A Visit From A Librarian
After topics were chosen and thesis statements were written and approved, Mike and Chrissy, FSMN’s humanities teachers, invited a librarian from the U of M’s Wilson Library to come in to teach our students how to find sources on the U’s library catalog and on ELibrary Minnesota.
A Field Trip To The Library
The next day, the students headed to the library itself to find books and start the process of checking them out. When they returned, students wrapped up first drafts of their thesis statements and dove head first into research, where they were required to analyze at least ten sources (4-5 primary sources and 5+ secondary sources), take detailed notes, and compile a bibliography.
Detailed Support Throughout The Project
Chrissy and Mike skillfully led the students through this deep dive in learning and provided students a clear framework and timeline to assure they stayed on track with this intensive project. This included providing a calendar with almost daily check-in’s and a clear picture of where students should be in the process, allowing for students to understand and experience the time management skills needed for a long-term project such as this one.
Progressive Education and History Day
Researching, documenting, and presenting History Day projects aligns with FSMN’s progressive education model. At FSMN we value deep thinking and higher order thinking skills over generating content for the sake of generating content. History Day allows students to explore something they are interested in, while teachers make sure they understand the many ways to find information, verify that information, and present what they learned in a compelling and thoughtful way.
A History Day Presentation – Last Thursday
Last Thursday evening, excitement filled the air as the History Day projects were presented at FSMN. Grandparents, parents, siblings, friends, and alumni visited to support our students and learn more about their work.
Students chose how they wanted to present their information. Projects were presented in the following formats:
- documentaries
- papers
- websites
- presentations
Students stood proudly by their work, presented their documentaries in a formal screening and confidently answered any questions asked by everyone in attendance.
Congratulations to our 7th and 8th grade students for all of your hard work!
History Day Project List – Our Student Work
- Early Road Maps
- Operation Snow White
- The Turing Machine
- The Battle of Midway
- Doom: A Game that Changed the World
- The Big 3M Boom
- The TSA Versus Terrorism
- The Island of Alcatraz and Its Place in our History
- Lewis Hine’s Photography and Activism
- The Dakota Mass Execution
- Dorothea Dix
- The French Revolution
- The Second Red Scare
- The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
- The All American Girls Professional Baseball League
- Ironclads: a Turning Point in Naval Warfare
- Astro Boy: Bringing Anime to the Globe
- Kate Warne: America’s First Woman Detective
- The Char B-1
- Iron Range Miners’ Strikes of 1907 and 1916
- The Trinity Test
- The Scopes Monkey Trial
