Bring old and new world examples to life with digital media and primary sources from adventures the globe. MISSION US will send middle school students on a colonial assignment to investigate early founding fathers through digital interactives. PBS traditional favorites such as History Detectives and Antiques Roadshow offers original documents and artifacts to examine as if you were the appraiser or archeologist. Consider points of view from PBS special series such as Equal Voices and reflect on the incredible impact religion has had on our nation's history in recent release Conversation's with God. WGBH Teachers' Domain and PBS Teachers offers mashable video segments from a variety of collections. Dig into these PBS collections, find favorites from Ken Burns' series, American Experience, and others, and find out how they support your state's standards already taught in your classroom.

1. Re-create, Educate, &
Illuminate ~
Learning History
Virtually

2. Inspires Historians of
all Ages with Digital Media
Kimmer Jameson (SL) Kimberly Flack (RL)
an educator perspective

3. Essential
Questions…
think about when
creating content?
• Who might be in
the audience?
• Who might be
considered a historian?
• What media/medium is
being considered?

4. • Youngest audience…
up to age 5
• Seeking interested
6-10 yr olds
EVERYONE else!
• Middle
School,
High
School &

5. • Blogs, enews, Q/A
with experts
• Searchable database –
lessons, video; widgets
“activity packs”
EVERYONE else!

6. PBS Is #1 in Public Trust
6
9
11
11
17
26
45
Congress
Cable television networks
Federal government
Newspaper publishing companies
Commercial broadcast television
networks
Courts of law
PBS, public television
Percent saying they trust the organization “a great deal” on a 4-point scale
(not at all, not too much, somewhat, a great deal)
Source: Roper Public Opinion Poll on PBS, January 2010

7. Perceptions in
How Well PBS Programs Address Issues
35
37
43
47
47
48
51
59
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Inform people about health issues
Inform people of important political
and social issues
Provide access to a variety of
viewpoints
Inform people of America's ethnic and
cultural diversity
Promote an understanding of science
and technology
Improve literacy
Promote an understanding of
American history
Provide people access to arts and
culture
Percent saying “very well” on a 4-point scale (not at all well, not too well, moderately well, very well)
How well do PBS programs – for both children and adults – address these items?
Source: Roper Public Opinion Poll on PBS, January 2010

8. Additional Audience Information…
Source: Speak Up2009 National Findings (www.tomorrow.org)

9. Historian?

10. just a few
programs

11. U.S. Dept of Ed Funds… Innovative Era began
Ready to Learn 2001-2010
Ready to Teach 2001-2010

12. Lots and lots and lots and lots and lots…

13. So… just jump in?
try something
aligned with
national core
standards?
FREE?
And… by golly…
kid tested… and
they LIKE it?

14. Forget the toe in the water…
• The first of its kind for PBS:
– A non- broadcast program – just for middle school
students/ teachers
– Research based, widely piloted & tested
– And now to an internet connected device NEAR YOU!

16. Research Highlights:
• 89% said that students were more intellectually and
emotionally engaged
• 72% said that students who struggle academically, e.g.,
with reading or attention, performed better in the Mission
US unit compared to most units. Teachers credited the
game’s strong storyline and characters, as well as audio
supports for reading, with helping struggling students
succeed.
•

17. Research Highlights:
• 94% said that Mission US helped their students SEE the
events leading to the American Revolution “in more
human, everyday terms that they could understand.”
• 83% said that as teachers, they reached a greater
variety of learning objectives with the Mission US unit
than they do in the typical US history unit they teach.

18. Research Highlights:
The statistics are nice.
But the best evidence of success?
One classroom of students asked the
team conducting the research for their
autographs!

20. Virtual Pioneers
Your Education
/Outreach
& of course…
MISSION US!

21. the ball is now in your court…