Happy Birthday!

Can you believe it!  The ITRT Play of the Week is already four years old!  It seems like just yesterday that we started sharing great resources, like Wordle, Kahn Academy, and Professor Garfield... and all of those great resource links are still there, and searchable.  Just look for the "Search this Blog!" button on the right side of the page to find any of the topics we have posted about in the past!

And speaking of the past, this week we are going to take a look at Shorpy, a website that focuses on images from the past.  Don't worry, it's not MY past we are talking about here, it's the past of the country... so there is no need to worry about seeing awkward school dance photos or snapshots from comic book conventions.  In fact, most of these pictures are from the Library of Congress collection, with a few coming directly from users who wanted to share.

You could use Shorpy to find photos that go along with stories and novels.  You could use Shorpy to find pictures to enhance a "long ago" unit.  You could use Shorpy to find old inventions and simple machines.  You could use Shorpy to find historical events that follow a Social Studies unit.  These vintage photos could be used all over the place!

By the way, the pictures are free for non-commercial use, as long as you cite your source.

Enjoy!