When I became a 6^th grade World History teacher on November 18^th, 2013 I thought I had it figured out. All I had to do was walk into the classroom, create a fun relaxed environment, set up a few rules, let the kids know I was the “cool teacher,” and everything else would be a walk in the park. In my mind, I already had all the answers when it came to being a good educator… boy was I wrong.

The 6^th grade only school that I work at is a Title I school with nearly 75% of students receiving a free or reduced lunch.  Many of the children come from homes where proper parental involvement is fairly non-existent, which overflows to school and can lead to a somewhat chaotic classroom environment. A good majority of my time as a teacher has been focused on mastering the ever so frustrating art of classroom management. After entertaining the idea that students would respond better to a one-one-one conference as opposed to handling the misbehavior in front of the entire class, I learned that classroom management was not as easy as I believed it would be. It quickly became apparent I was going to have to give up my “Mr. Cool Teacher” persona and go for a more…intimidating one. Long story short, after using the new semester to establish new rules, boundaries, and procedures I have managed to gain better control of my classroom (it also does not hurt that I went to a Harry Wong seminar).

All that being said, my constant battle with classroom management resulted in less time to focus on my lesson preparations. I found myself searching the Internet for any help I could possibly find with world history lessons and project ideas. After spending countless hours surfing I found there are a decent amount of lesson plans available but not really any project ideas that give enough detail to make it worthwhile. Sure we can use foldables and posters and other basic ideas, but how can we really apply these concepts and make them fun and productive for the students?

That is where I come in.

I created this blog in order to share project ideas that I come up with during my teaching career. I will share not only the project theme, but also how it applies to the lesson, how my students react to the project, how my students perform on the project, what I possibly could have done differently to make the project more effective, and pictures to show step-by-step instructions.

My goal is to help other teachers who are simply looking for a way to spice up the learning environment and bring in some project ideas that might encourage learning in the classroom. I welcome anyone who would like to return the favor my way!