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Trading Cards, ReadWriteThink, and the Common Core
We’ve always asked our kids to read. Informational text. Primary sources. Non-fiction. Fiction. Poetry. We’ve always asked our kids to write. Summaries. Research. Reviews. Reaction papers. At least,...
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Using a pie to teach historical thinking
Okay. Not an actual pie. Though that would be awesome! But I did learn this very easy but very cool Pie Chart strategy from Nathan McAlister, 2010 Gilder Lehrman Teacher of the Year. It’s a great hook...
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8 sweet graphic organizers for primary sources
Deb Brown, a good friend from the Shawnee Mission, Kansas district, shared a statement with me several years ago and it’s rattled around in my head ever since. “Primary sources belong to everyone. Not...
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“Was Kansas Actually Bleeding?”
One thing I have learned as a teacher, kids really do say the darndest things! Recently my Kansas History class started in on Bleeding Kansas, and I realized that very few of my students had retained...
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The end is near! Letters to next year’s students
Can you tell it is May? Are your students acting as crazy as mine? Don’t worry, the end is near. We just need to get them to hang on for a couple more weeks! Throughout the year I have students keep...
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Stop! In the Name of…Writing?
In an effort to improve the writing skills of my students and better prepare them for the Kansas Writing Assessment, the Multidisciplinary Performance Task, I have begun implementing the Stoplight...
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Informed Citizenship: Analyzing Bias in Current Events
The following is a guest post from Basehor-Linwood Middle School teacher Joe Zlatnik. Joe teaches 8th grade social studies at BLMS. The concept of citizenship can be found throughout various social...
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6 C’s for analyzing primary sources
Over the last few years, we’ve seen the instructional strategy pendulum swing over to encouraging more use of evidence by students to solve authentic problems. And there’s tons of stuff out there to...
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H.I.T. Notebooks: A Different take on Interactive Notebooks
Jill Weber, 2016 Gilder Lehrman Kansas History Teacher of the Year, has joined the Doing Social Studies writing team and will be posting throughout the year. The following is a cross-post from her...
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MBQs – Using Media Based Questions to support historical thinking
I was having a conversation with my two twenty-something children a few weeks ago and referenced an old Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup commercial. You know the one. The one where two people, one eating...
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Graphic Content: Using Visual Communication in the Social Studies Classroom
One of my favorite ways to present information to students is through the use of infographics because they are visually appealing and easy to read, even though they can contain a wealth of information....
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Economics is everywhere so it’s okay to teach in every class
Angela Howdehell works for the Kansas Council for Economic Education and is based at Wichita State University. She is today’s guest author. I have been exhibiting at various annual teacher conferences...
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Use Crop It tools to help elementary kids think historically
One of the easiest but most effective strategies for having younger kids work with primary sources is called Crop It. In some ways, it’s a lot like my Evidence Analysis Window Frame but I really like...
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5 graphic organizers you’re probably not using but should be
Most of you are already familiar with the idea of document analysis worksheets. These sorts of tools are perfect for scaffolding historical thinking skills for your kids. Some of the best, created by...
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Save the Last Word for Me discussion strategy
I was browsing through some old History Tech posts and ran across this 2016 entry. It caught my attention as several of us were chatting about ways to encourage student to student conversations. If...
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3 reasons why your kids should be using sketchnotes
A few months ago, I spent a few minutes on a quick rant blaming laptops and mobile devices for being the reason for the terrible KC Royals pitching, destroying the rainforest, causing the downfall of...
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Structured Academic Controversy – Lewis and Clark Edition!
Today’s post is written by Cheney, Kansas middle and high social studies teacher Jill Weber. Jill is the 2016 Gilder Lehrman Kansas History Teacher of the Year. Sometimes it all goes right. Thursday...
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Blackout Poetry: Worth Waiting For
Jill Weber teaches US History at Cheney Middle School and high schoolers in the Teaching Career Pathway. Today she shares how she incorporates the Blackout Poetry literacy and writing activity into her...
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Need a super simple assessment tool? Make a pie.
Several weeks ago, I had the chance to work with a group of high school teachers as we brainstormed new Inquiry Design Models. Any time I get the chance to spend time with a bunch of other social...
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