History curious? You don't need to be in London (or the UK) to attend many Institute of Historical Research seminars, although if you're in Bloomsbury you'll enjoy doing so. Most are hybrid (online/in person). They're free, usually fortnightly and open to the public. Starting this week:

“It’s about recognizing how the past is used and how that impacts society today" Grateful for this feature of an excellent teacher guiding students towards a deeper understanding of history as a discipline. I've learned a lot from Carly and use some of the lessons she developed and describes here.

Teaching history means asking tough questions and uncovering new perspectives. This fall, NCHE is offering back-to-school webinars to put those ideas into action. Please share so history educators in need of great PD can find the support they deserve. Learn more and register here: buff.ly/WhembxH

Canadian Social Studies Educators Network of Canada has released their Fall 2025 Salon Newsletter! @actioncanada.bsky.social shares their Public Policy 101 resources on why policy matters, how it gets created, and the role of citizens in the process: ssencressc.ca/publications... #sschat #bced

Good thinkers having good discussions. As we gear up for another year in the classroom, how can we make our classrooms hubs of rich discussion? #sschat #cdnhistory #historyeducation #historicalthinking #bced

Sometimes when conducting research, you get a glimpse into the imaginations of former readers. The legacies of shared textbooks. #Kilroy, bookworms and pencil imprints of pennies❤️. archive.org/details/hist... #cdnhistory #historicalthinking #sschat

The CHA is proud to announce the books that are shortlisted for this year’s Best (English-Language) Scholarly Book in Canadian History prize! #cdnhist #prize

The CHA is proud to announce the books that are shortlisted for this year’s Wallace K. Ferguson prize! #cdnhist #prize

For the #FIELDGuide primary sources are the heart of Foundational Evidence. How do you use them to bring history to life? Share your favorite primary source and how you use it in your classroom and check out socialstudiesfieldguide.com to learn more #PrimarySources #Inquiry @glennwiebe.bsky.social

Working with primary sources is not a "spot the bias" game. Encourage students to attend to source metadata and contextual information to better understand why sources don't always agree with one another: tothepast.ca/contextualiz...

Support Heritage Fairs in schools

“I always tell my visitors that history is not the past — it is an interpretation of the past…It is fine to have good-faith disagreements about historical figures and events; that is what the historical process is about”

10 years in and I'm still figuring out what sourcing means in the context of historical inquiry. Thinking about assessment often means a rethink of our pedagogy as well: tothepast.ca/blog-what-is... #sschat #canadianhistory #bced #socialstudies

A little louder for the people in the back! Sourcing, close reading, and questioning without robust historical knowledge is unlikely to generate robust demonstrations of historical thinking. @lightningjay.bsky.social directing us appropriately towards "skills, practice, AND knowledge".

We're looking for historians and history teachers in Canada to share their beliefs about history and presentism. If you're interested in participating in this study, please click the following link: ualbertauw.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

"...a lack of pedagogical supports to help teachers use them effectively." That checks out. I remember collecting a few as a new teacher ...and then not knowing what to do with them. Read about the "Rise and Fall of Jackdaws" from the man who has them all (or nearly) @lsgibson.bsky.social

A glimpse into how Canadian teachers from across the country are are tackling the teaching of the past. #canhistory #socialstudies #canada #Canadianhistory #HTed

We are excited to announce the launch of our Portraits of Professional Practice (PPP) webpage! The PPP project focuses on understanding how the context where history is taught shapes educators’ practices. Learn more at thinking-historically.ca/ppp/ @carlapeck.bsky.social

World History Teachers Blog: Ten Historians: 10 Different Interpretations on Who Started WWI bit.ly/40AKVcw #sschat

Attention BC Teachers. Check out the "Developing Minds Conference: For the Love of Critical Thinking" that is being offered on the February 14, 2025 Professional Development Day. Note, this is not just for social studies teachers. bcssta.wordpress.com/devminds2025/

Specifying exactly what we aim to assess is a trying, but illuminating process. It allows teachers to provide more effective formative assessment for students as they move towards more robust historical inquiry. tothepast.ca/blog-breakin... #HTchat #BCed #socialstudies #Canhistory #Canada

Attention K-12 Educators: Free seminar focused on bringing Holocaust education into the classroom with respect and consideration. Hosted by the Canadian Museum of Human Rights and Dr. Andrea Webb, the co‐director of Survivor‐Centred Visual Narratives project. humanrights.ca/event/webina...

The first of seven sessions for the 2025 Virtual Historical Thinking Institute (VHTI) is coming up soon. There are still a few spaces available in the English and French groups. @canadashistory.bsky.social @thinkhist.bsky.social

Attention Canadian K-12 social studies & history teachers. The Treaty Map includes every Canadian treaty from 1763-present, & challenges the commonly held view of treaties as land surrenders. Includes an interactive learning & teaching tool, grounded in Indigenous perspectives of treaties.

Propose new designations, revise existing texts...National historic sites are rich spaces for exploring historical thinking, historical consciousness and public memory. #sschat #iteachsocialstudies #bced #HTchat #cdnhistory

Is Mackenzie King frustrated with European politics, or completely opposed to Canadian participation in a looming conflict? CHATs can serve as both formative assessment and an entrance point for deeper historical inquiry. #sschat #iteachsocialstudies #bced #cdnhistory tothepast.ca/close-readin...

From 2019: "Interpretations – the essential ‘how to’ for history teachers!" Essential insights from @counsellc.bsky.social onebighistorydepartment.com/2019/05/14/i...

As we close the door on 2024, I want to bump this project. Free resources for Social Studies Teacher Educators. @socialstudies.org and @librarycongress.bsky.social were generous enough to support a few of us in thinking about deepening teaching practice. www.socialstudies.org/tps/teaching...

Like "discrepant events" in science class, reading conflicting accounts of a historical event generates the types of questions and curiosity that drive historical enquiry. (@kcbarton.bsky.social). #SSchat #CdnHistory #CanadianHistory #bced #HTchat #Iteachsocialstudies tothepast.ca/corroboratio...

History teachers and SLT, don’t forget to register for Monday’s FREE webinar, 4pm, Mon 9 December ow.ly/A01g50U5cVb @paulalobo.bsky.social will use #ChangingHistoriesKS3 to "make sources sing". But what lies behind our approach to sources in these new secondary textbooks? Here’s a 🧵 ...

Determining the best structure of an assessment can be challenging. Would it be more effective for Ss to evaluate the Champlain's depiction of the Battle at Ticonderoga in isolation? Or would adding CW Jeffrey's interpretation generate a more robust exploration of strengths and weaknesses? #sschat

Inferential statements suggest ideas, connections, and interpretations not explicitly stated in a text. Knowing the difference between inferential/non-inferential statements helps Ss better evaluate interpretations and generate their own. #sschat #cdnhistory #HTchat tothepast.ca/inference-ma...

Finally, we have just launched our PATHfinders project to connect teachers with the latest sources and research. This time we are collaborating with @britishlibrary.bsky.social to refresh your teaching of Britain and India 1600-1947 curriculumpaths.schoolshistoryproject.co.uk/2024/11/19/p... /6

Register for the 2025 Virtual Historical Thinking Institute (VHTI). Seven 1.5 hour online (zoom) sessions available in English & French. First session is January 21, 2025 (French) & January 22, 2025 (English). 7:00-8:30 pm ET. @canadashistory.bsky.social www.canadashistory.ca/education/pr...

Teaching the difference between questions that require the recall of factual information and those that require judgement is an important step towards students engaging in disciplinary inquiry. #sschat #cdnhistory #bced #historicalthinking #HTchat tothepast.ca/questioning-...

International Day for the Abolition of Slavery: #Abolition has a long history as a cause, including in Canada. Enslavement of Black people was practiced until the 1830s. 1/2 thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/a...

this whole post is well worth your time esp if you teach the "scramble for africa" and as always I appreciate @liberatingnarrs.bsky.social's instincts to center student observations e.g. on these maps. "what do you notice?" is undefeated as a kickoff question.

Teaching the history of the Métis in the Northwest in the 1800s? Invite your Ss to practice sourcing, close reading, and contextualizing on a daily basis using our CHATs focused on The Battle of Seven Oaks, Laws of St. Laurent, and Métis resistance! #sschat #cdnhistory tothepast.ca/assessing-hi...

From about 1810 to 1900, The Bog was Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island’s historically Black neighbourhood. Today, there is no trace of the neighbourhood as modern government buildings stand where it once stood. www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/t...

Students encounter an unfamiliar word in L.J. Montcalm to the Marshal de Belle Isle during the Seven Years War. The dictionary provides two possible meanings. Can they identify the likeliest usage based on a close reading of the source? #sschat #cdnhistory #historicalthinking bit.ly/MontcalmtoBe...

Read about the ways in which you can honour a teacher-librarian or school librarian by nominating them for one of our CSL Awards. Read more the three award categories in the fall edition of the Canadian School Library journal: journal.canadianschoollibraries.ca/honouring-ou... #TLSky #EduSky

Looking to develop primary source-focused lessons or assessments? www.canadiana.ca is a good place to start! #sschat #Canadiana #CdnHistory #SocialStudies #CanadianHistory

Invite students to draw upon their background knowledge (or use that which is provided in the assessment) to predict the date of a source's creation: tothepast.ca/contextualiz... #sschat #cdnhistory #canadianhistory #bced #canada #tothepast

Asking students to compare two inferences from a single text and determine which is more plausible is a simple but important exercise in close reading. It also serves as a regular reminder to students re: the interpretive nature of history. #sschat #CanadianHistory tothepast.ca/392-2/

A deep dive into @DigitalInquiryGroup's First Thanksgiving HT assessment with a few extra variations! Where else could we take this assessment? #sschat #historicalthinking #canadianhistory tothepast.ca/blog-the-sta...

Created a Starter Pack for Canadian History Education. Let us know who should be added! go.bsky.app/KzqCoDs

Get inspired. Read how Community organizations, museums, scholars, and teachers are inviting Canadians into deep explorations of the past. Congratulations to the GG History Award Recipients! www.canadashistory.ca/explore/awar...

Asking students to identify whether accounts are complementary, contrasting, conflicting, or corroborating (Thx @arthurjchapman.bsky.social) draws students in to a close reading of texts, and often into rich discussions of sourcing as well. Try it with your students: bit.ly/tothepastCA #sschat

Over 50 Historical Thinking Assessments Now Available! Our most recent sets focus on Canada in WWI and Métis History in the Northwest. Happy to hear any feedback about how these assessments might be improved, or particular topics which you think deserve a little more TLC!