A Whole New Kind of Teacher

In the craziness of COVID, I stopped blogging. But now I am back, inspired by colleagues sharing their teaching experiences. So let's recap the last few years of my journey to becoming a whole new kind of teacher.

Once we returned to in person learning, I was so disillusioned with the way students were responding, both academically and behaviorally, that I knew I needed to big change. That school year of 21-22 was definitely one of my worst in 22 years of teaching! I had students who refused to collaborate, or even talk to others at their table, students who threw food in class (11th grade boys), and just too many not caring about their grades. By the end of the year, even colleagues were snapping at each other. Many teachers I knew were not in a good place.

That August, I returned with a renewed sense of purpose and a new focus for how I would teach. I decided to stop teaching my 11th grade US History class chronologically, and instead focus on themes. It was the best decision I could have made! Not only was I re-energized, but my students overwhelming responded that they preferred the new method. In fact, the 22-23 school year was definitely one of my BEST ever!  I will address the themes in another post. 

It was not jus the change to thematic teaching that made it so amazing, but the introduction of Edu Protocols. It started with a conversation with a former principal, who now works at the district office as an Assistant Superintendent. I was telling her about my struggles with student apathy and behavior. She gave me the first of the Edu Protocols books to read, The Edu Protocol Field Guide. I took it home and was in her office a week later begging for more. By the time I had gone back to school, I head read the Edu Protocol Field Guide Book 2, Deploying Edu Protocols: A Guide to Educational Change Leaders, and the Edu Protocol Field Guide Social Studies Edition. I was obsessed and ready to transform my classroom!

For those not familiar with Edu Protocols, they are lesson frames that can be used with any content and any grade level K-college. The premise is that once students learn the structure of a lesson or activity, that they can then get into more complex content and with deeper thinking than before. I use many of them in my classroom now and will continue to share lessons that I do to show how to implement them. My school has also taken on the task of rolling out Edu Protocols schoolwide over the course of multiple years. 

The 23-24 school year was another one of my favorites. I continued to improve thematic teaching and rolling out Edu Protocols. Now in 25-26, I decided to make a switch to teach Government. My degree is in political science and I wanted a new challenge. I had taught US History for most of my 25 year career. I will still continue to teach US History through my AP class, but am very excited to get to apply Edu Protocols to the study of American Government. 

I am excited to be back writing again and hope that the strategies and struggles I share will help inspire and improve other teacher's classrooms as well.

A Letter to Parents About the 2020-2021 School Year

Dear Parents,

There is a lot I wish you knew. In March, you saw me and my fellow educators as heroes for quickly converting our face to face lessons into distance learning. We rose to the challenge and did the best we could in a crisis with no skin in the game for students who were already passing. Now many of you seek to demonize us, call us lazy, say we need to get back to the physical classroom so your kids can get back to normal and so much more. What happened? Why are we villains instead of heroes?

As we approach the start of another school year, most of us are filled with anxiety, losing sleep and worrying about whether or not we will get sick. I have read some comments that make me sick to my stomach, by politicians, parents, and even fellow educators. Some of you want us back in the classroom with full class sizes of 36, no social distancing, regular sports and activities and no masks. But how is that safe? Last year I had five classes with an average of 34 students per class. I saw 170+ students per day. My campus has 3,000 students plus 150 staff. It is not safe to have indoor dining or gatherings of more than 10 inside. How is a school safe but a restaurant not?

Some things to think about with a traditional or even hybrid in person schedule. What if a teacher tests positive? What is going to happen if there are not enough substitute teachers? What if the teacher is out for 4-6 weeks, or longer? Is every student with whom that teacher had contact expected to quarantine? What if it is a student? Think about the fact that at high school the 36 students in my 1st period class go on to five more classes during the day and are exposed to hundreds of other students. How can we contact trace all the people who might have been exposed? If a school shuts down due to positive students or teachers, how long will it be closed for? What if it reopens and is promptly shut down again? Where is the stability in the constant unknown of when students will be at home versus on campus?

I have heard about wanting normal for kids. But do you realize that normal is not possible? There will be no working in collaborative groups, no small group discussions, no hanging out with friends during passing period, no hugs from teachers for the little kids and a lot of other things missing from a normal year. As a teacher, I will have to lecture instead of ask students to work together to analyze sources. Instead of being able to have paper copies, everything will be on the computer that they will be assigned. Teachers will stand at the front of the room in their own little space instead of circulating around the room trying to help individual students.

Now do you understand why so many teachers are pushing for online learning to start the school year, and insisting that schools not reopen until things are under control and we see a sharp decline in cases? We want to teach. But we want to be safe. Teachers are making out or updating wills in preparation for the school year. Teaching does not need to stop because we move online. My district has spent a lot of effort to create a robust online learning experience. Do not worry about your child falling behind because every other kid in America is in the same situation. Please stand with us in demanding that physical schools only reopen when it is completely safe to do so. That might be in October, but it might also be in January. Until then, we will show up and create lessons. We will find creative ways to develop a classroom atmosphere online. 

We have an opportunity to rethink education for the better, where it can go beyond just the four walls of our classroom. Imagine how powerful it would be for my US History students to collaborate with other students from multiple different states. Maybe a history teacher and English teacher can partner up and design a lesson together. Instead of attacks and anger at teachers, lets work together as partners to help our students continue to learn.

Teaching in the Time of COVID19

Imagine holding class as normal throughout the day, hearing of other districts closing down but not knowing what your is doing? This was the reality on March 13, 2020. It was a minimum day. I think LA Unified has already decided to close and maybe San Diego so we wondered our own fate? We had already been instructed to get students set up on Google Classroom so we had discussed the idea of seeing students online the next week. I remember thinking that maybe I should send students home with the workbooks that go with our text. I did not unfortunately. About 10 minutes before the end of school we got the official word that we would close for three weeks. At the time we did not know if it would be a regular class the following week. So I said goodbye to my 6th period class of seniors, but not in a final goodbye manner.

That afternoon I volunteered in my daughter's 1st grade class and am so thankful I had that opportunity. Part of the time was spent making sure students had logins for Google Classroom and other programs. I wish I had known that it was the end. I would have had my daughter hug her teacher a little harder. I would have taken a few photos of them together.

We were told to be available the following week and after a brief staff meeting were told that it would be an extra week of Spring Break. We already had 2 so April 6th would be the first day back. I remember the day that it was extended to April 30th and the frustrations over losing the opportunity to have staff from the Reagan Library pilot a simulation with my students, the sadness over my daughter losing her field trip and Back to School Night that had been scheduled for March 19th and concerns about preparing my students for the AP US History exam. And then the day came when it was announced we would not return to school for the rest of the year. It was a heartbreaking day, knowing I would never again see my students all together, knowing there was no goodbye to seniors I had taught for both US History and Government. I mourned for the loss of my daughter's experience with a fantastic teacher who she adored.

Online learning started April 6th, but there was a major curve ball thrown at teachers - we had to hold students harmless in their grades. This meant that whatever grade a student had earned based on work before March 13th, they could not go lower even if they never showed up for class again. And there were students, even in my Advanced Placement class, that I never heard from again. There were still 10 weeks left of the semester, an entire 1/4 of the year practically. When people slam educators for the disaster (their words) of distance learning, I wish they knew that what we did was crisis learning. We were thrown into an online environment where students did not have to attend. We went from 5 hours a week in class where we could talk with students and encourage those who were missing work to 3 hours max a week, relying on emails and messages, calls to parents (which exposed our home contact info), Google Meets and help from counselors. DO NOT blame the teachers for the failures of this crisis learning. Students did not show up. Parents did not make them show up. Counselors told students to worry about only those classes they were failing. The system set us up to fail. Most of us still tried to reach and teach our students. AP teachers all over the country successfully helped students prepare for a 45 minute online one question high stakes exam.

Many people including national leaders say we just gave up. But that is not true. I worked harder than ever trying to convert my engaging collaborative lessons into something that could be done online. I had to shrink the content of three different classes to fit the new time constraints of 3 hours per week. I sent emails to students and parents to let them know about changes to the AP exam and praying that they received them because few responses were received. I begged parents of students who were failing to get their child to start showing up and turning in assignments. I worked well past my contractual hours, often times answering emails until 9:00 at night. Therefore, distance learning was not the utter failure that some would like you to believe. There were successes. We were heroes for a brief moment when parents realized how hard it was to teach their kids. And how quickly they have forgotten now that we are being blamed. It is a sad state of affairs.

History Mysteries

I have certain lessons that fall under the category of "History Mysteries." I like them because I can honestly tell my students that there is no right answer and it is up to them to determine what they believe and support it with evidence.

One of the mysteries that I have turned into a two day lesson is on Sacco & Vanzetti. The information for this lesson came from UMKC School of Law Famous Trials page. I took information from many of the pages and turned it into a case for my students to solve.

First students enter my classroom and see caution tape, a chalk outline of a body and evidence markers. Next I show them a video I made in the style of Law & Order. I call it Law & Order: History Revisited. Once introduced to the case, I pass out "FBI Folders" that I made. These include biographies on individuals associated with the case, maps, evidence, information on the investigation and more.

Over the course of two days, my students work as a team to find evidence to determine whether Sacco and Vanzetti were in fact guilty or not guilty. Then they have a discussion and ultimately render a verdict.

Another mystery involves the sinking of the USS Maine. Students discuss all the theories of what happened. This year I acquired, at a library auction, a textbook on the history of Cuba that was published in 1898. I cannot wait to use the last chapter on the USS Maine as a primary source.

I enjoy turning lessons into mysteries for students to solve, rather than a lecture or a reading. My students respond well to these lessons and are using collaboration, communication and critical thinking.

Breakout EDU - The Coolest Thing Since Escape Rooms

A little over a year ago I discovered Breakout Edu. It takes the escape room concept and brings it into the classroom. Students are introduced to a locked box with a story related to the theme of the game. Together they must work collaboratively to solve puzzles, riddles and other activities. These clues then help them to open locks. With just 45 minutes to complete a game, participants are challenged to problem solve, learn perseverance and work as a team. Breakout games are designed by teachers for use with students from preschool to college, and even adults!

I use the games in my class for both review at the end of a unit and for content. For example, this past year, I used a Breakout game to teach my students about Watergate. I had limited time to cover the topic and found that rather than a lecture or worksheet (which I almost never do in my classroom anyway), I would find an engaging way to help them learn about the scandal.

I typically break students into four groups (I have 4 complete kits) to ensure there is a role for every student. I have an average of 34 students per class. Some games are completely physical games (with all clues in class). Others include online puzzles. I continue to refine and learn what works and doesn't work.

I have found that many of my students who may not do well on tests or on other assignments, excel in Breakout games. I had one student last year who was often in a group that failed to breakout. She was frustrated but refused to give up. Learning as we played each game, she came in the day of the Watergate Breakout and was determined. This time she and her group were not only the first to finish in her class, but out of all of my classes. The pride she and her team had was so cool to see.

I encourage you to give it a try! Your students will love it! Check out Breakout Edu to get started.

My games are centered around an entire unit such as the Gilded Age or a single topic such as Watergate. Students use their content knowledge to help them solve puzzles!

Breakout games promote the 4 Cs: Collaboration, Communication, Critical Thinking and Creativity!

Every team that completes the game in 45 minutes gets a photo. In the future, I will make a wall of fame with these pictures for the year. Students love to compete to see who has the fastest time!

Standing Where History Happened

The "P" in Teach Like a PIRATE stands for passion. Dave Burgess talks about bring our passions as teachers into the classroom. For me that is easy, because two of my passions include travel and photography. I love to visit historic places when I travel and stand where history happened. It provides a unique perspective that no textbook can possibly provide. A case in point was a 2014 trip to Mexico.

During a trip to Cancun, I had the opportunity to visit Chichen Itza, a set of Mayan ruins. At Chichen Itza, there is a massive pyramid that is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World. That is what most impresses the vast majority of travelers. For me it was the Ball Court. Having taught Mayan History as a 7th grade teacher, it was amazing to stand in the court and see just how small the rings were that the ball was supposed to go through....and how high! To stand there and imagine a game being played, brought my understanding of Mayan culture to a whole new level. It was no longer just an idea of how large the stadium was (it sure did not look that big in Disney's Road to El Dorado). Instead I could see how challenging of a game it really was.

In my classroom, I encourage students to travel (even locally) to historic sites. I also remind them that history is everywhere! To that end, I have created a project "History on Location," that they can complete for extra credit.

The Ball Court 

The Ring

Google Summit - A Great Learning Opportunity

I just attended my second Google Educator Summit in Temecula (CA). I attended with several other teachers from my school and gained lots of good ideas. I am a strong believer in continuous learning and seek out opportunities to attend professional development events. These summits highlight Google Apps for Educators, but include several other cool learning topics.

This year I presented on how to use Google Maps in the classroom and then attended a follow up session by a member of the Google staff on ways to use Virtual Reality in the classroom. Google Cardboard and Expeditions have so much interesting potential! I will write about them in another post.

Other topics presented at the summit included: Google Classroom, Hyper Docs, Google Drawings, Soundtrap, Breakout Edu.

If you haven't been to a Google Summit, I highly encourage it. Yes it costs money, but there are also lots of FREE seminars for teachers out there!

Having a little fun with my fellow CHS teachers!

Spectrum of Slavery

In my AP US History class, we study the different points of view of slavery during the Antebellum period. One method that helps my students understand the different opinions is to create a spectrum from the most radical abolitionist to the most staunch supporter of slavery. The discussions they have in groups while they debate takes their understanding to a new level. In the end, I have 7 volunteers stand at the front while the whole class puts them in order. This furthers the discussion.

Speed Dating

This idea was something I learned from being part of an AP US History group and I adapted it to my classroom. At the end of our unit on the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, we held a Speed Dating Day. This was done in both my college prep and AP classes and they loved it!

Prior to this, students were assigned a reformer to research. They were responsible for submitting a resume for this person. Then on the day of the Speed Dating, we had three minute rotations where "reformers" could talk to each other and find their perfect match for reforming an area of the Gilded Age. Students were encouraged to bring props to enhance their presentations. Each student was given a chart to complete during the activity.

Talk about 100% engagement! Even my less talkative students were actively engaged in conversations. Next year I plan to add romantic music, candle lights (battery powered obviously) and other decorations to make it seem like a real Speed Dating event.

Meeting their perfect matches!

Thomas Nast shares cartoons!

Movie Trailers Intros

This year I learned how to make a movie trailer for use in my classroom. It was very easy with iMovie and I plan on doing several more throughout the year for lesson hooks. I started working on them Saturday and had both finished by Tuesday night. It was that easy! I had seen several other teachers make them as a way to introduce themselves on the first day of school, had seen them on #tlap chats, and so I decided to make one too. Here is the one for my AP US History Class:

And here is the one I used to introduce myself and class to my regular US History students. What fun it was to create. I even got several cheers and claps from my students!

Getting Creative With National Monuments & Sites

The worst thing that can happen to a teacher is when they go through the unit too quickly and have days left to fill....or is it? Having to find something to fill three days out of the next 14 forced me to be creative. Thanks to Teach Like a Pirate by Dave Burgess, I started asking questions about how I could make a fun activity related to the unit, but not just give students busy work or a lecture. Our current unit is on the environment and energy, so I started out thinking about national parks. But, I soon realized that my unit was becoming to much of a science lesson (at least according to my students in AP Environmental) so I searched for inspiration. I found it on a list of national parks that also included national monuments and historic sites. That is where I realized that the national park service is US history content and what started as a decision to preserve the environment by Theodore Roosevelt has now become a way to preserve American history too. With that said, my students will be spending tomorrow researching a monument or site and then creating a marketing brochure to present to other students. For my students it will be enrichment to the curriculum and a way to keep them engaged as the school year winds down. Here is the link to my Weebly site with instructions! Pictures will follow once the activity is completed.

My Twitter PLN

I look forward to Monday nights and the opportunity to spend up to two hours collaborating with teachers from across the United States (and sometimes even around the world). I have several people that I collaborate with as part of my PLN, professional learning network. This collaboration happens from the comfort of my own home as I log on to Twitter and participate in chats. There are two chats that I like, #sschat (social studies) and #tlap (teach like a pirate). Sometimes I lurk and just watch as people comment on questions given by the moderator, but most times I participate by sharing my lessons and ideas.

Each week, there is a different topic. We have discussed many topics including close reading, student presentation skills, using documents, lesson hooks, current issues, simulations and much more! It is extremely powerful to share ideas with educators (teachers and administrators) alike. The conversation is fast paced and a program like Tweet Deck helps. I am always inspired and find a few good ideas that I can implement the very next day. In addition, I can share some of my most successful lessons with them!

Last night, I participated in a chat about student engagement in an online environment. Seeing as my students are in the computer lab today, I took those ideas and added an Edmodo discussion component to their assignment. It is perhaps the best part of the lesson as students share their ideas. While I am not able to get online every Monday (thanks to my one year old who would rather play with the keyboard than sit still), I always go back and view the conversations. 

Every 21st century educator needs to get a Twitter account and start joining chats. There are tons of chats for every subject. And what better way to inspire your students to become life long learners, than by showing that you are also one!

Lesson Hook: Simulating a Bus in Alabama, 1955

At Dave Burgess's "Teach Like a Pirate" seminar, I learned the importance of hooking the students into a lesson and have been searching for ideas ever since.

My lesson on the Montgomery Bus Boycott provided the perfect opportunity. I took a deck of cards and made sure to have the appropriate number of cards for my class period, ensuring that there was just a small amount of face cards. As students entered the room, each one was given a card. Once everyone was seated, I had everyone to stand up around the room. As I called a card, starting with Ace, the students who held that card were allowed to choose any seat in the room. This continued through the numbered cards. Once all of them were seated, those with face cards were told they could choose any seat they wanted, as long as it was a seat that was already occupied. Those "displaced" students then took the remaining open seats. Some got up quietly, others protested.

We proceeded to have a discussion as I first asked the "displaced" students how they felt, and then those with face cards responded. It was the perfect introduction to the bus boycott and allowed me to mix up the table groups for the day's activity, a DBQ answering the question, "Why did the Montgomery Bus Boycott Succeed?" I will be actively planning more hooks like this for my lessons.

Hippies for a Day

Thanks to Dave Burgess and #tlap, I have added a new element to my teaching - dress up days! I don't know why I never thought about having Decade Days before now! It is so easy to select a day to focus on the attire, music, art, culture, etc of a decade.

Friday was a minimum day so I made it our Counterculture Day. Students were asked to dress in tie dye or like hippies. We listened to the music of Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, Country Joe and the Fish and Credence Clearwater Revival. Students were shown pictures and we also had a class debate on the draft after reading a couple of articles on the topic the previous day.

Next time I do this day, I want to add an activity to get students up and moving around. Because it was only a 40 minute class I felt rushed. Here are some pictures from the day:

Poster DBQs

Today is block schedule at my school which means 2 hour and 2 minute classes. That is a very long time for students to sit and listen to a lecture. We started off with our March Madness Elite 8 round and voting, but that only took 20 minutes. The idea for a visual DBQ came from an AVID conference that I had attended years ago.

I found 17 different documents (speeches, letters, diagrams, photos, etc) and put them together in a Google Doc. Students were put into groups of four and given the instructions to look through each document and decide how they would answer the question: Why did the US lose the Vietnam War? Once they had decided on an answer, they were given a piece of flip chart paper, scissors, markers and glue sticks. On the poster they had to write a thesis statement. Then students selected 6-8 documents that supported their claim as to why we lost the war. Each document was cut out and glued on the paper. Students wrote sentences underneath explaining how that document answered the question. Many students also chose to make colorful borders and pictures to enhance the look of their posters.

Each team was asked to present its thesis and supporting evidence. We then discussed comparisons to other wars, both past and present.

Rather than me telling them in 5 minutes the reasons why the US lost the war, students used document analysis, critical thinking and collaboration skills to answer the question. This took over an hour of group work. All of these skills are essential common core and 21st century skills. It also allows the students to take ownership of their learning rather than be passive listeners to a teacher on stage.

Here are some pictures of completed posters:

1950s Day

Yesterday was Fifties Day in my classroom. I went to Party City where I was able to get some decorations including a wall poster. I also used pictures from the decade around the room. Using Pandora Radio, I had fifties music playing while students entered the classroom. I let several songs play before beginning the lesson. On each table was a graphic organizer with 1950s slang words on the back.

Together we read through an article called Take Me Back to the 1950s, which highlights major cultural events of the decade. I paused along the way to share photographs, short stories, video clips and even my dad's letterman sweater. The video clips I used were three commercials (Coca Cola, Ford and Kool Aid), Elvis Presley (the 1st Ed Sullivan appearance to show his swinging hips and a later Ed Sullivan appearance), the chocolate scene from I Love Lucy and a short clip of Leave it to Beaver. Students were asked to write down things in six boxes (social conformity, women, automobiles/suburbia, teen culture, consumerism and entertainment). I encouraged students to dress fifties style and I did have several students who did. For the last five minutes of our class period, I held a hula hoop contest since the hula hoop was first popular in the fifties.

It was definitely a fun way to make history more alive and my students are very excited about our upcoming hippie day as we study the Vietnam War.

Truman Trial

For the past five years, I have been including a mock trial in my curriculum. For one week (or sometimes longer), my classroom is transformed into a courtroom in 1953. The defendant is former President Harry S. Truman and he is charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity for dropping the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. Students assume the roles of lawyers, witnesses, judges, court reporters, and jurors. The assignment becomes tiered with lawyers and witnesses eligible to earn A grades, judges and court reporters B grades and jurors C grades. Due to increased interest in witness level roles, I have created several new witness roles this past year. Originally there were 14 total, but I now can include 21 total.

The trial takes between 5-7 days depending on the number of witnesses, preparedness of the lawyers and number of times lawyers need to take breaks to meet with their witnesses. We start on day one with opening statements from the lawyers and then move right into prosecution witnesses. The witnesses for the prosecution include Premier Joseph Stalin, President Dwight Eisenhower, Ambassador Joseph Grew, Scientist Leo Szilard and Japanese Cabinet Member Hitsasune Sakomizu. Once all witnesses for the prosecution have gone, then the defense presents its case. Witnesses for the defense include Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer and Japanese Minister Shigenori Togo. The final day includes closing statements and then the jury deliberates and votes.Throughout the trial, lawyers are encouraged to present primary sources related to the trial as evidence. This includes photos, maps, letters, etc.

The final assignment for the trial is an essay where students are asked to evaluate President Truman's decision to drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

I take photos and video throughout the trial and make a video each year that I present to the next year's students as a teaser for the trial.

Loving LiveBinders

While I like One Tab for collecting various websites that I open up, it is not something that I can transfer from computer to computer. I was tired of finding a great website at home and having to email the link to myself so I could access it at school. Now I don't have to thanks to LiveBinders. What a wonderful tool for someone with hundreds of bookmarks like me!

The beauty of LiveBinders is that you can visit a website that you like and instead of bookmarking it, you can "LiveBinder It" and into an online briefcase it goes. Then when you are ready to access it again, simply go to your LiveBinder and click the link. It opens the website in the folder so that you can navigate without having to open any new windows. 

At first I was using it to bookmark websites for my students to use for research, such as this one for our Truman Trial or this one for our Cold War March Madness. Now I am even using it as a resource for unit planning with the US History Team at my school. I feel so much more organized and know I can easily find resources instead of wondering where I bookmarked them or what the website was called.

March Madness Cold War Style

I recently attended a seminar by Dave Burgess on how to Teach Like a Pirate. One of the ideas that was mentioned in this seminar was how to take sporting events and current issues and bring them into your classroom. The idea was presented about repurposing March Madness and that is exactly what I have done! My students are going to compete in regions to determine the most influential event of the the Cold War.

I started with 64 Cold War events and programs, grouped them into categories and created the tournament brackets. Students were then divided into four regions and are responsible for researching the 16 events in their region. Each student has two events to research in most classes due to my class sizes. They are working collaboratively using Google Docs to create summaries to share with the whole class and are also completing a paper with "talking points" that they can use while discussing/debating in each round.

To make their research easier, I have used a great program called Livebinders to store websites on all 64 events. If you haven't yet checked out Livebinders, visit my Cold War Binder to see how it can be used.

After their research is complete, regions will work together to choose which events make it to the Sweet 16 and then it will become a whole class discussion. Each round adds new tasks and regions will be making presentations, posters and promoting their events. I also plan on inviting in guests to question students in the Final Four and Championship rounds.

Here is the link to my Weebly site with the instructions and documents. After the activity is complete I will be sure to update!

Teach Like a PIRATE

Do you have a lesson that you could sell tickets to? If students did not have to come to your class, would you be teaching to an empty classroom? These two questions were presented to me at a recent seminar by US History teacher and author Dave Burgess. Dave's book, Teach Like a Pirate, has become a highly recommended book in the educational world and there is even a Monday night chat on Twitter called #tlap. The focus of Teach Like a Pirate is student engagement. Pirate is an acronym that stands for Passion, Immersion, Rapport, Ask & Analyze, Transformation and Enthusiasm.

The strategies and ideas presented in Teach Like a Pirate help teachers of all subjects and grade levels become more creative and find new ways to engage their students in content. Since joining the Twitter Monday night chats and attending two of Dave's seminars, I have been working to add more creativity into my lessons. Thanks to inspiration of Teach Like a Pirate, I have turned my classroom into a 1920s Speakeasy, created a Cold War March Madness tournament and am planning a couple of Decade Days. My students are responding with increased enthusiasm as they are tired of the same old lectures, worksheets, document analysis of their educational careers. Students are not only engaged, but are thinking critically and are more likely to remember the content years from now.