Looking for more ways to utilize technology in the classroom? This post is for you!
“From apps that help your students read to apps that help you organize your teaching day, these five educational apps from Facing History Senior Program Associate Pam Donaldson will help you engage students and inspire your own teaching practice. Read on and let us know, what’s your favorite app to use in the classroom?”
Developing Student Voice in the Classroom: Teaching Strategies and Multimedia Projects
If you are interested in innovative ways to help students find their voice, check out this post.
“High school students who participate in the Neighborhood to Neighborhood project tackle complex questions about identity, community, belonging, and other issues relevant to today’s youth over the course of three to four months. Using interviewing skills and multimedia tools, the students produce original visual and audio pieces using Mozilla’s Popcorn tool, and share these stories with their communities.”
Do you want to know more about a really cool way to use media to explore identity and community? Then you should “check out this DIY video for ideas on how to report your own story. “
Battling Homophobia at East Side Community High School
If you grapple with the challenges of creating positive space in your classroom and your community, you should take a look at what some really incredible youth are doing at East Side Community High School in New York! If you are a classroom teacher, this entry of Radio Rookies even comes complete with connection questions…
“Kids say that teasing and bullying are rare, and when they do happen, teachers and fellow students get involved. The school has an active gay-straight alliance club, Rainbow Bright, and teachers strive to be inclusive in their curricula and language. But not all schools are so supportive of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) students and creating all-embracing learning communities. Watch and/or listen as Four East Side students find out what actually helps homophobic people change their minds to become more accepting.”
Girl Drama, Restorative Justice, and Tools for Upstanding
How do you deal with “drama”? Not the event; the word. How do you empower students to create healthy and meaningful relationships? Jennifer Derosby, a Facing History and Ourselves educator from Colorado, has a few ideas…
“As a teacher at an all-girls school, I cannot tell you how many times I’ve heard the word “drama” tossed around. It’s troubling to me, really, to see how easily people connect this word to the conflicts that emerge between girls and women. Even in efforts to help girls and women build strong and healthy relationships, we’re reminded to “stop the drama!” or “just say no to the drama!” … I saw with my own eyes how quickly the struggles between girls are relegated to the land of “drama,” and how this seriously undermines any effort to empower girls’ voices.”
I hope you enjoyed my picks for this year's "Best of the Blogs"! What are your favourite Facing History blogs this year? Which topics would you like to see our Facing History blogs cover in 2014? . Please comment below, should you choose to share!
