Personalizing History

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Two seventh graders review an example of a book before beginning on their own.

“Columbus sailed the ocean blue, in fourteen hundred ninety-two.” This jingle has helped students through the ages remember a fact about Columbus. In Mrs. Patty Dudley’s seventh grade social studies classroom at Lakeside Middle School, students are creating original books to help them remember important figures, “Who’s Who in the Middle Ages and Renaissance.” Rather than one fact, the goal of this learning activity is to remember what Mrs. Dudley refers to as “the big picture.” She wants her students to have an idea of why the person was important and how he/she impacted history, so that when they study World History in high school and college, they will have some background knowledge on which to draw.

To begin the year, seventh graders learned about the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. After reading their textbook, classroom discussions, and finishing study guides, the students are asked to write a short synopsis on a historical figure that will be incorporated into an original book. The task is to extract from the text interesting facts and key points about the person. They are to take what is written in the textbook and change it into their own words. This develops non-fiction reading comprehension and note taking skills.

Added to the text are illustrations. In this part, the student can be literal or creative, as long as the picture helps them to remember about the person. Artistic students can use their skills to draw lifelike pictures, while others can find pictures on the computer to use. Since the goal is to remember, students can also choose to draw items that aren’t replicas of the person, but will help them remember the information. One student plans on drawing a crown to accompany her synopsis on Charlemagne “because he had an elaborate crown made for himself.” On the other hand, another seventh grader plans on drawing a picture of “a hippie” for Francis of Assisi, “because he wanted everybody to ‘feel the love,’ to love all living things. He was a religious teacher who taught that everyone should get along.” Francis of Assisi is known for his quote, “Joyful love for all living things,” and was often pictured with animals. When the book is complete, it will contain a summary and a picture for 13 historical people.

Through this learning activity, Mrs. Dudley is developing academic skills and creativity. Not only will the seventh graders carry with them background knowledge about the Middle Ages and Renaissance, they learn about using unique ways to assist them in retaining information. As they progress through school, extracting the essential information from text will be necessary. By allowing her students the freedom to be creative, Mrs. Dudley has enriched their study skills.