Who Better to Embrace Hstory With then Ben Franklin!

Surprisingly while sitting in class collaborating as a group, a visitors comes in! The best part about the visit was it was no other then Ben Franklin!! Wow! Who would have thought Ben Franklin would have been in our classroom! He might have not been the real Ben Franklin, but he sure was close enough to being REAL! As adults we don't realize how imagination, make believe, and dress up can change the atmosphere! It really can. There is so much to learn in social studies and it doesn't have to be based on memorization, and facts. History is still so real and alive and we can make it EXCITING!! When Ben Franklin (the actor) walked in he brightened the room and changed the atmosphere. The class became more relaxed, excited, and engaged! What I learned from this experience is that simple things can come a long way when teaching to students. If you make history fun and worthwhile, students will be engaged and most importantly learn. They can connect more meaning to history when exposed to real life events and when they are engaged.