Authentic Historical Research:

Authentic Historical Research:
Contributing to the Virtual St. Louis Website

Overview
One of the most exciting components of the Virtual St. Louis website is the possibility of having one's students conduct authentic historical research and publish that information on the website. There are two ways that students can contribute to the website. First, they can actually build a block on the left side of the screen, researching buildings which will be rendered in the model. Second, they can research and write historical information for the right side of the screen. By completing either task or both, students will learn the historian's craft and experience the excitement of acting as an historical detective.

Objectives
After completing this lesson, students will:

Learn and apply historical research skills.
Edit and revise one's work.
Ask historical questions and discover answers through research.

Show Me Standards 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 1.10, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2,7, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6
Social Studies 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Process

Throughout the research project, if you have any questions, please email the directors of the website.
Introduce the St. Louis Virtual City website to the class. Show them how to navigate using Cortona. Familiarize them with the three dimensional model on the left side of the screen and the data on the right side of the screen. Have students practice with the interface so that they can gain expertise using the program.
Ask students to investigate the decade(s) you are interested in studying. Ask them to identify the aspects of the city that are represented. Ask them to list things that are missing (within the parameters of the model which focuses on the downtown area).
Have students write questions that they are interested in researching. What would they like to learn about St. Louis at the time? Alternatively, the teacher can provide a list of topics for research. Work with students to refine the questions so that they become manageable research topics. Depending on the teacher's learning goals, students may work individually, as partners or in small groups.
Review historical research methods. Refer the students to the resources list on the Virtual St. Louis website. Have students identify what sources will provide the information they need. Once you have identified possible sources, arrange for students to conduct the research. This step may include field trips to local libraries or online research.
If students intend to research and build a block for the Virtual St. Louis website, refer them to the instructions for building a block.
If students intend to research information for the right side of the screen, explain the following hierarchy of pages to guide their research:

BUILDING OR PERSON PAGE

These pages are at the top of the Virtual St. Louis hierarchy. They are short, historical descriptions of a building or a person. When someone clicks on a building or a person in the Virtual City landscape, this page emerges on the right side of the screen with basic information. These pages can link to Event Pages or other Building or People Pages.

EVENT PAGE

These pages are short descriptions of some historical event in St. Louis history. When someone clicks on a hyperlink in a building or person page, this page emerges on the right side of the screen. These pages can link to Perspective Pages.

PERSPECTIVE PAGE

These pages provide short, primary documents that give first hand accounts of a particular event. When someone clicks on the link from an event page, this page emerges on the right side of the screen.

RESOURCE PAGE

Each page in the Virtual City is linked to a resources page where the sources used on that page are listed. Students should cite their sources using the Chicago Manual of Style by Kate Turabian.

Conduct research and writing for the project. Throughout the process, students should edit and revise their work with input from the teacher and other students. In addition, they should critically interpret the sources they are using.
When students have completed their research and their writing, contact the directors of the project to determine the best way to submit the material to the Virtual City website.