Connecticut Council for the Social Studies
ER #253 Edward Dorgan
Connecticut During the American Revolution: Discovering Library of Congress Resources addresses the growing need for social studies teachers to access high-quality primary sources as the state approaches the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Through the Library of Congress’s Teaching with Primary Sources program, participants learn about Connecticut’s role in the Revolution while developing the skills and pedagogical strategies to integrate primary source documents into their teaching.
Teachers explore maps, letters, personal narratives, drawings, and editorial cartoons from the Library of Congress and the Connecticut Museum of Culture and History collections. They engage in in-person sessions at Central Connecticut State University, virtual meetings, and field trips to the Ridgefield Historical Society and the Connecticut Museum of Culture and History.
As a culminating outcome, Connecticut During the American Revolution: Discovering Library of Congress Resources equips teachers to design ready-to-use classroom materials that deepen student understanding of Connecticut’s role in the American Revolution.
Southeastern CT Robotics, Inc.
ER #250 Contact: Frances McGlinchey
Through the STEM Learning in New London project, Southeastern CT Robotics advances its full STEM pathway, guiding students from elementary through high school robotics. A highlight is the FIRST LEGO League Challenge season, where teams combine engineering with in-depth research. The 2025–2026 theme, Unearthed, focuses on the science of archaeology and encourages students to explore how artifacts and cultural heritage are preserved and shared.
Using Library of Congress collections, students examine historical maps, photographs, and documents to inspire their innovation projects. They develop creative solutions—such as interactive museum exhibits and tools for archaeological preservation—that blend STEM skills with historical inquiry.
The integrated approach—robot design, programming, and primary-source-based research—engages students in critical thinking, collaboration, and communication. This fusion of robotics and historical research equips students with a greater depth of learning.
Southeastern CT Robotics, Inc.
ER #206 Contact: Frances McGlinchey
STEM Learning in New London, CT is a project of Southeastern CT Robotics, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation, whose mission is to give the youth of New London County, Connecticut access to technology in a safe place where dreams of careers in STEM fields can become a reality. SECTR operates and promotes educational and scientific robotics programs year-round that will be accessible to interested youth regardless of their financial stability, gender or ethnicity. SECTR competes in robotics competitions to reinforce the learning that takes place while at the same time emphasizing the FIRST-inspired Core Values of respect, integrity, courtesy, and empathy.
Connecticut Music Educators Association (CMEA)
ER #182 Contact: Jane Mills
The Virtual Ensemble Project gives college composition students from The Hartt School and SUNY Fredonia the opportunity to delve into the Library of Congress archives and work with primary sources to create arrangements for virtual ensembles from public domain music. Hartt and SUNY students learn how to use the library’s materials to write historical information about their compositions, using the inquiry guided search protocol. The arrangements and accompanying information and links post to the Connecticut Music Educators Association’s website as projects are completed. K-12 teachers have professional development opportunities to learn about the project and access to these materials, without copyright restrictions, to create virtual ensembles. Find the resources online: The Virtual Ensemble Project! A Work in Progress!
Akomawt Educational Initiative
ER #160 Contact: Chris Newell
Boston Upstander Academy for Decolonization: Using Primary Sources to Teach About Genocide fosters a community of learners that transforms how Boston-area teachers use and choose primary sources to teach about genocide and the fact that Native history is U.S. history.
Connecticut Humanities
ER #132 Contact: Kim Sheridan
Teach It! Connecting Primary Sources to the Classroom: Connecticut's Role in World War One promotes critical thinking skills through the identification and interpretation of primary sources. Collaborating with Connecticut History Day, Connecticut Council for the Social Studies, and Connecticut League of History Organizations—and connecting to the Connecticut State Library's World War One commemoration initiative, "Looking Back Looking Forward: Connecticut's Role in the Great War"— this project focuses on developing inquiry-based activities and digital primary-source "treasure chests" from archival materials found at loc.gov and local cultural organizations.
A series of hands-on teacher workshops promote engagement with the activities and "treasure chests" and emphasizes analysis, interpretation, and identification of resources that support specific teaching goals and offer multiple avenues of inquiry. Connecticut Humanities', Teach It (teachitct.org), provides resources directly connected to the Connecticut State Social Studies Frameworks and is also a key resource for participating teachers.
Area Cooperative Educational Services
ER #51 Contact: Evelyn Rosetti-Ryan
Academic Controversy in the History Classroom is a professional development initiative that provides twenty 6th – 12th grade pre-and in-service social studies teachers from the greater New Haven and Hartford Connecticut areas hands-on experience with learning how to use and incorporate primary resources into their teaching. This project engages teachers in a full-day professional development workshop culminating in teachers creating their own lessons using primary sources. Facilitators provide ongoing technical and content assistance in revising and refining these units of study. Ongoing activities feature a blog where teachers submit and share their lessons. "Academic Controversy in the History Classroom" Website with downloadable lesson plans.
ER #34 Contact: Evelyn Rosetti-Ryan
Keeping it Real: Teaching with Primary Sources provides hands-on professional development to 4th – 12th grade educators in the greater New Haven area on how to use and incorporate primary sources in their teaching. Teachers attend a full-day professional development session culminating in creating lessons that utilize primary sources. During the session, participants are introduced to the various avenues that make primary sources at the Library of Congress more easily accessible to teachers. Lessons are crafted digitally, and participating educators collaborate virtually to give feedback and enhance the lessons. After the session, participants are encouraged to share the lesson website with their colleagues in the 25 regional districts that ACES (Area Cooperative Educational Services) serves in the greater New Haven area. "Keeping It Real" Website with downloadable lesson plans for elementary, middle and high school.
Fairfield University
ER #9 Contact: Laura Nash
American Song - the music, the history, and the people curriculum is an ongoing part of the classes at both the University and in public school districts, impacting a different group of students every year. Pre-service teachers at Fairfield University take the units with them to their positions when they graduate, thus increasing the number of students with exposure. Further dissemination takes place through conferences and professional development workshops. We would also be honored to share our work through the Virtual Institute, if so invited. History of American Song (MU120) Syllabus
Fairfield Museum and History Center
ER #6 Contact: Christine Jewell
Document It! is a program to support primary source use in classrooms. The project combines the capacities of university, school, museum, Library of Congress, video and film producers, digital archivists, and specialists, to construct, model, and produce digital media products and curriculum for classrooms, the Internet, distance, and public viewing networks. Document It! Website
November 2008 professional development program presented by Ann B. Canning, Ed. D., TPS Eastern Region Consultant Searching for Connecticut at the Library of Congress