Have Students Think Like Historians with “History Change Frame”!

 Have Students Think Like Historians with “History Change Frame”!

History Change Frame is a learning strategy specifically designed for history classrooms. The point of the strategy is to force students to think like historians, focusing on concepts such as change over time, problem/solutions, the motivations of people groups and the interconnectivity of history. 

The first step of History Change Frame is the identification of key groups within a given historical text by the students. For example, if students are reading a document about the The French Revolution, the groups might be the First Estate, the Second Estate, and the Third Estate. Students can either use the text or prior knowledge to complete this step. Students should identify at least two groups, but can use more. Once the groups have been identified, they should be listed on a graphic organizer under the “Groups” section. 

Once the groups have been identified and listed, the students can begin reading through the text. While reading, they should also be completing their graphic organizer. Next to the “Groups” section, there will be sections for “Problems”, “Changes”, and “Solutions”. This means, for each group, students should also identify a problem faced by the group, the changes that resulted in said problem, and the methods the group used to try to solve the problem. For example, some problems faced by the Third Estate were poverty and starvation. Changes that led to these problems include natural disasters, famines, irresponsible government spending, and urbanization. Some attempted solutions for these problems were an overthrow of the monarchy, an establishment of a Republic, and a wave of mass executions. When the same information is filled out for the First and Second Estate, the student becomes closer to fully understanding the scope, motivations and continuity of the French Revolution. 

When it comes to identifying changes, there are six main types of historical change that students should pay attention to. They are economic, political, cultural, population, technological, and environmental. Continuing the same example of the Third Estate during the French Revolution, natural disasters are an example of an environmental change. Financial crisis is an example of an economic change. And urbanization is an example of population change.  Whether or not the students are asked to include the type of change within the graphic organizer up to the teacher. 

Once students complete the graphic organizer, they now have an excellent and comprehensive summary of a historical event from multiple perspectives. This can be used as a great springboard for deeper discussions, reflection, written assignments or major projects. Furthermore, if History Change Frame is used multiple times throughout a unit, students can come to appreciate a fuller scope of change, development and the contingency of seemingly unrelated historical events. 

History Change Frame can be modified in several ways. Instead of people groups, students can use individuals, countries or even ideas/philosophies/political orientations. If students are gifted, they can also include supporting textual evidence or be required to make connections to other events in history. For struggling students, certain parts of the History Change Frame can be pre-completed. For example, a list of groups can be provided, relieving the student of the pressure and potential confusion of identifying distinct groups within the text. 

While History Change Frame is explicitly designed for history classrooms, it can be used in other content areas as well. One way to use it in any subject is to focus on the history of said subject. For example, you can have students complete a History Change Frame for a reading on the Scientific Revolution, the development of mathematical schools of thought, or general trends and artistic movements within the world of literature. It can also be effectively used in a literature classroom using groups/characters within a novel to analyze their motivations. 

History Change Frame is a great way to help students comprehend complex historical material, engage them on a deeper level and provide them with the experience of thinking like historians! Also, with a few modifications and some creativity, the activity can also be used in classrooms of other content areas to great effect!

Bibliography

“Think like a Historian.” Multi Genre Literacy Plan, https://multigenreliteracyplanltm.weebly.com/think-like-a-historian.html#:~:text=According%20to%20Doug%20Buehl%2C%20%E2%80%9CHistory,%2C%E2%80%9D%20with%20loads%20of%20information.