How do I use a DBQ with my students?

Have you ever had that moment in class where you are introducing a DBQ essay and you realize your students are looking at you like you have three heads 👽? Not only do you realize that your entire lesson for the day is officially out the window, you also have to come up with something on the fly to walk your students through a DBQ and what it is. You have to remediate and you have no clue where to start.

It can be a daunting task when you have a regular class, but you have ELLs, SpEd kids, and a group of 40 kids crammed in your room.

Fear not! I am going to break down the DBQ essay process in this four-part blog series, and you will be able to get your students up to speed even if you are in the second semester and testing is around the corner.

This four-part series will cover how to incorporate:
1) teaching students how to annotate
2) analyzing the DBQ itself
3) writing the DBQ essay
4) peer editing

So let's jump in with annotating! Many students think that annotating is simply a skill used in ELA, but it is essential in the history classroom.When teaching students how to annotate a reading or a DBQ, you have to implement it consistently. That is where many teachers fall short (myself included!). They go over annotation, then forget about it after the lesson was over. Until it is a few weeks later and time to practice annotating again. They expect the students to magically remember what to do, but then the teacher gets mad at them self for not reviewing it.

How can you be consistent? One way is to incorporate annotating into everyday activities. This can be done with warm-ups/bellringers, exit tickets, and homework. You want the students to be so used to annotating DBQs and readings that they start doing it in other classes. You want them to come up to you at school and tell you how they annotated something in their sleep.

To start off practicing with your students,

1) pick 6-10 DBQs that pertain to a time period you (preferably) have already covered. The DBQs should be a picture of pictures and quotes/readings.

2) Cut them out and place them all on the same sheet of paper. Make it double-sided if needed.

3) make a copy for each student

4) As a class, go through the first document together. Explain what your expectations are when it comes to annotating (I like to color-code, personally). Are you lost as to what students need to know? Try out my Pre-AP/AP History Helper so students have a easy guide to reference!

5) Have students practice the second document with a partner, then review it together as a class. What did they get right? What was missed?

6) Allow students to complete the next few on their own, but also to check with a partner if they want. It makes the activity a little less overwhelming if they know they can ask a friend.

It will probably being quite a painfully slow process at first. But if you spend the time to make sure that your students truly feel comfortable with annotating, it will pay off in the long run. But once again, BE CONSISTENT! Annotate at least three times a week.

Next week, how to analyze the actual DBQ...

How do I use word walls?

Word walls. 

The name doesn't invoke excitement, and usually brings to mind thoughts of gray cinder block walls. Walls that you would cover with random words in order to appease your administrators. You've probably seen other teacher's classrooms Pinterest-worthy word walls decorated with beautiful, color-coded words. 

Ever feel like you were missing out and not sure where to start? 

I was there. I didn't know how to use word walls. I didn't know how to choose words.

Thankfully, after going to a few professional developments, I found out how to use word walls. And it was pretty interesting! Some of my big takeaways:

1) You have to interact with the word wall. Every. Day. And I don't mean pointing to the wall and moving on. You have to make the word wall part of the lesson. When introducing new words to the students, put the words at the front of the room, on the board, or wherever you stand. Students need to use the word 10-15 times before it is internalized. I suggest introducing no more than 3 words in a class period. I know that can be tough when it seems like we have to teach everything and then some. But the important thing to remember is that it is better for the students to learn a few words REALLY well, than a lot of words they barely recognize.

2) Make the words accessible to the kids to look at (and even touch!) I know as a teacher, we value the items we put in our classroom. Majority of the time, we use our own hard-earned money for supplies. We definitely do NOT want students touching our stuff. Who knows the last time they washed their hands? 😷 But, a lot of students are tactile/kinesthetic learners. Have the words posted on a wall where students can see it from their seats, but isn't blocked by desks. You'll be surprised at how many go up to the wall during activities or to check out the pictures.

3) Speaking of pictures, use pictures in your words wall. You have no idea how much this helps struggling students and English Language Learners. You might have students who are under 504 or are struggling with history because they don't like the subject. Or, you might have English Language Learners who are trying to grasp not only conversational English, but academic vocabulary as well. We want to make sure we are doing everything we can to help them out. 

So now you are probably thinking, Great idea, Tori! But I am soooooo busy! Not a problem! Check out my word walls and let me do the heavy lifting for you! My U.S. History word walls are TEKS-aligned and include pictures and definitions so you can focus on teaching!

Back to School!

Where did the summer go to? Is it really August? I can't believe I was just planning out the summer and all of my trips I wanted to take. 

But August sneaks up on me. Every. Year. And even though I am not in the classroom anymore, I still think about all the teachers out there, perusing the school supplies and thinking about what their students might need, what items might be too expensive for some parents to buy, and which items you will need no matter how many your students bring you (TISSUES!). 

The one thing that always weighs on my mind was my first year teaching. The lead teacher on my team handed me a textbook and said, "Figure it out. I am too busy to help you if you have any questions." I couldn't believe what I was hearing! So there I was, having to figure out what to do, even though I didn't know what I didn't know. 

That is why I am writing this list of essentials. I don't want other teachers to feel as helpless as I was the first few days (or weeks!) of school. I know you are probably thinking how you need to finish your classroom and get your copies made, so follow my list of back to school must-dos for teachers, and this will be a great start to the year!

• Make plans to go over class and school expectations for at least 2 class periods / days. Explain to students WHY you have these guidelines and expectations (p.s. I don't call them rules. Sounds icky). Having this set up from the beginning will help students realize what is and is not allowed in your classroom, and makes the year go more smoothly. 
• Print out your roster and assign each student a number. Then, write the number on a sticky note and place it on the corner of each desk. this way, when you are greeting your students at the door, you can let them know, "You will be seated at desk # ___" and there will be less confusion. 
• Have something for the students to do when they find their seat. This will cut down on the chit-chat, but it doesn't have to be something laborious. It can be a simple 5-minute get-to-know-you information sheet.  
• Get at least a week's worth of copies taken care of. You have no idea how many times the copy machine has broken down the first week of school! And it takes a couple of days for the repair guy to come out and fix the copier. If you use more digital items than paper, be sure to have your files backed up on the cloud AND a flash drive. We had our internet cut off accidentally the second day of school, and no one could access any of our files on the cloud.  
• Call some parents before school starts and let them know who you are and that you look forward to teaching their child this year. If you have a lot of students (one year I have 207!) then mail them a postcard. If you mail it for school purposes, the school most likely will pay for the postage. 
• Remember that it is ok for your room not to be Pinterest perfect! I sometimes didn't have all of my bulletin boards finished,  my posters up, or my supplies artfully arranged. Make sure you have YOURSELF taken care of first!