Nostalgic memories flow from memories of days gone past. A simpler time, an easier way. We yearn to slow down and experience life anew until we realize that perhaps our nostalgia is better left in our memories. However, the past doesn’t always have to stay in the past. There are some amazing resources that are available which will enable you to create new memories and learn along the way.
Vinyl Records for Today
Children’s Vinyl Record Series and Kiddie Records Weekly
Both of these sites consist of children’s stories and lessons that were originally on vinyl records, but have have converted to mp3s. Many classic stories can be found along with great informational recordings. For example, you will find “A Child’s Introduction to the Orchestra”, “A Child’s Introduction to Shakespeare” and “Snow White” on Children’s Vinyl Record Series (see note below) while you will discover many old cartoon favorites along with classical stories at Kiddie Records Weekly . The lists are huge, so bookmark the site, grab a cup of coffee and enjoy surfing through the files.
*It appears the above link is longer are active, thus – Web Archive to the rescue!
Try this: Children’s Vinyl Record Series
Magazines from the Past
I find old magazines fascinating. The ads reveal the culture from the time period while their articles are living history. Did you know that a few magazines with full image back issues are available via “Google Books”? It’s not a search term, but an actual site in Google dedicated to books and magazines. Here are some examples:
If you wish to dive deeper into each then click on one of the above links and look at the left hand side of your screen. You will find options to:
- enter a search term to search the individual issue or use the check box to search all issues
- view all magazines that are available
- browse all issues of the magazine you are viewing
Old Time Radio
Listen to history unfold in Old Radio World. What if the event occurred before the invention of the radio? Then merely travel back in time to You Are There and listen to events as if..well..you were there. If you need more, then head on over to American History through the Eyes of Radio. Scroll toward the bottom of the page to find a huge list of recordings. Huge list!!
Old Google Books
Google Books is an amazing resource. If you do a general search, then it may appear that the results are recent and not free. However, there are some fantastic free old books available. Not only are they available, but you can download many of them. I was able to find our McGuffey Readers through this site.
I hope you enjoy traveling through time as you learn, I know we do!