Why History?
Game of the Unit: History Hunt
How to play: Find any of the following historical monuments on the map below and provide proof to Mr. Roughton that you found it. The first student to find any of the items and provide proof will earn 10 points toward their class' StudentScore.
-Roman Colosseum
-Great Wall of China
-The Vatican
-Any Mayan or Aztec pyramid
-Mount Fuji
-Mecca
How to provide proof: Once you have found the object push the "Print Screen" button on your keyboard (top-right corner usually). Then, open any picture editor (Paint, Photoshop, Word, etc.) and Paste the picture (go to edit > paste). You can then print the page or save it and email it to Mr. Roughton.
Media Guide
| Link | Type | Description |
The Lion King | DVD | This movie includes arguably the greatest three minute clip you'll ever find. About half way through it Rafiki meets up with grown up Simba. They discuss the importance of the past with Rafiki saying "You can either run from it, or learn from it." Beautiful. |
Simpsons Season 7 | DVD | Apart from being arguably the best Simpsons season ever this season has a number of historical references. I use a short clip from the episode "Two Bad Neighbors" where Grandpa talks about Grover Cleveland using a joke that I didn't get for YEARS (he spanked him on two non-consecutive occasions!) I explain the joke to the kids and argue that knowing history actually makes you appreciate culture more because you get more jokes. |
Ice Age | DVD | To be honest I'm not sure what I use is on this DVD. There is a three minute trailer/cartoon that introduced this movie originally in theaters. It has Skrat (the rat thing) chasing a lone acorn. In doing so he causes massive changes in the landscape. I use this to show how little decisions can change the flow of history. This trailer is probably available free online somewhere and I'll post a link if I find it. |
Anberlin "Change the World" Blueprints for the Blackmarket | CD | The chorus of this song explores the idea of changing history. I close this unit pointing out to my students that history is the one subject they can directly change any given day. This helps drive home how relevant history truly is. |
The Butter Battle Book
| Book | Dr. Suess book that is an alegory on the Cold War. I read this to my kids and have them speculate as to how it applies to history. I then briefly explain the Cold War. This helps drive home the point that history is all around us. |
Unit Guide
I. Why History Matters (Slides 1-12)
a. The first day of notes introduces why history matters using a movie clip from The Lion King where Rafiki explains to Simba the importance of the past. YouTube Link
i. The clip with Jerry Seinfeld is from Saturday Night Live circa 1992. You might have some luck finding it on Youtube. It is well worth hunting down.
b. The Dr. Seuss book The Butter Battle Book fits in nicely at this point. I read it to the class and then they answer some basic worksheet questions.
II. History in Your World (Slides 13-28)
a. This section (which you will likely begin on day 1) aims to show students how a working knowledge of history is important to them in today’s world. Using clips from many popular, modern TV shows I show that by understanding history they can better understand their own culture. If you can’t even get the jokes in The Simpsons there is a problem!
b. Though it has nothing to do with this topic at this point I do the One-day Geography worksheet with the class.
III. The Five Highways of History (Slides 29-50)
a. This is an introduction to the five categories of information which I use to organize my units throughout the year. Each of the five is defined and examples are given. The 5 intro clips are my own and I’m looking for a way to get them online. They will be on Youtube if you check my channel.
b. The final activity for this unit is a scavenger hunt using the world map.
IV. How Do You Know? (Optional)
a. This is a hybrid lecture/activity. It is, more accurately, a series of mini-activities to show students how we know about history. It explores the uses of art, artifacts, written sources, etc. It takes a day and is not necessary but does help take care of some questions that tend to pop up throughout the year if not addressed early.
b. Part 2 includes a short explanation of the eruption of Pompeii which serves as an example of how we learn history.