Evan Leuenberger 1

TE 302

Its Alive!
Bringing History to Life through Reading and Writing in the
Classroom
At the start of the semester, when I thought of the word literacy, I
defined it only in terms of the ability to read the written word. From my
experiences in Waverly Middle School to the readings assigned for this
course, I have reconsidered and grown my definition of the word, taking into
account the multiple manifestations the word literacy can entail. I think of
literacy now as the ability to comprehend and articulate information gained
from any medium, be they books, movies or any others. I have come to
understand that though an essential component to every discipline, literacy
plays a particularly large role in the social studies classroom. It is the
responsibility of myself, and all other future teachers, to incorporate multiple
forms of literacy into the classroom so that students can learn to think about
and challenge the world around them.
When it comes to the reading materials used in the classroom, the
textbook isnt always the most useful, and in fact, it can sometimes be more
damaging than good. It is important to keep in mind that school texts can
act as colonizers, making only certain foreign or outside knowledge and
Discourses valid (Moje 43). When it comes to classes like American history
or world history, textbooks can give students a warped impression of events
that can prove damaging. In VanSledrights discussion on the topic, she
writes that textbooks often favor indoctrination rather than education, so

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as a teacher, it will be my responsibility to bring a wider range of

perspectives into the classroom (VanSledright 217). These perspectives can
range not only from different types of people, but whole different types of
sources as well. Its important to keep in mind that teachers can employ
many different forms of representation to construct knowledge of one
conceptdifferent genres (e.g., narrative, expository, poetics, music),
different symbol systems (e.g., print, graphs, tables), and different semiotic
systems (images, sound, and performance) (Moje 102). At Waverly, much of
the class reading material comes from books and worksheets, though
historical movies were sometimes used which proved more entertaining and
sometimes more informative than traditional texts.
The reading tools used in the classroom are another essential part of
literacy in the social studies field, in the way that they allow the reader to
process and better utilize the information theyve read. Reading tools can
vary, both in terms of the purpose of the tool and in regards to audience.
Sometimes reading tools are most useful for the student themselves, such as
the writing-reading notebooks mentioned in the works of Tovani and Rief.
Other ways to facilitate critical thinking are the use of Blooms Critical
Thinking Cue Questions or other formats of questions which aim to move
beyond the who and when and focus instead on the whys and the
impact events or people had. Finally, authentic discussion promotes critical
thinking and allows for the deep examination of enduring themes and
essential questions (McCann 5). It is important that students work with one

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another and talk about more than just the facts and surface level of history,
because oftentimes its the essence of history that is most informing. In my
days spent at Waverly, oftentimes authentic discussion was pushed aside in
favor of recitation, and while helpful for test preparation, it doesnt challenge
the students in a way that allows them to grow.
In my future classroom, I plan to find ways in which the materials
covered and the topics themselves, are made relatable and fun whenever
possible to better engage the students. Some of the key components needed
for improved reading achievement include integrating information across
multiple texts, relating textual meanings to personal experience, and
composing complete messages in the form of stories and reports for actual
audiences (Moje 220). Texts shouldnt be only about long dead old white
men who the students feel have no connection to their everyday lives.
Instead, to learn literacy well, students need meaningful purposes for
engaging in literate practice and opportunities to use literacy for a broad
range of life activities related to goals and desires beyond the moment of
instruction (Hull). At Waverly, the students read about Abraham Lincoln and
struggled to remember which number president he was instead of
celebrating his impact on this country, both in the past and his legacy today.
It will be my job as an educator to teach my students not only the who and
where but also the why and more importantly, why it matters to their lives
today.

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An essential part of teaching literacy in a social studies classroom is

about setting up the material in such a way that it puts the students into the
history theyre learning about. This is key, as situating a sense of self within
history holds the potential to elide parochial tendencies and extend and
sharpen ones self in relation to the world (VanSledright 201). My students
will be able to demonstrate their literacy discussing the implications and
lessons that history is able to teach us. I hope to take a page out of
VanSledright and go about teaching American history less as a collection of
facts and details wrapped up in a narrative bound between hard covers and
more as a running argument about what those details meant (VanSledright
218). At Waverly there is little to no discussion about the differing opinions in
history, and most information taken from the textbook is taken at face value.
Instead, in my classroom, I want to teach my students to always question the
narrative and to ask themselves who wrote the history and what were their
motivations for doing so.
Spending this semester at Waverly Middle School taught me a lot
about literacy in the social studies classroom, both in terms of techniques I
hope to adopt, and in terms of ones I need to avoid. On the one hand,
technology was used often and varied; the students have classroom iPads
which they use for various purposes in the classroom. Most often they are
used for playing Kahoot!, which acts as a way for the students to test their
literacies on a given lesson in a way thats potentially fun. When overused
however, as is done in the classroom Ive been assigned to, it becomes just

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another classroom activity, void of its original appeal. In a similar vein,

worksheets are the norm in the classroom, and the students differ only in
whether theyre sleeping through or copying off their neighbors. Worksheets
can be appropriate and useful, though like all things they should only be
used in moderation. Overall my time spent at Waverly gave me the
opportunity to work with another experienced teacher with a style different
from mine, and Ive grown from that experience.
Literacy is an interesting term, as much a concept as it is a word, and
as such it means different things to different people. In my classroom,
literacy will be considered in terms of my students ability to consider
thoughtfully and complicate materials assigned in class and to bring life
experiences into dialogue with the texts. It is my goal as a teacher to help
my students develop the skills to be attentive and conscious citizens.

Work Cited
Council of State School Officers. (2007). Blooms Critical Thinking Questions
and Question-Answer Relationship.
Hull, G. A., & Moje,, E. B. (2012). What Is the Development of LIteracy the
Development Of? (pp. 112). Presented at
the Understanding Language, Stanford University: Stanford University.
McCann, T. M., Johannessen, L. R., Kahn, E., & Flanagan, J. M. (2006). Talking
in Class. In Talking in Class: Using

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Discussion to Enhance Teaching and Learning (pp. 114). Urbana,

Illinois: National Council of Teachers of
English.
Moje, E. B. (2002). Reframing Adolescent Literacy Research for New Times:
Studying Youth as a Resource. Reading
Research and Instruction, 41(3), 211228.
Moje, E. B. (2004a). Working toward third space in content area literacy: An
examination of everyday funds of
knowledge and Discourse. Reading Research Quarterly, 39(1), 3870.
Moje, E. B. (2008). Foregrounding the Disciplines in Secondary Literacy
Teaching and Learning: A Call for Change.
Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 52(2), 96107.
Rief, L. (2007). Writing: Commonsense Matters. In Adolescent Literacy:
Turning Promise into Practice (pp. 189208).
Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Tovani, C. (2004). Do I Really Have to Teach Reading? Portland, ME:
Stenhouse Publishers.
VanSledright, B. (2012). Learning with Texts in History: Protocols for Reading
and Practical Strategies. In Adolescent
Literacy in the Academic Disciplines: General Principles and Practical
Strategies (pp. 199226). New York:
Guildford Press.