!!!  I'm now conversing with a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist.  How cool is that?!

Intimidated

People usually don't scare me.  But.  As I was researching missing pieces yesterday, I found a Pulitzer Prize winning author from Minnesota.  Looking further, I discovered an email address.  Figuring it was worth a shot, I spent over 30 minutes trying to compose a brief email explaining my research about the history of women journalists and asking questions about the impact these journalists have had.  Suddenly, I felt really small.  This woman has won the highest honor in her field.  It seems like a lot to ask input from someone who has a lot bigger work to do.  Now, I wait.

Jubilant!

Yesterday, I went back to the History Center library to find the missing pieces for my project.  Sherlock, as you can see, was a great help in reviewing miles of microfilm from newspaper collections all over the state of Minnesota.  I had a good time and I FOUND EXACTLY WHAT I NEEDED!  I think I'm about ready to put this all together, though I'd still like to do an interview...

Advice

Before I forget, here are a few things that made this process a little easier for me:

1.  Don't waste to much time on random Google searches.  Use specific data bases or know exactly what you are looking for.

2.  Keep your research questions in mind.  They will save you time and effort.

3.  Color coding helps.

4.  Remember to cite your page numbers.  It's harder than it looks.

5.  Keep your bibliography up to date as you go.  You will thank yourself later!  Actually, I did this really well during the first half of my data gathering.  Then I got sloppy.  Now I dread going back to figure out the missing pieces.

6.  Just when you think you're done, you will find you are not.  A note here-I'm tired of taking notes, my outline is done, and I'm ready to put the pieces together for my board.  BUT.  I found.  A few.  Missing pieces.  So it's back to the Minnesota History Museum library tomorrow.  I'd better get an "A" on this project!

Vacation Day 6 (later)

I think I'm committing to an exhibit.  Actually, I think I've been committed to it all along.  I made a map of what it might look like:

Now I'm getting excited about using the giant bag of sticky 3M products I received at the history institute.  Oh, the mess that lies ahead! And now, I'm putting this all away, because I'M SUPPOSED TO BE ON VACATION!

Vacation Day 6

(From last Thursday)

Worlds are colliding!  From the beginning, I had planned on doing a website.  I wanted to know more about how the weebly site worked and it also sounded fun.  However, the image of an exhibit board keeps sneaking in and I just can't get rid of it. So, I'm trying out various layouts to see what this might look like.  Do I go with my original plan, or ditch it for the display?!  Maybe Sherlock can help...

Vacation Day 4

We have worked hard and now we are taking a break!

 

Vacation Day 3

(from last Tuesday)

Yesterday, I sat under a tree on the beach and worked on my outline.  When I was done, I had the background information all completed.  I also had little sticky bits all over my ipad screen from the tree.  So today, I'm making myself sit up here on the deck with my notes until I get this done.  At least I have Sherlock to help!

Vacation: Day 1

(From last Sunday)

I won!  I'm at the lake, supposedly on vacation, and I'm working on my History Day project.  This would be depressing if I weren't feeling so victorious.  I dragged all that material with me, along with the thesis worksheet created by the History Day people.  It was a HUGE help in bringing together my ideas and figuring out how to best support my main points.  It's always nice when an assignment I've made my students do turns out to be really worthwhile.  It's also nice to know where this project is headed.  For now, I'm headed for the beach...

Help!!!

I'm 97 notecards, 145 photos, and about 30 sources into my project. I know I need to start bringing it all together. So now that I have all this stuff, WHAT NEXT?!?!?!?!  I think this is where part of the definition of Expedition comes in:

1. an excursion, journey, or voyage made for some specific purpose, as of war or exploration.

This is a battle I'm primed to win!

My New Friends

I just spent the weekend hanging out with Carol, Louise, Doris, and Geraldine-all Minnesota Press Women from the 1940's.  They published The Gopher Tidings, a monthly newsletter providing support to the members of the Press Women, and all their articles brought the people of the organization to life for me. They were smart, driven, funny women who made life better for their communities.  Their words have the power to bring back the dramatic events of World War II and the everyday lives of people as they pursue their ambitions, enjoy family and friends, and confront the challenges of career and home.   I love this phase of my project-getting to know people from the past and seeing the world through their eyes.

Getting Dizzy

I've worked hard taking notes all week and my head is buzzing with stories.  There's Nellie Bly and her race around the world.  And Jane Grey Swisshelm, who antagonized powerful politicians by slamming them in her editorials.  After a lot of name-calling on both sides, the politicians broke into her news office, stole her printing press, and DUMPED IT IN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. And there are the women who faked mental illness to go under cover in insane asylums to get the inside scoop on the medical treatments and living conditions.  Weren't they worried about getting out again?!  I love all the colorful characters and dramatic events of the past, but I'm worried that I will never make sense of all the information I've gathered. 

Source 19

Dear Source 19,

Thank you for being EXACTLY what I needed for my research!  You answered all my remaining questions and validated my conclusions.  You even tied everything into this year's theme for me by showing how the leadership of the Minnesota Press Women left a legacy for women in journalism and for the community at large.  Even though you made me take notes for the past 2 hours and I am now WEAK and EXHAUSTED, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.  Perhaps you'd also put my project together?

J. Amen
The Humble and Grateful

Meet Sherlock

It is a humid night and I'm sweating it out on my porch taking notes.  For those of you who have not yet solved "History Mystery #2," my new mascot is a big hint. I am proud to report that I now have 38 note cards, most of my background information is complete, and every card has a page citation!

A Confession

I have led students in History Day projects for three years.  Every year as students take notes, I tell them to PUT THE PAGE NUMBERS of quotes and facts on their notecards so they can cite them in their projects.  Every year a bunch of kids forget, then have to dig back into their sources for the citations. They weep and wail and I bang my head against the wall.  So here I've happily been taking notes all week, only to look back and realize I HAVE FORGOTTEN TO CITE THE PAGE NUMBERS.  I guess it's harder than it looks.

Digging In

I'm sitting on my porch armed with my dog for company and chocolate covered pretzels for morale and ready to begin my research in earnest.  I found exactly what I needed in the Minnesota History Center Museum archives to tell the heart of my story (more on this later); now I need to step back and impose order on the mass of background information in front of me.  The first step?  Weeding out the library books that are interesting vs relevant.  This is hard to do because there are so many cool stories here!  Case in point:  a book written in 1942 called So Your Husband's Gone to War!  It has chapters with intriguing titles like "Hire for Wages" (a new concept?!), "Where's Daddy, Mummy?" (heartbreaking), and "Don't Let Yourself Go!" (a warning against having too many wild parties? a caution against too many chocolate covered pretzels?!).  I could spend all afternoon here, but I really do need to stick to my research questions and focus on how the war changed things for women in journalism.  Anyway, on to the task at hand!

Narrowing It Down

I decided to study "Women on the Home Front in World War II."  I was really excited about all the possibilities, all the stories that just had to be out there.  And then I got started.  This is what my week looked like:

Fortunately, the week ended on a high note.  I can only hope that continues...

History Mystery #2

(originally written on Thursday, June 26)

What does this deerstalker hat have to do with a History Day Project?!  Ideas, anyone?!!

Tour of the History Museum

 

(originally written on June 25)

The people at the Minnesota History Museum call this the "Indiana Jones" room (think Raiders of the Lost Ark!).  The room is 3 stories high, and every box in it hides secrets from the past.  If you go to the Reading Room at the library, you can request one and dig through the maps, documents, and photos left by people in history.  I actually touched a scrapbook over 70 years old, kept by a woman during World War II recording her life on the home front.  After the tour, I wrote research questions, searched for sources on the mnhs website, then requested MY VERY OWN BOX. I had a great time gathering information about a feisty woman who organized Civilian Defense Activities on the home front.  Then I found another interesting source about women journalists during the war. Now I don't know which way to go. I have to go home, quietly contemplate, then commit to one direction or the other. There are just TOO MANY BOXES...

It's Not a Castle in Spain

Oh, to be conducting primary research in sunny Spain!  Instead, I spent the day in a basement-actually a sub-basement-at the Wilson Library on the U of M campus fighting through the haze of possibilities.  My final topic choice?  Women on the Home Front.  The difficulty?  I need to do a little research before I can narrow it down, but there is SO MUCH INFORMATION that I need to narrow it down before I can begin.  So I started at the computer screen with a blank look on my face for about 30 minutes, randomly trying search terms and data bases that yielded NOTHING.  Then inspiration kicked in, and I FOUND COOL STUFF!  Now I should sort through the cool stuff, but it's a beautiful evening, my lilac tree by my patio is blooming, and I have a really good book club book for the month...

History Mystery #1

 

Here's a brilliant illustration from our first day of the History Day Summer Institute.  What does my squishy puffer fish have to do with choosing a good topic for History Day?! Please submit your best guess in the "comments" section!

Map Making

Any good trip involves a map, so I got my sharpies and a big piece of butcher paper and went to work narrowing down my topic.  For the fully illustrated story, check out my "Choosing a Topic" page!

Trying to Focus

(originally written on June 16, 2014)

It's official-the instructions are to focus on a Minnesota history topic.  So, I'm going back to my list and keeping 4 things in mind:

1.  What kind of materials am I most interested in working with? 
     I want the inside story-from memoirs, diaries, artifacts, and stories.

2.  What kind of project do I want to do?  (assuming I have a choice?)
     A topic like Women on the Home Front in WWII would lend itself to a website, especially if I can
     find 90+ year old women with clear memories to video.  There has also got to be interesting
     archival footage from the war effort-both radio and tv.

3.  What topic sounds the most exciting?
     Coya Knutsen interests me as a person, but I'm not really into polictics.  This circles back to  
     question 1-I don't want to dig through congressional records.  I'm not sure I care about what she
     cared about, and I want to get inside my topic.

4.  IT HAS TO FIT THE THEME!!! 
     Which topics on my list naturally lend themselves to Leadership and Legacy?

Next Steps:  Do a little web surfing and also see what's available from the public and mnhs libraries.  It's also time to get out the sharpies...

Some People Have All The Luck

(originally written on June 13, 2014)

I just got an email from one of my 8th graders.  He is in Barcelona, visiting an amazing church, and thinking about focusing his History Day project on the architect.  Imagine collecting primary sources while visiting cool places in Spain!  I can only hope the mnhs library holds something equally amazing for me...

On the Road

(originally written on Sunday, May 25th)

It's Memorial Day weekend, I'm in the car on the way home from Nebraska, and I'm thinking about my topic.  I could either go with something from my previous list, or expand my search to something more unique and try to find a Minnesota connection.  The problem with expanding is the HUGE EXPANSE of people and events throughout ALL TIME.  Where to start?!?!  Time to make more lists:

Things I Care About:
faith
music
art
education
science/environment

Periods in History I Like:
WWII
Jazz Age
Ancient History?!
Renaissance
Pioneers/Westward Movement

Cool Place I've Been:
Greece (Santorini, Parthenon, Delphi)
London
Italy (Florence, Rome, Venice)
Grand Canyon
Boundary Waters
Mad King Ludwig's Castle in Bavaria
Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris
St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome

I also need to choose a topic with a significant impact on history-the SO WHAT?!-got to keep that in mind!  Narrowing this down feels like launching a major expedition, and I'm not sure I want to go there now...more fun to try with a giant piece of butcher paper and multi-colored sharpies on my porch.  So, back to staring out the window at the farmer's fields...

Jumping the Gun

(Originally written on on May 13, 2014)

OK, I have no idea what the mnhs people will require, but I'm excited about my project.  Staring the vast expanse of history in the face, I now know how my students feel trying to pick a topic.  So I'm taking my own advice and starting with the topics list on the mnhs website.  Here's what appeals to me so far:

• St. Croix River Valley:  interesting combination of environmental issues and the story of the     Dakota, plus, I could go there
• Hinckley Fire of 1894:  fairly contained topic, as I have issues narrowing things down to a manageable focus; not sure how it fits the theme, but there has to be a legacy in there somewhere
• Woman on the Home Front during WWII:  different from other topics I've studied, sounds like it fits the theme
• F. Scott Fitzgerald:  As an Language Arts teacher, this surely needs to be on my list!
• Recreational Sailing:  personal experience sailing with the Minnetonka Yacht club for over 20 years, and easy access to primary sources
• Harriet Bishop:  pioneer + teacher = interesting!
• Coya Knutsen:  fellow Concordia grad, Julliard, U.S. Congresswoman

That's enough to mull over for now...must let ideas incubate!

Congratulations!

(originally written on Thursday, May 8, 2014)

The letter was on the counter when I got home today..."Congratulations! We are excited to have you join us for the 2014 History Day Summer Institute..."  I've been haunting my inbox all week waiting for the email accepting me into the teachers program.  I'd given up hope, then the notice finally arrived via the U.S. Post.  My 8th graders think I'm nuts-hope to do a History Day project?!  During the summer?!! Yes, dear students, it's GAME ON!