Chatham Social Studies teachers are always on the lookout for innovative ways to bring students to an understanding of the past. Historical role-plays and simulations require students to assume the character of a particular person or historical figure and interact with the rest of the class to perform a specific task or reach an understanding. Done right, historical simulations are an exceptionally effective way to give students a more comprehensive understanding of the context of a particular time on a broad scale, while giving them an empathetic relationship with the past as they walk "in someone else's shoes". More often than not at CHS, this also involves walking a mile in colonial breeches, flapper dresses or false mustaches.
Social Studies teachers have been doing historical simulations for years, the trick is finding the right balance between igniting student interest through costumes and food while also making it meaningful through research, dialog and discussion.
AP European History students in Ms. Kielblock's class recently reenacted a 18th century French Enlightenment Salon, yet with a twist; they were shipwrecked at sea. Imagine the greatest thinkers of the Enlightenment trapped on an island with only their wit, good food, and 1,000 natives. Ms. Kielblock's students had to do just that. Assuming the characters of Diderot, Voltaire, Rousseau, John Locke, Montesquieu, and Thomas Hobbes, students had to decide how they were going to run their new home on the island. How would they organize themselves and the natives politically and economically? How should the natives be taught about the world? What should the natives be taught about the universe?
Setting the mood with 18th-century chamber music and healthy portions of crepes and cheese, Ms. Kielblock played the role of hostess and teacher.
It's commonly acknowledged that the 1920's represent the first easily recognizable "modern" decade. The growth of technology that helped reduce the average workweek also brought radio, automobiles and silent film to fill the new leisure hours with entertainment. As a decade of contradictions though, the "Roaring Twenties" saw prohibition, religious fundamentalism, and immigration restriction also brought with it speakeasies, flappers and brand-new celebrity culture.
The historical simulation of AP US History students in Mr.Carroll's classes resulted in a "celebrity
gala" with an extensive guest list. With representation from across the broad spectrum of experience of the 20s, Al Capone, Harry Houdini, and Calvin Coolidge spoke with Louis Armstrong, Bessie Smith and Amelia Earhart. After a brief "meet and greet" session in which the students introduced their characters to each other, the group engaged in a sophisticated analysis of the decade to determine which of them best represented it overall. What theme of the decade best represented its true nature?
Although the attendees to both the Enlightenment Salon at Sea and the 1920's celebrity gala made the most of their fun with costumes and good food, they also balanced their celebrations with meaningful historical dialog. Hobbes and Locke didn't come any closer to agreement in the Salon reenactment than their philosophies have in real life, just as Al Capone and Charles Lindbergh couldn't admit that the other was more reflective of the twenties. But both of these simulations illustrate how students can engage in history in creative and meaningful ways.
Social Studies teachers have been doing historical simulations for years, the trick is finding the right balance between igniting student interest through costumes and food while also making it meaningful through research, dialog and discussion.
Enlightenment Salon at Sea
The salons of pre-Revolutionary France saw the crossing of social and intellectual networks in their guest lists of writers, thinkers, philosophers and bon vivants. These legendary gatherings were famous for their vibrant, witty and entertaining conversations as much as they were known for their serious discussions about natural law, liberty and science.AP European History students in Ms. Kielblock's class recently reenacted a 18th century French Enlightenment Salon, yet with a twist; they were shipwrecked at sea. Imagine the greatest thinkers of the Enlightenment trapped on an island with only their wit, good food, and 1,000 natives. Ms. Kielblock's students had to do just that. Assuming the characters of Diderot, Voltaire, Rousseau, John Locke, Montesquieu, and Thomas Hobbes, students had to decide how they were going to run their new home on the island. How would they organize themselves and the natives politically and economically? How should the natives be taught about the world? What should the natives be taught about the universe?Setting the mood with 18th-century chamber music and healthy portions of crepes and cheese, Ms. Kielblock played the role of hostess and teacher.
1920 Celebrity Gala
The historical simulation of AP US History students in Mr.Carroll's classes resulted in a "celebrity