Artifact bags

         After reading the article about Artifact bags, I began to think of different ways to use in a Social Studies classroom. I thought of one memory I had in my fifth grade classroom. We were learning about different countries and how people came to the United States. Our teacher had us bring in things that showed our heritage. I brought in a book that my Dad's side of the family had that told us all about where my family came from in Ireland. This project is something I have never forgotten because it taught me so much about my family. 

           After remembering this memory I decided that a great way to use artifact bags would be in a classroom. As a teacher I could bring in a few things that showed my heritage. Some ideas I had was the book I have about my family, an American and Irish flag, and a map of Ireland. I could also ask the student to bring in things to show their heritage. I think students would really enjoy this because it can also be a way for the students to get to know each other.  

I made a tagxedo to go along with some of my ideas. Check it out! 

Don't you Just love Timelines?

Describe how timelines are used to assist in developing an understanding of time. 

Timelines have been very good teaching tools for students. Timelines have many benefits for students. Students learn events during a certain amount of years, and students are taught how to put things in order when given the years the event happened. The students benefit from physically making the timelines because it gives the students a change to remember and order to the events.  If the students make the timeline themselves or they participate as a class to make one this will better help them remember the events. Many students are visual learners so having the timeline so they can read it will really help them.

There are so many questions a teacher can build off a timeline. By questioning the students, it gives the students a chance to better understand the meaning of the events on the timeline.  We can connect timelines to other subjects such as math. We can ask the students how many years are passed throughout the timeline or ask the students to find the middle of the years. There are so many opportunities for teachers to use timelines in their classes. I definitely think timelines are the most useful in history classes


This is just an example of a timeline that relates to history


This could be used as a get to know you activity for students. This could also be an introduction to timelines.


Chapter 11 Question 7

Chapter 11 Quiz.

 This self-test was very helpful in making sure I remember the information from the chapter. The questions were pretty self-explanatory and I am very proud of myself for getting an 100. One question that I was confused about was number 8, "Timelines are concrete devices used to assist students in understanding the abstract concept of time. Ms. Kopf knows that she needs to introduce children to timelines. First timelines should be concerned with the correct ordering of events. What are some ways to do this?" This question was a little tricky because I thought some of the choices were better than others.
These self test are a very good tool in going over the readings we have done.

Becoming a digital teacher

Another year of college has started. Fall semester of my Junior year is full of interesting and different courses.