Articles

Humanities Texas will hold seven workshops for secondary social studies and language arts teachers this fall across the state.

In September, workshops on the U.S. Constitution will take place in Laredo (September 10), Corpus Christi (September 11), Dallas (September 12), and Fort Worth (September 13). The workshops will help prepare teachers for "Celebrate Freedom Week." Topics to be addressed include the history of the U.S. Constitution, teaching the Constitution, nineteenth-century constitutional history, and important court cases affecting civil rights. Workshop faculty includes Pulitzer Prize-winning historians Gordon Wood (Brown University) and Jack Rakove (Stanford University); Michael Les Benedict (The Ohio State University); Gabriela González (The University of Texas at San Antonio); District Judge W. Royal Furgeson Jr.; Laura Muñoz (Texas A&M Corpus Christi); Kenneth Stevens (Texas Christian University); and Charles Flanagan (National Archives and Records Administration).

On September 28, 2012, Humanities Texas will hold a workshop at the Byrne-Reed House in Austin for secondary language arts teachers on teaching the plays of William Shakespeare. Faculty lectures will address the historical and cultural contexts of Shakespeare’s works, approaches to teaching Romeo and Juliet, Shakespearean tragedy, and performance-based strategies for teaching Shakespeare. Workshop faculty includes J. Dennis Huston of Rice University and Elizabeth Richmond-Garza, James Loehlin, and John Rumrich, all of The University of Texas at Austin.

On October 5, 2012, Humanities Texas will hold a workshop for Texas history teachers at San Antonio’s Witte Museum covering Spanish Texas through the Civil War. Faculty lectures will address Spanish Texas, the Mexican national period, the Republic of Texas, early statehood, and Texas during the Civil War. Workshop faculty includes former state historian Jesús F. de la Teja (Texas State University); Juliana Barr (University of Florida); Walter L. Buenger (Texas A&M University); Caroline Castillo Crimm (Sam Houston State University); and Robert Wooster (Texas A&M Corpus Christi).

On November 30, 2012, Humanities Texas and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston will hold a one-day workshop exploring the history of American wars in conjunction with the museum’s new exhibition WAR/PHOTOGRAPHY: Images of Armed Conflict and Its Aftermath. The exhibition, organized by the MFAH, explores over 165 years of war through the art of photography. Topics to be addressed include the Civil War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Workshop faculty includes Robert M. Citino (the University of North Texas), Jeremy Suri (The University of Texas at Austin), and Jennifer L. Weber (the University of Kansas).

Teachers at all workshops will receive books and other instructional materials and be trained in the examination and interpretation of primary sources. Content at all seven workshops will be aligned with the TEKS. For details on eligibility, substitute and travel reimbursement, and venues or to apply online, visit the "Upcoming Institutes" page on the Humanities Texas website.