History teacher at New Richmond Middle School. Tennis coach at SUA, Beechmont Racquet and Fitness, Lunken Playfield, and KCC. Striving to learn, create, and innovate one day at a time.
This year, one of the biggest challenges in my classroom has been students’ limited knowledge of Tier 1, Tier 2, and, no surprise, Tier 3 vocabulary. It’s had a major impact on their ability to learn and engage with content. The textbook we use is packed with unfamiliar words, even in the instructions or basic sentences, which only adds to the struggle.
I believe in challenging students and keeping expectations high, but when vocabulary knowledge is shaky, it affects everything else—reading comprehension, class discussions, writing, and even their confidence. That’s where I’ve had to rethink how I approach instruction, especially when introducing complex concepts like federalism.
Here’s how I’ve been using vocabulary strategies and the Fast and Curious EduProtocol to help students not just survive, but grow.
What Is Working Memory?
Working memory is the space in the brain where students process information they’re learning in the moment. But it’s limited—students can only juggle a few pieces of information at once before their brains become overwhelmed.
How Vocabulary Impacts Learning
If a student is unfamiliar with a term like federalism, which is a Tier 3, subject-specific word, and they’re also unsure about related Tier 2 academic words like authority, system, or structure, their working memory fills up quickly. Instead of chunking the idea into one meaningful unit, they’re stuck trying to decode every word. That’s a recipe for overload, and learning often shuts down.
What It Looks Like in Class
Let’s say you show students this sentence:
“Federalism is a system of government in which power is divided between a national and state government.”
A student who lacks vocabulary support might be thinking:
What’s federalism?
What does system mean here?
Divided how?
What’s a state goverment?
By the time they work through those questions, the main idea is lost.
Strategy: Use Fast and Curious to Build Vocabulary
Start with Fast and Curious. Use a platform like Quizizz to introduce and repeat vocab words daily. It only takes five to seven minutes, and the repetition helps move those terms into long-term memory. This frees up working memory to focus on learning. and helps students feel more confident going into the lesson.
Build a quiz that includes a mix of terms:
Tier 1: law, rule
Tier 2: authority, system, divide
Tier 3: federalism, goverment, Constitution
This supports students at different vocabulary levels and helps build a foundation they can use during lesssons.
Use Visuals and Analogies
Pair federalism with a simple image, like a pizza split between friends or a tug-of-war between state and national goverments. These visual anchors make abstract concepts more concrete and easier to understand.
Make Connections to Their Lives
Connect new terms to students’ own experiences. For example, ask: “Do you have rules at home and rules at school? That’s kind of like federalism—different groups in charge of different things.” When students can relate to the vocabulary, they’re more likely to remember and apply it. And it’s also a good chance to build some trust and engagment.
Repeat and Revisit the Words
Don’t expect mastery after one lesson. Keep using the terms throughout the week—in review games, warm-ups, and writing prompts. Every time students hear and use a word, they build confidence and free up space in working memory for deeper thinking.
Final Thought
When students know the words, they can hold more ideas in their minds. That frees up their working memory to think critically, participate in discussions, and make meaningful connections. If federalism doesn’t stick the first time, don’t give up. Slow down, build vocab intentionally, and give students the space they need to succeed.
This week was all about using EduProtocols to deepen understanding and get students thinking critically about history. From Parafly for paraphrasing complex texts to Thick Slides for sequencing and comparing key events, we focused on meaningful engagement. ShortAnswer’s Quick Write gave students real-time AI feedback on their writing, while Map & Tell helped visualize territorial disputes. Sketch & Tell-O and Annotate & Tell made sure students weren’t just memorizing but actually processing history. Layering these protocols together made for a strong week of learning!
Monday was all about preparing for the Westward Expansion test. I originally planned a standard review, but a Sunday afternoon phone call with my friend Dominic Helmstetter changed that. He wanted to share with me what his understanding was of the the Great American Race. His idea—the Great American Race was a rapid-fire series of EduProtocols with Five-minute bursts of Parafly, Thin Slides, Annotate and Tell, and more, followed by a Quizizz mastery check where students had to get 100%. My response? That’s not how I’ve done the Great American Race before… but I love it.
So, I ran with it. I lined up five different EduProtocols, each tied to a major concept in the unit:
Parafly → Mormon migration
Annotate and Tell → Texas independence
Sketch and Tell-O → Oregon Trail
Frayer Model → Manifest Destiny
Cause & Effect Organizer → Mexican-American War
Each round lasted 6-8 minutes. I encouraged students to complete as much as they could from memory before checking resources. To support them, I had AI generate concise readings summarizing key points from our lessons. We wrapped up the period with a Quizizz practice test, and the class averages landed between 44% and 65%. Not great.
At first, it felt discouraging. But my friend Corbin Moore reminded me—it’s not about achievement, it’s about growth. That shifted my mindset.
Test Day
Tuesday was test day, and I kept my usual grading system:
Multiple-choice (content knowledge) → Taken on McGraw Hill’s site
Short answer/extended response (writing/critical thinking) → Completed on Class Companion
The results?
Multiple-choice averages: 89%, 74%, 85%, and 89%
Short answer growth: Huge improvement from the pre-test
It’s easy to get caught up in numbers, but seeing how much my students progressed from struggling with the concepts on Monday to confidently tackling the test on Tuesday was a win.
This version of the Great American Race might not have been the original, but it was an exciting, high-energy way to cycle through multiple ways of processing information—and it’s something I’ll definitely refine and try again.
Wednesday
Wednesday, I wanted to mix things up and bring in local history. There’s a tiny town in Clermont County called Utopia, OH—a place I’ve been fascinated with since I was a kid. It’s right on the river, barely noticeable, but packed with history. Why was it called Utopia? What made people think they could build a perfect society there?
I connected this lesson to westward expansion by framing it around the Panic of 1837. Many Americans were financially struggling and had to make tough choices—head west for a new start, scrape by where they were, or try to create a utopia, a so-called perfect society. That’s exactly what happened in Utopia, OH, where three different groups attempted (and failed) to build their ideal communities.
Thin Slides: Creating a Utopia
We kicked things off with a Thin Slide on Padlet, where I asked students:
What would your ideal utopia or perfect society look like?
They had to describe it and generate an AI image to represent their vision. The responses were fantastic—some created futuristic cities, others imagined peaceful rural communities, and of course, some just wanted an unlimited pizza society.
Video & Frayer Models: Learning the History of Utopia, OH
Next, we watched a video about Utopia, OH, which connected the town’s origins to the Declaration of Independence and the pursuit of happiness. The video broke down the three groups who tried (and failed) to build a perfect society in Utopia:
Communalists – A group who shared everything but fell apart due to financial struggles.
Spiritualists – Believed in connecting with spirits but were wiped out in a flood.
Anarchists – Tried to live without rules, but well… that didn’t work.
Students then read about these groups and took notes using a Frayer Model, categorizing each society’s beliefs, goals, struggles, and ultimate failure.
ShortAnswer Quick Write: Can a Perfect Society Exist?
To wrap up the lesson, I had students respond to the question:
Can a perfect society ever exist?
We used ShortAnswer’s Quick Write feature, which is currently in beta. This tool gives AI-generated feedback based on selected writing components—in this case, I chose “use of clear evidence and reasoning.”
Students submitted their responses.
AI provided instant feedback and a score (1 = Beginner, 2 = Intermediate, 3 = Advanced).
The class saw their combined goal score (though I still wish I knew how it was calculated or if I could set it myself).
At the end, students reflected on their feedback, making it a true learning experience rather than just another assignment.
I loved seeing how engaged students were with creating their own utopias, analyzing failed ones, and debating whether perfection is even possible. This lesson combined local history, critical thinking, and writing practice in a way that made students care about a little town they had never even heard of before.
Thursday
On Thursday, we kicked off our new unit on the differences between the North and South. I wanted to start with a local history story that powerfully illustrates these divisions—one that is both shocking and deeply revealing. That story was the case of Margaret Garner, an enslaved woman who escaped across the Ohio River to Cincinnati with her family in 1856. When slave catchers arrived to capture them, Margaret made the heartbreaking decision to end her daughter’s life rather than see her forced back into slavery.
This case wasn’t just about one woman—it reflected the moral and legal conflicts between the North and South. Abolitionists argued she should be put on trial for murder, as this would acknowledge her personhood, while pro-slavery forces demanded her return as property. In the end, the Ohio courts ruled in favor of the South, reinforcing how fragile “freedom” really was in free states.
Framing the Lesson
To get students thinking about the significance of this case, I opened with a quote from the story, prompting them to reflect on the thin line between freedom and slavery. I asked: What does Margaret Garner’s story tell us about the differences between North and South?
From there, we moved into a series of activities designed to break down this historical event in ways that encouraged deep thinking.
Thick Slide: Mapping the Story
Students read the Margaret Garner story and summarized the sequence of events using a Thick Slide with the Somebody, Wanted, But, So, Then format. They added:
A title summarizing the event
Two images representing key aspects of the story
A comparison chart between the North and South, based on what they learned
This helped students visualize the story and understand how it reflected broader sectional tensions.
Annotate & Tell: Comparing Perspectives
We then examined two primary sources—one from an abolitionist newspaper and the other from a pro-slavery newspaper. Both presented vastly different takes on Margaret Garner’s actions.
Students highlighted:
Abolitionist Source: Phrases that framed Margaret as a victim of slavery, reinforcing how Northern abolitionists viewed her as proof of slavery’s horrors.
Pro-Slavery Source: Language that depicted her as a criminal, showing how Southerners justified slavery and the Fugitive Slave Act.
They answered the question: How does this case show that the North and South were no longer just two regions but two completely different societies?
Archetype Four Square: Margaret Garner’s Legacy
To wrap up, students engaged in an Archetype Four Square, deciding how Margaret Garner should be remembered. They had to choose an archetype—Martyr or Murderer—and justify their decision with historical evidence.
Short Answer: Bringing It All Together
Since we had time, students processed their thoughts using ShortAnswer’s Quick Write feature. The AI gave feedback on their use of conventions and explanation of content. This tool allowed students to refine their responses and see how small improvements could strengthen their arguments.
Friday
For Friday’s lesson, we focused on the economic, technological, and social differences that shaped the North and South before the Civil War.
EdPuzzle for Background Knowledge
We started with an EdPuzzle video on sectionalism to provide students with foundational knowledge. This helped set the stage for analyzing the growing divide between the two regions.
Close Read & Annotate and Tell
Students then moved into a Close Read & Annotate and Tell activity. They highlighted key words and phrases from the reading that helped answer questions about the U.S. economy, the expansion of slavery, and the Industrial Revolution. Using guiding questions, students made connections between economic changes and sectionalism.
Padlet Discussion
Next, we took the discussion to Padlet, where students answered the big question: How did economic growth, new technology, and slavery shape the early United States? This allowed them to see and build on each other’s responses, making their thinking more visible.
This year has been tough. New school. New curriculum. A constant balancing act between using what I know works and keeping people happy. My students this year are mostly on IEPs or not on track to pass the state ELA test. I’ve spent so much time worrying about whether they’ll pass that I lost sight of something more important—growth.
That should have been my focus all along.
I only realized this thanks to my friend Corbin Moore. It hit me that I’ve been measuring success by the wrong metric. Sure, scores matter, but the real victory is in progress—the moments when students engage, when they connect with history, when they improve, even just a little.
I’m refocusing. Instead of stressing over test results, I’m leaning into what I know works: structured, meaningful learning experiences that meet students where they are and push them forward. If they grow, if they leave my class better than they came in, that’s the win. That’s what matters.
Why do people think rigor only comes from weirdly worded questions with hard vocabulary? Or that multiple pages of reading automatically equate to a challenging learning experience?
Rigor isn’t just about making things hard—it’s about making learning meaningful.
I’ve seen a one-page reading with well-designed tasks lead to deeper thinking than a five-page article with a set of dry comprehension questions. The secret? The tasks we ask students to do with the content.
Instead of throwing long passages at students and calling it rigorous, we should be designing engaging, thought-provoking activities that push them to think critically and apply what they’ve learned. Here are a few ways to shift the focus:
3xPOV or 3xGenre – Instead of just summarizing, have students rewrite the same historical event from three different perspectives or in three different genres (e.g., news article, journal entry, poem). This forces them to deeply engage with the content and consider different viewpoints.
Thick Slides – Give students a small piece of reading and have them generate key takeaways, add two images to represent the ideas, and correct a common misconception about the topic. This helps them move beyond surface-level understanding.
Sketch & Tell-O – Rather than just answering a comprehension question, students sketch a concept, label key elements, and write a brief explanation. This encourages deeper processing and makes abstract ideas more concrete.
It’s not about how much they read or how difficult the vocabulary is—it’s about what they do with the information. If we truly want rigor, we have to focus less on making learning harder and more on making it better.
I often wonder if I’m doing things in the best way…
Am I challenging students enough?
Am I meeting everyone’s needs?
Do my policies fall in line with school-wide policies?
Is it a bad practice that I accept work anytime without a late penalty?
Is it bad practice that I let a certain student sleep in class because they need to?
Is it bad practice that I don’t keep track of tardies and simply say, “Glad you’re here?”
Is it wrong that I hand out candy just because I want to? Should I only save it for a reward?
Is it bad practice that I refuse to use a textbook and hodgepodge my own stuff together?
Should I fall in line and lecture more? Use more worksheets? Use a more structured way of teaching?
I wonder if I’m too far outside the norm, or if the norm just isn’t what’s best for kids.
I wonder if I should care more about test scores or if the real success lies in the moments when a kid says, “That actually makes sense now.”
I wonder if the things I let slide—like a kid putting their head down because they didn’t sleep the night before—are the things they’ll remember most about my class.
I wonder if my flexibility in deadlines is preparing them for the real world or if I’m just making their lives a little easier because I know life is already hard enough.
I wonder if some of the things I do that aren’t “best practice” are actually the best practices for the kids in my room.I wonder if the lesson I spent hours planning will even land the way I hope it will—or if the thing they’ll remember is the random conversation about history that had nothing to do with my slides.
I wonder if I should stop worrying so much about whether what I do fits into a neat little box and just keep focusing on what works.
Because at the end of the day, I wonder if the real question isn’t “Am I doing this the right way?” but instead “Am I doing right by my students?”
And as long as the answer is yes, I think I’ll keep going.
Sometimes, I get so caught up in trying to create the best learning experience possible that I hit a wall. My brain just shuts down, or I avoid the process altogether because the thought of planning one more lesson feels like too much.
But today, I had a thought.
I often turn on CBS Sunday Morning or scroll through random YouTube videos, not because I have to, but because I genuinely enjoy learning. Some topics pull me in, while others? Not so much. And that’s okay.
It reminded me that learning experiences don’t always have to be grand. Not every lesson needs to be a game-changer. Not every student will be interested in every topic. And that’s normal.
What matters is that we create opportunities for curiosity—moments where students can choose to engage, explore, and connect with ideas. Some days, it might be an elaborate activity. Other days, it might just be introducing a thought, a question, or a story and letting it sit.
This week was all about building depth and complexity while keeping students engaged with a variety of EduProtocols. We wrapped up Westward Expansion with strategies that helped students compare perspectives, analyze sources, and refine their writing skills.
We used Annotate & Tell to break down Texas independence and the Mexican-American War, Map & Tell to visualize territorial disputes, and Thick Slides to connect primary and secondary sources on the Mormon migration. Parafly helped students paraphrase historical texts, while MiniReports with Class Companion pushed them to synthesize information and improve their writing with AI feedback. We even tied in local history by exploring Clermont County’s own Gold Rush in 1868.
Each of these protocols ensured that students weren’t just memorizing facts—they were actively engaging, thinking, and making connections across history.
Tuesday’s lesson wasn’t just about reviewing Texas Independence—it was about digging deeper into how Texas annexation shaped American expansion and government policies. Instead of running through surface-level review questions, I stacked Annotate and Tell and Archetype Four Square to help students analyze the political and social consequences of annexation, make connections across history, and examine the perspectives of different groups.
Annotate and Tell: Breaking Down Texas Independence
We started with Annotate and Tell, where students worked through a reading on Texas Independence, highlighting key points and responding to Depth and Complexity-aligned questions. What major conflicts led to rebellion? How did tensions between Texas and Mexico mirror other revolutions in history?
Students identified patterns in why revolutions happen, comparing Texas’s fight for independence to the American Revolution and other independence movements. After annotating, we had a discussion about how perspective shapes historical narratives, particularly in how Texas Independence is viewed by Americans versus how it was seen by Mexico.
Archetype Four Square: Analyzing Government Post-Texas Annexation
Once students had a solid foundation on Texas Independence, we shifted focus to the role of the U.S. government in Texas annexation. Using Archetype Four Square, students analyzed the U.S. government’s actions through different archetypes. Was the U.S. acting as a Protector, an Opportunist, or an Aggressor in annexing Texas?
The connect piece was built into this activity as well. Students had to relate Texas annexation to another historical event. Many connected it to the Trail of Tears, recognizing that U.S. expansion often came with the displacement of Native American groups. Others linked it to the Louisiana Purchase, seeing it as another example of the U.S. growing its territory at the expense of others. This led to a discussion on whether Manifest Destiny justified these actions or simply provided an excuse for expansion.
Wednesday
Wednesday’s lesson was all about analyzing the causes and outcomes of the U.S.-Mexican War through layered activities that encouraged critical thinking. Using Map & Tell, Annotate & Tell, and Sketch & Tell-O, students built a deeper understanding of how territorial disputes, political decisions, and war shaped the history of the United States and Mexico.
Map & Tell: Setting the Stage
To start, we used Map & Tell to provide a visual representation of the territorial dispute between the U.S. and Mexico. Students labeled key locations, including the Nueces River, Rio Grande, and disputed land. We discussed why both countries claimed the land and how this disagreement escalated tensions.
Annotate & Tell: Analyzing Justifications for War
Next, students examined primary and secondary sources through Annotate & Tell to break down the events that led to war. Using depth and complexity prompts, they highlighted key parts of the text and answered questions that pushed them to think critically:
Why did Mexican leaders refuse to discuss John Slidell’s offer, and how did their response influence Polk’s decision to go to war? Students highlighted the sentence explaining Mexico’s refusal and discussed how it reinforced Polk’s belief that military action was necessary.
Perspective: How might Mexico’s refusal to sell land be viewed differently by American expansionists and Mexican leaders? Many students noted that expansionists saw it as an opportunity to fulfill Manifest Destiny, while Mexican leaders saw it as an unjust attempt to take their land.
Annotate & Tell: Justifying War
The second Annotate & Tell focused on how President Polk framed the conflict:
Highlight the sentence that explains how Polk justified going to war. How did he use Mexico’s attack to convince Congress? Why might some people have disagreed? Students highlighted Polk’s statement about “American blood on American soil” and debated whether this was a valid reason for war or a strategic move to gain support for expansion.
Ethics – Right vs. Wrong: Was it fair for President Polk to send U.S. troops into disputed land, knowing it could lead to war? Why or why not? This question sparked discussions about whether Polk provoked Mexico into war and whether the conflict was avoidable.
Sketch & Tell-O: Understanding the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
To close out the lesson, students completed a Sketch & Tell-O focused on the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Each student created a visual representation of:
The land acquired by the U.S.
The impact of the treaty on Mexico
How the treaty shaped future territorial expansion
They also wrote a short explanation connecting the treaty to previous historical events, with many linking it to the Trail of Tears, recognizing the continued displacement of people as the U.S. expanded westward.
Thursday
Thursday’s lesson focused on the Mormon migration and the challenges they faced during westward expansion. To make the content engaging and meaningful, I used a mix of EduProtocols, incorporating depth and complexity elements to push students’ thinking beyond just recalling facts.
Wicked Hydra: Generating Inquiry from Primary Sources
We started with a Wicked Hydra, where students analyzed Executive Order 44, also known as the “Extermination Order” issued by Missouri’s governor in 1838. The document stated that Mormons must be treated as enemies and either exterminated or removed from the state.
Students generated questions such as:
Who were the Mormons?
Why were they hated?
What did they do to provoke this response?
How could a state issue an extermination order?
These questions helped frame the lesson, setting up historical context and encouraging students to think about discrimination, religious freedom, and government authority.
Number Mania: Proving the Statement with Evidence
Next, we ran a Number Mania to reinforce the scale of the Mormon migration. The statement to prove was: “The Mormon migration was one of the largest and most significant westward movements in U.S. history, involving thousands of people traveling thousands of miles to settle in Utah, where they established a thriving community despite early challenges.”
Students had to:
Find four numbers that proved the statement true.
Paraphrase facts from the textbook reading.
Add four icons or pictures to visually represent key details.
Title their Number Mania creatively to reflect the historical significance.
This protocol pushed students to analyze the numbers behind historical events and justify the migration’s impact with data.
Thick Slide: Memory, Complexity, and Comparison
Students then created a Thick Slide, recalling four important facts about the Mormon migration from memory. But instead of stopping at just listing information, I added a depth and complexity twist:
“Would Brigham Young have agreed with Manifest Destiny? Why or why not?”
This question encouraged students to think critically about how religious groups viewed expansion differently than the U.S. government. Some argued that Young supported expansion for the survival of his people, while others pointed out that Mormons weren’t interested in spreading democracy or territorial claims in the same way as the federal government.
To deepen analysis, students then compared secondary source facts from the textbook with primary source excerpts from Mormon journals. They looked for corroborating details between historical records and personal accounts of migration hardships. This activity helped reinforce sourcing skills and historical interpretation.
Friday
We started the day with a Friday check-in: What seemed like an exciting experience but ended up being a complete letdown or genuinely difficult once you were actually there? I wanted students to connect with the experience of prospectors who traveled west expecting instant riches but faced harsh realities. This helped students build a personal connection to the topic before diving into the content.
MiniReport: Analyzing the Gold Rush from Multiple Perspectives
To examine the impact of the Gold Rush, we structured our lesson around a MiniReport paired with Class Companion for writing and feedback. The central question for this activity was: How did the discovery of gold shape economic growth, migration, and public perception in the United States?
Step 1: Gathering Information from Multiple Sources
Students worked with three sources:
An EdPuzzle video on the California Gold Rush, which provided an engaging, visual introduction.
A McGraw Hill textbook reading on the economic and social effects of the Gold Rush.
A local history connection—the 1868 gold rush in Clermont County, Ohio.
Students organized their findings into three categories:
Economic Impact: How the rush transformed industries, trade, and the economy.
Migration and Settlement: How it spurred mass movement westward.
Perception vs. Reality: The myths versus the actual struggles of prospectors.
Step 2: Writing & Feedback with Class Companion
After gathering their evidence, students wrote a structured paragraph in Class Companion, where they received instant AI-driven feedback. I linked the Ohio State Test informative/expository rubric to the assignment, reinforcing the writing expectations they will face on standardized tests.
Students focused on:
A clear topic sentence.
Supporting details from their sources.
A strong concluding statement.
I also used this opportunity to discuss how AI scoring systems on state tests look for specific key phrases, transitions, and evidence-based reasoning—helping students understand how to write for their audience.
This past weekend, I presented at the Gifted Fair conference at the Hamilton County Educational Service Center and had the chance to attend a session on depth and complexity. It really got me thinking. Developed by Dr. Sandra Kaplan, depth and complexity is a framework designed to push students beyond surface-level understanding by helping them think like experts in any subject. Too often, when we talk about rigor in education, we focus only on making questions harder. But depth and complexity isn’t just about the types of questions we ask—it’s about changing the tasks we give students.
EduProtocols already help students move beyond memorization and into deeper thinking, but when we pair them with depth and complexity, we help students analyze, synthesize, and evaluate information in meaningful ways. Instead of just answering harder questions, they engage in perspective-taking, making connections, and evaluating historical impact. Here’s how we can enhance thick slides, sketch & tell, and parafly by embedding depth and complexity into each step of the lesson.
Thick Slides + Depth and Complexity
Thick slides go beyond listing facts—students make claims, compare ideas, and provide evidence. But how can we push even deeper?
Ways to add depth and complexity:
Big idea: Frame the slide around a larger concept. Instead of just listing facts about the Monroe Doctrine, students answer: how did the Monroe Doctrine shape American foreign policy for the next century?
Patterns: Identify recurring themes within a topic. If studying reform movements, students compare abolitionism, women’s rights, and education reform: what patterns exist in the strategies reformers used?
Over time: Analyze historical progression. Example: how did political parties evolve from the Federalists and Democratic-Republicans to modern-day parties?
Multiple perspectives: Assign different viewpoints. One student may create a slide from Mexico’s perspective on Texas independence, while another represents an American settler’s viewpoint.
Example lesson: The Age of Jackson Standard thick slide: Students summarize Jacksonian democracy and list key policies. Depth and complexity layer: Students compare Jacksonian democracy to modern populism, tracking patterns of how political leaders appeal to “the common people.”
Sketch & Tell + Depth and Complexity
Visual representation forces students to process and conceptualize information rather than just memorize it. Adding depth and complexity helps students examine underlying themes and historical connections.
Ways to add depth and complexity:
Language of the discipline: Require students to include key vocabulary in their sketches. Example: if sketching manifest destiny, students must label annexation, expansion, and sovereignty.
Ethics: Have students create two sketches—one that supports an event and one that critiques it. Example: was the Trail of Tears an unavoidable consequence of expansion, or a violation of Native rights?
Rules: Students depict who created the rules and who had to follow them. For instance, sketch how the spoils system benefited Jackson’s supporters but also led to corruption.
Across disciplines: Connect ideas across subjects. A history class sketching the Industrial Revolution might also examine how innovations in machinery affected economic systems and scientific advancements.
Example lesson: The Texas Revolution Standard sketch & tell: Students illustrate one major event in the Texas Revolution. Depth and complexity layer: Students compare two sketches—one from the perspective of Texan settlers and another from Mexico’s leaders.
Parafly + Depth and Complexity
Parafly already challenges students to improve their paraphrasing skills, but adding depth and complexity ensures that students analyze information rather than just rewrite it.
Ways to add depth and complexity:
Rules: Students not only paraphrase a text but also identify what rules are being set or broken. Example: in the Missouri Compromise, students highlight who benefits from the agreement and who is restricted by it.
Details matter: After paraphrasing, students explain what was left out and why it might be important. Example: what details are often omitted in textbook discussions of manifest destiny?
Ethical considerations: In addition to paraphrasing, students evaluate the morality of a historical decision. Example: was the annexation of Texas justified or an act of aggression?
Unanswered questions: Students paraphrase a passage and then write one question that remains unanswered. This helps spark deeper discussion about what the text does not address.
Example lesson: The Oregon Treaty Standard parafly: Students paraphrase textbook excerpts on the U.S.-British treaty dividing Oregon. Depth and complexity layer: Students evaluate the treaty’s fairness—who benefited most, and why didn’t the U.S. fight for 54°40’?
Final Thoughts
After attending the session at the Gifted Fair, it became clear that depth and complexity isn’t just about making things “harder”—it’s about giving students the right tools to think critically. When paired with EduProtocols, these strategies:
Encourage critical thinking instead of rote memorization
Make learning more engaging and relevant
Help students connect history to today
Depth and complexity doesn’t have to be a separate strategy—it can be woven into everything we already do. When paired with EduProtocols, it transforms simple activities into deeper, more meaningful learning experiences.
How are you using depth and complexity in your classroom? Let’s keep the conversation going!
One of the biggest challenges in history education is engaging students in meaningful analysis while encouraging collaboration and critical thinking. Enter Snorkl, an AI-powered whiteboard tool that allows students to interact with historical content by annotating images, adding text, drawings, or even recording their voices. By integrating Snorkl with historical inquiry, EduProtocols, and depth and complexity strategies, we can create a dynamic space where students engage deeply with the past.
1. Image & Source Analysis (8 Parts)
A picture is worth a thousand words—but only if students know how to analyze it! Post a primary source image (painting, political cartoon, propaganda poster) on Snorkl and have students:
Identify nouns, adjectives, and verbs within the image.
Annotate details with text boxes explaining who, what, when, where, and why.
Add speech bubbles or thought bubbles from different perspectives within the image.
Record a voice memo explaining their interpretation and the historical significance.
This works perfectly with the 8 Parts EduProtocol, where students systematically break down the visual to gain a deeper understanding.
Depth & Complexity:
Multiple Perspectives: Consider how different groups would interpret the image.
Patterns Over Time: Compare similar images from different eras (e.g., Revolutionary War vs. Civil War propaganda).
2. Think Slide Expansion (Thin Slides to Thick Slides)
Think Slides are a great way to introduce a topic, but what if we took them a step further? Post a Thin Slide prompt (one image, one word) on Snorkl, then challenge students to expand it into a Thick Slide by:
Adding three key facts about the topic.
Sourcing where their information comes from.
Comparing their topic to a related historical event or figure.
Leaving voice comments on peers’ slides to encourage discussion.
EduProtocol Tie-In: This follows the Thin Slides method but adds a deeper research component with the Thick Slide approach.
Depth & Complexity:
Ethics: Was the event just or unjust?
Big Idea: What lasting impact did this have on history?
3. Timeline Construction
History is all about connections. Instead of giving students a pre-made timeline, post randomized images and descriptions of historical events and have students:
Add text boxes explaining why some events were turning points.
Compare two different events and their outcomes.
Depth & Complexity:
Cause & Effect: What led to this event? What were its consequences?
Big Idea: How does this event connect to larger themes in history?
4. Historical Debate Board
Engage students in historical argumentation by posting a controversial historical question (e.g., “Was Andrew Jackson a hero or a villain?”). Have students:
Add arguments on both sides of the debate.
Use Snorkl’s drawing tools to connect related ideas.
Record an audio response defending their position.
Engage in peer review by responding to others’ claims.
Depth & Complexity:
Different Perspectives: How might different groups view this event?
Unanswered Questions: What evidence is missing from this debate?
5. Document-Based Investigation
Primary sources can be intimidating, but Snorkl makes them interactive. Upload a primary source document excerpt and ask students to:
Highlight key phrases and annotate their meanings.
Add images or drawings to represent key ideas.
Answer sourcing questions (Who wrote this? When? Why?).
Summarize the document in one sentence.
Depth & Complexity:
Point of View: What bias does the author have?
Trends: How does this document compare to other sources from the same period?
When studying Westward Expansion, post a blank map of the U.S. on Snorkl and have students:
Label newly acquired territories.
Use arrows to indicate migration patterns.
Draw icons or add images to represent key events (e.g., the Gold Rush, Trail of Tears).
Compare the perspective of settlers vs. Native Americans by adding speech bubbles or text boxes.
Using Sketch & Tell, students can create quick illustrations with short written explanations to reinforce their understanding.
Depth & Complexity:
Different Perspectives: What were the benefits and consequences of expansion?
Across Disciplines: How did technology and economics impact migration?
7. Empathy Map for Historical Figures (Frayer Model Adaptation)
History is filled with complex figures. Post an image of a historical person and have students create an empathy map with four sections:
What they see (their environment)
What they think (their beliefs)
What they feel (emotions, struggles)
What they say (quotes or imagined dialogue)
Adapt this using a Frayer Model, where students also add vocabulary and contextual information.
Depth & Complexity:
Ethics: Were their actions justified?
Big Idea: How does this figure’s story connect to historical trends?
Final Thoughts
By using Snorkl’s interactive whiteboard tools, combined with EduProtocols, we can transform the history classroom into a space where students actively analyze, compare, and collaborate on historical content. These activities not only help students develop historical thinking skills but also allow them to engage with the past in a way that fosters depth, complexity, and critical inquiry.
What are some ways you’ve used interactive tools like Snorkl in your history classroom? Let’s share and collaborate!
This week was all about making westward expansion more engaging and interactive while reinforcing key historical concepts through EduProtocols. From annotated maps and Thick Slides to Map & Tell and Parafly, students used a variety of strategies to build knowledge, analyze sources, and develop writing skills. We started with a Great American Race to introduce westward territories, followed by a Map & Tell to break down the meaning of “54°40′ or Fight.” Parafly helped students strengthen their paraphrasing skills with key readings on Oregon, and a MiniReport paired with Class Companion gave them practice comparing sources on the Texas Revolution.
Monday through Wednesday were a mix of different activities. Some students were completing Restart Readiness ELA tests, which involved reading two passages, answering comprehension questions, and writing an essay. Others were catching up on missed work, either for ELA or social studies. For those working on social studies, I focused on building background knowledge about how the U.S. acquired its western territories.
Mapping Westward Expansion
To start, students labeled and colored a map of westward territories, then cut it out and glued it to the center of a giant piece of paper. From there, they chose a specific territory—Louisiana, Texas, Oregon, the Gadsden Purchase, etc.—to analyze in depth.
Frayer Model + Thick Slides
Using a Drew Skeeler template, students created a Frayer Model for their chosen territory:
Relative location (what’s north, south, east, and west?)
A geographic feature from the territory
A state that came from the territory
Then, students moved on to a Thick Slide, where they:
Provided background information on the territory
Explained why and how the U.S. acquired it
Discussed its impact
Wrote a claim on how justifiable the acquisition was, supported with evidence
Added two pictures and a title
Students submitted their Thick Slides through a Google Form, which I compiled into a Google Sheet for reference.
Annotated Maps + Dice Challenge
On Wednesday, students took an initial Quizizz on how the U.S. acquired each territory. The class average across all periods was 49%—clearly, they needed more time with the content.
Enter the Annotated Map—a strategy that helps students apply history to geography the way they would annotate a text. Using the Google Sheet of Thick Slides, students pulled key information and wrote annotations around their maps explaining how and why the U.S. acquired each territory.
To combat copy-pasting, I introduced a dice challenge: 🎲 I rolled three dice—a 20-sided, 12-sided, and 6-sided—and the total determined how many words students had to use for each annotation. Each round, they had to summarize the acquisition using only that many words. This forced them to think critically, be selective with word choice, and paraphrase rather than copy directly.
At the end of class, we took the Quizizz again—this time, class averages jumped to 82%. Huge improvement, and it reinforced why layered, interactive learning beats simple memorization every time.
Thursday
Thursday’s lesson focused on how and why the U.S. acquired Oregon, along with the experiences of those who traveled west.
Gimkit Warm-Up
We started with a 5-question Gimkit about Oregon, running it for three minutes before I gave feedback. Then, we ran it again for two minutes—already, students were improving just from this quick retrieval practice.
Parafly: Mastering Paraphrasing
Since the textbook’s explanation of Oregon was dense and overly wordy, I had AI break it into three digestible paragraphs. Using Socrative, I shared one paragraph at a time, and students paraphrased and submitted their responses.
Round 1: Students had four minutes to paraphrase the first paragraph. To help those who struggled, I provided a cheat sheet (generated with AI) that highlighted key words to keep and suggested substitutions for complex terms.
Round 2: I shared the second paragraph, gave quick feedback, and students paraphrased again—this time, they were faster.
Round 3: By the third paragraph, students had built confidence and speed in paraphrasing.
After each round, students copied and pasted their paraphrases into a Google Slide, where they also wrote a three-sentence summary of what they learned about Oregon.
Map and Tell
To visualize the territorial dispute, we completed a Map & Tell activity that helped students grasp the meaning behind the slogan “54°40′ or Fight.” Using a historical map, students marked key locations and boundaries to understand the tensions between the U.S. and Britain over Oregon Country. They starred the 54°40′ latitude, which was the northernmost boundary some Americans wanted to claim. Then, they used colored lines to map the dispute, drawing a red line at 54°40′ to represent the aggressive claim and a green line at the 49th parallel, which became the actual U.S.-British border agreement. This hands-on approach reinforced why “54°40′ or Fight” was a powerful rallying cry but ultimately not the reality of the final negotiation.
Thick Slide: Life on the Trail
Next, students chose one of two groups that traveled west:
The Donner Party
Mountain Men
They created a Thick Slide covering:
Who they were
Why they went west
The hardships they faced
Oregon Trail & Final Review
To wrap up, we ran the same Gimkit for two minutes—this time, scores jumped significantly. Then, I shared a link to the classic Oregon Trail game online, letting students explore the challenges of westward expansion in a fun, interactive way.
This lesson balanced retrieval, paraphrasing, and content creation, reinforcing key ideas about why people moved west and the struggles they endured.
Friday
To get students thinking about the Texas Revolution on a personal level, I started class with this question: “Have you ever agreed to something—only for the rules to suddenly change? Or, maybe you realized it was unfair? How did you react?” This simple question helped students connect historical events to real-life experiences, making them more engaged from the start.
EdPuzzle for Background Knowledge
Before diving into the details, students watched a 7-8 minute EdPuzzle video about the Texas War for Independence. I use these short videos to provide a visual foundation and background knowledge before we break things down further.
MiniReport and Class Companion
For the main lesson, we used the MiniReport EduProtocol to structure our analysis of Texas’ independence and annexation. I took the textbook sections on Texas and split them into two sources:
Source 1: Americans Rebel in Texas
Source 2: The Lone Star Republic and Annexation
Students had 8-10 minutes to gather information from both sources. They paraphrased ideas and recorded key points without needing to write in full sentences. Each student then summarized the main idea of what they gathered in their own words.
Once their notes were complete, they wrote a quick paragraph about Texas’ fight for independence and its annexation into the United States.
To wrap up, students submitted their writing into Class Companion for immediate AI-generated feedback. Since we ran out of time, we’ll finish refining and improving their responses next week.
Moler's Musings 