The American Past: A Survey of American History, Volume I: To 1877 (American Past (Thomson Wadsworth))
"I like that the chapters on war are divided into two - conceptually, this helps students break major events into two bits. The Civil War & WWII are divided chronologically, and WWI is divided by foreign & domestic activity which is nice for a short period of American involvement.""The opening quotes for each chapter set the tone--a technique I already use to illicit discussion and critical thinking in my classes. Photo captions and sidebars are illuminating and seem to answer the questions students did not realize they needed to ask [e.g. p.464 sidebar on Lady Homesteaders.] They take students into the era rather than keep them as outsiders looking in--a shot of whimsy to lighten the rest of the load.""I like the organization and the philosophy as I have stated above. I also like the "bite-sized" chapters and the "How They Lived" and "sidebars" within the chapters. Many students have short attention spans. They should not have a problem using this textbook.""The boxed features in the chapters provide fascinating insights and little known facts for the student. They are a definite strength of this textbook and are real "gems".""[Regarding "How They Lived" and sidebar features] I loved them! I looked forward to them. I even made a point to look in other chapters to see what he had included."