FLORIDA HISTORY FAIR

2007-08 Theme: “Conflict and Comrpomise in History”

Hillsborough County Competition held February 22, 2008 at Hillsborough Community College, Dale Mabry Campus / LIST OF WINNERS

Middle and high school students compete in categories: historical papers, exhibits, performances, documentaries (Power Point and video) and web site. The Tampa Bay History Center’s partners at the Florida Studies Center, University of South Florida sponsor a $250 prize for the winning paper on the topic of Florida history – The Patrick Riordan Prize.

For more information contact: Elizabeth L. Dunham, Vice President for Programs at the Tampa Bay History Center, 813.228.009 or dunham@tampabayhistorycenter.org

State Contest: May 1-3, 2008

National Contest: June 15-19, 2008

Sponsored by the Museum of Florida History, the Florida History Fair (FHF) is an annual, statewide activity that enhances the teaching and learning of history at elementary and secondary levels. Florida joins 50 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, and the Department of Defense Schools as an affiliate of the National History Day (NHD) program, which was established in 1974. NHD promotes history in the classroom by offering students the means and encouragement to do original research about people, ideas, and events of the past. The Museum of Florida History has coordinated FHF since the 1988-89 school year.

Students who participate in the history fair acquire valuable, life-long skills. Among these are self-directed study; the ability to conduct purposeful research and to identify, analyze, and interpret primary and secondary sources; awareness of past events and their impact on society; the ability to convey synthesized information in popular formats; and poise and self-assurance during contests with peers.

Based on a theme selected annually by NHD, students in grades 6 to 12 use primary and secondary sources to research a topic relating to local, national, or world history. After analyzing and interpreting the information they have gathered, students express their findings in a paper, exhibit, performance, documentary, or web site. They may work individually or in groups of up to five members except in the historical paper category, which is open only to individuals. Students' entries are judged in two divisions—junior (grades 6-8) and senior (grades 9-12)—during the various levels of competition. First- and second-place county winners in each category and division advance to the state contest in Tallahassee in May. Similarly, first- and second-place state winners in each category and division earn the right to represent Florida at the National History Day competition in College Park, Maryland, in June.

PROGRAMS

The Tampa Bay History Center sponsors lecture series, competitions and other community-related activities and functions in its continuing effort to preserve, promote and protect the rich history of the Tampa Bay area.

Florida History Fair