Photograph: French fashion designer Christian Dior sketches a dress at his salon in Paris, France, February 1948

Source: Getty

Christian Dior vs. Christian Dior

The designer’s impulse to convey his two selves to the public stemmed from a desire to be seen as genuine artist working in a world of artifice.
Part of a painting by Paul Sandby of Reading Abbey Gateway

The Reading Abbey Girls’ School

This all-girls boarding school in England produced a generation of accomplished female writers in the eighteenth century.
Black teachers and children stand facing the camera in a classroom in Mississippi, 1967

The Working-Class Radicalism of Mississippi’s Head Start

The Child Development Group of Mississippi created jobs and fostered the political inclusion of poor African American and white communities in the South.
Photograph: Sojourner Truth, 1860s

The Truth About Isabella Van Wagenen

Sojourner Truth’s entanglement with a dubious cult leader in New York City steadied her steps on the path for women’s rights.
A dead whale being cleaned by whalers

So You Plan to Teach Moby Dick

The study of Melville’s novel is enhanced by contextualizing it with primary and secondary sources related to the American sperm whaling industry.
A birthday cake on a pastel background

Today: The Best Day of the Year to be Born

Children who are oldest in their class—those born in early autumn—enjoy both a physical and an academic advantage.
A scene at the police head-quarters, Mulberry Street, New York

Urchins of New York and Elsewhere

Remembering the Sky Parlor for lost children and the public’s fascination with those who went astray.
An illustration of Rafflesia arnoldii, 1821

Plant of the Month: Corpse Lily

The largest flower on the planet—a gigantic, pungent parasite—reveals deep genetic mysteries and unique conservation challenges.
Dr. Rivers Frederick Perfoming Surgery at Flint-Goodridge Hospital

Introducing Our Visual Literacy Column, “Learning to Look”

Developing visual literacy skills unlocks a means of understanding and engaging with the world that cannot be replaced by any text.
A tyrannosaurus rex on a light blue background

Dinosaur Sounds, Universe Sounds, and White People Food

Well-researched stories from FiveThirtyEight, Bon Appetit, and other great publications that bridge the gap between news and scholarship.