And, actually, I didn’t try it out precisely as I had described, either. Nevertheless, it went well, and here’s what I did.

We’re just finishing a unit on Reconstruction in my U.S. History class for Intermediate and Beginning English Language Learners. I had seven minutes left in class, and I asked students to simply list three words that represent Reconstruction, and then follow it with three sentences describing why they picked each word.

I did a quick model by doing one describing me — handsome, smart, strong (all to great hilarity).

Students grasped it quickly. Here’s a typical example of what they wrote:

Money

Change

Discrimination

I picked money because Congress used it to build schools.

I picked change because things were different after the Civil War.

I picked discrimination because the southern government made unfair laws for the blacks.

It worked as an easy formative assessment.

It wasn’t the “higher-order thinking” version that I discussed in my original post, but using it like this provides a good starting point.

For all I know, teachers may have been using this kind of exercise for years.  But it was new to me and, perhaps, new to some of this blog’s readers….

The articles are fairly accessible, and they typically include videos from The History Channel. The science pages are done in collaboration with the British Science Museum.

This site will certainly be on this years “The Best…” lists for Social Studies and Science sites.

Here are This Week’s “Links I Should Have Posted About, But Didn’t”:

Sorting Out an Avalanche of iPad Apps for the Best of 2011 is from The New York Times. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Beginning iPad Users.

28 iPad 2 Tips and Tricks is from PC World, and I’m adding it to the same list.

Google’s Free 64-Language Translator App Comes to the iPad is from Read Write Web, and I’m also adding it to the same list.

A Hmong Generation Finds Its Voice in Writing is from The New York Times. I’m adding it to The Best Websites To Learn About The Hmong.

What the Words of the Year Say About Us is from TIME. I’m adding it to The Best “Words Of The Year” Features For 2011.

Words we don’t want to lose is from Salon. I’m adding it to the same list.

How To Open a Speech or Presentation offers some helpful hints. I’m adding it to The Best Sources Of Advice For Making Good Presentations.

New Details Surface About Common Assessments is from Education Week. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Learning About The “Next Generation” Of State Testing.

Here are some other regular features I post in this blog:

“The Best…” series (which now number 691)

Best Tweets of The Month

The most popular posts on this blog each month

My monthly choices for the best posts on this blog each month

Each month I do an “Interview Of The Month” with a leader in education

Periodically, I post “A Look Back” highlighting older posts that I think are particularly useful

The ESL/EFL/ELL Blog Carnival

Resources that share various “most popular” lists useful to teachers

Interviews with ESL/EFL teachers in “hot spots” around the world.

Articles I’ve written for other publications.

Photo Galleries Of The Week

Research Studies Of The Week

Regular “round-ups” of good posts and articles about school reform

This Week In Web 2.0

Getting Real About Turnarounds is by Diane Ravitch. I’m adding it to The Best Posts About Attrition Rates At So-Called “Miracle” Schools.

New Hope for the Obama/Gates School of Reform is by John Thompson. I’m adding it to The Best Resources Showing Why We Need To Be “Data-Informed” & Not “Data-Driven.”

Review of Assessing the Compensation of Public-School Teachers is from The National Education Policy Center.

The ugly truth about “school choice” is from Salon. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Learning Why School Vouchers Are A Bad Idea.

Aurora 2012 from Christian Mülhauser on Vimeo.

Today, Krulwich wrote another fascinating column titled ‘Rasputin Was My Neighbor’ And Other True Tales Of Time Travel about how because of age and circumstances there have been some extraordinary connections made between eras. I think it’s a “must-read.”

However, he referred to an earlier column in today’s piece, and that’s what really caught my attention.

In The Junkman And The Madonna, he talks about an:

observation from neuroscientist David Eagleman: “There are three deaths. The first is when the body ceases to function. The second is when the body is consigned to the grave. The third is that moment, sometime in the future, when your name is spoken for the last time.”

It’s in the context of stories — snapshots in time, memories — that we have and why some might last longer than others.

I’m thinking of having my Theory of Knowledge students read the column when we are discussing history and the job of an historian. What if I asked them to think about a story of their own, or a story or image that their parents might share with them, that they would like to last for a longtime? What could they do to enhance the possibility of it being long-lasting? What might be a criteria for a successfully remembered story?

If you get a chance, read “The Junkman…” piece and let me know what you think — do you have any ideas on how to use it?

It’s described as “A forum to encourage and amplify technology-based moonshot thinking and teamwork.”

Here’s a sample. It’s a talk by Nicholas Negroponte on students learning by themselves:

I’m adding this info to The Best Teacher Resources For “TED Talks” (& Similar Presentations).

Thanks to Open Culture for the tip.

Additional suggestions are always welcome.

I’m adding it to The Best Sources Of Advice For Making Good Presentations.