Circus Resources

Circus Resources
An Internet Hotlist on Circus Web Resources

created by jlinck

Introduction | Pages with Lesson Plans and Activities | Circus History | Vermont Circus Connections

Introduction
Here are a few resources to use in preparation for Craftsbury's Circus Residency with Brent McCoy and Maya Curvelo of Vermont Vaudeville.

The Internet Resources

Blackpool Circus School (UK) - A good circus history page, but very focused on British (Blackpool) Circus. Includes photos and captions for many circus skills workshops divided by age group. Potentially a great contact for kids’ questions about circus training.
Circus Life, Lore and Superstitions (from a graphics company) - Short, readable overview narrative of life with the circus, Superstitions and Lore, with a glossary of terms. Side menu of currently touring US circuses and other links.
Circus Posters - A gallery of Polish circus posters.

Pages with Lesson Plans and Activities

A page of educational circus web sites - Weblinks include circus schools, equipment suppliers, circus hall of fame, downloadable music samples, online games, lesson plans, circus animal information and more.
Eduscape: free circus resources for educators - Includes a dozen or more links to circus sites for kids, including a “debate the use of live animals,' activity links on juggling, tightrope physics, and elephants.
Ringling Brothers Circus - Lesson Plans on circus skills, geography and diversity, animal care, science (“techie talk,” force in motion, light and color, gravity and centrifugal force). Side menu links to “circusfit” program, clown aptitude tests, and ringmaster quiz.
Ringling Museum of Art - Provides LESSON PLANS with curriculum connections for grades K-12, fcused on music, art, geography and social studies, downloadable “teaching poster” and more lesson plans.

Circus History

Big Apple Circus' International Open Archive - Features biographies of circus performers, searchable indexes of artists, acts, oral histories, photos and videos, plus a great glossary of circus terms.
Clown Museum and Hall of Fame - Defines 'clown' and gives plenty of clown history and a gallery of clown types that show great face painting!
Ringling's Winter Headquarters since 1884 - Enormous research center and library hold posters, music, photographs, manuscripts and more- i.e. they have a staff to take questions! Also short slideshow tours of the Circus Museum show animals, artifacts, performances and a kids’ workshop (which might give us ideas).
The Circus Historical Society - Features a huge listing of circus routes throughout history (great start for mapping/math activity). You can also submit questions, which will be fielded by CHS members. The entire site is searchable: for example, I entered “Vermont” and got many hits.
The Circus in America- Educational Project - A great selection of short circus wagon VIDEOS with MUSIC! “Coming soon” are circus sound files- Also find Circus Timelines from 1790s to 1940s. The text is a bit dense, with one page articles on People, Animals, Acts, Marketing, Transportaion, and Music.
Wild West Shows and Native Americans - The Ringling Museum's collection Glasier Glass Plate Negative Collection provides a glimpse into the American Circus, Wild West shows, and Native Americans in the early twentieth century.

Vermont Circus Connections

Circus Smirkus - Our homegrown VT circus. Site features Photo galleries, Online store selling clown noses, juggling equipment, books, and tour schedules.
VPR Vermont Circus History Interview with Rob Mermin - Listen to Jane Lindholm of VT Edition interview Rob Mermin on Vermont's Circus History (recorded Wednesday August 6, 2008).
Vermont Vaudeville- Providing our Residency! - Home page for performers Brent, Maya and friends.

Content by jlinck, jenlinck@craftsburyschools.org
http://www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/listcircuswjl.html
Last revised Thu May 7 18:35:26 US/Pacific 2009