This spring I was looking for something to give my students and myself
a boost at the end of the year with high engagement for everyone. This was my
first year back in the classroom after 11 years as an Instructional Coach. I
wanted to end this great school year in an exciting way. Because of my love for
genealogy and my desire to bring history and geography to life for my students,
I decided to unite the two into an integrated unit that would provide
opportunities to apply all of their freshly acquired skills.
Reuben Sigfred Johnson was my grandpa’s youngest brother. He had a very
interesting story of travel and adventure in the 1920’s and 30’s and I have always
wanted to write about it or display it in some way but could never find the
right medium. A lesson plan for 22
second graders was the last thing I thought I would decide on but it has really
been the best way I’ve found to work within Reuben’s life story.
I introduced Uncle Reuben to my second graders by telling them some
stories about him and showing them some pictures from my genealogy files. The
fact that he lived to be 100 and I knew him personally intrigued them and by
the time I started telling about the different modes of transportation he used,
I had them hooked. The next question for me was how to use the power behind
this story to create excitement that would last until the last day of school.
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