Quick Notes

Students can write one or two words to help in remembering the main ideas of a presentation or lecture. This helps students remember facts and gives them starters for essay writing at a later time.

An effective way to teach Quick Notes is to use the Michigan Historical Museum slides and the annotated description of each slide. Students use a long strip of writing paper (so that they are able to write only one or two words on each line). Teacher reads the description for each slide and then instructs students to list a few key words about the information they just heard.

This practice can help students learn how to take notes so that when they participate in The BIG History Lesson week, they can use this simple organizational tool to take notes.

The YOU Museum

Ask students to think about who they are-their individual attributes, (their likes, dislikes, where they live, who they are related to, etc.). Have them make a list of at least 20 words or phrases they would use to describe themselves.

Next, talk about the visit to the Michigan Historical Museum. Discuss how this museum is different from other museums (science, art, etc.) that the children have visited and how this museum focuses on Michigan's history. Talk about the things the children will be seeing there.

Now talk about how the children are going to plan their own museums-a museum all about themselves. Using their list of self-descriptive words or phrases , students should think of objects or artifacts that represent their traits or attributes. Children can make a separate list of these objects, or if there is time, draw the objects.

Next, put students in pairs, and have students exchange only their lists of objects. Each student can guess the meaning of the objects as related to his or her partner's attributes.

Conclusion: Discuss how ideas are developed based on a single object, and how an object can be interpreted in different ways. Refer to museum visit in which students will be viewing artifacts and how the artifacts will represent big ideas (e.g., boot in the logging display, etc.).

KWL (Know-Want to Learn-Learned)

Have several artifacts available in the classroom. Some of the objects can be familiar, but it's a good idea to have a few objects that are unfamiliar to the students. Artifacts can be associated to any subject-for example, objects from nature (turtle shell, puffer fish, cattail, fossil). Divide students into cooperative groups, with the groups equal to the number of artifacts to be used in this activity.

Cooperative group members examine one artifact, and do the "K" part of "KWL"-a recorder for the group writes down everything he or she knows about the object. Also allow time for each student to sketch the object.

Next, have the group formulate questions about the object. (the "W" part of "KWL") For instance, when looking at a turtle shell, students might ask: "Where did that gash on the shell come from? Who took the turtle shell? What kind of turtle was it?"

Give students adequate time to complete the "K and W" part of this activity, and then rotate the artifacts so that each group has an opportunity to examine several artifacts using this format.

Finally, conduct a whole class processing (thus completing the "KWL"). Discuss what each group knew about each artifact. List a sample of the students' questions, and discuss where or from whom they could find the answers.

Go to:

• Teaching Michigan History home page
• Michigan Historical Museum home page
• Michigan Historical Center home page

Updated 01/29/2008

Michigan Historical Center, Department of History, Arts and Libraries
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