Explore the RMS Titanic
April 15th marks the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. A number of notable websites have useful material:
- Web Guide: The Library of Congress provides a web guide, Researching the Wreck of the RMS Titanic, for LOC web resources related to the ship.
- Primary Sources: The Library of Virginia examines newspapers as a source of historical and cultural research with RMS Titanic: 100 Years Later.
- Lesson Plans: And NOAA’s Ocean Explorer provides lesson plans for grades 5-6 (marine archaeology), 7-8 (galvanic exchange and deterioration), and 9-12 (biodeterioration processes).
- Teaching Ideas: And The New York Times offers a collection of classroom ideas: 100 Years Later: Ways to Teach About the Titanic With The Times.
Multimedia Exploration & Discovery
One of the more visually interesting websites is RMS Titanic, Inc. This site has a commercial aspect that the previous sites do not, but the section called Expedition Titanic is well worth exploring and would be especially good when viewed on a smartboard. (See: How To Make Your Own Smartboard With A Wii Remote for an ingenious, low cost alternative.) Scroll down the page to get a sense of how deep the wreck lies. Along the descent are facts about the Atlantic Ocean and its life. On the sea floor, users can get a deeper look. First get a tour of the wreck, and then click and drag to explore the vehicles used to descend to the Titanic and artifacts and marine life in the ship’s debris field. At the page bottom, a menu bar lets users toggle layers to explore in more detail.
Users can register for the Titanic Community to gain access to more photos, video, stories, and expert commentary. Registration is free.
Model Building
Finally, if you or your students are modelers, Currell Graphics offers free PDF instructions and templates for building cardstock models of the Titanic and her sister ships, Britannic and Olympic. The Titanic is a 1:1200 scale waterline replica, approximately 9 inches long when complete.
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