
These are taken from EduScraps, Scrapbooking Through History, 1900 – 1919, by Sharon Crooks. There are two other e-books in the series, covering 1920 – 1939 and 1940 – 1959. (See her other homeschooling products at her website).
EduScraps includes informational handouts, activity pages, website suggestions, and layout ideas if you’re putting together a scrapbook. It’s all broken down by year. I like that she covers not only major events, like wars and the Wright brothers, but less highlighted historical happenings that have proved impactful in their own right, such as the introduction of the ice cream cone at the St. Louis World’s Fair, and the invention of the popsicle in 1905 by 11-year-old Frank Epperson. History is so much more fun when you don’t have to have your nose in some boring textbook.
Examples from EduScraps:
1900: Ellis Island symbols and their meanings: research and find the meaning of chalk symbols used on immigrants
1901: Discussing the similarities and differences between muckrakers of the 1900s with today’s paparazzi
1903: Crayons invented: At Crayola’s website, you can see what the original crayon colors were and their chronology of colors.
1905: The Yellow Fever outbreak in New Orleans is traced to mosquitoes: research what other diseases mosquitoes are known carry.
1906: The San Francisco earthquake: research what causes earthquakes; invention of the Richter scale
1906: Kellogg invents Corn Flakes: find out what other cereals are by Kellogg, and what recipes can be made from Corn Flakes
1907: Color photography invented: examine the advantages and disadvantages of black and white vs. color photography
1908: Paper dolls are introduced: make your own paper dolls and dress them in period clothing
1911: Greenwich mean time is adopted: research everyday uses of GMT such as for email, news media, and aircraft
1913: Ford installs the first moving assembly line; improves mass production methods, reducing cost of model T: choose a project your family can complete using the assembly line to illustrate its advantages

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