Suitable for All Grade Levels

When I taught 7th Grade Medieval world history, I taught feudalism using gummy bears. Feudalism is just one economic system in history so I wanted to compare and contrast it to other economic systems, so students could fully grasp the complexity and nuance of feudalism (and how restrictive it was and how it impacted societal structures).

I had students read a few chapters from Dr. Eric Nilsson;s book on economic systems. I found this free reading by googling: Nilsson, Eric “ Different Economic Systems” (it will pop up as a pdf from CSULB's economic dept). Its a challenging reading, but completely manageable if read together in class or broken apart. Or you can have students research different economic systems andtake notes. 

Use the presentation to introduce and explain gummy bear project (Note: I also did this for political systems). 

 *If your school has access to technology, be it ipads or Chromebooks, I recommend making a digital notebook for your students. You can do it two ways: 

1) Make assignments and tasks BEFORE you share out the questions and activities (this takes a lot of planning ahead, but once its done its awesome! (Then you will have it every year and you can just modify).
2) Make assignments one at a time, but students copy and paste in task (on a running google document). Therefore, with this option it gives you a lot of flexibility and can make more of a dynamic living document (It does take a couple minutes to copy and paste activities from a MASTER copy, that you have posted on google classroom or CANVAS). 

Take a look at what can be included in a Digital Notebook...I will post more ideas and sample notebooks in the upcoming weeks, so stay tuned! (Click the image to make a copy of the document) All resources are FREE! 

After my students investigate a Historical Question and annotate and analyze primary and secondary sources, I love to hold a Socratic Seminar (before they write an expository paragraph or essay). After we analyzed SHEG's Pocahontas Lesson Primary and Secondary Sources, I had students pick which role they wanted to be, gave them some time to examine the questions and take notes and then put them in a "fish bowl arena" (see images below) and let them start talking/ listening. Use the Presentation below (Click image for a copy of the presentation: The questions are specifically for the Pocahontas SHEG, but you can modify it to suit your class needs). 

How I organized the desks...you can just do a circle of chairs. Just make sure there is an inner circle and outer circle. This was done with 40 students in a tiny classroom...so anything is possible!

Students need to practice investigating historical questions and learn about the strengths and weaknesses of online sources. This quick lesson with help them do both! This would be great for 8th grade history when you examine the early Colonies, but it can be used in ELA class as well. 

The Lesson:
Pose the question: what happens at Thanksgiving? Discuss. Pose the question: "Did the 'real' thanksgiving actually happen?"

Assign the document (via google classroom or Canvas or share out on google documents. Have students make a copy of assignment). Students click the links to various articles online and investigate the strengths and weaknesses of each source as well as evidence if it actually took place or not.

Extension: Assign the SHEG assessment on the first thanksgiving for an additional sourcing assessment. Play the video before to scaffold the assignment or after for your advanced classes (3 minutes long).

​Click the image below to get a free copy of the assignment. 

Everyone loves infographs. Instead of a detailed syllabus, opt for a infographic for your class. I created a simple syllabus for my students and posted it on my CANVAS course, so students can see it everyday. I used Piktochart and use the same graphic every year. Click the image below to see the full syllabus. 

Piktochart is great to use for student activities too! Have students create a piktochart for any project, resume, presentation or posters! Easy to sign up and completely free. (Free Resource!) See the lesson below for Chinese Philosophies (Grade 6 or 7) example Piktochart!

I just received my batch of 300 custom buttons from Cheapestbuttonsnet. I give these students as rewards, or when we play history quiz games or when I see a student do something nice. My students are obsessed and they try to earn all 12! They are very affordable, and while its hard to spend extra money so often on school supplies, I believe they are worth it. You can upload any image you want and the company fits them to size. Easy! 

Note: This is NOT a sponsored post. I just love them!

We have begun the year and before we examine the 13 colonies, I always review European Colonization of the Americas (to remind them there were millions of people already in the Americas...before Columbus!). Colonization is a deeply controversial subject with many different viewpoints, and that is why it is so important to teach. Here is what I do with my GATE identified students to encourage deep understanding. 

The Lesson:
After reviewing English, French and Spanish Colonization I pass out one of the slips below to each student (there are 6 different cards). Students write what they know, what they have read and what they have researched on the cards using the guided questions (I usually assign as HW). When they arrive to the class with research completed, they get into groups (All "ethics" in one group, all "Impact" in one group). They discuss their findings and create a giant poster, adding the most enlightened information they found (Drawings and diagrams are encouraged). After creating their poster, they can present to the class or allow for a "silent gallery walk." 

Click the image below for the free worksheets. 

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Teaching about Ancient Rome? Check out some free resources I created for my Students. Click the images below and they will take you to an interactive website for students to read primary sources, look at images and watch interesting videos (tell them to wear earphones or watch as a class) and accompanying worksheet in which students complete in tandem with the website.

Student Objective: Students will analyze multiple secondary sources to determine how Rome was a site of Encounter and examine how all Romans lived.

Historical Thinking Skills: (1)Describe the importance of contributions from past civilizations and cultures
(2) Relate and connect the values, social customs and traditions of the past to the student’s personal experiences

Interactive Student Website

Student Worksheet (Click below for the PDF)