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printed from Jon Bergmann interview with Ron Kotlik, Social Studies Teacher,Clarence High School, Clarence, NY :
http://jonbergmann.com/flipping-social-studies-class-class/
Ron is also the director of the Education Technologies Program at Canisius College (Buffalo, NY). Students can earn a Master’s degree online in Education Technologies. Please visit: http://www.canisius.edu/education-technologies/ for more information.
When Ron first started flipping his classes he spent a lot of time creating videos, but then he was left with the all-important question of what do you do now IN CLASS? In keeping with the theme of story, he is having his students create digital stories. One common assignment he has them doing is to create their own documentaries. This allows the students become the storytellers/documentarists of history. In order for them to create these documentaries well, there are a number of skills they need to master.
- Research: Students must do extensive research on their topic. Research is a key element of the Common Core State Standards and this sort of project is ideal for helping students master the research standards.
- Write a script: Writing is such a critical part of the learning process and gives students an authentic task to complete. Ron reports that the students’ writing skills have improved through the script writing process.
- Selection of appropriate resources: The documentary videos contain images, video clips, and other media. During the research phase of the process, students have to decide which media conveys best the message of the script and if the media is appropriate for their film.
- Acting/Voice Over: Public speaking and reading through the script allows students to add their voice, make the final video authentic, and gives students a place to shine.
- Collaboration: Because students work in groups, they learn interdependence, specialization, and how to get along with others.
- Real audiences: The best videos are used for Ron’s students next year to introduce some historical concepts. So his students are creating the videos which he will use to flip his class for next year.
- Technical Skills: Students spend hours editing the videos. During the editing stage they are making countless decisions about when to zoom, when to pan, which image is best, when to add voiceover, etc. These technical skills help students learn how to create an interesting and engaging video. I believe video production is a new literacy in the 21st Century which needs to be taught to our students.
- Student Documentary examples:
- Battle of Marathon - Greek Unit Middle School
- Mr. Matera
- http://www.mrmatera.com/2013/02/take-the-field-how-to-recreate-a-battle/
- juniorgeneral.org.
- Juniorgeneral has paper troops you can use to recreate battles from ancients to modern armies. The site has posted rules, scenarios and printouts. With these tools you have everything you would need to recreate a battle. Awesome! Upon finding the site, I dove right in. While teaching my Greek unit, I attempted to recreate the battle of Marathon. I found the armies, printed them out, and created what I needed for the battle. It wasn’t hard, but is did it take some time. Let’s see what happened in class. You can download my armies here. Cut them out and tape them to sturdy base I used poster board cut into little stands.
- Armies Used:
- The Battle of Marathon:
- Before the students arrived. Battle all setup and ready to get started.
- Before the students arrived. Battle all setup and ready to get started.
- The night before, students read a brief synopsis of the battle. They knew the major players and understood what was at stake for Athens and the whole of Greece. They came into class ready for battle. When they entered class the next morning they were struck by the scale of the battle. I had created a map of the battle on the floor using masking type. As their creative juices were flowing they started to see the waves of soldiers in formation. Darius’ troops pressed against the sea; Miltiades and the Greeks are the only thing standing in their way to victory over the city of Athens.
- I walked students through the rules of the simulation found here. This was an easy process. The rules are fairly straight forward. Then that battle began. It was amazing. Every student was focused and working their hardest to bring victory to their side.
- In my four sections of World History it turned out to be an even split between the Persians and the Greeks with two victories each. Students playing the role of the Greeks, felt the pain of the Persian Arrows, while the students playing the role of the Persians felt the sting of the Greek Phalanx formation. Students saw firsthand what a battle might have looked like. They were in command of a huge army. They felt the pangs of fear as their flanks started to fold in. When the two armies collided together fear and excitement rushed through the student generals.
- Suggestions for you…
- § Plan ahead – it take a bit of time to make all the pieces. You could have some students help you do this or just make them in front of your favorite show.
- § Make sure you give students a good amount of background knowledge on the battle before it takes place. This level of familiarity helps their creative minds elevate the activity.
- § Think outside the box. Take a look around at juniorgeneral.org and think of the many ways you could use a tool like this in your teaching.
- § TRY IT ONCE! You have nothing to lose and so much to gain. Please feel free to download my directions here and my paper cutouts here. If you are thinking of giving it a try shoot me an email or tweet.
- Video promotion of my Battle of Marathon
Activity
Student created documentaries project::
Research, Script writing, using primary sources, acting, voice-over
Explore-Flip-Apply
George Phillips
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