6 powerful interactive history sites

Colonial House
What was it like to live in 1628 Colonial America? To find out, go to this interactive site by PBS and discover the people, food, clothing, houses and ways of life for Colonists, indentures servants, and Native Americans. The site contains a variety of learning activities including audio, video, quizzes, maps, dress the colonist, and an interactive journey across the ocean. Colonial House is sure to make learning about colonial life more fum and engaging for your students.

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Annenberg Learner
I have shared this awesome site previously for these posts about math and science and their collection of interactive history activities is second to none. You will find over 90 different resources on topics ranging from the Spice Trade to Civil Rights. I cannot possibly do justice to this site so you will have to check it out for yourself. You won't be disappointed.

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BBC Interactive History Content
The BBC always seems to have terrific content and this site is no exception. Visitors will discover audio, video, animations, timelines, games and galleries on many historical topics. The World Wars, Ancient Rome and the Egyptians are all topics you will find here. If world history is your "cup of tea," then head on over to this BBC site to find out more.

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NAACP Interactive Timeline
This terrific site shares the history of the Civil Rights Movements through the history of the NAACP itself. Upon visiting you are greeted by actor Laurence Fishburne's introduction to the site. The site offers a variety of wonderful resources that are interactive and informative. Each dot on the timeline connects to other times and places that relate to the chosen event. When you click "more info" you get a wealth of additional material including history, impact, people, multimedia and resources. The site is a "must see" for anyone who is interested in learning more about the Civil Rights Movement and the NAACP

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Civil War 150

This interactive site from the History Channel brings the American Civil War to you in a series infographics which identify key details about America's most tragic war. The people, the weapons, the deadliest battles, and economics behind the war are all shared in fascinating detail. Visitors can find out even more about the war by clicking "explore topics and vote" below the site's title. From here you will be presented with more topics and more information and you can vote on whether the topic left an important legacy.

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World-ology Maps

World-ology's offers a nice collection of interactive maps that cover European history from the Dark Ages to the Cold War period and modern Europe. There are currently a dozen maps to explore and each offers much more than just political lines and capitals. The maps all share detailed information on the topic when your mouse hovers over selected points. There are many options available including the ability to show modern political boundaries over the different historical maps. The site also offers timelines and articles as well.

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17 online sources with extensive propaganda collections

First World War
First World War is a website that provides a thorough history of World War I. This site provides a nice collection of useful resources including a detailed timeline, an encyclopedia, and articles on details that are widely known (Zimmerman Telegram) as well as more obscure people and events. You can also find a large selection of propaganda posters, maps, and vintage videos, audio and photographs from the war.

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Wake Up America
Learn NC World War I Propaganda Posters is produced by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and it provides 23 high quality images and informational captions that provide a unique glimpse into WWI.

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Authentic History
Authentic History is a great history site that tells the story of World War I in four different categories. The Great War Overview, the Home Front, Woodrow Wilson, and the Bolshevik Revolution. Each section contains a wealth of information including examples of propaganda.

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All World Wars
All World Wars has a nice selection of propaganda that are displayed with large high quality images. There currently are 56 images of posters from many of the different Allied nations.

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WSU Propaganda Collection
Washington State University has one of the largest collections of propaganda posters with over 500 digital images from 1914 to 1945. The posters and pamphlets come from nations on both sides of the conflict. Each image is accompanied by detailed explanations and can be downloaded or printed.

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Documenting the American South
Documenting the American South is another great source from the University of North Carolina. This collection has over 100 propaganda images categorized by type which includes finance, military, and industry.

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German Propaganda
Calvin College has a massive collection of German propaganda from pre-1933 up to 1945. This collection includes pamphlets, speeches, essays, art, cartoons and posters. Plan on spending a great deal of time here because there is so much to see and read.

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Virtual Library
Check out this  collection of historic World War II posters from the Cincinnati Digital Library. This collection of over 85 World War II propaganda posters are from both the U.S. and other nations. Since they are digital they can be downloaded and printed for use in the classroom. History teachers should race on over to this site ASAP.

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Psywar
Psywar is a website with a amazing collection of propaganda leaflets that were dropped by the participants of both WWI and WWII. The site is searchable by name, type of message, and even by nation. This is another website with an overwhelming amount of propaganda related materials.

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World War II Posters
Northwestern University has a collection of over 350 digital images of various propaganda from WWII. The resources can be searched by topic or by scrolling down the page to see the various posters. Each selection is accompanied by information including the government agency responsible for the publication and the year.

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Vintage Ad Browser
The Vintage Ad Browser is a website that features a huge collection of over 100,000 old posters and advertisements from as far back as the 1700's. The website has a large selection of propaganda posters from the 1800's up to the 2000's but note that most of the posters after the 1940's are from Communist China.

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World War II Museum
The World War II Museum has a great section dedicated to the various types of propaganda. The real advantage to this site is their built in educational resources. From the home front to the soldiers overseas, this site has posters and lesson ideas to accompany the various topics.

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Flickr
This Flickr account (Heavyovmetal) has 128 great images of World War II propaganda. This page lacks the important information that accompany the images in the other websites listed but if you want a quick and simple way to see the various posters, then this is the place to go.

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The Digital Comic Museum 

The Digital Comics Museum is a collection of comics from the "Golden Age of Comics" (1930's-1950's) that are now "public domain and have been put up on the net. Finally, the Digital Comic Museum has educational value because it provides a snapshot into American culture of the time. These comics were published during World War II as well as the earliest days of the Cold War so there is plenty of propaganda to be found for the social studies teachers out there.

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Retronaut

Another website that specializes in propaganda comic books can be found at this page from Retronaut which has a nice selection of propaganda related comic books form the WWII era. This site only displays Comic Book propaganda so it give you much quicker access than the Digital Comic Museum which does require a certain amount of searching.

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Propaganda Videos

Below you will find two YouTube channels with various types of propaganda videos in their collections.

Human History Archive 
This You Tube Channel has an nice collection of videos, many which are propaganda related.

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Periscope Films 
This channel has a massive collection of vintage films, many of which are propaganda films.

15 places with fun and engaging social studies games

National Archives Games
The British National Archives website has a nice selection of history themed games that you won't likely find elsewhere. One game is based on trench warfare while another centers around turning off your lights during a German air raid. What was it like to gather food during war? There's a game for that too.

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History Hunt
This engaging game from the St. Albans Museum challenges the player to find items that were stolen from the museum by the Norse god Loki. The player travels through time to find the items and also has to answer history questions. The St. Albans Museum also has a small selection of other history themes games and activities.

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Washington Crossing the Delaware
This simple game from the New Jersey State website challenges the player to guide George Washington across the icy Delaware River. The game is reminiscent of the 80's game Frogger where instead of avoiding cars, you dodge chunks of ice. The site has additional games that can be found here.

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BBC History Games
This selection of games comes from the BBC and focuses on British History. Each of the seven categories offers a variety of kids activities including a nice selection of history themed online games.

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Mission U.S.
The Mission U.S. games are top notch and generally well known by educators. Each of the sites three missions are based on major historical events and help make history fun for kids.

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Mr. Nussbaum's Social Studies Games
Mr. Nussbaum's website has a nice selection of social studies related games for grades K-5. The site's 14 games help to strengthen geography, economics and history knowledge.

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National Geographic's Geography Games
National Geographic has over 120 games based around geography, history, science and nature. One of their many excellent games is Go on a Family Adventure which challenges players to solve clues and show off their geography skills.

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H.I.P. Pocket Change Games
This game collection comes from the U.S. Mint and features 33 games, most with a social studies theme. There are games based on the three branches of government, Lewis and Clark and Jamestown just to name a few.

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iCivics
This highly recommended website has a terrific collection of games based on law and the U.S. Constitution. The site has 9 games and is a great ways to learn about the Constitution.

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Texas Law Focused Education Games
Many of the games here are based around the U.S. Constitution. There are games based on the Preamble, the three branches, and the Bill of Rights. There are law based games and even one about the Declaration of Independence.

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Sunnylands Civics Games
Here is another site with a nice collection of Constitution based games. The Bill of Rights, the Constitutional Convention and the 1st Amendment are all topics of some of the games you can find here.

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Road to Revolution
This game from PBS challengers the player to test their knowledge about the American Revolution while navigating their way toward independence. It is a fun and engaging way for students to demonstrate thier knowledge of America's War for Independence.

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History Globe's Jamestown Adventure
This game challenges the player to take on the role of the leader of the Jamestown Colony. The player has to make decisions to help the colony to survive while maintaining the position of leader. It is a great way to show the challenges that the settlers of the colony faced.

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Class Brain Social Studies Games
Class Brain is an educational game site with a large selection for students of all ages. Their social studies area has eight games that challenge players to run for president, test their geography knowledge, and even join the Peace Corps.

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This Day in History Game

Want to test your history knowledge, then why not try out this game from Shockwave games. You are given 8 events that took place on this date and you need to arrange them in chronological order.