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Developing Historical Thinkers

Supporting Historical Inquiry for All Students

Bruce A. Lesh

Publication Date: August 25, 2023

Pages: 312

Series: Research and Practice in Social Studies Series

Available Formats
PAPERBACK
ISBN: 9780807768761
$39.95
HARDCOVER
ISBN: 9780807768778
$120.00
EBOOK
ISBN: 9780807781937
$39.95
Developing Historical Thinkers 9780807768761
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  • Description
  • Author
  • Reviews
  • Contents
  • Awards

Description+

“Filled with excellent examples of model lessons and units, any social studies educator will find this book a valuable addition to their professional library.” —CHOICE

2024 American Historical Association (AHA) James Harvey Robinson Prize for Teaching Aids

This practical book addresses the consistent questions that were posed by secondary social studies teachers during professional learning sessions. In particular, it examines ways to break through the inclination and perception expressed by many teachers that “my kids cannot do that.”

Drawing on 22 years as a high school history teacher, 7 years as a state-level curriculum specialist, and extensive work with inservice teachers across the country, the author provides research-based guidance for engaging students in investigating the past. Lesh examines ways to develop effective questions that guide historical inquiries, utilize discussion in the classroom, and align assessment to inquiry. He also shows teachers how to incorporate difficult histories within an inquiry framework. Each chapter uses a specific lesson, framed by student work, to illuminate approaches in real classroom scenarios. Topics include the Pullman Strike of 1894, the Marcus Garvey question, Dust Bowl Migrants, the LGBTQ+ fight for rights, and multiple lessons from World War I.

This follow-up to the author’s book "Why Won't You Just Tell Us the Answer?" fills in gaps and expands tools and classroom examples to assist today’s teachers.

Book Features:

  • Offers ways to promote teacher growth as it pertains to historical thinking.
  • Demonstrates how to align investigating the past with the needs of reluctant readers and students with special needs.
  • Provides lesson materials and instructional guidance.
  • Addresses how to teach difficult subjects, such as LGBTQ+ history.
  • Aligns historical literacy with inquiry-based instruction.

Author+

Bruce A. Lesh is a former high school teacher in Baltimore County Public Schools, curriculum director at the Maryland State Department of Education, past president of the Maryland Council for the Social Studies, and vice-chair of the National Council for History Education. He has been recognized as the Organization of American Historians Teacher of the Year, and the Maryland Secondary Social Studies Teacher of the Year. He received the 2024 National Council for History Education (NCHE) Paul Gagnon Prize for a Significant Contribution to the Promotion of History Education.

Reviews+

“Filled with excellent examples of model lessons and units, any social studies educator will find this book a valuable addition to their professional library.”

—CHOICE

“Bruce Lesh applies the ideas of historical thinking to practical lessons more effectively than any other history educator. His in-depth discussions and thoughtful hands-on ideas serve as fantastic guides for a lively history classroom.”
—Fritz Fischer, professor, University of Northern Colorado; chair, Council of Distinguished Advisors, National Council for History Education

“Once again, Bruce Lesh has provided social studies teachers and teacher educators with a valuable tool for understanding the process of teaching historical thinking. As only an experienced teacher can, Lesh acknowledges the realities of the classroom and offers a vision of what might be if teachers were to prepare young people for 21st-century civic engagement. Lesh shows that with the proper support, students can do the cognitively and emotionally difficult work of constructing rich historical understandings of even difficult topics. He broaches the oft-neglected topics of assessment and discussion, supplying classroom-tested and research-supported instruction methods. With a conversational style and self-deprecating humor that makes his writing a pleasure to read, Lesh describes how to immerse students in historical inquiry, nurturing in them the understandings, skills, and dispositions that make the social studies an essential part of the curriculum.”
— Jeffery D. Nokes, assistant professor, Brigham Young University

“Imagine discussing history teaching with a smart, experienced, and passionate colleague who understands and can help manage the challenges we teachers face. Imagine a rich conversation with practical tips and approaches to inquiry-based teaching grounded in research and years of experience. Sound attractive? Then put on a fresh pot of coffee or pour yourself a cup of tea, and sit down with Bruce Lesh’s new book Developing Historical Thinkers for a wonderfully productive conversation. I’m confident you’ll enjoy and benefit from spending time with Bruce.”
—Bob Bain, associate professor of history and educational studies, University of Michigan

“In Developing Historical Thinkers, Lesh makes the process of building students’ historical thinking visible to us. Bringing together his own History Labs and national resources like Stanford Historical Education Group, the Right Question Institute, and the C3 Teachers Inquiry Design Model, this book is ideal for those hungry to make the shift to inquiry-based historical thinking. How inspiring for teachers seeking to take the first step toward changing classroom practice, for social studies leaders looking for a practical approach to building systems for historical thinking, and, more importantly, for each student awaiting the opportunity to develop a way of thinking that will last a lifetime.”
—Pier Larsen, director of pre-K–12 social studies, Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District, Carrollton, Texas

Contents+

Contents

Preface  ix

Acknowledgments  xiii

1.  “But My Kids Cannot Do This . . .”: Challenging Perceptions About Historical Investigations  1
My Why, Part I  2
The Stanford History Education Group (SHEG)  6
My Why, Part II  7
The Inquiry Arc  8
Professional Learning  10
The History Lab 2.0  10
The Only Constant Is Change!  18
Conclusion  20

2.  “Yes, Your Students Can Do This”: Historical Investigation for All Students  23
A Road Map  25
Teaching Up  27
Build Scaffolds  28
In the Center Ring, Inquiry Versus Coverage and Control  30
Scaffolding to Success  32
Making the Inquiry Question Accessible for All  34
Adapting Historical Sources: Political Cartoons and Images  36
Modifying a Text Source  44
Scaffolding the Process  50
Conclusion  54

3.  “Is Every Day a Lab?”: What Happens Between History Labs?  57
The Twinkies of Lessons  58
“Is Every Day a Lab?”  58
Seriously, No Trench Foot, or Tanks, or Mustard Gas?  59
Woven Into Every Unit  62
Where Are the Investigations!?  96
What Happens Between History Labs?  100

4.  “Is There an Easy Way to Develop Questions . . . ?”: Sorry, No  103
One-Stop Shopping  104
The Engagement Cliff  104
The Brain and Questions  107
Why Questions in Social Studies?  107
Organizing the Mental Bedroom  108
Types of Questions  109
We Learned That in October—You Mean I Was Supposed to Remember That?  111
Unit-Wide Questions  114
Building Lesson-Level Questions  116
Coverage Demands Choices  118
“Would You Have Your Students Debate Slavery?”  119
Open Versus Closed Questions  119
The People in the Past Were Stupid  121
The Tug of War Between Relevance and Accuracy  122
A Little Sex Appeal Goes a Long Way  122
Historical Categories of Inquiry  123
Types of Questions  124
It Is Iterative and Recursive and Frustrating (But Also Exciting)!  133
Marcus Garvey: The Evolution of a History Lab Question  134
Having Students Develop Their Own Questions  138
Conclusion  141

5.  “Discussion Is for Classes Like Foreign Language”: Expanding Discussion in the Classroom to Deepen Student Facility With Historical Thinking  143
Please, Not Another Strike!  144
Not Going to Do It  146
Let’s Talk  148
It Is Not Just Debates  148
“I Don’t Feel Comfortable”  149
Teacher Talk Moves and History  153
Building Student Capacity for Discussion  156
Scoring and Feedback  159
The Pullman Strike of 1894  160
Source-Based Testimony  163
Setting the Stage  163
A Hearing Is Now Called to Order!  165
Discussion and Pullman  165
Conclusion  169

6.  “My Kids Felt More Seen Today”: Teaching Hard Histories  171
Why Hard Histories?  173
Controversial Issues and Hard Histories  175
Hard Histories and Inquiry  177
LGBTQ+ History  181
Getting By With the Help of Some Friends!  182
Why the Lavender Scare?  183
The Investigation  188
It Wasn’t Just Stonewall  196
“No Union Is More Profound Than Marriage”  203
“What’s the Big Deal?”  212

7.  Avoiding the Shame of the Scantron Machine: Assessing Historical Thinking  215
Social Studies Assessments  216
I Took Tests; Weren’t They Assessing My Historical Thinking?  217
Instruction and Assessment Disconnect  218
No Dates, No Names—Then What Do I Assess?  220
What Tools Are Available for Teachers?  222
Formative Assessment Tools for Historical Thinking  224
“Not Another Essay!”: Exploring Alternative Summative Assessments  230
Conclusion  251

Conclusion: “I Don’t Always Mention Those Words”: The Power of Partnerships  255
Initiating the Partnership  256
The Planning Meeting  256
Intervisitations  257
“I Don’t Always Mention Those Words”  257

References  261

Index  283

About the Author  295

Awards+

2024 American Historical Association (AHA) James Harvey Robinson Prize for Teaching Aids

2024 National Council for History Education (NCHE) Paul Gagnon Prize for a Significant Contribution to the Promotion of History Education, for Bruce A. Lesh

$39.95

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Print copies available for US orders only. For orders outside the US, see our international distributors.

Books In This Series
AI in Social Studies Education
AI in Social Studies Education
Youth Participatory Action Research in Your Classroom
Youth Participatory Action Research in Your Classroom
The Theory-Story Reader for Social Studies
The Theory-Story Reader for Social Studies
Teaching Culturally and Linguistically Relevant Social Studies for Emergent Bilingual and Multilingual Youth
Teaching Culturally and Linguistically Relevant Social Studies for Emergent Bilingual and Multilingual Youth
Teaching Data Literacy in Social Studies
Teaching Data Literacy in Social Studies
Teaching Villainification in Social Studies
Teaching Villainification in Social Studies
Place-Based Social Studies Education
Place-Based Social Studies Education
Civic Engagement in Communities of Color
Civic Engagement in Communities of Color
Developing Historical Thinkers
Developing Historical Thinkers
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