| In regards to Cold War lesson plans, what has worked | | | | loved me as a teacher, they just wanted me to |
| for students in previous decades does not necessarily | | | | present information in different ways. |
| work for the students of today. These days, the youth | | | | From that point on, my classes have been totally |
| have so much stimulation, which is mostly comprised | | | | different, along with the way I structure my U.S. history |
| of distractions that stem from captivating | | | | lesson plans. Now I do three, four, sometimes five |
| technology--video games, cell phones, TVs, computers, | | | | different activities in each class, using different |
| etc.--that saturate the mind, rendering it numb to the | | | | approaches. Don't get me wrong, there is still textbook |
| low tech media (ie., textbooks and lectures.) Teachers, | | | | time, but I find if we use it in short bursts, it can actually |
| I hate to break it to you, but you may have to step up | | | | be a welcome change from all the interactive activities. |
| your game if you haven't already. There is really no | | | | The kids also enjoy PowerPoint slides, especially when |
| room for "boring" in your U.S. history lesson plans. If | | | | it comes to presenting the notes from my Cold War |
| you're relying on the textbook-guided lecture to impart | | | | lesson plans, because it gives them a visual aid to |
| the information your students need, it's no wonder | | | | accompany the notes they're taking. When they're not |
| they're not showing the excitement or the grades that | | | | divided into groups, or interacting as one big group, I like |
| you had hoped for. The best move you can make is | | | | to use PowerPoint presentations to get across |
| incorporating the technology that they love so much | | | | important points the students will have to know for |
| into your classroom and use multimedia to present the | | | | tests. |
| material outlined in your World War II lesson plans. | | | | When other teachers ask me where I get, say for |
| Until a few years ago, I was still depending heavily on | | | | example, my World War II lesson plans that come in |
| textbooks as the main teaching instrument for my U.S. | | | | multimedia packages, I let them in on a little secret--I |
| history lesson plans. I knew that I was a good teacher, | | | | purchase them online, ready to present! You can |
| my students seem to like me well enough...but | | | | actually get just about all the U.S. history lesson plans |
| something was missing. Their grades weren't as good | | | | you could ever need in PowerPoint form online, |
| as they could be, and I felt like they were bored most | | | | although you wouldn't want to use them all the time. |
| of the time. In response to this horrible realization, I | | | | These packets are shipped right to your door, with not |
| decided to talk to my students about what they liked | | | | only PowerPoint slides, but also worksheets, games, |
| and didn't like about the teaching methods I was using. I | | | | quizzes, charts, artwork, maps, videos, photos and lots |
| then surveyed them about their personal learning | | | | of other stuff. These are great to have in your |
| styles. I was amazed at everything I learned just from | | | | classroom, especially when you need to put the |
| asking for feedback. After that, I knew what changes | | | | teaching on auto-pilot for a little while. |
| had to be made. Ultimately, I found out that they all | | | | |