Doing History on Day 1 of Class

By Jeff Burns

I wanted to do something a little different than just going over the syllabus on the first day of my history classes this year, so I decided to have them do some history on day 1. Inspired by one of the dozens of initiatives being introduced at my school this year, making connections and building relationships with students, I scoured my house and classroom looking for knickknacks, mementos, any little objects that were part of my story.  I ended up with business cards, expired passports, class rings, favorite books and CDs, and all kinds of other things.

Next, I divided the “artifacts” into 6 small baskets. Each group got a basket, and I instructed them to examine and discuss the objects and write down any observations they make based on the artifacts.

After several minutes of discussion, each group shared some of their observations, and I let them know if they were correct or not.  Then, I asked questions like “As we examine primary sources and artifacts this year, what are some problems that might affect our effort to get to the truth?” and “Who curated this collection? How does that affect the story told by the artifacts?”  I then asked questions spiraling off their answers.  This led to a great discussion of context, perspectives, bias, and the interpretation of history. I then wrapped it up with a brief PowerPoint about me and my hobbies that filled in some of the holes left by the artifact handling.

It was a fun activity, enjoyed by all.  The students interacted with each other and learned a little about me, and I learned about them.  It also introduced the idea of “doing history. 

Sidewalk Chalk Art Review

By Jeff Burns

It’s the end of the year, and teachers are always searching for fun and meaningful ways to review material and prepare for those end of course tests, finals, and AP exams.  Why not take it outside and engage your students’ creativity in the process.

For a couple of years now, I have taken my AP US history classes outside to do sidewalk chalk review.  It’s simple and takes just a couple of periods.  First, I assigned each group one of the APUSH time periods. Their instructions were simple: design and create a sidewalk square that illustrates the most important themes, concepts, events, ideas, and people of the assigned period. They had one period to plan, and one period to draw. 

It doesn’t require much:  administrator’s permission and sidewalk chalk.  Dollar stores have cheap sidewalk chalk.  I got it for $1 a box at Dollar general.  Some students even brought their own.  Other useful tools that students brought included stiff dust brooms for erasing and spray water bottles. To get their best effort, I offered a replacement grade to the groups with the best squares, judged by the other US history teachers in my department.  

 

Puzzled By Jigsaws?

By Jeff Burns

Have you ever wondered about the history of jigsaw puzzles?  Me neither until recently.  A retired teacher who substitutes at my school recently stopped me in the hall and said, “I have a strange question.  My husband collects Great Depression Era jigsaw puzzles and is looking to reduce the collection.  We wondered if you would like some for your classroom?”  She obviously knew who to ask.  After all, I have written a Histocrat blog and presented professional learning sessions titled “History Teacher or Hoarder?”, and my classroom shelves are full of various objects collected over the years.

I said sure, and she started telling me the jigsaw story.  While jigsaw puzzles were invented as educational tools in the mid-1700s, they reached new heights of popularity during the Great Depression.  When the housing market collapsed, some enterprising entrepreneurs in the building supply company came up with the idea of printing images on their surplus board, cutting it, and selling it.  For 25 or 50 cents, a family could enjoy hours and hours of entertainment to take their minds off of their economic hardships. The images were often escapist, beautiful – sometimes magical -  scenes of cozy cottages or natural wonders that families wouldn’t necessarily see in their neighborhoods, allowing them to see the world.  Some of the pictures are very patriotic, pieces of Americana.  Many of the boxes provide no picture at all, just a one-word description like “home”, meaning you didn’t know what it was going to be until you were done.  Puzzles also were given away as advertising premiums.

To make a long story short, she delivered several dozen puzzles to my room a few days later.  My plan is to use some with small groups as we discuss the Depression.  Students can think about and discuss the imagery:  why was this image chosen?  How did it reflect the Great Depression?  Why did it appeal to the customer who bought it originally? What was the role of the jigsaw puzzle in family life during the Depression?  Compare and contrast to family entertainment in other eras and today?

Want to read more? Here’s a great introduction to the history of Jigsaws.

APUSH Hand Turkeys

Are you looking for a simple review lesson as the holiday approaches? Try the APUSH Hand Turkey task. It is written for an AP US History class but could be easily modified for other grade levels.

A photo posted by @histocrats on Nov 15, 2016 at 10:55am PST

An APUSH Hand Turkey

November is time for APUSH Hand turkeys.

Task: You will create TWO Hand Turkeys that review and highlight the periods that you have studied thus far:

Period 1: 1491-1607. ...

Period 2: 1607-1754. ...

Period 3: 1754-1800. ...

Period 4: 1800-1848. ...

Turkey 1

1.   Draw a turkey on 8 ½ X 11 unlined paper of any color.

2.   Decorate each of the five digits as one of the periods above.  Be creative.  Think themes, important events, and ideas, etc.

3.   The palm is open for decorating in any subject or theme of American History up to 1877.

Turkey 2

1.   Draw a turkey on 8 ½ X 11 unlined paper of any color.

2.   Choose, in your opinion, the person in American history from 1491-1877 who is the biggest turkey in history.

3.   Find a picture of that person’s head to become the head of your turkey (thumb).

4.   Decorate the turkey to show who that person was and why he/she is the biggest turkey of the age.

In a Pickle

By Jeff Burns

Pickling is one of the oldest methods used by humans to preserve foods, dating back 4,000 years. Practically any vegetable can be pickled using vinegar and spices, and has been in one culture or another.  Pickle lovers have their own favorite vegetables and preparations, kosher, dill, bread and butter, sweet, hot, just to name a few.

One of my personal favorites stems from my own childhood memories.  Every summer, my Aunt Juanita would make her sweet pickles.  When they were ready, she would visit and bring us a jar or two or call to let us know, and I would my bike to her house to pick them up. My family frequently got together with friends and family during the year for fish frys, barbecues, oyster roasts, and the like, and Aunt Juanita’s pickles were always a great accompaniment.  My mother tried her own version from time to time, and they were good, but we all know some things that just don’t taste the same when somebody else makes them.

Aunt Juanita passed away a couple of years ago, and, for a few years before, she suffered from dementia, so it’s been quite a while since she made pickles.  However, I am very fortunate that , years before becoming ill, she wrote the recipe down for me.  It’s a simple recipe, and an old one.  My cousin told me that Aunt Juanita got it from her Appalachian in-laws years and years ago.  She always called them 7 day pickles or sweet pickles, and I’ve found similar recipes online called Amish pickles or 7 day pickles, so I’m not really sure of the origin. I make the pickles nearly every summer, and if I say so myself, they’re pretty good and extremely close to my memories of hers. The handwritten recipe is also a treasure, since I don’t have much of anything in the way of handwriting from my parents, grandparents, and other relatives.

I put the cucumbers in a big pot, and the actual process only takes a few minutes each morning. (It does require a huge amount sugar, however.) With this batch I added a couple of squash and onions as well.  I have also added jalapenos in some batches to make a sweet and hot variety too.

We’ve also pickled some beans, radishes, and zucchinis this summer.

Like pickles? Find a recipe and give it a try.  This is about more than making pickles though.  Think about the great recipes within your own family.  Seek them out and learn them now from the family members who make them, before it’s too late.

Review Fun: It’s in the Cards

By Jeff Burns

When the time comes each year to review for AP tests, end of course tests, and final exams, I, like many teachers, try to find as many varied ways of reviewing content as I can.  This year, I put together a couple of quick review card games which fit the bill.  They covered content.  Students were engaged and got competitive about it, and they enjoyed it. 

There are directions floating around for making your own version (or having students make versions) of Apples to Apples and Cards Against Humanity for history, but this is even simpler.  All you do is make or use pre-existing powerpoint presentations or flash cards.  For AP US History, I used one covering the major events of each president’s term, and a review powerpoint  of some 250 important concepts and events, both of which were created and shared by other teachers or their students.  You might also use powerpoints covering art movements, literature, or any topic you wish. The key is to make sure the slides have a visual and brief information points on them.

 

I then printed the powerpoints on cardstock, six slides per page, enough for several decks.  Then comes the hard part:  cutting.  If at all possible, use a paper cutter and do a few sheets at a time.  You can see from my cards that I could have taken more time.

My students sat in small groups, and I gave each group a deck of cards.  It becomes a grouping and matching game.  You can ask them to use the cards to complete several tasks and circulate to supervise and review their work.  Even if you don’t, they will make it competitive by trying to finish correctly first.

With the presidents deck, I did these things:
1.       Arrange in chronological order by presidency
2.      Group by party
3.      Which presidents’ terms were marked by war?
4.      Which presidents are known for specific domestic or foreign policy programs?,
5.      Select the three most effective, least effective, worst, best presidents, etc.

 

With the events/concepts deck, I asked them to pull out 5 or 10 cards that dealt with each of the following:
1.       Immigration
2.      Migration
3.      Labor
4.      Big Business/Industrialization
5.      Civil Rights
6.      Reform
7.      Economic Policy, etc.  You can use any subject or any theme you can think of.

 

Playing with the cards really made them think quickly and review things they’ve learned all year, and it forced them to make connections and to reflect on change and continuity over time.  

Connecting the Dots

By Jeff Burns 

It’s that time of year again.  I’ve reached the Cold War, and when it’s time to talk about the Red Scare and McCarthyism of the 1950s, it may as well be hundreds of years ago for my students, so every year I use the Dot Game to create a feeling of paranoia.

I first learned about the Dot Game from a History Alive! Training session, and as far as I know, credit goes to the Teachers Curriculum Institute for creating it.  The Dot Game works great for the Red Scare, but it also would work in a unit on the Salem Witch Trials or any period of doubt and suspicion.

The game is easy and 2-3 rounds can be played in 10-15 minutes.  First, you need a set of cards.  I cut index cards in half.  Most of the cards are left blank on both sides, but on some of the cards, make a dot on one side.  (I use C for commie.)  For a set of 30 cards (I make a few more cards than the number of students in my class.), I might include as many as 10 commies.

The night before, I send out a Remind text to students saying “Trust no one.”  (Caution:  Times have changed.  The next day, students said, “Oh, we thought your wife cheated on you or you were warning us about something happening at school.”)  Give each student a card with explicit directions to look at but not to share or show what’s on their card to anyone.  Then explain:  Most of you are good, decent Americans.  However, there are a few dirty, stinking commies amongst you bent on destroying mom, baseball, apple pie, and everything else about the American way of life.  Your job is to form the largest group possible without a communist. You can’t show your card at any time when making groups.

There are two ways to win:  1) the largest group with no communist infiltrator wins and 2) any communist who has successfully infiltrated a group and is the only one in the group is a winner.  I’ve had winning groups of 1 person and as large as 12 people.

Give them 2-3 minutes each round.  At the end of each round, have groups reveal their identity one at a time, starting from the smallest sized groups.  Vary the number of communist cards you give out during each round. On the second or third round, I will interrupt and say things like, “We’ve just confirmed there are at least 3 commies among you…… We’ve now confirmed there at least 5 commies out there…etc.”

After the rounds, debrief.  Ask

1. How did you feel during the rounds?
2. How did you know whom to trust?
3. How did it feel to have your trust betrayed?
4. How did it feel to be accused but innocent?
5. Who was the best deceiver?
6. Who was the worst deceiver?
7. What were the stakes at risk for losing this game?  (very low level) Now think about nationally in the 1950s.  What were the stakes then?  Can you see how paranoia multiplied and why it affected people so much and why McCarthy was so powerful for a while?

The game really creates a great conversation and makes a real connection, plus it’s fun and involves movement.  My classes always ask to play again and again.

Using an Assembly Line as a Hook to Introduce Industrialization

By Jeff Burns

For several years, I’ve been introducing the industrialization of the Gilded Age with an assembly line simulation that’s a lot of fun for students and always leads to a great discussion. I got the inspiration from somewhere, of course, but I’m not sure where, maybe a History Alive (TCI, Teacher’s Curriculum Institute) activity, but I’ve adapted to my classroom and my personal demeanor.  You see, I’m not an overly effusive person; I’m pretty stoic, dour, emotionless – take your pick.  Students lovingly liken me to internet sensation Grumpy Cat. (If only I could channel my personality into tens of millions of dollars like Grumpy Cat.)

This topic usually falls immediately following Thanksgiving for me, so I begin class by spinning an elaborate tale. I tell the class that I had an epiphany over break. I finally figured out the vehicle that will make me a millionaire and allow me to quit teaching.  It’s the toy sensation that will change the world.  Children around the world will go into frenzy for it. I even have a Shark Tank appearance coming up next week to get backers.  I’m sharing it with the class because I need some help creating some initial inventory, and they can help me.

I use these slides to make my pitch.  (The clumsy cheesiness is part of the charm.)

 

 

 

 

The Burnsie bears a remarkable resemblance to myself.  You can make it anything you want, just some simple drawing or folded object.

For the next step, I use rows of five desks each, markers, and lots of paper cut into fourths.  I use scratch paper, extra one-sided copies saved up all year.  Give every student a marker and 4 o 5 paper squares.  Tell them you’re testing them to see who can get in on the ground floor of this money-making opportunity by producing a burnsie inventory. Their instructions are to draw as many burnsies as possible in 15-20 seconds. When time is up, have them count their completed burnsies and examine a few to compare their consistence, with each other and with the original.  Invariably, this first effort is not going to be successful.  I make  big deal about how many more have to be produced and how they have to be consistent.  No matter where they are in the world, children have to wake up to find a consistent, high-quality, handcrafted burnsie under their tree.  How do we achieve that?  Students offer suggestions like, more workers, using photocopiers, stamps, or stencils.  No, I say, that defeats the purpose of hand-crafted, made-in-America quality.  Someone will suggest an assembly line. OK, How does that work? The student explains, and we give it a shot.  I pit rows against each other.  Usually to save paper  at this point, I reduce the pool of workers to two rows pitted against each other and have volunteers staff the rows, while the rest of the class watches. However, you could have more rows competing.  Then each student in the row is assigned a part to draw:  head, face, body, arms, legs.  They have to draw their parts and pass it to the person behind.  For this round, I usually give them 45-60 seconds.  When time is called, we count and talk about consistency and quality (usually better).

Now, that’s better, but not quite good enough, how do we make more,  faster?  They offer various suggestions.  Maybe the boss (me) can offer positive incentives or negative disincentives for example.  We discuss various options.  Someone will then suggest (maybe following my lead) turning the desks side by side to facilitate the passing.  They may even switch positions or participants or make other suggestions that you may want to implement.  We then do 1 or 2 rounds of 45-60 seconds each, and the production is always better.

 

Finally, we debrief.  How did you feel during this simulation?  Participants will say they felt stressed, anxious, etc. What would it feel like to do real assembly line work today?  What are the physical and mental effects of such work?  Now put yourself in a factory in 1890 or so.  What other factors and effect would be involved.  We usually have a great discussion about working conditions.

The finishing touch is to show the classic candy factory scene from I Love Lucy.  It’s available on Youtube, even in new colorized form if you don’t want to shock the students too much.  While some students will have never seen it before (Sadder still, some students may not have a clue who Lucy or what I Love Lucy is.) but most of them will have seen Drake and Josh do almost exactly the same scene, and they are amazed that it was done fifty years earlier by someone else.

Bringing Antebellum Reformers to Life

By Jeff Burns

The antebellum period was a tumultuous time in American History, and there were a lot of reformers and reform movements seeking to cure various societal ills.  Movements to end slavery and alcoholism coexisted with movements to improve the conditions of women, inmates, and the mentally ill.  New religious denominations spread across the country, and utopians tried to build perfect societies.  There are a lot of people that students need to know.

This period is a perfect period for speed dating, an activity I picked up from the AP U.S. History Teachers Facebook Group.  I have no idea of the origin, but it is a fun way to cover a lot of people quickly.  Each student chose a reformer from a list.  The list can be customized based on local or state standards, textbooks, teaching preferences, etc.

They then have a couple of days to research their character. I have them prepare a one page biography sheet and an “I am” poem in the voice of the character.  On the biography sheet, they answer these questions:

• What criticism of American society did the individual have?
• What methods did the person use to improve American life?
• What success did the individual have in promoting reform?
• What detail(s) of the person’s work made him or her an interesting historical figure?
• To what extent was the reformer obsessed with achieving an impractical goal through fanatical or impractical means?
• What lasting impact did the person’s reforms have on American society? 

They may also wear costumes or bring props that relate to their character for extra credit. 

On the appointed day, the desks are set up in pairs and one side of the pair moves every 2-3 minutes, to rotate around the room.  In that two to three minutes, each one of the pair shares important highlights about his or her character and takes notes.  

The next day we debriefed in small groups.  I had 6 stations set up around the room with big pieces of paper and markers.  One paper had the question “What did the Reformers have in common with each other?”  One said “How were the reformers different from the rest of Americans?”  The other 4 papers had straight lines, the small groups had to discuss and place their partial list of reformers on each spectrum.  Among the spectrum topics were:

Most Successful/Least Successful

Most Crazy (Unconventional)/Least Crazy(Unconventional)

Most Dedicated/Least Dedicated

Overly Idealistic/Practical & Pragmatic

Greatest Legacy/Least Legacy

The small groups rotated around the room addressing each question and contributing to each page.  Then we had a whole group discussion about their work and why they thought the way we did.

In the end, the students had actively engaged in learning about the reformers and the antebellum period. I do speed dating a few times a year now, as it can be easily adopted to almost any period when there are a lot of people. However, it doesn’t have to be just people.  Students can also speed date as ideas, books/documents, states, countries, etc. 

If you want to see the student instructions and list of reformers that I used, go here http://schoolwires.henry.k12.ga.us/page/7362 and look for “Reformers Speed Dating.” There are numerous “I Am” poem templates online; you can easily find one that suits your needs.

A Pinch of This, A Dash of That: Combining Lessons

By Jeff Burns

When it comes to lesson plans and activities that I pick up along the way, I rarely use them as is. Like most teachers, I almost always make adjustments and alterations for some reason or another.  Sometimes I combine multiple ideas into one lesson. 

Recently, I was running out of time in my American History unit on the American Revolution and Constitution.  I had several goals that I needed to meet very quickly.  I wanted to get in some primary document analysis, review important information that we had covered, and at least introduce a few documents that we hadn’t exactly gotten to in class.

I got an idea.  I combined an activity that I had adapted from the AP US History Teachers Group on Facebook last year: Speed Dating.  In the typical Speed Dating assignment, each student is assigned an important person to research.  Then, the room is set up so that students share their person with each other in pairs.  Every two minutes, one side of the pair rotates so that all students get to interact with at least most of their classmates.  After discovering it, I did it 2-3 times last year with great success.  For this activity, however, I assigned each student a document instead of a person, everything from the Declaration of Independence to Washington’s Farewell Address to Alexander Hamilton’s Report on Manufactures.

This year, I got another great activity idea from the APUSH Teachers Group, by way of Literature teachers, I think: the I Am poem.  The student is given a template of a few stanzas.  Each line starts with a prompt, and students.  There are a few different templates online.  I used this:

  "I Am"  ______________________________________  

I am __________________________________________________________________

I wonder ______________________________________________________________

I hear ________________________________________________________________

I see _________________________________________________________________

I want ________________________________________________________________

I am __________________________________________________________________

 

I pretend ______________________________________________________________

I feel _________________________________________________________________

I touch _______________________________________________________________

I worry _______________________________________________________________

I cry _________________________________________________________________

I am _________________________________________________________________

 

I understand __________________________________________________________

I say _________________________________________________________________

I dream_______________________________________________________________

I try__________________________________________________________________

I am __________________________________________________________________

Not only would my students prepare for speed dating, but they would also complete an I Am poem for their assigned document (or the creator of the document).

These were their directions For this activity, each of you is assigned an important document in the period 1754 -1800.  Your tasks are to

1. Research your document; read the document itself and read secondary sources about the document.
2. Write an AM poem for your document using the template provided, either as the document itself (literally making the document speak) or as the author(s) of the document.  This is going to take some thought and creativity. 
3. On the teaching day, you will review your document with your classmates, one by one, so that they can complete the table.
4. Bonus Points for either wearing something that relates to your document or having a relatable prop of some sort.  Costumes and prop must of course be school appropriate.

We pulled it all together on speed dating day, just before the unit test, by creating a notetaking matrix for them to record notes.  When it was all over, they would have a good review guide. Two of the four pages are below.

 

When all was said and done, the students enjoyed the speed dating experience and turned in some really thoughtful and creative I Am poems.