FYI. Disseminated by a colleague, and now me. Your turn. >> Arieh, for the New York Labor History Association ~~~~~~~~ The American Labor Studies Center (ALSC), in cooperation with the New York Labor History Association (NYLHA) and a wide variety of other organizations, will hold its first statewide conference “Integrating Labor Studies into the K-12 Curriculum” at the New York State United Teachers (NYSUT) headquarters near Albany on Saturday, May 19, 2007. It will run from 10:00 am until 3:30 pm with an optional tour of the Kate Mullany National Historic Site in Troy at 4:00 PM. The conference is designed for elementary and secondary teachers. While primarily for Social Studies teachers,resources and curriculum materials for English, art and music will be shared. Paul F. Cole, Executive Director of the ALSC, will open the conference with a presentation entitled "Resources and Strategies for Integrating Labor Studies into the K-12 Curriculum." His presentation will review the wide variety of excellent resources available to teachers on the ALSC wesite www.labor-studies.org They include classroom simulations on organizing a union andbargaining a contract, biographies, a bibliography, glossary of labor terms, labor quotes, filmography, photos, labor songs, labor policy issues, child labor as well as a collection of lesson plans, courses and online curriculum materials. Workshops are planned to focus on a standards-based thematic unit “Hardball and Handshakes” that uses the history of labor relations in Major League Baseball to learn about unions by the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown; an in-depth look at resources and activities on child labor; using the arts and music to teach labor history; and using the Kate Mullany story as a case study for using local history to teach students about the efforts of workers to organize. The workshops willbe offered twice. A special feature of the conference will be a fascinating portrayal of Mary Harris “Mother” Jones by Peggy Orner. “Mother” Jones was one of the most colorful personalities in American labor history and Orner’s portrayal is a moving as well as enlightening presentation. The New York State Board of Regents has a policy statement supporting the conference goals. It states: "The Board of Regents calls upon all members of the education community to recognize and include the contributions of the American Labor movement as an integral part of the school curriculum." Registration is free and teachers will be eligible for professional development hours through the Greater Capital Region Teacher Center. A Registration Form can be found at www.labor-studies.org TEACHING LABOR HISTORY: A SYMPOSIUM Integrating Labor Studies into the K-12 Curriculum Saturday, May 19, 2007 New YorkState United Teachers 800 Troy-Schenectady Rd. Latham, NY 12210—2455 The history of the labor movement needs to be taught in every school in this land. America is a living testimonial to what free men and women organized in free democratic trade unions can do to make life better. We ought to be proud of it. Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey. Tentative Agenda 9:15 -10:00 AM Registration 10:00 -11:00AM Welcome IrwinYellowitz, President, New York State Labor History Association Resources and Strategies for Integrating Labor Studiesinto the K-12 Curriculum This plenary session will provide an overview of curriculum materials and teaching strategies for integrating labor history and labor studies into the curriculum including a review of the materials available on the ALSC web site. Presenter: Paul F. Cole, Executive Director, American Labor Studies Center 11:15 - 12:15 PM Workshops: Hardball and Handshakes: The History of Labor Relations inMajor League Baseball This is a standards-based thematic unit that relies on the National Baseball Hall of Fame's extensive collection of primary resources to bring history alive. It uses the history of labor relations in major league baseball as a case study to probe the question of why people form unions. Moderator: Bill Scheuerman, President, UUP Presenter: James Yasko, Manager of Visitor Education, National Baseball Hall of Fame Child Labor: Resources and Activities for Elementary and Secondary Students This session will explore a wide variety of excellent national and international online resources available to K-12 teachers to help them introducethe scourge of child labor in he United States and globally and actions students can take to address the issue. Moderator: Tom Carroll Presenters: Amy Halloran;Carmine Ruberto, NYSDOL. Teaching Labor StudiesThrough the Arts LABOR ARTS is a virtual museum that gathers, identifies and displays images of the cultural artifacts of working people andtheir organizations. Their mission is to present powerful images that help students and others understand the past and present lives of working people. Art, music, English Language Arts and Social Studies teachers will all find a trove of curriculum ideas to enliven their classrooms. Moderator: Jan Conti Presenters: Evelyn Jones Rich and Henry Foner. Local Labor History as a Case Study: The Kate Mullany Story Using local labor history can be a powerful and motivating way to help students learn about the challenges, successes and setbacks of workers who attempted to organize and bargain collectively. The Kate Mullany National Historic Site in Troy, New York is the home of the young Irish immigrant who formed the nation’s first bona fide all women’s union. Local teachers are working on a National Park Service grant to develop standards-based lessons to tell her story. Moderator:Valerie Lovelace,GCRTC Presenters: Rachel Bliven, Mohawk Valley Heritage Corridor; Allison Brew, Averill Park; Susan Owens, Curriculum Specialist. 12:15 - 1:00 PM Lunch, Networking & Sharing 1:00 – 1:50 PM Repeat Of Workshops 2:00 - 3:00 PM “The Most Dangerous Woman in America:” A Visit with “Mother”Jones. One of the most colorful figures in American labor history is Mary Harris Jones, "Mother Jones." Frequently showingup at strikes and rallies, she was known as a real "hell raiser.” Margaret Orner will provide a moving and fascinating and moving portrayal of “Mother” Jones and provide teachers with exciting ideas for using biographies to teach labor history. 3:00 – 3:30 PM Discussion and Future Directions Paul F. Cole, Executive Director, American Labor Studies Center 3:30 PM Adjournment 4:00 PM Optional tour of the Kate Mullany House in Troy Visit the web address below to tell your friends about this. WWW.LABOR-STUDIES.ORG Tell-a-friend!