1. Bringing History to Life: Connecting to Ohio Historical Societies
By: Trent Roberts

2. Introduction: (5 minutes)
Background information about Presenter
Name, title, school district, etc.
Why Program is being offered
Give reasons why program is being offered
Ex: Historical Societies are experts in the local history and can offer information to teachers and/or students that otherwise might not be available
Goals for the program and its participants
Provide goals for program and participants
Ex: Explain the benefits of collaborating with local historical societies

3. Where Am I in Ohio Scavenger Hunt: (10 minutes)
Show pictures of 10 different historical sites scattered throughout Ohio to stimulate the participants thinking towards history and Ohio historical sites in general.
Give participants a few moments to write down either where the site is or what it is called
After showing the pictures ask participants for their answers to see how many they got right. Congratulate those who got some of them right.

4. Example of a Picture from the Ohio Scavenger Hunt
This is a picture of a reconstructed charcoal-fired iron blast furnace commonly operated in Southeastern Ohio over a century ago. Where am I?
Information provided by the Ohio Historical Society

5. Presentation: (15 minutes)
Goals and background Information on Ohio Historical Societies
Goals (Explain common goals of historical societies)
Ex: Preserve state and/or local history
Ex: Instill pride in Ohio culture and history
Historical societies and sites in Ohio (Give brief information on historical societies and sites)
Ex: Over 150 different societies and sites in Ohio
Ex: Main historical society in Ohio is The Ohio Historical Society

6. Presentation: (15 minutes)
Ways to connect to historical societies in Ohio
Give examples with explanation of ways to connect to historical societies
Ex: Field trips to historical sites
Ex: In class speakers
Benefits of connecting to historical societies in Ohio
Give the benefits of connecting with historical societies
Ex: Have numerous programs and activities focused toward education at the historical site
Ex: Passionate and professional individuals who can provide expert information on Ohio and/or the local history

7. Presentation: (15 minutes)
Information on the Ohio Historical Society and other historical societies
Ohio Historical Society (Give brief history and information about educational programs and materials offered by the society
History
Ex: Established in 1885
Ex: Has over 9,000 members
Education
Ex: History-To-Go Van
Ex: School Loans
Other historical societies
Give brief information about other historical societies in Ohio and give 5 examples of local historical societies and the educational programs they offer
Ex: Over 100 historical societies throughout Ohio

8. Example of a local historical society and educational programs they offer
Allen County Historical Society
First in the state to offer a history program for children
Welcomes school field trips
Zoo-Tea-Children’s Tea at the Museum program
My family Tree program
Pieces of our Past program
A Child’s Life Over a 100 years ago program
Many many more!
Children’s Discovery Center offers the following for children
A Native American wigwam
one-room schoolhouse
general store
log cabin
model railroad layout
classroom
changing exhibit and activity area
Information provided by Allen County Historical Society

9. Presentation: (15 minutes)
How to find and contact historical societies in your area
Historical Society website (Explain that many historical societies have websites and their contact information on them) (Explain that the Ohio Historical Society has links to websites of other societies in Ohio)
Provide link to Ohio Historical Society website

10. Group Work: (20 minutes)
Find historical societies in the region on the internet
Allow participants to break into groups and find historical societies in their region over the internet on the school library media center computers.
Participants will take down background information and educational programs (if available) of a couple of interesting societies and sites
Participants will then brainstorm on ways to connect with one or more historical societies in the area
After 15 minutes, the participants will report back to me and the rest of the class brainstorming ideas and/or any prior experiences with collaborating with any local historical societies

11. Handout Materials: (1 minute)
Hand out the following supplemental materials at this time
Program Evaluation Form
Contact Information Business Cards
Description of programs and materials offered by the Ohio Historical Society
Supplemental handout of what was mentioned in the presentation
Ohio Historical Society and Sites Bibliography
Contact Information, Website, and Location of all known historical societies in the participants’ region

12. Program Evaluation and Closing Remarks: (10 minutes)
Give the participants time to fill out the program evaluation in order to get feedback on the presentation, program, and materials available
Thank participants for coming and tell them you look forward to hearing about their collaborations with Ohio historical societies.
Answer any questions