Students will fly around the Statue of Liberty, experiencing history through the statue’s intricate details. Students learn that the Statue of Liberty was almost not built at all, and they will learn the challenges that the builders faced once construction began through a combination of historic photographs, design sketches and video clips. Discussion questions and teaching tips designed both for social studies and/or English/ELA classes, as well as suggestions for including this interactive as part of an interdisciplinary investigation with measurement and/or engineering are included.

About the Support Materials Author:

David Olson teaches at James Madison Memorial High School in Madison, WI. Beyond teaching AP U.S. Government and Politics, Criminal Justice, and other Social Studies courses David helps spread his passion for civic education by serving on the iCivics Educator Network, the Teacher Advisory Board for the National Constitution Center, and the Wisconsin Council for the Social Studies (WCSS) Executive Board. In 2017, David was chosen as the WCSS High School Teacher of the Year and as a PBS Digital Innovator and Innovator All-Star in 2017 and 2018. In 2019, David was awarded the WCSS Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Excellence in Teaching Award. In 2020, David was named to the National Humanities Center Teacher Advisory Council and he was awarded the Outstanding Voter Service Award from the League of Women Voters of Dane County.