Meet the Presenters & Sessions for the Spring Conference!
SESSION DESCRIPTIONS:
Conceptual Vocabulary as a Driver of Historical Thinking - Josh Parker
We want students to learn the core concepts of the courses we teach and to engage in historical thinking with them. This workshop will focus on a set of practices and activities that support concept-focused learning in our classrooms. You'll participate as a learner and then apply them to your future instruction/practice.
Heroes and Centers of Progress: Bridging Past and Present - Sarah Lane (Sphere Education Initiatives)
Uncover and explore how to use historical and modern case studies as an inquiry-based lens to connect change to our continual human progress, from past to present. Middle and high school educators will be provided with unique strategies to engage students with lesser-known people and places that connect to progress in human rights, economics, sciences, and more. Interactive strategies include primary sources and media analysis, civil discourse, and an innovative "life in numbers" activity. Educators will learn how students can explore their role in shaping the future while examining the past, and leave the session with free, relevant resources.
Confronting the Complexity of Teaching about Modern Genocides in the Classroom - Branda Anderson (Holocaust Center for Humanity)
This session will provide educators with an in-depth overview of the history and complexity of the term ‘genocide’ from its original conception by Raphael Lemkin, through the development of the United Nations Convention on Genocide to its place in public discourse today. Educators will then consider the underpinnings and risk factors associated with modern genocides. They will be introduced to classroom-ready lesson plans that will provide their students the opportunity to think critically about the concept of genocide and the risk factors that create the environment in which genocidal violence is possible.
Civil Rights and the Immortal Cells of Henrietta Lacks - Jennifer Vandenberg-Pontius
These lessons about racial health disparities will include a RetroReport video comparing covid and polio. White scientists in the 1930s pushed the theory that Black people were less susceptible to polio, leading to inadequate care. Lessons will also include the story of Henrietta Lacks, a Black woman whose cells were taken without consent. Her cells were the first to reproduce outside the body, and have been valuable since 1951. They were instrumental in the creation of polio and covid vaccines. The provided Civil Rights lesson plans are for history teachers, but science and ELA connections are plentiful.
Exhibit Evaluation: Critiquing Historical Narratives - Emily Gogerty-Northrip (Washington State History Museum)
Students don't always realize that the history they are presented with--whether in the community or the classroom--is curated from a particular point of view. But this understanding is crucial to the work of history! Help your students learn to question dominant historical narratives via exhibit evaluation in this session from the Washington State Historical Society. You'll learn about how historical artifacts can tell a variety of stories; what goes into planning a museum exhibit; and about the many lenses through which we can evaluate those exhibits. Plus, you’ll get the chance to tour and evaluate an exhibit at the Washington State History Museum.
Washington State Social Studies Learning Standards - Process and Feedback - Dr. Andrew Miller (OSPI)
Join us in a collaborative session designed for educators to delve into the Washington State Social Studies Learning Standards. Understand the review process in and seize the opportunity to provide your initial feedback. Engage with peers, share your insights, and contribute to shaping the future of social studies education.
Mapping a 3-D View of World History- Tess Nix
With the eyes of a historian, I gaze through time to visualize connections with hardly a glance. How did I gain this superpower? What allows me to see world history in three dimensions, with space overlaid through time? Today’s activity is an exploration of that problem. Follow me through the deconstruction of continuity and change through world history. You will participate in a shortened version of my class activity (which you will get to keep), so put on your learning pants and get in here! This activity scales across middle and high school, as well as varying levels of complexity.
Civic Engagement: It Happens Everywhere and Anywhere, Corey Paulson
Participants will learn how to develop a state civics unit that ties in directly with themes already covered in the classroom. By using free resources provided by TVW and the Washington State Legislature, participants will learn how to navigate the state government to help students identify what the State is doing to address issues your classroom cares about. Participants will learn how to integrate civic engagement into their already busy curricular schedule by creating a supplementary unit that showcases how civic engagement happens in all avenues of life, and not just in government class.
A Teacher’s Approach to Climate Education in the Classroom - Donnetta Elsasser
Social Studies teachers are not climate scientists, but climate education is absolutely a social studies topic. How can HS and MS teachers get quality information, reliable data, and resources that help you and your students understand climate problems and also action-oriented climate responses? To start: come to my session! I will provide paper copies of a few articles and links to lots more resources, all OER sharable and remixable. These are ready-to-use materials designed to take only a few days to implement. Participants will engage in guided practices for paired discussion, scaffolded reading, and some simple civic-action activity ideas.
Toleration v Liberty, Exploring Constitutional Conversations Freedom of Religion - Lori Rech & Scott Petri
Disagreements about the Constitution are a feature, not a bug of our system and students need to practice being disagreeable. Explore the topic of freedom of religion through document analysis while engaging in a discourse strategy.
Teaching About the Vietnam War: Origins, History, and Legacies - Mimi Stephens (Choices Program—Brown University)
Join the Choices Program as we explore the student readings, seven lessons, and videos in our award-winning curriculum on the long history of the Vietnam War! Learn strategies for incorporating the unit, in whole or in part, into your U.S. History, World History, Asian Studies or Foreign Policy course. We’ll engage in an innovative, student-centered lesson on creating historical narratives and discuss an additional oral history lesson on Vietnamese refugees in the U.S. A one-year Digital Editions license to the unit is provided.
Historical Art and Objects as Teaching Tools: Exploring the Revolution - Kaitlyn Grundy & Michael Hensinger (Museum of the American Revolution)
If a picture is worth a thousand words, what stories can objects tell? Participating teachers will examine paintings about the American Revolution and material culture from the Revolutionary Era. The session will involve analyzing primary and secondary sources while investigating how close-looking and analysis of artwork and objects can be a gateway to student understanding of the people, places, and events of the American Revolution.
Exploration of Washington History Using Inquiry & Primarily Washington Resources - Leslie Heffernan & Judy Pitchford (Primarily Washington)
This session will explore the dynamic and engaging lessons available on the Primarily Washington website, with a special emphasis on the newest inquiry: Redlining and Racial Covenants in Washington State. Designed for educators teaching grades 4-12, this session will provide tools and strategies for integrating inquiry-based learning into your classroom. Participants will learn how these lessons can help students critically examine the impact of historical housing policies and systemic racism on communities across Washington State.
It’s About Time! Bring Joy into Your Social Studies Classroom - Kristin Conklin & Scott Petri
Discover how to transform your social studies classroom into an engaging, collaborative environment using an innovative timeline game. This hands-on session will help educators incorporate game-based learning into their classroom. Participants will play the game, explore its alignment with curriculum standards, and discuss its potential for project-based learning and assessment. This session is tailored for upper elementary teachers and builds student skills in understanding change and continuity over time.
Story-Based Learning: Integrating Literacy, Economics, and Financial Education - Amy Kliewer
From tales of the past to present decisions, discover how children's literature can foster elementary students' understanding of economics. This session explores how financial decision-making and economic thinking have endured through time, despite changes in American society. Attendees will learn strategies to integrate literacy, economics, and personal finance through engaging lessons that feature diverse books set in historical and modern contexts. Connections to Social Emotional Learning (SEL) and how economic thinking supports decision-making and empathy will be highlighted. Participants will receive a digital resource guide with activities, standards alignments, and strategies for bringing these concepts to life in the classroom.
Learning from and Supporting Indigenous Communities at Home and Abroad - Jerry Price & Ryan Hauck
How can we help students learn from movements for Indigenous sovereignty and cultural resilience in the U.S. and abroad? Dr. Andrew Fisher (Associate Professor of History, William & Mary), Jerry Price (Curriculum Writer, Muckleshoot Tribe), Claire Laurenz (Outdoor Education Specialist, Muckleshoot's Mountain to Sound Program), and Ryan Hauck (Director, Global Classroom Program, World Affairs Council, Seattle) will address lesson planning, partnering with Indigenous communities, outdoor experiential learning, and student engagement. Sponsored by the World Affairs Council of Seattle with support from the Tulalip Tribes Charitable Fund (Tulalip Cares).
Urban Planning in the Classroom: Empowering Youth as Community Members - Elizabeth Erickson, Gwen Rousseau, Patty Shelton, and Eric Nelson
City planners and educators can work together to teach students how our cities function. Planners and Bellevue School District staff will describe a collaboration to integrate local planning issues into Grade 4 curriculum. Participants will be given an overview of inquiry-based lessons produced through this collaboration, learn about the planning process in Washington State, and try out a real world problem-solving exercise that guides students to:
- explore the relationships between people and the places they live,
- integrate multiple disciplines to better understand their local communities,
- design innovative plans to achieve diverse community goals, and
- communicate effectively to inform local decisions.
Museum in the Classroom - Patty Shelton
Using a teacher selected museum theme, participants will learn how students can select a topic and subsequently determine the story they wish to tell in a museum exhibit or website. This session will feature non-fiction reading and writing, research, and museum exhibit building techniques using resources from MOHAI, Washington State History Museum and National History Day.
Access, Education and Opportunity: How Elections Continuously Change - MoonSub Vendetta & Sarah Spikes (Secretary of State Elections)
Intended for K-12 and higher education educators, this session provides information on Washington election laws and where they come from, and will cover new legislation. We’ll examine how a centuries old practice that has maintained its basic function has actually evolved enormously throughout the years, both from social change and from technological advancement. This session will include an interactive portion, questions for your students, an overview of information you can find from our office, the Secretary of State Elections Division, and information on processes used by election officials in order to ensure Washington’s system is transparent, observable and auditable.