Blog 4 History

The Guide To Online Schools, which is an online education directory that specializes in online degrees, online schools, and distance learning, picked Blog4history.com as one of its 100 Best History Blogs.

From the publisher:

Reading about history on encyclopedia-type sites can be a drag. The information is completely static, and new research and discoveries take time to make their way into the text. History blogs, on the other hand, recognize that history is a dynamic field: they update frequently and find new and interesting ways to interpret old information. Here you will find a list of the best historical blogs out there, organized by both time period and region.

The list for United States History:

United States History

* Religion in American History: A group blog written by two academics and various guest bloggers, this site discusses issues of religion in America. From the founding and colonization to current issues, no (religious) stone is left unturned.
* U.S. History Blog: General U.S. history makes up this blog. Other media concerning American history are aggregated here.
* Historian: Written by a professor of history at the University of Colorado, this fun blog explores history and sexual politics in America, from 1492-present. She discusses LGBT issues, current research, pop culture, and more.
* Boston 1775: J.L. Bell writes this blog about Boston in the time leading up to the American revolution.
* Native America, Discovered and Conquered: The Lewis and Clark law school library maintains this great blog about what happened to Natives of America during the country’s “discovery.”
* Naval History Blog: If you’re interested in military history, this is the place to go. Maintained by the U.S. Naval Institute, this blog has lots of guest bloggers and multimedia content.
* Civil War History: This blog covers the period of history in the mid 19th century during the American Civil War.
* Blog 4 History: This aesthetically pleasing page has great posts about happenings in U.S. history. There are also primary documents, such as diaries and letters, on the site.
* U.S. Intellectual History: This group blog has posts about the history of thought in America, and the intellectuals that have shaped American national identity.
* Western Americana: The American West is the historical focus of this blog. The fur trade, mining, ranching, cattle, and the frontier are covered.
* Explore Southern History: Cities in the Southern U.S. are highlighted on this blog. Natural wonders, forts, and archaeological sites are some of the subjects explored.

I purchased my iPad in June and spent the summer playing with it and have come to the conclusion that it can revolutionize the classroom and at the very least, the student experience within the educational system. I did not anticipate such a revelation. I wanted it for simple functions such as internet at night while in bed and not wanting to grab my laptop, and some other cool apps. But what I am seeing is that the iPad is a nice device for reading books (which shocked me as I never thought I would say that as I am a traditionalist and love paper and cloth). I say stop printing textbooks and require students to purchase an iPad. At $499 for a 16 gig WiFi iPad (which is plenty) it saves money and trees. Students from High School to College will in the long run save money and save their shoulders from lugging around a backpack of books.

Here are my favorite apps for Teachers and Students of History:

1. Dropbox – allows me to share documents, files, PDFs, powerpoints, from my home office computer, home laptop, school computer and iPad. Simply fantastic and helps me stay organized.

2. WinAdmin – this app allows me to remotely access my PC laptop at home or at school from my iPad. So I can run a powerpoint from my iPad while lecturing. Very cool.

3. Quick Office HD – a mini-office suite that allows me to edit Word files that I can easily store and send via dropbox.

4. U.S. History Quiz (McGraw Hill) AP flash cards. A nice and affordable set of flashcards that I can use via my WinAdmin and project using my PC computer from the iPad.

5. GoodReader – allows me to view any type of document from a PDF to a powerpoint.

6. Inkling – is the first generation of iPad textbooks with a growing list of college and AP level text books that students can purchase and download. They can download just a chapter or an entire textbook.

7. Kindle (for iPad) – I love reading books on Kindle. I can highlight sections, get a quick definition by simply tapping the word, and go directly to an Internet search. I can leave bookmarks and notes. Great device for teaching and reading.

8. Desktop – allows for iPad multi-tasking which is a downsize, but the iPad is not about replacing the laptop computer.

9. Historical Docs – there are dozens of apps that allow teachers to have at their fingertips, via the iPad, important historical documents.

10. WordPress – this app allows for me to quickly get into and out of a wordpress blog and there are numerous that are helpful as a teacher.

I will have more on technology and specifically the iPad.