Exploring the Lessons of History: MS Classroom Highlights

In my recent classroom visits, I focused on our Middle School history classes. Studying history is particularly crucial at this moment in time because it offers valuable insights into the patterns and consequences of human behavior. By examining past events, we can better understand the root causes of contemporary issues, such as political conflicts and social inequalities. History also serves as a warning, helping us avoid repeating the mistakes of the past and making informed decisions for a more equitable and peaceful future. 

 

Students in History 6 classes completed their Letter to the Editor of the Babylonian Times writing assignment. This assignment is a blend of ancient history with creative writing that asks students to examine the famous Code of Hammurabi and to take a stance in favor or opposition to one of the laws. Next, they created a fictitious letter to the editor that concludes with an appeal to their community in the form of a call-to-action. The assignment was a great way for students to explore a primary source of information while also learning a new style of writing. 

 

In History 7, students just finished the Native American Cultures Research Project. For this project, students were asked to research indigenous cultures from all over the Americas and then, in small groups, created murals to visually highlight aspects of that culture including gender roles, social behaviors, philosophy, food, and clothing. These murals were inspired by real-life Indigenous street art that can be found all over the country. They researched using a variety of sources and used Noodle Tools to organize their sources, notecards, and citations. The purpose of this unit to understand life in the Americas before European colonization and to see the variety and complexities of Indigenous cultures. 

 

8th graders continue their study of the fall of the Weimar Republic and are examining how the Nazi Party rose to power in Germany in the 1930s. Through the Facing History and Ourselves curriculum, they are currently examining the ways in which the Nazis began a campaign against Jews, which included the use of propaganda and the issuing of laws that lead to The Night of Broken Glass, also known as Kristallnacht, when Nazi authorities and civilians unleashed a violent attack against Jewish businesses, synagogues, and individuals throughout Germany and Austria. This widespread destruction marked a turning point, as it signaled the intensification of anti-Semitic policies and persecution, ultimately leading to the genocide of millions of Jews in the Holocaust.