Document-based writing, which is a staple of the College Board Advanced Placement assessments, have been implemented in high school AP classes at D.C. Everest over the past two decades. Over the past two years, DBQ writing has been practiced in the junior high at 8th grade U.S. History and 9th grade American Institutions. Recently the process of writing essays with primary sources has been extended to the Middle School as well. The D.C. Everest Social Studies Department 6-12 held a one day workshop on DBQ writing for its staff 6-12 and invited Phil Roden to speak about the DBQ Project. DBQ writing is a fabulous way to improve writing skills while promoting thinking in the social studies classroom! Historyteacher.net as well as Peter Pappas' blog are two outstanding sites to learn about DBQs.
3 comments:
Paul, Thanks for the mention. I've borrowed a few ideas from your excellent blog, as well.
Your readers might like my new post "The Student As Historian" - they can download a SlideShare with DBQ Resources and Strategies http://bit.ly/gdX59p
Our district in Omaha, NE has also adopted this practice in our junior high and high school course on American History. I also use them to help my diversified classrooms prepare for standardized tests they have difficulty understanding and connecting with. Showing students these documents early will increase their reading and writing skills as they get more practice with them. Then when they see questions on their High Stakes tests in laguage similar to that on many primary source documents, they will feel more empowered. It's nice to see some enthusiasm about this topic in other places. Too many times I hear the negative about everything districts try. It is refreshing to hear some positive things once in a while. Thanks,
How can DBQ's activities also help with teaching cultural diversity and cultural understanding?
Post a Comment