In this activity, students are introduced to the creation of the modern teenager after World War Two, and listen to a wide variety of songs in different styles (blues, gospel, country, crooners) to compare and contrast them in terms of style and lyrical content. Part of the new unit on Teen Culture since WW2.
Month: June 2020
History Podcast App from ActiveHistory
History Podcast App from ActiveHistory I’m developing a new app for students and teachers of IB History. It’s a directory of 700+ podcasts (so far) organised by topic, which will be updated at least once per week. You can ‘favourite’ your best podcasts, and even add comments within the app. I’ll be doing some fine-tuning…
“Statues and History” – Standalone lesson materials
Standalone lesson materials – “Statues and History” I finished putting together a self-contained study for my Year 9 students based on the recent debates about the future of historical statues – you can download the materials (and find links to additional videos/podcasts) here. Happy to hear any suggestions for further improvements.
Multimedia Presentation: Gorbachev’s Rule
A presentation to provide feedback on the main activity on this page. Each slide outlines what Gorbachev actually did, and is followed by a video clip from which students can take additional notes.
50+ ActiveHistory Lectures – all on one page
I’ve finally got round to putting all of the online multimedia presentations I’ve produced (and which are particularly popular) on this dedicated page for ease of reference. They cover topics in the entire 11-18 age range, although most are designed for IB History.
New Poster: “The historian without his facts is rootless and futile; the facts without their historian are dead and meaningless” – EH Carr
A new poster for classroom display. View the full set here.
Using student questionnaires to improve your teaching / planning
Each year I set up a Google Form and set a homework task for all my students to answer variations on the following questions. I find it a really invaluable way of developing my teaching and my schemes of work. Here are the questions I use in case you’re interested in trying something similar (or…
Video Documentary Project – The American Civil War
A new worksheet and activity – students watch some clips from professional historians, and the work of previous years’ students, to reflect on what makes a great documentary. They are then guided through the process of writing a narrative, choosing appropriate images and a soundtrack, prior to producing a short video documentary of their own….
