National History Day School Event

Tuesday was the Big Day--my Student Historians hosted a National History Day School Event! Students dressed professionally and displayed their Historical Exhibits, Documentaries, Websites, and Papers in the Media Center for our school community to experience. (There was one Dramatic Performance and this student performed in front of a small audience.) What a day we had!

Special thanks to our Media Specialist, Mrs. Chatel, for all of her help with research and detailed explanations of how to complete our Annotated Bibliographies--we couldn't have done it without you!

Mrs. Loch, a Media Specialist from two of our Middle Schools, came to help determine which projects would be eligible to enter into the Michigan History Day District contest. She previously taught Social Studies and had entered students into the contest. (Some were even selected for the National Contest!) She has been incredibly helpful this year and I'm grateful for her support!

The Social Studies teachers made it possible for their classes to come in and interact with the projects and presenters. Each student wrote a comment, compliment, connection, and question about a project while they were visiting. This opportunity opened learning for all students in the school and gave my Historians invaluable peer feedback (one of the tenets of Genius Hour, the reason we completed these projects). 



The event was especially meaningful because our staff also participated in an Instructional Rounds day. This meant that a group of teachers were able to take time out of their school day to go into other classrooms and witness the learning taking place around our school. I am so glad that these events coincided. Many teachers stopped by to learn about the research and argument formulation my 8th Graders completed to prove that their person/group took a stand in history. It was so nice for the kids to have their current and former teachers see them in this light!



The day was a success! These students were confident, professional, and eager to share their learning journey with everyone they encountered. They had a purpose for their work and the skills learned from this project-based learning opportunity are something they can build upon as they continue their education and life as citizens.











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