History Time

A Newsletter for Kansas Educators

November 2024

Make and Take: Yarn Doll

Yarn dolls were a popular toy for children in early Kansas. Often made from scraps of fabric or yarn, dolls were an easy and simple item to make at home. Try your hand at toy making by creating this fun yarn doll. Use this activity to compare toys of the past to ones seen in stores today. How have toys changed over time?

Standards Based Lesson:

Populism and Governor Lewelling

Standard #4: Societies experience continuity and change over time

This middle school lesson provides a brief background of the rise of the People's Party or Populism and focuses on the role the party played in helping Kansans in need. Students will analyze primary source documents including a letter from a farmer's wife and Governor Lorenzo Lewelling's Executive Circular. 

If you are using The Kansas Journey textbook, this lesson can be used with pages 172-179. The text of the letter from Susan Orcutt is included in the textbook, but this lesson is purposely designed to use the letter in an activity based on specific history and reading standards.

Reform in Kansas Episode 4:

Populism

This fourth video in our Reform in Kansas series focuses on the Populist movement, formed in response to the wealth inequality of the Gilded Age. Populists appealed to ordinary people who felt that their concerns were being ignored by those in positions of power. The Populist Party gained popularity in the early 1890s and sought to break up monopolies, create a sliding scale income tax, and advocated for a variety of election reforms.

Stay tuned for next month's episode on socialism in Kansas!

Nine Men's Morris

Check out this Civil War era game just in time for Veteran’s Day. Nine Men’s Morris has been played in various forms for centuries. During the Civil War, soldiers played the game on the ground using twigs and stones as markers. Students can improve their concentration, decision making skills, spatial reasoning ability, and critical thinking skills with this board game. This is a fun game for students in intermediate grades and above who appreciate the challenge it presents.  

State Historic Sites

Explore our state’s history by visiting one of the Kansas State Historic Sites! Seasonal sites have closed but there are still six year-round sites that you can visit. Constitution Hall, Fort Hays, Kaw Mission and Last Chance Store, Goodnow House, John Brown Museum, and Shawnee Indian Mission are open to visitors. The self-guided sites, Marais des Cygnes and Pawnee Rock, are also open daily dawn to dusk. Admission is free to all Kansas State Historic Sites. For current hours, directions, and more information about the sites, please visit bit.ly/48tiOzv.

Don't Forget!

State Historic Sites now have free admission! Look for one in your area. Call ahead as some are only open seasonally.

Read Kansas! lessons are available free of charge for primary, intermediate, middle, and high school students while supplies last.

A variety of virtual tours, videos, and Nearpod lessons are available to use in your classroom. 

Traveling resource trunks are available to borrow. Reserve one now for the school year.

The Kansas Museum of History is closed for renovations. Although the museum is not available for field trips, our staff is here for you.

Zephyr, our newest publication, provides information on events, programs, updates on the museum renovation, and highlights a variety of state historic sites.