Wednesday, September 7, 2022
Starting this year, under State of Wisconsin Statute, schools statewide are to observe September 11th every year to, "remember the attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, and to honor law enforcement officers and firefighters" who responded during and after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon, as well as the crash of Flight 93 in Pennsylvania.
General resources about the September 11, 2001 attacks:
- Did you know there is a 9/11 Wisconsin Memorial? It is in Kewaskum, WI, and they have a section of their website for lesson plants and field trip activities.
- The National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial has Teacher Resources for teaching about the events of September 11, 2001. They also have a portal of education materials searchable by keyword, grade level, subject, and resource type, covering all three regions affected by the terrorist attacks (the Pentagon, New York City, and Pennsylvania).
- The Library of Congress has an amazing collection of primary source documents entitled "September 11, 2001, Documentary Project". This includes audio file interviews, poetry left at the memorial, student art, and written narratives.
- C-SPAN Classroom has clips of the events of September 11, 2001 in real time.
- 9/11 Memories offers the opportunity to read accounts of the terrorist attacks, and encourages students to utilize digital literacy skills as they learn more about the events. It is housed by and funded through the Media Education Lab of the University of Rhode Island.
- Kasey Short, writing for MiddleWeb, outlines resources for educators about 9/11, including potential trade books.
- Although the article is from 2016, I found it an interesting piece in terms of teaching the events of 9/11 to students who weren't born when it happened. This is from US News and World Report. nprED has a similar article from 2017. Facing History and Ourselves has an article entitled "The Challenges and Opportunities of Teaching 9/11" from 2014.
- The September 11 Digital Archive: Saving the Histories of September 11, 2001 is the work of the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media and the American Social History Project/Center for Media and Learning. They have collected, curated, and present the history of the terrorist attacks with almost 150,000 digital items, including emails and first-hand stories.
Note that these are not meant to be an exhaustive list of resources for our teachers, and DPI does not endorse specific resources for use. Educators should review suggestions and determine what best meets their students' needs.
This item was compiled by Kristen McDaniel, Education Consultant, Teaching and Learning, Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.