Monday, December 10, 2012

Blog 5



Teaching History is a pretty strait forward task, at least the main points and over all events. The comprehension instruction model serves as a great template for teaching a class. The first thing that needs to happen before getting into any historical lesson is to give a solid background on the event. This needs to include the location, motive and list of all those involved. Background is a crucial step in setting the stage for the main body of the lesson. In order to increase comprehension and retention of the material, it is best to actively involve as many of the student’s senses as possible.
A graphic organizer is a great example of an activity that brings together sight and sound. The graphic organizer provides a good resource that can serve as a cooperative classroom discussion, and once filled out can be used as a study guide for chapter quizzes and tests. Having students pair up into small groups and work together provides a chance for the students to socialize and work with other students who they would not have worked with otherwise.  Students will not always agree on everything, debating with each other can create new ideas and differing points of view. Discussing and debating in a planned and structured way keeps students on topic a focused.
                Any technologic advancement could be used for the betterment of our students. The teacher would need to: monitor the students use of the school computers, how long they could use the computers. There are a lot of predatory people on the internet but under proper supervision, the students would have all the information that they would need.
                There are so many other things that I learned from this class, but those lesson ideas stick out the most for me.

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Blog Post 4



History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events and is constantly being written around us. It was said by philosopher, poet, literary and cultural critic George Santayana, that “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”.  History is not a social science with a definite answer. There are always two sides of a coin. Perspective is everything. History is more than just names and dates, it about understanding the methods behind actions taken to create it. A single idea or action from an individual or country can change not only their future but, like ripples in a pond, it also affects those around them. History gives a chance to see events from others eyes. I have always felt that you can’t know someone until you have looked in there closet. Everyone should step in the closet of the past and rediscover where we have been and where we are going! History is a fun subject that is full of visual learning tools and can be hands on through historical artifacts and reenactment. Through history we can compare and contrast the way things are and the way things were.

Here are some fun History links! Come join in on the Adventure!