In my grade 10 Canadian history class, I often used excerpts from Joseph Boyden’s Three Day Road to explore what life was like for soldiers during WWI. In this novel, protagonist Xavier Bird returns to Northern Ontario in 1919 after fighting in France and Belgium. He is met by his aunt Niska, an Oji-Cree woman, and the two travel back to their village. On this journey, the two recount traumatic experiences from their past - Xavier as a soldier returning from the front and Niska as a survivor of residential schools.
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Topics:
trc,
Indigenous History,
Indigenous,
stolen lives,
settler educators,
difficult conversations,
CHC,
Grade 10 History,
Book,
English,
big paper,
English Classroom,
Truth and Reconciliation,
Canadian History,
Canada
Having been an LTO (Long term occasional teacher) in the TDSB (Toronto District School Board) for several years I have taught a variety of courses with little prep time available; Facing History saved me more than a few times with their resources (and of course other teachers' contributions to this very blog). I'm delighted to be able to share some of my experience using and adapting Facing History and Ourselves resources and pedagogy in my classroom.
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Topics:
Film,
Choosing to Participate,
Human Rights,
Facing History Resources,
News,
Identity,
Facing History and Ourselves,
current events,
Culturally Responsive and Relevant Pedagogy,
Literature Circles,
Lesson Ideas,
In the news,
English Classroom,
Social Justice,
Literature,
Personal history,
English
As a middle school teacher I was often asked why I was giving up a week of my summer to attend the Facing History and Ourselves’ Holocaust and Human Behaviour seminar. “You don’t teach that time period,” being the most frequent comment. They were right. But there was something about Facing History and how they approached teaching that piqued my interest and so I went.
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Topics:
Back-To-School,
History,
Middle School,
We and They,
Summer Seminar,
Literature,
reflection,
English
In “Culturally Relevant Pedagogy: Ingredients for Critical Teacher Reflection,” Tyronne Howard notes the importance of finding ways to address the growing heterogeneity of our students cultural needs to “construct pedagogical practices that have meaning to students’ social and cultural realities,” (195-6). Literature Circles are a model that I used, which I have found to be an effective tool for engaging students using differentiation. The diverse nature of my classroom, which is common for an urban school, makes it is difficult to find a single text that will engage each student in the classroom. Since those students who do not engage and read their texts are traditionally the least successful, it is important to try and find materials they will.
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Topics:
Urban Education,
Night,
Literature Circles,
Lesson Ideas,
English Classroom,
Red Scarf Girl,
Literature,
English
I’m not sure if it’s fate, or the fact that I’m a news junkie, but it seems as though I can always find a connection between what I’m studying in my classes and the news. This past term was no different.
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Topics:
Books,
Facing History Resources,
videos,
Lesson Ideas,
English Classroom,
Literature,
English
