Tuesday, September 6, 2011
AHF Summer Institute 2011
I was incredibly inspired by the summer seminar presenters of both practices and content. I think that the highlight for me was the ways in which history can be brought to life by putting the STORY back into it. Using picture books, puppets, songs, and famous quotes are all vehicles for the narrative. Our school has begun to implement The Seven Habits of Happy Kids, by Sean Covey. I am now searching for stories and individuals that exemplify and foster these character traits and tie them into the history that I am already teaching. Yes, my credit card is suffering from my recent Barnes and Noble spree, but I know that the students will reap the benefits of a piece of visual history.
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Jen,
ReplyDeleteI am quite interested in hearing what you learn through reading Seven Habits of Happy Kids! I'm sure you are going to be learning a lot, and your students will be very happy - which is so incredibly important.
I agree with you, it is so important to bring history alive through books. My grade level had a generous donation through Lake San Marcos Republican Women and we decided that it would be beneficial to incorporate historical fiction into our reading time. We are currently reading Sing Down the Moon. It is really good and the students are really able to connect the "Desert Southwest" region things they speak about in the book.
I know what you mean about the expense that comes with buying all these great books! Thank goodness that once these books are purchased, they are OURS and we don't have to keep buying them...well, until the next time a great book comes to our attention!!
Great blog post! I hope your school year is off to a great start.