The History Book Club discussion

If you are new and not used to jumping into discussions, here are some videos of high school students doing just that and some other helpful material which should get you moving in the right direction.

The only difference is that they are talking about the documents or reading and you would be posting your thoughts about the reading and the discussion questions - but it is the same process. You are driving the discussion of these points.

This is how you approach discussions of big ideas, big events, people, etc.

I thought you'd like this: (How to Read Like an Historian: Philosophical Chairs)


Reading Like a Historian: Philosophical Chairs

Check out this classroom video on Teaching Channel. Teaching Channel is a video showcase-on the Web and TV-of inspiring teaching practices in America's public schools.

Thanks for the link. I hadn't seen that video although I do employ some of the reading like an historian lessons in my U.S. History high school classroom curriculum.

You are welcome - I have a few more to add. I love that white board projector - I remember the old black boards with the chalk (smile)

Yes, that Lincoln HS teacher has a Promethean board which I used in my last district. My current district has a slightly different system called Smart boards. But they are almost becoming outdated these days as more teachers (and students) are using their own technology such as integrating iPads in the classroom. Alas, I don't have an iPad yet.

You should get one Craig (iPad - love mine) - love that Promethean board too. You could almost get asthma from chalk dust when I was in class! Times have changed for sure.

This is helpful - when reading material - how do I choose and discuss the most salient parts for discussion. - How do I look for details and quotes to support my point of view.

A high school class discusses Vietnam.

I thought you'd like this:


Reading Like a Historian: Sourcing (Uncut)
Check out this classroom video on Teaching Channel. Teaching Channel is a video showcase-on the Web and TV-of inspiring teaching practices in America's public schools.

When reading any spotlighted book you can read and do sourcing at the same time. And you can bring those sources and those details into our discussions of this book or another book:

A High School Class discusses the Gulf of Tonkin incident

Sourcing

I thought you'd like this:


Reading Like a Historian: Sourcing
Check out this classroom video on Teaching Channel. Teaching Channel is a video showcase-on the Web and TV-of inspiring teaching practices in America's public schools.

Sourcing:

Before reading a document, book or anything for that matter -ask yourself

* Who Wrote This?

* What is the author's point of view?

* Why was it written?

* When was it written? (A long time ago or short time after the event?)

* Is the source believable? Why? Why not?

Use repetition when sourcing. The above questions should be asked whenever you read anything not just a document or a book, but a newspaper - or even if you watch a youtube video, or some news pundit or 24x7 entertainment news, or listening to a speech or seeing a photo image or art piece - think about the who, the why, the when and who is the audience and if it is believable.

Here is a video which reinforces those skills.

I thought you'd like this:


Reading Like a Historian: Repetition
Check out this classroom video on Teaching Channel. Teaching Channel is a video showcase-on the Web and TV-of inspiring teaching practices in America's public schools.

Reading Like a Historian: Primary Source Documents

If you use other primary source documents when responding on one of the threads - make sure you break it down - and cite it properly and use the most important elements for your quote or your reference.

I thought you'd like this:


Reading Like a Historian: Primary Source Documents
Check out this classroom video on Teaching Channel. Teaching Channel is a video showcase-on the Web and TV-of inspiring teaching practices in America's public schools.

Craig wrote: "Yes, that Lincoln HS teacher has a Promethean board which I used in my last district. My current district has a slightly different system called Smart boards. But they are almost becoming outdate..."

Hi Craig,
I have several iPads . . . unfortunately I'm not involved in the academic community . . . so I paid full price . . . Apple does offer special pricing for computers for those enrolled in school . . . I don't know if that applies to iPads . . but you might check that out and save some bucks if you decide to purchase one.

Bentley . . . Thanks for the links . . . my, so many neat things since I was in school . . . :-)

You are welcome.

Interactive Student Notebooks

One of the techniques that I used to help students learn to take and use notes is an Interactive Student Notebook. I got the idea from a history teacher (I taught mathematics at the high school). I still love notebooks, and think I might use this type of an idea to organize my thoughts for this book. I only took two philosophy courses at the university, and that was many years ago.



The purpose of the interactive notebook is to enable students to be creative, independent thinkers and writers. Interactive notebooks are used for class notes as well as for other activities where the student will be asked to express his/her own ideas and process the information presented in class.
(Source: )

Thank you Kathy - any tools will help with critical thinking activities.

Reading Like a Historian: Contextualization

Contextualization asks readers to evaluate a document in time and place and to understand how these factors shape its content.

Contextualizing is very important and here at the History Book Club - we try to do this all of the time. We try to take something that you have read and map it to that time period; but at the same time you should see if you can then map it to something in everyday life.

When reading try to imagine the setting and the time period then and the factors contributing to the feelings and mindset that the author of a primary document had at that time while writing it - then after doing that take that situation that you are reading about and compare and contract this setting or those issues with the environment, setting, circumstances, issues or events today.

Some questions that you should ask yourself when you are reading history are:

*What else was going on at the time this was written?

*What was it like to be alive at this time in history or during this event?

*What things were different back then? What things were the same?

*What would it look like to see this event through the eyes of someone who lived back then?

One thing that readers can do is to also compare and contrast the various nuances of pragmatism as viewed by Oliver Wendell Holmes, William James, Chauncey Wright, Charles Sanders Peirce and other various members of The Metaphysical Club. There were basic core beliefs; but there were differences.

One of the images that they use in presenting this material and asking these questions is this image:


Image: Painting of Yosemite Valley by Albert Bierstadt, 1868. From: the Wikimedia Commons.

I thought you'd like this:


Reading Like a Historian: Contextualization
Check out this classroom video on Teaching Channel. Teaching Channel is a video showcase-on the Web and TV-of inspiring teaching practices in America's public schools.

Folks, make sure to jump into the discussions and post as many times as you like each week - try to answer the questions posed by the moderator or express something that interests you in the reading that you would like to talk about. But at least assist the moderator and take part in the discussions and interact with each other. The more everyone posts - the better the discussion will be.

Moderators love to hear from all of the members - it makes our jobs easier and we know that the work we put into the discussion is appreciated. So post away and take part to satisfy our very basic membership requirements. We are here for all of you.