Teaching about the Civil War

Civil War Sesquicentennial

April 12, 2011 will mark the 150th anniversary of the firing on Fort Sumter, SC, launching the beginning of the long and bloody American Civil War. The war that pitted family members against each other ended in the loss of over 600,000 lives, making it the deadliest war in US history. For the next four years, reenactments of battles, commemorations at battlefields and new exhibitions will take place across the country. These events will create excellent teachable moments to provide lessons about the war, as well as the economic and social impact it placed on the country. There will be numerous opportunities for students of all grade levels to explore this significant part of our history. There will be opportunities to focus not just on maps and dates, but music and literature as well.

There is also an abundance of information available through the Internet. A good place to start is the site

www.teachinghistory.org

One of the most outstanding web sites that I have reviewed has been created by The National Archives. The site www.Docsteach.org  has a wealth of primary sources that can be used with the readily available tools to create specific lessons that address such learning skills as sequencing of events, data interpretation, as well as map reading and interpretation skills. You should spend a great deal of time with this site (5 stars).

Another site worth viewing is www.civilwar.com.

Planning a field trip? The web site www.civilwartravelers.com is an excellent source of information about battlefield, historical monuments and markers as well as forts. The information is organized by state. A great resource if you and your students are up for a planning an excursion.

Books to Read

If you are to read only one book about the Civil War, I would strongly recommend James McPherson’s Pulitzer Prize winner, Battle Cry of Freedom. Originally published in 1988, this volume is the definitive work on the topic, by one of America’s most notable historians.

( Photo credit- Library of Congress  LC B811-465A)

Testing Time in America

It’s all about the test.

 Call it whatever you want- Iowa test of Basic Skills, California Achievement Test, FCAT, HSPT, etc. If it’s spring it must be testing season. Many of you have been prepping your students since the first day of school. Other may have been” pushing “your students as the testing dates draw near.  The high stakes tests have wide reaching implications. For a school district, test scores are used as litmus test to determine whether a school has met its AYP (yearly progress) according to the guidelines of the No Child Left Behind Act. For some teachers, their salary increments or even their jobs may hinge on the outcomes of their students performance on statewide assessment tests.

( As of this date, the state of Florida is trying to implement such a program)

For the students, testing is a time of fear and anxiety, for in some instances it may determine promotion to the next grade or inclusion in such programs as gifted and talented. Some students get physically sick as a result of the stress placed on them by testing.

What can teachers do to aid their students in becoming successful test takers? And more philosophically what can teachers do to demonstrate that learning is more than just preparing for the test? In some schools many programs have been cut (art, music, any subject not on test) to make time for test preparation.

An excellent article that evaluates both sides of the high stakes testing argument was written by Alina Saminsky. The article entitled “High Stakes Standardized Testing: a Panacea or a Pest?” The article can be retrieved from www.studentpulsed.com

http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3192 (Scholastic on line- Prepare students for standardized tests)

Probably one the most dynamic and vocal opponents to standardized testing is Alfie Kohn. I strongly recommend that you read his article “Standardized Testing and its Victims” that appeared in the September 27^th, 2000 issue of Education Week http://www.alfiekohn.org/teaching/edweek/staiv.htm

As always your comments and input are welcome.

Summer Institutes for Teachers

What are you doing this summer? 

Well, it’s finally March.  Spring break and the end of the school year are not far behind.  It is time to think about summer. While we can all agree that teachers deserve some vacation time and need to reconnect with family or head to the beach, you need to think about your future as a professional educator. Your formal education does not stop on the day you are handed your degree and teaching certification. Teachers must always continue the process of becoming a better and more effective teacher. To that end it is time to take a look at the wide variety of summer programs available for teachers. The choices are limitless. There are programs both here in the US as well as overseas. Some will grant you graduate credit, possibly necessary for a pay raise.  Others will be required for ongoing professional development hours mandated by your state.

A number of the programs provide stipends and reimbursement for travel. For others, you will have to foot the bill. Check with your tax preparer to see if any of these expenses are deductible.  Many programs are sponsored by colleges and universities. So check with those in your area to see if summer programs are available and in what academic areas.

There are several caveats for you to consider as you start your search.

1)      Many of the programs have a competitive application process. You may need to demonstrate your need/ desire to participate in a specific program. (e.g., write an essay, obtain letters of recommendation from administrators, etc.)

2)       Many of the programs have deadlines that are coming up soon. Some had a March 1^st deadline.

3)      Check with your school district and see if you qualify for any professional development funds. A number of these programs require travel and lodging that you must pay for. Programs that offer graduate credit may charge an additional amount per credit for tuition.

4)      How will your students benefit? How will you benefit?

A number of years ago I attended an excellent summer program for school counselors at Lyndon State College in Vermont. I took a morning and afternoon class lamenting that I could not take advantage of the weather and beautiful sights in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. I returned the following summer and only took a morning class, giving me ample leisure time in the afternoons. Keep these things in mind while planning.

Here are just a few programs. There are hundreds more.

http://www.neh.gov/projects/si-school.html- National Endowment for the Humanities

http://www.streetlaw.org/en/Program.10.aspx US Supreme Court Summer Institute for Teachers

http://www.exploratorium.edu/teacher_institute/summer/  Summer Institutes for Science Teachers

http://www.gilderlehrman.org/education/seminar_overview.php (summer programs for history teachers in NYC)

http://tc.readingandwritingproject.com/institutes/tc-summer-institutes.html (Reading and Writing- Teachers College)

Please feel free to share any experiences with summer programs that you have had and any recommendations for outstanding summer workshops, courses, or travel/learning programs.

NATIONAL SPORTSMANSHIP DAY

“Dare to Play Fair”

March 1^st, 2011 has been designated as National Sportsmanship Day. The Institute for International Sport at the University of Rhode Island established the program twenty years ago. The Institute selects a professional athlete as its annual honorary chairperson (Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Pierre Garcon have been recent spokesperson). The Institute sponsors a number of activities, like essay and poster contest as part of the event.

Sportsmanship Day provides teachers with a great opportunity to teach about fair play and good sportsmanship on both the playing field and in life. The Institute’s web site (http://internationalsport.com/nsd/) has a number of activities. In the middle school where I worked, in addition to a poster and essay contest (we were able to get local pro teams to donate prizes) we had a film festival. One year’s students viewed the film “Rudy”. This great movie came with lesson plans as well as pre and post viewing discussion questions. On another occasion students viewed the film “Remember the Titans.” On one occasion we also a sponsored a faculty- student basketball game, much to the delight of the students.

There are lots of opportunities to be creative here and to get the non athletes in your classroom involved in the festivities. Invite guest speakers, review great films or have your students search for books that demonstrate good sportsmanship and fair play.

At the risk of being accused of shameless self promotion, I would like to suggest one of my own publications. Violence in Sports- Victory at What Price (Enslow Publishers) is written specifically for school students. It takes a look at the history of sports and why fans are so passionate.  It also sends the message as to the importance of fair play on the ball field or court.

National Sportsmanship Day is a great opportunity to get students involved and have them examine why good sportsmanship and fair play are integral part of their education.

In the end, it’s extra effort that separates a winner from second place. But winning takes a lot more than that, too. It starts with complete command of the fundamentals. Then it takes desire, determination, discipline, and self-sacrifice. And finally, it takes a great deal of love, fairness and respect for your fellow man. Put all these together, and even if you don’t win, how can you lose?"
       -Jesse Owens

Teacher Tenure Under Attack !

Newly elected Republican Governors Rick Scott of Florida and Chris Christie of New Jersey have targeted teacher tenure in their respective states.  Both of the governors have seemingly embraced the philosophies of former Washington DC education chancellor Michelle Rhee.  When digging deeper into their agendas we need to take an introspective look into why men and women choose teaching as a career.  I have observed on many occasions that you never hear the words “teacher” and “millionaire” in the same sentence.  People choose teaching as a career because they have a passion for knowledge and learning and want to make a difference in the lives of young people in this country.  They know the salary limitations of the profession and are willing to accept them in exchange for a job security that is not often available in the private sector where there is opportunity for much higher pay.  That being said, there is another side to the issue. There are poorly performing teachers who are hanging on to their jobs by hiding behind the protections of tenure.  There are “toxic teachers” who do not belong in the classroom.  There are those who have retired “at their desks” and are hanging on to their jobs in an effort to beef up their pensions.  Where then is the ground for compromise?  The danger is that without tenure protection, teacher removals can become politicized.  Could parents demand that a teacher‘s contract not be renewed because their children obtained grades lower than what the parents expected? Could a teacher lose his or her job because their teaching philosophy or methodology is at odds with that of the principal? Could someone be denied a contract renewal because of their political or religious beliefs?

There needs to be some middle ground whereby competent teachers can be protected from the politicization of education and at the same time administrators would be able to remove incompetent and ineffective classroom teachers. It would seem ludicrous to determine teacher effectiveness based on student performance on one standardized test. There are way too many variables.  Nor should performance be based solely on a peer review committee. There needs to be a multi-faceted mechanism in place to effectively evaluate performance. This might include a written assessment, videos of teaching lessons, and a portfolio review of both student accomplishments as well as the teacher’s professional development efforts.  Perhaps a look as some of the policies employed by college and universities might be beneficial.

As always, comments and suggestions are welcome.

Observing Presidents Day

Teaching About Presidents Day

 What message are we sending to our students? To celebrate Presidents Day we are giving student two days off from school and holding giant sales at the local mall. I don think that President’s Washington or Lincoln would want be remembered in that way. How are teachers addressing this holiday in class and how should they?  Instead of honoring just two presidents and their birthdays, we now honor all of them.  What activities can we use to demonstrate the power and responsibilities of the office of the President of the United States?  The job of President of the United States is a daunting task and the American people have taken great pains to elect the right man for the job (Someday soon we may have a woman president). How can teachers transmit the importance of the Presidency and introduce students to the men who have shaped American history and policy?

A Look at Presidential Libraries

Classrooms of Democracy.

The archives of 13 American Presidents are housed in their Presidential Libraries. Spread out across the United  States, each library tells the story of  a president in a truly special way. The Dwight Eisenhower Library in Abilene, Kansas, pays tribute to Ike as a great general. The FDR Library in Hyde Park, New York, tells the story of our longest serving president and the first president with a physical handicap. The Jimmy Carter Library in Atlanta, Georgia proudly displays his Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to broker peace in the Middle East. My personal favorite is the Harry Truman Library in Independence, Missouri. Truman ascended the presidency during World War II upon FDRs death.  It was ultimately his responsibly to authorize the use of the first atomic bomb against Japan.

Teachers can direct students to the sites of each library and take a virtual tour. Finding all of the libraries on a map of the US is great geography lesson. Of course, if you happen to live near enough to one for an in person field trip, so much the better.

Here are web links to several of the President Libraries and museums.

http://www.archives.gov/presidential-libraries/ 

http://www.jimmycarterlibrary.gov/

http://www.nixonlibrary.gov/

http://www.lbjlibrary.org/

http://www.jfklibrary.org/

http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/

http://www.reaganlibrary.com/

http://www.trumanlibrary.org/

http://www.eisenhower.archives.gov/

Take a look at the Democracy Project web site They excellent lesson plans for an assignment entitled “ The Perfect President. This site contains objectives, materials list, as well as assessments.

( http//www.pbskids.org/democracy/parentseducactors/perfectpresident.html

Suggested Readings (there is no shortage of books about the Presidents and the Presidency)

Presidents- Every Question Answered by Carter Smith (C.2004  Hylas Publishing)

Woodrow Wilson – Princeton to the Presidency by W.Barksdale Maynard (c.2008 Yale University Press)

Dutch- A Memoir of Ronald Reagan by Edmund Morris ( c.1999 Random House)

Presidential Courage by Michael Beschloss (c.2007 Simon and Schuster )

Richard Milhous Nixon- The Rise of an American Politician  By Roger Morris ( c.1990 Henry Holt and Co.)

America’s Presidents – A Museum in a book  by Chuck Wills ( c.2007 Rutledge Hill Press)

note. This book has reproductions of presidential artifacts suitable for classroom use.

Black History Month Teaching Ideas

Celebrating Black History Month

February is Black History Month.  The origins of this celebration of African American history and culture date back to 1915 when Dr. Carter Woodson and Reverend J. Moorlock established the Association for the Study of Negro History. The goal of this organization was to develop an awareness of the role that Blacks played in American history.  In 1926 the first Negro History Week was celebrated. In 1976 Black History Month was created. There are many web sites you can go to for creative ideas. Visit some of these listed below. Your  suggestions, as always , are welcome.

http://www.tuskegeeairmen.org/

http://www.biography.com/blackhistory/ (Excellent teacher information and resources

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm (audio and video of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “ I have a Dream” speech)

http://www.civilrightsmuseum.org/home.htm (National Civil Rights Museum)

There are museums of African American History in many US cities (New York, Philadelphia, Detroit and Boston). You can check their web site and find a treasure chest of great information, virtual field trips, and other resources for classroom teachers

http://www.afroammuseum.org/ (Boston)

http://www.freedomcenter.org/ (National Underground Railroad Freedom Center- Cincinnati, Ohio)

Books.

There are hundreds of books available that would be appropriate reading for all grade levels to celebrate Black History Month.

An outstanding book for very young children is Spotty. This book was originally created by Margaret and H.A. Rey (of Curious George fame) in 1945.  It tells the story of “Spotty” a bunny who is different from his peers and how he deals with the difference.  Great Illustrations.

One of my personal favorites and a good read for students interested in sports is Black Diamond- The Story of the Negro Baseball League by Patricia McKissack and Frederick McKissack( c.1994  Scholastic Press)

 Also for upper grade level students-

Slavery and the Making of America By James Oliver Horton and Lois E. Horton .c.2005 Oxford University Press.

Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama C.1995 Three Rivers Press

Walking with the Wind by John Lewis  c.1998. Harcourt Brace and Co

Ida Margolis is the 2004 recipient of the Mildred Barry Garvin Prize given by the New Jersey Historical Commission to that educator who has made a significant contribution to promote multicultural education in the classroom. In her acceptance speech Mrs. Margolis, a child of Holocaust survivors, said that Holocaust survivor and renowned author Elie Wiesel, wrote that he swore never “to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation,” and never again should anyone remain silent where there is injustice. Margolis said that “Never again is a phrase that bears repeating when we look back at the history of the Civil Right Movement in America.  Never again should a  15 year old like Melba Patillo and her eight classmates have to endure physical and verbal abuse as they valiantly tried to attend Little Rock Central High School in 1957. Never again should anyone be refused service at a lunch counter because of the color of their skin.  Never again should young men and women like the heroic John Lewis, now  a US Congressman have to be subjected to tear gas, attack dogs and night stick as they peacefully marched searching for the equality they should have had since 1776.”

Photo of Frederick Douglas ( Library of Congress)