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This fall, Humanities Texas will conduct in-person and online professional development programs for social studies and English language arts teachers. In-person workshops include "From the Republic to Reconstruction: Nineteenth-Century Texas" in Edinburg (October 1), "Teaching Latino Poetry" in Edinburg (October 2) and San Antonio (November 12), "Teaching the Gilded Age" in Waco (October 8), and "Teaching Media Literacy" in Houston (October 16).

Webinars include "Learning Resources for U.S. History from the National Gallery" (September 23), "George Washington and the Making of America: The Revolutionary War and First Presidency" (October 2 and 9), "Analyzing Change Over Time with Documentary Photography" (October 21), "Teaching Native American Literature" (November 12 and 19), and "Teaching Shakespeare with The Bard in the Borderlands: Part III" (November 20).

Program partners include Baylor University's Armstrong Browning Library and Museum, Borderlands Shakespeare Colectiva, the National Gallery, Region One Education Service Center, Rice University, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and The University of Texas at San Antonio.

All programs will emphasize close interaction with scholars, the examination of primary sources and texts, and the development of effective pedagogical strategies and engaging assignments and activities.

Learning Resources for U.S. History from the National Gallery (Webinar)

"Learning Resources for U.S. History from the National Gallery" will take place on Zoom from 5:00–6:30 p.m. CT on September 23. Led by museum education professionals, this interactive session will help students develop visual literacy, historical thinking, and analysis skills in the humanities classroom. Teachers will explore National Gallery resources and come away with practical teaching strategies and ideas for lesson extensions.

From the Republic to Reconstruction: Nineteenth-Century Texas (In-Person Workshop)

"From the Republic to Reconstruction: Nineteenth-Century Texas" will take place in Edinburg on October 1. Team-taught by Andrew J. Torget (University of North Texas) and Courtney Abubakar (Texas History For Teachers), the workshop will offer new assessments of the era and provide a collection of curriculum materials geared toward bringing innovative perspectives into the classroom. Topics to be covered include the Republic of Texas, the U.S-Mexico War, early statehood (1845–1860), secession and civil war (1860–1865), Reconstruction (1865–1872), and the end of Reconstruction and its aftermath (1872–1880s).

Teaching Latino Poetry (In-Person Workshop)

"Teaching Latino Poetry" will take place in Edinburg on October 2 and in San Antonio on November 12. The workshop will explore possible classroom uses of Latino Poetry: The Library of America Anthology by secondary-level English language arts (ELA) teachers. The anthology includes the work of close to two hundred poets from the seventeenth to twenty-first centuries and presents English translations of poems originally written in Spanish. The Edinburg workshop faculty includes Stephanie Alvarez and  Emmy Pérez of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. The San Antonio workshop faculty includes John Morán González of The University of Texas at Austin.

George Washington and the Making of America: The Revolutionary War and First Presidency (Webinar Series)

"George Washington and the Making of America: The Revolutionary War and First Presidency" will take place on Zoom from 5:00–6:15 p.m. CT on October 2 and 9. The first session will explore why Washington's republican principles mattered even more than his battlefield victories for securing America's independence and representative government. The second session will trace Washington's efforts from the Philadelphia Convention through his two presidential administrations to create the presidency as we know it today. Denver Brunsman of George Washington University will lead the webinars.

Teaching the Gilded Age (In-Person Workshop)

"Teaching the Gilded Age" will take place in Waco on October 8. The workshop will introduce major events of the Gilded Age and provide a broad framework for thinking about this specific historical period in terms of politics, economics, and art and visual culture. Faculty includes Elizabeth Bacon Eager (Southern Methodist Univeristy), Joseph Locke (University of North Texas), Robert Johnston (University of Illinois Chicago), and Andrea Turpin (Baylor University).

Teaching Media Literacy (In-Person Workshop)

"Teaching Media Literacy" will take place in Houston on October 16. The workshop will expand participants' understanding of journalism in the U.S. and provide resources and strategies to help middle and high school students become informed citizens and critical consumers of news in multiple media. Workshop faculty includes Gwynne Ash (Texas State University), Lisa Gray (Houston Chronicle), and Kirsten Ostherr (Rice University).

Analyzing Change Over Time with Documentary Photography (Webinar)

"Analyzing Change Over Time with Documentary Photography" will take place on Zoom from 5:00–6:30 pm CT on October 21. Led by museum education professionals, this interactive session will demonstrate how photography can help students develop visual literacy, historical thinking, and analysis skills in the humanities classroom. Teachers will explore historical photographs of local communities, make connections and comparisons to our present, and come away with practical teaching strategies and ideas for lesson extensions. Phoebe Hillemann and Abbie Hitzemann of the Smithsonian American Art Museum will lead the webinar.

Teaching Native American Literature (Webinar Series)

"Teaching Native American Literature" will take place on Zoom from 5:00–6:15 p.m. CT on November 12 and 19. The webinars will focus broadly on the history of Native American literature and narrowly on the most influential and frequently taught works. Strategies and content will align with the secondary-level English language arts TEKS. Both webinars will highlight the most important takeaways for middle and high school students. James H. Cox of The University of Texas at Austin will lead the webinars.

Teaching Shakespeare with The Bard in the Borderlands:
Part III (Webinar)

"Teaching Shakespeare with The Bard in the Borderlands: Part III" will take place on Zoom from 5:00–6:30 p.m. CT on November 20. In partnership with the Borderlands Shakespeare Colectiva, this webinar will feature Shakespeare's works from Borderlands perspectives. The webinar will draw on Volume 2 of the open-access anthology The Bard in the Borderlands: An Anthology of Shakespeare Appropriations en La Frontera. The webinar will be team-taught by the cofounders of the Borderlands Shakespeare Colectiva: Katherine Gillen and Adrianna M. Santos of Texas A&M University–San Antonio and Kathryn Vomero Santos of Trinity University.

These workshops and webinars are open to all middle and high school social studies, language arts, and humanities teachers but will focus on topics and skills central to the state's secondary-level U.S. history, Texas history, and English language arts curricula. Priority consideration will be given to early-career teachers in low-performing schools and districts.

More information about each program is available in the Education section of the Humanities Texas website. Teachers interested in attending should submit an online application as soon as possible, as admissions are rolling and space is limited.

Participants will receive CPE credit and a wealth of curricular materials. CPE hours will be based on attendance and adjusted if a participant misses any portion of the program.

Please note that due to space limitations, you must be a registered participant to attend any of the in-person workshops.

These programs are made possible with major funding from the State of Texas with ongoing support from the National Endowment for the Humanities.