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Drawing Connections between Historical World Events and our History on Guam

Establishing and using the Historical Connections board (Part 1 of 4)
Note: This lesson can be done on its own, or continued on to incorporate the next three parts of the lesson series.

Subjects

Social Studies, History, Language Arts

Grade-level

Elementary, 4-5
Middle School, 6-8
High School, 9-12

Time required

On-going (in 1-5 minute increments)

Materials required

  • Construction paper
  • Marker

Related background reading

None

Related documents

None

Related links

Lesson Plan

Description

In this on-going activity, students will practice drawing connections between historical world events and Guam history.

Objectives/Skills

  • Students will learn to identify or draw connections between historical world events and Guam history.
  • Students will be visually reminded, throughout the year, of the significance of world events and Guam history.

Questions or Assessment

  • Are students actively drawing connections between historical world events and Guam history?
  • Are students independently remembering to place Guam history in a global historical context?

Procedure

Teacher prep

Create a large “Historical Connections” board out of construction paper or a large piece of paper. Tape it to a visible location of the classroom, where it can remain for the course of the unit/semester/year. Decorate it in whatever way you think will be visually appealing.

Explain Historical Connections Board to Students (10 – 15 minutes)

  1. Explain to students that the board posted in the classroom will serve as a “Historical Connections” board. As the class progresses through the year, they will come across many examples of world history that impact (either directly or indirectly) the history and contemporary culture of Guam. Whenever an example comes up, students are to help the teacher by noting on the board the example.
  2. The board should include the following headers:
    • World Event
    • Impact on Guam
    • Impact Today
  3. Explain that not all examples will be explicitly stated to students. They are encouraged to bring up examples themselves, and to discuss the relevance of the suggested event with their peers.
    • This latter “discussion” should be reserved from more advanced classes (high school and advanced middle school.)
  4. Fill in one example on the board (so that students understand the purpose and method by which it works).
  5. Encourage students to make a note if they ever come across an example in their own reading or research. If they find an example of world events shaping Guam history (perhaps while writing a research paper on a topic in another class), they are welcome to include it on the board.
    • Remind students to utilize reliable sources, such as Guampedia, when conducting their research.

Incorporating the Historical Connections Board into Daily Routine (1-5 minutes)

  1. Throughout the semester, encourage students to include examples on the board.
    • Depending on the length of time the board remains up, it may become a very long list. If this happens, just create a new board and preserve the old one. The entire collection of boards can be used in the later lesson plans of this series.
  2. When a student notices an example of an historical world event shaping Guam history, allow them to raise their hand and point it out. Provided that time permits, encourage the class to briefly discuss whether the example should be included, and what information can be posted on the board. (If time does not allow such a discussion to take place, thank the student for the input, write down the example, and return to it as soon as time allows).

Recap (1 minute)
Recap what we’ve done and learned in the lesson [applicable only to the first day, when the Historical Connections board was established]:

“Today we’ve created our very own Historical Connections board. With this tool, we’ll keep track of all the examples of connections between historical world events and our Guam history and contemporary lifestyles. With this approach, we hope to better understand our island’s interconnectedness with the world.”

Ask students for their favorite parts of the activity.