Bring History Alive: Interactive Exercises And Lessons
How can you bring history alive in your classroom? One way is to visit a local historical site: a museum, a battlefield, a historical building, a farm, or other geographic site. Go to an historical re-enactment. If you are limited to the classroom however, here are some suggestions to make history come alive.
Do your own re-enactment of important historical events. If you are studying the Constitutional Convention of 1787, have the students each play a representative to the convention. Have the students prepare their speeches, learn the basic philosophies and political realities of their representative. Have a debate. Make sure the students stick to the positions of their respective representatives. After the debate, have a class discussion on their experience and how they view the various perspectives of the different representatives, including their own. They can then write an essay on their experience.
If you are studying a political campaign, have the students re-enact it. Let’s use the campaign of 1860 as an example. Include the opinions of Lincoln, Douglas, Breckinridge, and Bell. Then divide the class into supporters and opponents of the various candidates. Have a debate, and moderate to ensure the students stick to historical realities. Have students write an essay on the experience.