The Digital Broadside
News You Can Use
10 Reasons to Teach History
- History gives students an opportunity to develop basic skills: reading, writing, and analytical thinking.
- History helps students better understand the society in which they live.
- History helps students better understand human beings, and in the process of understanding others, students can better understand themselves as individuals.
- History helps students understand people who are different.
- History allows students to gain perspective and learn to see a bigger picture.
- History can inspire students.
- History can provide students with a reason for being; it can give meaning to their lives.
- History can help students feel a sense of connection.
- History is entertaining and fun.
- History allows students to dream and wonder; it gives them the opportunity to imagine a better future.
Prevention Project
If you teach an elective or want to go in-depth with a modern problem, this is perfect for your class. It uses video, discussion, and a call to action for your class. It's easy to use and will engage your students.
If you have any questions, let me know. They can even come to your school if you want to discuss this with you.
Blooms and History
As history teachers, we ask questions to find out what a learner knows and to encourage analytical thinking. Benjamin Bloomʼs Taxonomy of Educational Objectives provides us with a framework for developing a solid questioning strategy.
Level One — Knowledge
• The Level of Simple Recall: Questions ask for factual information. Answers are either right or wrong.
• Begin questions or commands with the following words: define, repeat, record, list, recall, name, relate, underline.
• Example: Name the president of the United States during the Civil War.
Level Two — Comprehension
• The Level of Understanding: Questions ask for reasons. Answers are usually right or wrong.
• Begin questions or commands with the following words: translate, restate, discuss, recognize, explain, express, identify, locate, report, review, tell.
• Example: Explain the primary causes of the Civil War.
Level Three — Application
• The Level of Usage: Questions usually ask for ways to use knowledge and allow for individual creativity. There many be more than one correct answer.
• Begin questions or commands with the following words: interpret, apply, employ, use, demonstrate, dramatize, practice, illustrate, operate, recreate, role play, schedule, shop, sketch
• Example: Role play a debate in the U.S. Senate over the Kansas-Nebraska Act.
Level Four — Analysis
• The Level of Relationships and Intent: Questions ask for comparisons to be made or for component parts of an idea to be developed. Answers are more divergent and personal.
• Begin questions or commands with the following words: distinguish, analyze, calculate, experiment, test, compare, contrast, criticize, diagram, inspect, debate, inventory, question, relate, solve, examine, categorize.
• Example: Compare and contrast Franklin Rooseveltʼs New Deal with Lyndon Johnsonʼs Great Society.
Level Five — Synthesis
• The Level of Ideas: Questions ask students for ideas for new or different solutions to problems. Answers are creative and divergent; there is no one correct answer.
• Begin questions or commands with the following words: compose, plan, propose, design, formulate, arrange, assemble, collect, construct, create, set up, organize, manage, prepare.
• Example: Construct a plan for reforming the American political process.
Level Six — Evaluation
• The Level of Judgement: Questions ask students to make value judgments about ideas of their own or others. Answers are very personal, divergent, and sometimes argumentative.
• Begin questions or commands with the following words: judge, appraise, evaluate, rate, revise, score, assess, estimate, choose, measure, select, value.
• Example: Assess the relative importance of foreign and domestic affairs in shaping the election of 1968.
Student Growth Measures
For the second one, please make sure you create an environment for success. Make sure your students have time to complete the assignment and that there aren't distractions in class.
VCSS Conference
Furthermore, if you'd like to join VCSS, you can do so here. Belonging to a professional organization helps you in many ways: 1) you learn more about what you can do in your profession and opportunities open to you; 2) it builds your resume; 3) gives you a way to contribute to your profession. You can join here.
You can also join the National Council of Social Studies here.
2014 Drop-a-Thon
However, most of this is first semester material. So I'm now asking teachers to drop second semester material and SOL review material.
This newsletter is global (one guy in China), so email me for a username and password.
What to share:
· Power Points
· Flip Charts
· Worksheets
· Notes
· Exam View files
· Project ideas
General Rules:
· If you use anything from the dropbox, please give back to the dropbox
· If you already see 3 Power Points for SOL VUS.4a, you don’t need to add a 4th VUS.4a power point
· If you’re putting something in the dropbox, you know people may alter it to fit their own needs
· Always give credit for someone else’s work when possible
· If you borrowed from someone, and you know who’s it is (maybe their name is on the Power Point), email them a Thank You!
Teacher Opportunities
JMU History and Social Science Content Academy
SOL Social Studies Content Academy at James Madison University. The academy will be held Monday, June 23, 2014 – Friday June 27, 2014. The 6-12 Social Studies Academy will examine pivotal periods in history and will explore innovative teaching strategies for middle and secondary social studies classrooms in a collaborative environment. Participants will engage in sessions that provide historical content followed by hands on sessions that examine various applied learning activities, including discussions of differentiated learning approaches that provide the tools for students to learn and to do history in the classroom. Emphasis will be placed on developing better historical thinking skills, particularly improving the interpretation of various primary sources.
Check out these opportunities for teachers:
Eisenhower Summer Institute (not free)
History and Revisionism
How Revionist History Works
Not long ago, American schoolchildren learned a quaint tale in history class about the nation's first president. It had to do with a precocious George Washington cutting down a cherry tree against his parents' wishes. Read more here.
It's Not Revisionist History When It's Actually Accurate
Since I took over as the Director of Education and Curriculum Reform for the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) last year, one of the most gratifying parts of my role has also been one of the most depressing: reviewing what school districts include in their instructional materials and content standards. Read more here.
Understanding The Role Of Revisionist History In The Classroom
The great thing about studying history at this time is that, due to the easy access that the Internet allows to documents and references, we can gain access to the complete historical record of the world with a few keystrokes. Read more here.
Instructional Ideas
Spent
Six Degrees of Separation
For example, connecting John Adams to the Sandra Day O'Connor:
- John Adams appointed John Marshall to the Supreme Court
- In 1928, John Marshall was replaced by William McKinley in the $500
- McKinley sent Pershing to war in 1898
- John Pershing was a mentor to Dwight D. Eisenhower
- Eisenhower nominated Potter Stewart to the Supreme Court
- Potter Stewart was replaced by Sandra Day O'Connor to the bench
Admittedly, that was a tough one. But that's what you can do with this. Make it as easy or difficult as you want. One hard one can equal two easy one for points. You can either give students the random connections or have them make it up.
It teaches them research skills and creative thinking. It can also help them review past material.
Dueling Documents
For example:
1. Select a topic for exploration (e.g. slave life).
2. Gather two documents that offer competing descriptions of a(n) person, event, institution, society etc. For example,
Document A = a former slave describes the experience of slavery as one of unrelenting horror in which slaves are viewed as passive objects.
Document B = a former slave describes his or her life as a subject who exhibited agency and crafted moments of joy despite the evil that existed.
3. Jigsaw: Split the class into halves. Divide students in both halves into small groups and distribute Document A to some groups and Document B to other groups.
4. Have students read and analyze their document and discuss the following in their small groups: What does this document suggest about the topic (e.g. slavelife)?
5. Take students who analyzed Document A and pair them off with students who analyzed Document B. Ask each student in the paired group to describe the conclusions they drew from their photograph. If the photographs are well selected, students should arrive at competing conclusions.
6. Tell the students that they are now going to play a game of Dueling Documents. Explain that they have two documents that are competing to tell the story of the past (e.g. what slave life was like). Their task is to decide which document should win the duel. Ask them to discuss the following questions as they decide which document wins the duel:
which source is “best?” Why”
which conclusion about the past is "best?” Why?
7. Ask each group to explain which document won the duel and why?
8. Debrief: Ask why might historians arrive at different conclusions about the past? Explain that history is filled with different interpretations. One reason for the different interpretations is that historians often rely on different pieces of evidence (e.g. photographs) to construct their accounts. However, your experiences with the documents suggest that there may be more than one story about the past.
Flocabulary
There is also a student password for them to use the site at home.
Let me know what you think.
Trivia and Other Balderdash
Trivia: Teachers- 13 and Mike- 8
Last Week: No winners this week. The Answer was Constantinople. The clues:
- I'm over 1500 years old, but only 84. Constantinople is over 1500 years old, but was renamed to Istanbul 84 years ago.
- I came before James K. Polk. On the album, Flood by They Might Be Giants, the song, "Istanbul (Not Constantinople) is track #1. James K, Polk is song #2.
- Tony Reali probably didn't go around this one. Tony Reali hosts, "Around the Horn" on ESPN. Constantinople is on the "Golden Horn."
This week:
- The first to plant an American flag
- Was "married" to an Inuit
- 90, 0
History in the News
- Affordable Care Act: Now that the law seems secure, it's probably secured a place in future textbooks, alongside Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare. Since this could directly affect students, especially those about to graduate, understanding the concept of insurance will be as important as the history of the law's passage.
Contact Information
Email: mjhasley@henrico.k12.va.us
Website: blogs.henrico.k12.va.us/mjhasley
Location: 3820 Nine Mile Road, Richmond, VA, United States
Phone: 804 652-3752
Twitter: @MikeHasley