"In Flanders Fields" Art Exhibition & Silent Auction
Integrating Art with Social Studies

 Art is a powerful way to express one's feelings. Integrating art with social studies allows our future teachers to find creative ways to connect with history. Students in the Fall 2016 Social Studies Methods course created artwork to honor veterans. This fund-raising event is to aid the VFW's missions in supporting education and disabled veterans. See all artwork.

Resources: Integrating art with social studies

News release:
Before the event: USD News | The Equalizer |Yankton Daily |
After the event: The Plain Talk 

Writing Contest Honoring Veterans of Foreign Wars

Over the years, American men and women have served in the Armed Forces in times of war and peace. This writing contest is designed to promote student awareness of veterans' sacrifices and contributions to our society. 

This contest was initiated and organized by Jing An, sponsored by the Vermillion Veterans of Foreign Wars post 3061, and supported by the School of Education and the ROTC program at the University of South Dakota. 

News release: 
USD News | Yankton Daily 
​

Digitally Mediated Global Learning

​
​At the 2015 National Council for the Social Studies annual conference, Dr. Brad Maguth and I hosted a special meeting for scholars from around the world to start a conversation on ways to implement digitally mediated global learning projects that connect youth and pre-service teachers.

If Musical Instruments Could Talk...

Object-Based Learning (OBL), both in the form of field trips and classroom experiences, is generally acknowledged to have many benefits. Exploring the artifacts of material culture – encountering the “real thing” – can bring us closer to the past, help us make meaning of the present, and allow us to consider the future.  Music is one of the more pleasant ways to experience culture. Musical instruments, as artifacts of culture, provide us with direct links to all people of all time.  They continue to “play on” by reflecting a culture’s history, geography, and culture.  

Austin-Whittemore Museum
Clay County Historical Society

Local history is more than just years, people, places, and statistics. It is the art of bringing the past to the present and enables students to see the connections between the previous generations and themselves. Teaching about the local history by taking students to visit a local historical society gives students a larger appreciation for their town. My students found a field trip to the Austin-Whittemore Museum (Clay County Historical Society) an exciting and educational experience. Like one of my students said, "Being able to physically see and touch history is an amazing way to learn about it. It makes a personal experience and makes understanding history fun and exciting!"