A Walk on the Slippery Rocks

Awhile back I mentioned that I will be teaching an elective next spring on 20th century women’s history.  The following year I hope to teach a course on children in US History.  This idea sprung to mind after reading Steven Mintz’s wonderful book Huck’s Raft (Harvard University Press, paperback available).  I will continue to teach the Civil War course, but it is time to mix it up a bit.  With that in mind I decided to put myself in the most uncomfortable position imaginable.  Don’t get me wrong I am not in any way averse to the idea of teaching a course in women’s history.  The problem is that I have absolutely no idea where to start.  I’ve ordered a couple survey texts and primary source readers and I plan on reading Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique with the class.  Other than that I am a fish out of water.  I am anticipating an entire class of girls, which will be interesting in and of itself.  My Civil War course is, not surprisingly, male dominated.  With this in mind you will notice the addition of a new section to my blogroll on the bottom right where I’ve included a section on feminism and women’s history blogs.  My hope is to better understand the contemporary feminist landscape and its historical roots.  The blogs will appear on a rotating basis depending on how useful they are.  Please feel free to pass on any suggestions.