Keeping students current!

It is important in a social studies classroom to keep students current and aware of how history has influenced their lives. In order for students to make these connections they have to have an understanding of what is going in the world today. To accomplish this teachers, students, and parents should take advantage of the resources that are available to them on the web. When looking at a list of the Webby Nominees (sites that represent the best the Web has to offer) I found two site especially interesting and helpful in keeping students current- NPR and Truthdig.


What do these sites have to offer?
The NPR website seeks to provide in-depth, quality news. The NPR organization presents fact-based, independent journalism that examines and airs diverse perspectives. NPR releases its news on-air and online. NPR's site was named the Webby Award Winner of 2011 in the radio/podcasts category. The site itself has news, music, art, radio access, and podcasts. It is organized in a way that promotes easy navigation and use.

Truthdig is a news website that seeks to provide viewers with insightful and accurate reporting on current subjects and issues that need to be brought to attention. Truthdig wants to challenge conventional wisdom and dig deeper. The website was named the Webby Award Winner of 2011 in the political blog category. The site offers an organized 

overview of current news, political cartoons, various columns, and podcasts as well.

   

How can they be helpful to other social studies teachers?
As social studies teachers it is our job to teach students about the world they live in, whether it be what it was like in the past or what it is like today. Many teachers may say that these site would be good for civics, government, and economics but not as helpful for history. I would have to disagree, these sites offer endless ways for relating information to students' lives. For example, say the your lesson topic is the Boston Tea Party perhaps you could go in to talking about the "Tea Party" political party that has been so frequently talked about in the news lately and why they might call themselves the "Tea Party". It is important that teachers help their students to make these connections between the past and the present as well as across content areas. Teachers can use these sites to find political cartoons, news articles, and podcasts that will help students to relate things in history to today. These sources can be used as hooks and introductions to material to get the students' attention and get them thinking more deeply about the lesson's topic. These sites are just great ways for teachers to stay on top of current information. Many times students will come to class and say that they heard "such and such" on the news last night and it would be helpful to be aware of these current events to answer students' questions. 


How can students and parents use these sites?
Both of the sites are easy to navigate which make them easy for students to use. Students can use these sites to find current event articles, resources for assignments, and to keep them up to date on what is going on in the world around them. These sites also give students and parents the opportunity to talk about various topics together, while also giving parents an opportunity to see what it is that teachers are having their students look at.


Are there any recommendations for use?

I would not recommend these sites being used in the middle schools because there are frequently very controversial articles and topics that are presented on the site. But I would strongly encourage their use at the 11th and 12th grade levels. Another recommendation I have for using these sites is to make sure they are properly introduced. These sites can be an information overload so it is important that students are aware of the best techniques for searching and finding materials on news websites.

Again the sites are www.npr.org and www.truthdig.com.

Using Digital Cameras in the Classroom

Do you remember Polaroids and the suspense of having to wait for photos to develop? Fortunately today we no longer have to "shake it like a Polaroid picture" because of the development of the digital camera. The digital camera is much quicker and more efficient, not to mention less taxing on the wrist. Until recently cameras were considered an unlikely tool for classroom use, but digital cameras are easy, fun to use, and offer teachers nearly unlimited opportunities to engage students and to incorporate technology into the curriculum.

Although cameras have the highest students engagement at the elementary school level, they can still be included at the middle and high school levels. Teachers can use cameras to document projects and different class events, whether it be field trips or parties. Students can use cameras to take pictures to add to reports and document projects among many other things. By having students include their own pictures in their reports they can better understand what primary sources are and why they are important.


Here are some of the ideas for how cameras could be used in a social studies classroom:
- History Scrapbooks: Students would use digital cameras to document experiences that they go on whether it be a field trip, family vacation, or even around their own town. Students take pictures of items, places, or even people that are of some type of historical significance. The students would have to include the location that they saw the thing and give a brief description of why it is or why they think it is significant and include it in their scrapbook.
- Historical Experience Board: Have students bring in pictures that they have taken and add them to the  Historical Experience Board in the classroom. On this board will also be a map of the country and of Virginia so students can put a pin on the map where they took the picture.

Although using digital cameras in the classroom is an exciting activity, it is important that teachers should keep in mind the potential difficulties. Some things to remember are that when letting students use digital cameras are that they need to be monitored to ensure that the photos are appropriate for school, privacy needs to be stressed, and the risk of damage to the equipment is high.

Ultimately, cameras offer endless possibilities for classroom use because photos can almost instantaneously be added to the computer, printed off, and shared. Students love taking photos as well as being in them, so why not take advantage of an interest that our students already have!

Learn more about how you can use digital cameras in your classroom HERE.


Say cheese!