Robert Saunders Teacher - 5 great tips for history teachers The history course is one of the most exciting and interesting in the educational program for many students, as it allows them to learn about the most relevant events of the past and gain a better understanding of the evolution that humanity has had to date. However, sometimes it can become dense and heavy due to the many concepts, dates and names that are introduced. To avoid this, we offer a series of tips for history teachers with which you will be able to carry out the most dynamic and entertaining classes possible. How can you improve your history classes? When preparing classes, history teachers can introduce different resources and techniques to keep the students' attention and ensure that they have an active participation during the lessons. These are the key points that you should keep in mind. 1. Contextualize clearly and without confusion There are so many events that occur throughout history that it is normal for students to be confused with each other and mix events from different times. To avoid this, it is convenient that history teachers present simple and attractive diagrams that summarize the evolution of the different historical stages. 2. Prepare the narratives Building an engaging story is one of the most important tasks for history teachers. The beauty of this subject is that you have at your disposal countless stories to explain of great interest, but it is important to approach them in a way that excites the students. Therefore, you have to prepare a narrative with a beginning, middle, and conclusion that arouses interest and includes anecdotes from the lives of the main characters. A good way to do this is to plan it as if it were a book or a movie; You have at your disposal a series of real events and - without distorting or changing them - you can focus them at your convenience to generate a powerful narrative that manages to convey emotions. 3. Include movies and documentaries promptly There are great movies, like "Schindler's List" or "The Sinking," which reproduce the sensations and emotions of historical events in a way that is impossible to do through oral transmission. No matter how much we explain the horrors of Nazism, students will not be
able to be aware of their full magnitude until they see images that reproduce those events. Therefore, occasionally it is convenient for history teachers to put films or documentaries in class that you think can enrich the lesson and provide a greater background to the students.
4.
4.Knowledge competitions If we see that the mood of the students is down and most are bored with the lesson, it is time for knowledge competitions between groups. You can divide the class into different teams and ask a series of questions about the class topic to see who knows more. It is a good method to activate students and encourage them to have an active participation in the classroom. In addition, in this way they will have an incentive to learn the lesson and be more attentive 5. Visits to museums If in the location where you do classes there is a museum or place that may be relevant to the subject you teach‌ do not hesitate to visit with your students! History teachers should be constantly gathering information about exhibits and exhibits that are related to the topics they deal with, as they can be very enriching for students. Witnessing a monument or archaeological remains in person can help them better understand what the ways of life, customs and culture were like during other times. By following these tips, you can be a more complete history teacher and bring added value to your classes. In the event that you have other strategies or know other resources that may be of interest, do not hesitate to share them with us through our different social networks.