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THAT WAS FUNStephanie
BACKGROUND Thinking back on your childhood and adolescence, can you remember a teacher teaching something that was particularly interesting and memorable to you? What was being taught? How was the teacher teaching it? Why do you think it was such an effective learning experience for you? As a junior in high school in Advanced Placement US History, we were met at the door to our classroom by our teacher and told not to go in. Once the class period began, a few student whom she had talked to prior to the class joined her. They were dressed as sailors/pirates and each had a roll of masking tape in his hand. We were told to follow their directions and do just what we were told. The classroom was completely dark and all the desks were pushed to the side. As each of us walked into the room, our hands were taped together, much like manacles. We were then led to the center of the classroom where we had to lay down on the floor, and then our ankles were taped to the ankles of the people to our left and our right. Sound of the ocean were playing and we were told not to talk. Once the whole class was inside, the teacher told us to imagine that we were on a slave ship, that we had to stay in the position we were in for months, and that the movement of the ship made us seasick. We were told to close our eyes and imagine the feeling, the smell, and the overall sensation of being a slave on a slave ship. This was an amazing experience because it gave us the opportunity to feel what the slave trade was all about. It was a total sensory experience, using our entire body in learning. I leaned more from that experience than I could have from any lecture. Home | Power of Teaching | Believing is Seeing | Truth or Consequences | That Was Fun |
