Jazz, the newest sound around in 1920, was loud, bouncy, fast, and created by African American musicians. The sounds of blues and jazz music filled the night in Kansas City where more than 50 music clubs had their home in the jazz district.
In Music Makers: All That Jazzstudents are introduced to Charlie Parker’s be-bop beat, try some improvisation of a favorite song, or create a DIY trumpet.
Historians are detectives. They look for history clues and they know the importance of asking questions. In “Get a Clue! Case #4 Who’s That Mascot?”students can test their detective skills.
Clues don’t just come in the form of paper or photographs. The artifacts museums collect are also important clues. The clue students will examine is an artifact on display in the Kansas Museum of History. They will study the clue and read the history of McDonald’s restaurants to solve the mystery of the unknown mascot.
New seventh grade standards-based lessons are now available in the “Indian Homes in Kansas” traveling resource trunk. Students will use objects and ethnographies to interpret the buffalo’s place in the daily life of the Plains Indians. Using both their interpretation and a buffalo hunter’s diary, they are able to compare and contrast the role of the buffalo in the daily life of each group and predict the impact the buffalo’s disappearance had on both groups.
While lessons in the “Indian Homes in Kansas” trunk were written for both first and seventh grade levels, the trunk can be borrowed and used by any age group.
Standard # 5: Relationships among people, places, ideas, and environments are dynamic.
This sing-along video is a great introductory lesson in Kansas geography that will teach kindergarten students how to find Kansas on a map. This video directly correlates to our Read Kansas! lesson P-2: Where is Kansas? complete with lesson plans and worksheets. For a virtual option, students can also complete this Nearpod lesson, in which they will learn how to find Kansas on a map and how to write the word "Kansas" (no typing necessary; only a drawing tool). Use any of these options to help your students reinforce a sense of self while focusing on these essential questions: What is a map? How can we live in both a country and a state? Where is Kansas?
As a Museum Educator for the Kansas Historical Society, Trae utilizes his training as a historian to provide a wide variety of both in-person and virtual tours to all audiences, channeling his excitement and enthusiasm to make learning history fun and engaging. In addition to giving tours, Trae is the host of the Museum After Hoursmonthly lecture series, creates educational videos for theKansas Historical Society’s YouTube channels, coordinates theRead Kansas! program, and assists withTraveling Resource Trunks.
Trae possesses a bachelor’s degree in history from Washburn University and is currently finishing a master’s degree in museum studies at the University of Kansas. In his spare time, Trae loves playing board games with his fiancée, shredding on the guitar, and putting tiny hats on his two adorable cats.
January 27 - February 24: Kansas Social Studies Virtual Conference: A month of Kansas and more!Register for a month of free virtual events all designed to provide you with great resources for your classrooms. This event is a partnership between the four groups dedicated to serving the social studies teachers of Kansas: Kansas Council for History Education, Kansas Geography Alliance, Kansas Council for Economic Education, and Kansas Council for the Social Studies. Learn more about this event here.
Shop online at our Museum Store and discover a variety of Kansas made items and historical resources. Members receive a 10% discount in the museum store.
Support the Kansas Historical Society and our educational programs by becoming a member. You will receive a quarterly magazine, discounts on merchandise, and free admission to the Kansas Museum of History and our historic sites.
