Transform your history classroom into a vibrant hub of inquiry with these five tips for creating questions that spark curiosity, critical thinking, and deeper engagement with the past. We’ve included examples and resources to get you started!
Tip 1: Start with the Standards
Begin by identifying the historical thinking skills and content knowledge you want students to develop. Align your questions with these standards to ensure your inquiry supports your curriculum goals.
- Example: If your standard focuses on analyzing cause-and-effect relationships, you might ask, “What were the long-term consequences of the Dust Bowl on American society?”
- Resource: Click the interactive presentation below to explore Historical Thinking Frameworks to support teaching these critical skills.
Tip 2: Invite Multiple Perspectives
Encourage students to consider diverse viewpoints by framing questions that invite them to analyze different interpretations of historical events.
- Example: “How did the American Revolution affect different groups of people, such as women, enslaved people, and Native Americans?”
- Resource: Explore the “Teaching Hard History” podcast from Learning for Justice for insightful discussions on how to highlight diverse perspectives in the classroom.
Tip 3: Make it Relevant
Connect historical events to current issues to demonstrate the ongoing relevance of the past. Pose questions that ask students to draw parallels between historical events and contemporary challenges.
- Example: “How does the debate over immigration in the 1920s compare to current immigration debates in the United States?”
- Resource: The Zinn Education Project offers a wealth of resources for connecting history to social justice issues.
Tip 4: Foster Debate
Craft questions that encourage students to analyze evidence, weigh different perspectives, and construct their own arguments.
- Example: “Was the Civil Rights Movement successful in achieving its goals?”
- Resource: The Facing History and Ourselves organization provides resources for facilitating classroom discussions on complex historical topics, helping students understand that history is shaped by the choices individuals and societies make.
Tip 5: Use Primary Sources
Ground your inquiry questions in primary sources to empower students to work like historians, analyzing and interpreting original documents, photographs, and other artifacts from the past.
- Example: Analyze a collection of letters written by soldiers during the Civil War to answer the question, “What were the motivations and experiences of soldiers fighting on both sides of the Civil War?”
- Resource: The Library of Congress website offers a vast collection of primary sources, along with helpful guides and teaching tools.
Ready to activate the power of inquiry-based learning? Explore course 5319: Cultivate Historical Thinking with Inquiry-Based Labs, and discover a wealth of strategies and resources to spark student engagement with the past!
Sarah Murphy is the Evaluation Manager and a Professional Learning Specialist at Teaching Channel. She holds a B.A. in History and a Master’s in Education. Sarah began teaching in 2004 at the elementary level. She now leads Teaching Channel’s Evaluation Team, managing our wonderful team of Course Evaluators. Sarah is also a coursewriter and content creator, specializing in edtech, educator wellness, and content area teaching.
Fun fact: Sarah has camped in 18 national parks and hopes to visit all 63 someday!
