Teaching Innovations: Change-Up Your Lesson Introduction with "Today in History"
Change-Up Your Lesson Introduction with "Today in History"
How do you start off your time in the classroom? Those first few minutes can be problematic, with students shuffling papers, taking off coats, finding pens, starting up laptops, checking email and social media. Some instructors get into the habit of repeating an opening phrase such as "Okay, I'm going to get started now," while others jump right into content leaving the slower students behind.
Another option is to ease into the lesson with a piece of relevant news or historical trivia. Check out the website TODAY IN HISTORY for a daily rundown of political events, science milestones and famous birthdays. Using August 22 as an example, I found that the Mona Lisa was stolen, Ray Bradbury was born, and Brazil entered World War II. For lighthearted content, go to THE NATIONAL DAY CALENDAR to find that August 22 is National Tooth Fairy Day and National Pecan Torte Day! Yes, really.
For more ideas on how to ease into lectures or to share your ideas with us, visit us in the CTE or email Meg Elias at clarkm1@star.lcc.edu.