Big History Project BHP General, Big Questions

Big Q connections for the classroom: What can everyday objects teach us about history?

BHP Team Note from the BHP Team: We’ve kicked off this month’s Big Question article by John Vardalas with a deep dive into the history of a familiar object – the magnetic compass. If we use this object as a starting point, what can other everyday objects teach us about history? Whether you’re interested in … Continue reading Big Q connections for the classroom: What can everyday objects teach us about history?

Big History Project BHP and ELA, BHP General, Getting Started

What’s wrong with rigor? BHP will shift your mindset

by Bart Shaffer, BHP teacher Washington, USA Will my students just shut down? Can they really succeed with this amount of reading and writing? There’s no way they can keep up with this pace! This is TOO HARD! I teach at the most diverse high school in the state. With 58 languages spoken and kids … Continue reading What’s wrong with rigor? BHP will shift your mindset

Big History Project BHP and ELA, BHP and STEM, BHP General, Getting Started

Why I now teach BHP as a full course

I first heard about the Big History Project a few years ago, at a presentation by Bob Bain at the National Council of the Social Studies. The course intrigued me. Why? Well, like many teachers, I was concerned with history so frequently being presented as “one darn thing after another”—simply a list of facts to memorize and forget after the test.