THE HOGGATTEER REVOLUTION
  • Homeroom
  • Orientation
    • Class Handbook
    • Families: The Wind Beneath Our Wings
    • Meet the Teacher
    • Place in the World
    • Teachers: File Cabinet
  • Positivity
    • Earn Your Wings
    • G.R.O.S.S.
    • Insightful Poetry
    • Inspirational Prose
    • Meaningful Quotes
    • Positive Behavior Conversations
  • Exploration
    • Celebrate Good Times (Come On)
    • Cerebral Cinema >
      • Hoggatt-Made Videos
      • Mood Music
      • Music Appreciation
      • Positive Behavior Conversations
    • Coursework >
      • Cultivating America
      • Focus on Science
      • Let's Communicate
      • M4+HEM4+1C5
      • Missouri, USA
      • Recess Bell

Thinking Historically

7/26/2019

0 Comments

 
Before attending the Fort Ticonderoga Teacher Institute, our teacher facilitator, Tim Potts, emailed to ask these three questions:
  1. 1.  How frequent do you use primary sources in your classroom (daily, weekly, monthly, or randomly on a needs basis)? How do you unpack primary sources/documents with students? 
  2. 2.  Do you conduct organic primary source research from websites, archives, books that contain primary sources within them, etc. or do you rely on teacher based/pedagogical books that have pre-made lessons or what some may term "commercial teacher resources" to utilize for primary source work with student? 
  3. 3.  What does "historical thinking" mean to you? A classroom based on "historical thinking" looks like? If you are a practitioner of historical thinking please identify what you do.
  4. 4.  If you have other professional development goals in relation to the Institute since submitting your application please feel free in articulating them.
Answering questions such as these helps an educator reflect on and encourages best practices in our craft. Clearly, there is knowledge and there are abilities, each working in concert with the other in the delivery of lessons to students.  Thinking Historically is not exclusive to history, but is an extension of what great educators know about teaching.
Thinking Historically is a challenge to thought.  It is more than spitting up information on a multiple choice test. Instead it is a weighing of evidence from many sources, a judgment of the validity of a source, and the drawing of conclusions based on the evidence.  A historical thinker applies facts and cross-referenced eye witness reporting to inference and prediction, at times contradicting previous conclusions.  The video in the link above does a great job of providing examples of such.  It also describes these five aspects of thinking historically as they apply to the K-12 classroom.
Picture
  1. 1.  Multiple Accounts & Perspectives
  2. 2.  Analysis of Primary Sources
  3. 3.  Sourcing
  4. 4.  Context
  5. 5.  Claim-evidence Connection
I find all of this to be a great application of the ideas of Growth Mindset and Academic Rigor, two things I've tried to stress to my students.  It also fits with good reading comprehension strategies - citing evidence in answering questions based on an article or story.  I believe our history lessons and the extensions that leap off from them fit well into the model, but I also recognize that we don't always hit on all cylinders; there is always room for improvement.  Here is a portion of my response to Mr. Pott's original questions:
...I have developed a year-long study, most of which is viewable on my website, which just keeps growing.  I am working on integrating other parts of our curricula (science, math writing, and reading) into each of the lesson sets, as well as curating and adding primary sources and other items that I find along the journey.  I have always been the maverick teacher who would rather find my own materials and develop my own activities than rely on a generic textbook.

My class is heavily themed to history, though I can't say that I use as many primary sources as I would like:  time has always limited me in locating the resources and getting transcripts that are useable for nine-year olds (who can't all read on grade level).  When I have, I find websites connected with the Library of Congress and Mount Vernon to be valuable.

When I teach any subject, the practices involved in historical thinking come naturally.  I have never handed answers out like candy to my students, but allowed them to wrestle with material (and each other) to develop their own ideas before I enter a "lesson".  We often begin with a piece of art, and students spend a good deal of time making observations.

I find out a lot about their previous knowledge and abilities to synthesize and infer through this process (and they really love to try to figure things out).  They will notice different flags, the direction of movement, clothing, the setting, etc., and put all of it into context with what they have learned in previous lessons.

In the lesson that develops, I also get them to see things from each point of view from the characters in the artwork or from the artist.  They have to have an open mind, and they quickly figure out that history is often dirty and ugly and that the main characters all have flaws.  When they realize this, they can be motivated to acknowledge their own imperfections and be OK with making mistakes.

I am fortunate in that I have a self-contained classroom, that I can close my door, and that my administrators trust me.  I can go overtime with a rich history lesson without getting into trouble, because they understand that I integrate other areas of the curricula into everything we do.

I hope that answers your questions thoroughly enough without getting too tedious.  I've been looking forward to this teacher institute for a couple of years...If you are interested, in addition to the link to my webpage of lesson sets above, I am also collecting everything I have recorded in anticipation of this year's institute.
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Anthem

    The Hoggatteer Revolution
    is
    an extensive,
    award-winning, 
    inimitable,
    digital platform
    for Encouraging
    ​and Developing
    ​the Arts and Sciences

    in the beautiful, friendly

    LAND OF THE FREE
    AND THE HOME
    ​OF THE BRAVE
    This site is described as
    "a fantastic site... chockablock full of interesting ideas,
    hilarious ane
    cdotes,
    and useful resources."
    Picture
    Picture
    ...to like, bookmark, pin,
    ​tweet, and share

    about us...and check in regularly for updates, posted before DAWN'S EARLY LIGHT, daily!
    Picture

    Campus Map

    Picture
    Your Source for At-Home Learning during Social Distancing for the Spring of 2020
    Picture

    Passing Notes

    GigSalad Member Since 2022
    Book Mr. Hoggatt Securely
    ​for Your Event
    ​at GigSalad.com.
    Email Mr. Hoggatt
    Picture

    Trophy Case

    Picture
    Selected Participant for 2020-2022
    Picture
    Selected Honoree/Celebrant, 2022
    Picture
    Outstanding Achievement, 2022
    Picture
    Nominated, January 2022
    Picture
    2021 Missouri History Teacher of the Year and National History Teacher of the Year Nominee
    Picture
    Recognized in Joplin Globe, February 2021
    Picture
    Teacher Institute Participant, 2019
    Picture
    Ancestry Classroom Grant, Since 2018
    Picture
    Summer Residency Participant, 2018
    Picture
    "The Bus Stops Here" Grant, November 2018
    Picture
    Summer Residency, 2018
    Picture
    Recognized 2017
    Since 2017
    Picture
    MSTA Media Award, KOAM-TV's "Manners Matter", Featuring Our Class, May 2017
    Picture
    Third Place, 2016 Film Festival
    Picture
    Recognized 2016
    2014 Recipient
    Picture
    Slide Certified, 2012
    Picture
    2009 Outstanding Class Website
    Picture
    2005 Nominee
    Picture
    2005 Joplin Teacher of the Year and Missouri Teacher of the Year nominee
    Picture
    2004 Recipient
    Picture
    2002 Excellent Education Program
    Picture
    2001 Nominee
    Picture
    1996 Outstanding Classroom Video
    Picture
    Grant Recipient, 1993

    Picture

    Fireside Chats

    Picture
    Choose Your Platform:
    Anchor
    ​Apple Podcasts (iTunes)
    Breaker
    Google Podcasts
    ​
    Overcast
    Pocket Casts
    RadioPublic
    Spotify
    Stitcher
    Picture

    Archives

    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012

    Picture

    Checks & Balances

    Links to external sites
    on the internet are for convenience only.

    No endorsement or approval of any content, products, or services is intended.

    Opinions on sites are not necessarily shared
    by Mr. Hoggatt
    (In fact, sometimes
    Mr. Hoggatt doesn't agree with anyone.)
    Picture

The Hoggatteer Revolution

H

O

P

E