Using Whatever's Lying Around

In her new book Lafayette in the Somewhat United States, (which you should immediately read) Sarah Vowell briefly describes how she (an art history major) goes about writing history books.

"Having studied art history, as opposed to political history, I tend to incorporate found objects into my books. Just as Pablo Picasso glued a fragment of furniture onto the canvas of Still Life with Chair Caning, I like to use whatever's lying around to paint pictures of the past - traditional pigment like archival documents but also the added texture of whatever bits and bobs I learn from looking out bus windows or chatting up the people I bump into on the road."

She gives voice to my approach in teaching stories of the past. Though I use traditional sources like books, research, and academic journals - I mostly love to talk about history through the prism of music, artists, popular movies, coffee consumption, punk rock,  jokes, Star Wars characters, and the English Premiere League. I will pull every string, and look under every stone to find a connection between the past and our modern lives (however ridiculous) - and the fact is that my life experience, and particular interests, are typically the low hanging fruit for connectivity is just the lay of the land..

As a teacher, my personal life experience (and interests) should not be denied, but should be used as much as a possible as a direct line of connection between history and student learning. When Simon Bolivar reminds me of my uncle, I share this with the students - explaining the personality traits of both.

And when we are studying the Hanseatic League, and looking at an image of the German city of Lubeck, and a student points out that it resembles the opening to the TV show "The Office," I run with it. 

In discussing Kublai Khan's ancient palace of Xanadu, I cue up Olivia Newton John's 1980 hit of the same name.

While discussing the rise of the Abbasid Caliphate, a student questions the background of ISIS - so we run with it, looking up information and unpacking it together.

The Young Turks of the Ottoman Empire?  I play Rod Stewart's 1981 hit, "Young Turks," though it has no relation...


But it has every relation!  It provides another source of connection between ourselves, and our past, which is often good enough.  Just because Young Turks is a pretty bad eighties song doesn't mean it can not provide a service for our interest  in history.  If nothing else, we at least get to have a discussion about Rod's hair styling choices, and that terrible guitar solo.....  

Silk Road {Time Lapse}

Studying ancient world trade networks remains one of my favorite topics to introduce and discuss with students.  The constant exchange of cultures, and subsequent syncretism that has occurred to create a whole new world of culture is fascinating to me.

This time lapse video does a great job of encapsulating the journey, and the energy of the world's oldest trade route....



Timelapses from the Silk Road from Chris Northey on Vimeo.

Lets. Do. This. {Back to School Edition}

The. Greatest. Tour. Guide. Ever. at Independence Hall. 

Every year around this time I get the itch. And the itch is for a return to the palpable kinetic energy of a high school classroom. My summer was amazing, as I was able to make more meaningful memories with my family and friends. That, and spending most of these past two months outdoors is just the thing to get my psyche back in balance. But as August dawns, I once again feel the drum beat of teaching nudging me. 

I am optimistic that I am in store for another amazing year. I can not wait to meet new kids, and get to know their families. I am excited about wrestling with new ideas, and hearing new music ( a huge benefit to teaching teenagers).   And I am excited about planning another field trip in May, taking us somewhere in America - just like Chicago and Philadelphia before. These kids are inspirational, and always help me grow. 

As always, I will try to mix things up this year.  Between the content, projects, and essays - I am always looking for something new.  For instance, in an effort to inspire more curiosity from new angles - my first semester AP World History class will (hopefully) be completing a class read with a fantastic book The History of the World in Six Glasses.  This book attempts to tell " the story of humanity from the Stone Age to the 21st century through the lens of beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and cola."  In addition, we may take another opportunity to work with UNC Chapel Hill"s Center for International Understanding program, working with a class of high school students in India - something that inspired us all last year.


But mostly, each year I simply become more fully aware that teaching is my passion.  So, I can not wait to get back in the saddle.  I am even excited about grading essays....almost.

Let's.  Do.  This.  

The Problem That We All Live With (Should Schools Integrate?)

In teaching American history, my classes spend a lot of time attempting to gain a more complete understanding of  a variety of supreme court cases.  A few of these cases concern school integration - and I often feel that my educational experience can help shed light on the topic.

As a kid, I grew up in a city (Winston-Salem, NC) that had mandatory busing to integrate the schools. (This was court ordered as a result of the supreme court case Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg School System in 1970).  The system looked like this: I attended an elementary school that was in the suburbs, where I lived.  African-American kids from the inner city took a 45 minute bus ride out to our school.   For middle school, it was me ( and other suburban white kids) who had the long bus ride to the inner city.  Then, we all returned to the suburbs for high school.  Overall, this system succeeded in integrating our schools.  Until my final years in high school, I never knew that many places in America had an educational experience without mandatory busing.

Since the mid nineties, most cities (including Winston-Salem) have abandoned mandatory busing in favor of magnet school programs - simply allowing for family choice in schools (In Winston-Salem, this has essentially resegregated the public schools there - where one elementary school is almost 100% African-American and Latino, with 98% free/reduced lunch - and another is 88% white, with 15% free/reduced lunch). In addition, school systems are trying numerous strategies to combat the massive gap in test scores between minorities and white students.

The NPR podcast This American Life recently took on crucial questions about our school integration experiment of the 1980s, including:

• Was it successful?  
• Did mandatory integration of public schools help close the achievement gap between minorities and white kids?  
• Is it still necessary to make sure kids of different races attend school together?

As a product of this integration experiment, I applaud TAL for their willingness to wrestle with such a complicated topic.
Click here to hear the podcast The Problem That We All Live With

Kendrick Lamar {comes to your school}

This is rad.  Just a public school teacher...doing whatever it takes (via NPR).
Bravo.

The City of Brotherly Love {Smells like Teen Spirit}

 Every time I travel with my teenage students, it reignites the fire inside of me to be a teacher.  Don't get me wrong, adults are fantastic, and having my wife along on this particular trip was especially incredible.  But travelling with that teenage spirit of curiosity, wonderment, and insatiable energy is second to none....


Making the decision to take our high school kids to different cities throughout the USA easily ranks as one of the top five greatest decisions of my teaching career.  I have written (and reflected) about these trip before, but suffice to say that this particular trip to Philadelphia only confirmed my feelings.

These kids rarely see boundaries to their world, and most are just impatient to experience it.   So, when we take 74 of them to the fifth largest city in America, it can feel nerve racking.  But it is simultaneously exhilarating - and always helps me see these cities with fresh eyes. So, though their impatience can often lead to recklessness - it also leads to greatness, and definitely leads to adventure.

And we all learn so much about ourselves, as well as each other. From walking the Gettysburg battlefield, to riding bikes through downtown Philadelphia, to learning to use selfie sticks - or even carrying the heavy emotional weight of the Holocaust museum - we are all better for it.

I just hope that the kids got as much out of this trip as I did.

Best Of WNC (NBHS)

Hey guys - If you get a chance, follow the link below and write in North Buncombe High School for "Best School" (It is in the Kids section)


Vote HERE for NBHS!