Re: Great Activities 4 Teaching Government + US & World Hist

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Sorry I did not see your post until now. As far as what kinds of
activities are included...it's hard for me to describe because
there are so many different ones and there's nothing I can think
of to really compare them to. Many of the lessons are great at
involving the class in a group activity. There are fun contests
and games that you can do with the whole class while other
lessons can be done by students individually. There's a nice mix.
The information included in the lessons is excellent and to-the-
point. I would say the lesson topics should work well with most
any US government curriculum as the information included with
them is good quality and to-the-point. But back to the activities
themselves, once I have gone through an activity with the
class...depending on the type of lesson, there is often times a
follow up 20 question quiz included. I have a pretty solid
routine now where I will go through one of the activities on one
day. Then for homework I have my students study the handout
sheets that were part of the activity, as well as have them read
a selection from our textbook that deals with the same topic as
the lesson. Then the next time I meet with those students, at the
beginning of the class period, I will give them the 20 question
quiz to assess their progress. The kids always know that there
will be a quiz at the beginning of each period testing them on
what they learned the last time we met, so I find this gives them
extra incentive to study and show up prepared. Once we are done
with the quiz, which does not take too long, I move on to the
next lesson/activity for the remainder of that period, and the
pattern continues. This program has worked very well for me.

If I was you, I would either email and ask for a sample or to be
honest, just buy one of the books from whatever series you are
interested in and see for yourself what is included. I know we
all have different styles of teaching and different students, but
for me I am sold on this stuff and I'm pretty sure at the very
least you would not be disappointed.

OH....and to the person who said "don't be lazy" in response to
my original post about using these lesson books, I find that to
be quite insulting. I am very dedicated to my career and to my
students. Just because I have not personally created every single
esson that I am using in no way makes me lazy. That is a
ridiculous statement. I found something that has helped out a lot
and my students have responded positively to the activities and
the structure in which I have developed within each class. To say
these lessons are mostly just worksheets could not be any further
from the truth. Sounds like you may be the one who is lazy as you
might not have taken the time to fully understand and or properly
conduct the activities.

On 1/01/12, historyteacher wrote:
> These look interesting. I wonder if you could describe what
> sorts of activities are included? I wish there was a sample
> to look at before purchasing.
>
> On 10/26/11, Joseph wrote:
>> I wanted to share something that has been great for me as a
>> someone who teaches government. I'm currently using a
>> program called "Lessons on American Government"
>> (reproducible lessons published by Learning Center USA) in
>> my classes. It has been a tremendous help. You can use
>> these materials exclusively throughout the year, or you can
>> mix in the lessons with some of your own ideas. I use it
>> right along with the textbook, but there's also a lot of
>> information in the lessons themselves. I'd be lost without
>> this stuff.
>>
>> If you go to learningcenterusa.net and click on "American
>> Government" you can get more info. I'd highly recommend
>> checking it out if you're in need of a great resource for
>> teaching US government. You don't have to buy the whole
>> program (there are 7 parts/lesson books)....although I did
>> because that way you can get it on CD and it covers the
>> whole course. Without a doubt, it's the best money I've
>> ever spent for my classroom. These lessons do a great job
>> of keeping my students awake and involved during class.
>>
>> There are also other programs available for US history,
>> world history, etc. If anyone actually benefits from this
>> recommendation, I'd be interested to know.
 

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