 If you are in a position as a teacher to facilitate a conversation about what is happening in the country, I have two suggestions: Art (for young and old) and Keep It Anonymous (for middle school and up.) On January 7, 2021, my 8th-grade students were in a virtual learning environment. This meant that I watched the events of January 6, 2021, unfold in real time, and there was a good chance they did too. I've been thinking back to that moment as I am bombarded with images from Minneapolis. It's a rollercoaster of emotions that, as an adult, I struggle to process. Who knows how a developing mind makes sense of this barrage of news, images and violence. On January 7, 2021, I knew that I needed to navigate the events of January 6 carefully. The political climate was tense in my suburban district, with masking mandates, Covid surges sending us back to virtual learning, and a lot of fear all around. I used a PearDeck slide presentation focused on art, perspectives, and our earlier learning about Henry David Thoreau's civil disobedience. I also reconnected to our ongoing theme of citizens' rights and responsibilities. This teaching tool worked in that moment because students from every side of the political spectrum could share their understanding and concerns with me, and I could keep their ideas private. Those I needed to have a follow-up conversation with could be emailed or messaged. Many were scared. Some were confused. I look back at that moment as a time I rose to meet the challenge of the moment. My students did too. I teach high school now, but I plan to adapt my slides for the start of my second-semester classes for freshmen and sophomores. We are about to study WWII in US History and the Enlightenment and Rights of Men in World History. I'll share what I come up with here.
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What you love. What you are good at. What the world needs Today I found myself once again improvising a lesson with my advisory students, now sophomores. I'm not going to lie, I was selfish in my improvisation. I'd been thinking a lot lately about direction, paths and plateaus. I'm not planning another adventure, just considering the journey the led me to the career plateau I currently stand on. My view from this plateau clearly shows me how I got to where I am, but I can't see what's next. I don't want to stay on this plateau forever. Where am I going? Enter ikigai According to the Government of Japan website ikigai is, "a broad concept, it refers to that which brings value and joy to life: from people, such as one’s children or friends, to activities including work and hobbies." The concept has been altered by author Hector Garcia, who transformed it from a way of being and living on a Japanese island, to advice for finding meaning in life. In Garcia's view, finding lasting happiness and meaning comes from taking the time to deeply think about: What you love What you are good at What the world needs and What you can be paid for  Image from https://www.japan.go.jp/kizuna/2022/03/ikigai_japanese_secret_to_a_joyful_life.html I used this worksheet that I developed for a middle school Humanities course and I learned a little bit more about each of my students. I don't have the answer for each of them, but I did find clarity for myself. What do I love? Ideas, culture, making people feel welcome & comfortable, and curiosity The people I love to spend time with are endlessly curious What am I good at? I'm good at following my curiosity about the voices that are missing from the curriculum. (I wrote my whole dissertation about it.) I'm good at creating engaging lesson and helping students find relevancy in learning. I'm good at research and writing. I'm good at sharing those ideas with the world in a pretty accessible way. What does the world need (from me)? The world needs to feel more connected Americans need to see that we need each other and that includes our fellow humans around the planet, Americans need to understand the history they share with people who look different from them. We need to learn to stop spouting angry thoughts and start listening to other people's stories. Moving Towards Ikigai I'm leaving out one important element of ikigai - how can I create a sustainable life based on what the world needs, my strengths, and what I really care about?
I'm seeing clearly now that at this moment in time, I can't. Like this abandoned bridge on the south island of New Zealand, the strong foundation is there, the path is set, the destination is even in sight. So, do I wait? Dr. King said,""The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." But I need to help bend that arc and I need to do it now. I need to use my passion and skills to start empowering other educators to not be afraid of diversity and equity. Asian American activist Grace Lee Boggs said, "We never know how our small activities will affect others through the invisible fabric of our connectedness. In this exquisitely connected world, it's never a question of 'critical mass.' It's always about critical connections." Sharing strategies, lesson plans, and curriculum for including the voices of marginalized groups and individuals may not seem like the kind of "good trouble" John Lewis talked about, but hopefully it begins weaving the "invisible fabric of connectedness." Someday, hopefully, this will be my full ikigai, but until that happens, I'll keep walking on this plateau, headed towards the next mountain. Enlightened Students - A Silent Salon Discussion "I pledge allegiance to the republic..indivisible.. with liberty and justice for all." A meme has circulated since the summer of 2020 that said: Every day for 13 years we pledged allegiance and recited the words "with liberty and justice for all" - what did they think was going to happen? In 2025 we still recite the pledge every single day at the high school where I teach. Students honestly don't recite it. They stand. They stop talking but no one says the words anymore. Yet some of those words seem so very important and meaningful to me as a world history teacher in 2025. You see, we've just finished studying the enlightenment and wow, those are some powerful ideas. They were revolutionary ideas about natural rights - which we now would call human rights. Locke's idea about liberty and the government deriving it's power to govern from the citizens truly they changed the world. Those ideas have stood as a foundation for America since our founding almost 250 years ago. We are a republic and that means our form of democracy asks citizens to choose representatives to speak for them and fight for their rights at a federal level. But how do students feel about pledging their devotion to "liberty and justice for all?" Do the words ring true or do they sound hollow? I was surprised to find that many students do hold these truths to be self evident when I gave them a chance to speak silently. Silent Salon The idea for our silent salon discussion grew out of a need - how to capture just how groundbreaking and exciting salon discussions were during the enlightenment? In my 6 months as a high school teacher I've learned just how hard it is to get students to have discussions or to participate in class in general. The free-flowing sharing of ideas is what made the enlightenment so exciting. I know students have ideas and if you get creative enough, they will happily share them. The Lesson: I printed about 30 different questions on individual sheets of paper. These questions took the ideas of philosophers like John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Mary Wollstonecraft and translated them for 21st century students. A few questions were:
Snowballed papers were then redistributed. For round 4 we again crumpled papers, distributed and responded to questions. I collected all the papers when w were done. Reconnecting to learning I intended this activity as a warm up and an illustration of salon discussions, as well as an introduction to the big ideas of the enlightenment, but when I had time to read the responses from students I was pleasantly surprised at their thoughtfulness and empathy. They want their rights respected and the government held accountability. They believe that being curious about other people is how we learn and that nugget was a delightful surprise. When it was time to work on our enlightenment project - a poem, rap, or cartoon about one of the enlightenment philosophers, I used the students' own answers to create a mind map of key ideas I would include if I created a poem about the philosophy of the class of 2028. Questions are all here.    For one school year I taught history to seventh and eighth grade students at a school for Native American children. It was an experience that challenged every part of who I am as an educator and after a year of listening and trying very hard to learn with cultural humility, I collaborated with my students to create the Human Timeline of Resistance Project. The project was inspired by the humbling experience of learning Native American history to educate students who often knew more than I did. Resistance took many forms over the centuries, but truly the students I taught each day in their beautiful school that celebrated the cultures and languages of tribal nations was the most inspiring element of resistance. For peoples who the federal government tried to eradicate, their thriving existence is the ultimate resistance. Each of my eighth graders was filled with anticipation and excitement as they neared graduation. They were afraid and nervous of course, but also filled with a self-assuredness about their place in their culture. The Human Timeline of Resistance Project asks two essential questions: Can one person change the world? How is existence resistance? The purpose of this project is:
Knowledge gained:
How we did it:This unit started with an all class read-along of I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai. As we read, we filled in a character sketch of Malala. For each label (head, heart, legs, etc.) we added details that helped us understand what she had overcome and how she was an agent of change.  To launch our timeline building, we investigated a mix of modern art works, poetry and historical facts. From laws that banned interracial marriage to Indian Boarding Schools, students had the opportunity to choose how they wanted to reflect.  Students researched independently, developed their own questions and synthesized information with an authentic audience in mind. We thought about the younger students who would pass their timeline every day. What size font would make their ideas easiest to read? How much should they write so their ideas were clear but they also didn't overwhelm their audience? Crafting the model of an activist required a lot of trial and error. Ensuring that this final project reflected well on them and taught a lesson to the younger generation was an important motivating factor. It's important to consider these factors in eighth grade, when a special kind of "senior-itis" kicks in and distractions from anything other than school work abound.  Inspirational Awards At the end of the year I often give awards to every student that recognize their special gifts and contributions to the class. Never willing to miss the opportunity for learning, I'd used awards in the past that connected to historic figures. The Thomas Edison Award for "connecting" to classmates or the Muhammad Ali Award for not giving up, etc. These awards had always lacked gender parity and favored white men. So I created a whole set of awards based on our human timeline of resistance. My eighth grade students had already helped me connect each of their historic figures to the seven sacred gifts that guide the values of the school. As they received the awards, the seventh graders were curious to learn more about their historic person from the timeline. I was extra proud of the diversity represented in the timeline, and then the awards. Every student deserves to see themselves reflected in America's story but they also deserve to learn about heroes from other backgrounds so that they can build cultural comptence.      Self-directed learning is a concept I've work towards in my classroom for many years. The pandemic revealed for some students how other-directed learning feels vs how joyful self-directed learning can be. Both my seventh graders and eighth graders were in the thick of a project last week and I reached that dilemma point - how do I keep everyone moving forward even though they are all in vastly different stages? I printed the "what I need" tickets below and ask students to choose the description that fit them best, collect the required materials and tape the ticket to their desk. The color coding allowed me to quickly see who needed specific graphic organizers to keep moving forward. I knew who to prioritize and which students could have a little more freedom.  How often do students truly engage in self-reflection? We know middle schoolers spend a lot of time in their own heads, comparing themselves to others, but when asked to evaluate their own work they aren't always deeply reflective. With this system basically every student evaluated what they needed accurately.
A final upside to this system is that students see how many of certain colors are taken by their classmates. If they are in the red but few others are, they have a sense of how much catching up they need to do to be on track.  This reflection is the first in a series sharing some takeaways from my Pacific professional learning adventures. John calls Saipan home and traces his heritage to the Carolinian people who first arrived in Saipan to stay over a hundred years ago. Natives of the Carolinian Islands found their islands destroyed by a super typhoon. Unable to sustain their community, they sought a new permanent home in Saipan The Carolinians were seafaring people who knew how to navigate by the stars, sea, animals and air. Our group of educators from across the Mariana Islands and the United States visited John as part of an National Endowment for the Humanities "Saipan Land and Sea" program. This program helped me map stories in new ways and consider new ways to make meaning and weave stories of the past into relevant lessons for the future with students. John spoke to our group about learning traditional Carolinian ship building using authentic materials. Joseph and Ino spoke to our group about Carolinian culture as well. Joseph (right) rejected his culture as a young man until he left the island for college. He bristled at any association with his father - a well respected community member- because he wanted his own identity. As a middle school teacher I recognize this struggle in many students. They want to create an identity but they don't know how to go about it without destroying the community that is already embracing them. Ino, on the other hand, spoke to us of the culture he carries with him. He learned to be a wayfinder and sailed on ocean voyages. When asked how he began learning to navigate on the ocean using nature, Ino outlined two key starting points: listen to others first, learn to name all the stars, I marveled at the idea! Learn to name all the stars? How impossible! But isn't that how some subjects feel for our students? Don't they feel as though we are asking them to master an endless and overwhelmingly vast amount of information? For Ino, John, and famous wayfinder Papa Mau, the stars are learned through constellations and stories. This wisdom passed down through culture sharing and story telling. Wayfinders do not set off on a journey alone. With a team of six to twelve, they rely on community to help them navigate the weather and the challenges of life on the water until they reach a safe port. During our stay in Saipan, a group of student sailors and adults from Palau were resting and gathering provisions in preparation for sailing back to their island. The program, like the work Joseph does to teach Carolinian stick dancing and John does to teach boat making, is designed to keep the traditions and knowledge of the indigenous people of the Pacific islands alive. This program was also groundbreaking because it was the brainchild of a woman, as including women as wayfinders was not always accepted. At the boat-building hut we saw provisions piled up - like rice, bottled water, ramen noodles, crackers, and bananas. Remarkably, my friend Kat and I also had the opportunity to see the catamaran bound for Palau leave Friendship Cove as the crew embarked on their journey home. After hugs and goodbyes the boat unmoored and sailed off. On the shore the crowd waved and shouted more goodbyes. A conch shell was blown. Farewell and goodluck. How did they fare? What adventures did they experience on their journey? In eleven years I've wondered these same questions about my middle school students. I also wonder how well we are equipping them with the provisions they need to succeed in the 21st century. Do they have the right literacy tools? Will they think critically about the information they consume? Are they packing creativity and the ability to listen in order to collaborate with them?  As I reflect on this experience, I see that education is boatbuilding and wayfinding. As educators we have to prepare our students using the wisdom we have gained because education without knowledge is empty. However, we also must have the foresight and intuition of the wayfinder. What direction are the winds of change blowing? How can we spark the passion of curiosity in the mind of a future scientist, legislator or entrepreneur?
One thing is certain. We don't do this alone. Only in community do the Carolinians find strength. That community includes the wisdom of their ancestors and the hope for the future. Community means when you need to rest, someone will step up to help. Having a supportive community means someone will be there to help you notice the big picture. One of our Carolinian teachers told us about seeing a huge pod of whales swim under their boat when they sailed beyond the reef. He almost missed the whole event, but the crew all stopped to marvel and take in the beauty.
Several social studies state standards in Wisconsin ask students to connect the past with current events. We ask students to recognize historical patterns and make predictions about the present. In recent years we've realized that this is not a strength. When asked how we address or assess this standard, teachers often say - "I talk about it." Well, hearing someone talk about something does not equal learning. In looking for themes in history to build my student's background, the resources I found came up pretty short. I created my own, and I'm excited to use them as we study the legacy of WWI.
To develop these themes, I looked no further than my syllabus. Eighth-grade social studies are focused on US History from 1861-present; deep understanding and mastery of skills would not be possible if we skimmed the surface of such an extended period. We plan our curriculum around essential questions. This allows us to adjust the events we focus on from history while focusing on teaching skills to build up proficiency to meet the social studies standards.
While these may not be the traditional "themes of social studies," I feel confident that my students can relate to each one and will successfully identify these themes in history. I know they can see examples of these themes in current events. The experiment in April will be putting the past and present together. Stay tuned. 
 I can't find this original image anymore but the Teach Thought article about curiosity is still located here: https://www.teachthought.com/learning/4-stages-of-curiosity/ Taking a little extra time to focus on the why, I asked my students, "Why did I ask you to annotate this article about Texas Freedom Colonies?" Some students replied, "So we learn." Others said, "So we learn to annotate." They weren't wrong, but they also weren't understanding the underlying purpose of showing connections between reading and thinking by annotating. That's when I knew it was time to show them this cool graphic with my favorite mascot, Curious George. I explained that as I read their annotations some of them will be at stage 1-"Tell me what to do." But as they prepare to go to high school, I'm going to help them wanted them move to stage 2- "This is interesting. I'd like to learn more." Then when they have enough knowledge, we will move together to stage 3 where they will transfer their knowledge to create something new. . I'm halfway through my time with these kids, and I should be able to get out of the way. They should be able to find a spark and show their interest. But should is different from will. So when it was time to tackle a longer article jam-packed with new ideas, I knew I had to rethink my process. I didn't want to sacrifice learning because of low student stamina. The idea of splitting an article into chunks to jigsaw is familiar, but the success we had with annotating small bites of an article really felt like a win. In an informal closure poll, I asked, "Was it easier to read one paragraph?" YES! Much easier! "Did you still learn something?" YES! Here's what we did: 1st: I split the article into the 12 most valuable paragraphs. I made some minor edits so that a section could stand alone. Each student received their own worksheet, like the one below, with specific instructions, including underlining, drawing, defining keywords, annotating, and summarizing.  I still have 2-4 students in each class who tried to avoid this assignment. They did a little underlining and stopped. They went to the bathroom. They did nothing. The brevity of the assignment meant I could conference with them and be sure they finished. There is nowhere to hide with just one paragraph in front of you. When everyone was finished - less than 10 minutes - they brought their sheets to the front of the room and hung them up based on whether they did show evidence of "power to the powerless people" or not. With so much evidence stacked up on one side, we had a fantastic visual to create an argument. This article clearly showed power to the people, but we couldn't ignore the evidence contradicting the supporting evidence.  The contradiction is where history lies. Reconstruction was a period that showed promise and even power being given to the powerless, but that power was very short-lived. Now we have the curiosity to explore the rest of the story.
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AuthorErin McCarthy is the 2020 Wisconsin Middle School Teacher and Wisconsin's Representative to the National Teacher of the Year Program. Archives
September 2025
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