Let's face it; conducting research via the National Archives website can be confusing and frustrating if this isn't something you do on a regular basis. The sheer volume of material available online is awesome...and intimidating. Although this guide is aimed at the K-12 community, it most definitely deserves a spot in the bookmark file on your reference desk computer.
The guide introduces educators and students to the National Archives' Archival Research Catalog (ARC). Searching in ARC to learn more about National Archives' historical documents could enrich a classroom activity, a homework assignment, or a research project.
The first section of the guide, ARC in the Classroom, is most useful for educators. You'll find reproducible handouts (PDF or Word) and Lesson Plans for "Teaching With Documents."
The second part of the guide, Search Tips for Educators and Students, offers good general search help and tips. You'll find a diagram that explains the "Anatomy of the ARC Basic Search Screen," information on boolean search options, an explanation of how to restrict your search to records linked to digital images (obviously, not everything in the National Archives is online), and more. For detailed information on searching, hop on over to the How to Search in ARC page, which offers downloadable guides for new users and others.
One caveat: I found the page structure here to be a bit confusing. Actually, most of the guide is on one page, with links to different sections, but sometimes a link doesn't take you where you expect to go. Instead, you are taken to a location from which you have to scroll through other sections to get to what you want.
Source: National Archives and Records Administration
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