Kelly WHitton
I originally became interested in the events of the World's Fair of 1893 when I read the book Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. The book tells the story of the fair juxtaposed with the story of the serial killer, H.H. Holmes. Being from central Illinois and having spent a great deal of time in Chicago, I made several personal connections of names and places. I have taken the Chicago Architecture Foundation's tour of Burnham's works, walked past (and been in) the Rookery dozens of times, stayed at the Palmer House, frequented the Museum of Science and Industry, Field Museum, and Art Institute, all of which have roots at this key time in Chicago's history. To me, learning about the Chicago World's Fair was like learning about the house I grew up in; I was absolutely fascinated. I am amazed at the mass and grandeur of the White City. I am amazed that buildings like the Museum of Science and Industry, massive grand structures, were built as temporary buildings for the fair and were torn/burnt down and thrown into the lake as if they were made of cardboard. I amazed that reading Larson's book I would constantly be flagging parts that I wanted to do further research on. Larson's book has been classified as both non-fiction and historical fiction and though the book has thorough references and notes, I felt more comfortable confirming some of the key information in other sources. To my relief, nearly all of the other sources I came across aligned with the information found in Larson's book.
I originally suggested the topic of the fair to the group because it was something I had a personal interest in and knew there was a great deal of documentation on it. I provided the group with some suggestions for research questions which were agreed upon and divided between the three of us. As a group we set deadlines, met in person, emailed, and spoke on the phone to make sure that we were all one the same page and meeting our deadlines.
The aspect of this project that I will take with me into a future classroom, is the importance of relating a topic to students on a personal level. If a student can find something recognizable in the topic they feel more connected and thus interested. Students cannot be taught solely what they find interesting, but if I can find something of interest to focus on, they will be so much more invested in the lesson.
I originally suggested the topic of the fair to the group because it was something I had a personal interest in and knew there was a great deal of documentation on it. I provided the group with some suggestions for research questions which were agreed upon and divided between the three of us. As a group we set deadlines, met in person, emailed, and spoke on the phone to make sure that we were all one the same page and meeting our deadlines.
The aspect of this project that I will take with me into a future classroom, is the importance of relating a topic to students on a personal level. If a student can find something recognizable in the topic they feel more connected and thus interested. Students cannot be taught solely what they find interesting, but if I can find something of interest to focus on, they will be so much more invested in the lesson.
AMINA AHMADOU KARIM
A recent immigrant to the USA, one of my greatest ambitions is to have to opportunity to visit as many major cities in the country as possible. This desire further intensified when during a recent social studies class I was asked to draw and label the map of the United States. I failed miserably at this and vowed to not only learn and succeed at this feat, but also visit as many of these states and cities as I possibly could. So far I can only scratch New York, Philadelphia and Washington D.C off my list. Seattle, Los Angeles and Chicago are the next I’d like to visit. Interestingly, both Philadelphia and New York have held world fairs: The Centennial exposition of Philadelphia, 1876 and the New York World’s fair of 1939. Researching on the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 has presented me with a different view and approach to the city of Chicago and my desire to one day see this city with such great history has been heightened.
Prior to working on this project, I had no knowledge about World Fairs or Expositions. I did not even know what they were. It was with much uncertainty that I embarked on it. Mostly, I worried about the availability of resources, materials and documentation about the World’s Columbian Exposition.
I was however amazed and impressed at the availability of well-documented records. During my research, I came across a collection of publications, print memorabilia, photographs and newspaper clippings; there was even a diary entry from a fair-goer. Many of these are available on the internet and in books.
The accessibility to these sources, both primary and secondary, makes the topic of the World’s Columbian Exposition one that easily lends itself to historical investigative work for students.
For example, students can research and write/present reports on topics related to the innovations at the fair, using primary and secondary sources. Or students can make analysis of various photographs of buildings at the fair and compare and contrast them.
These kinds of investigative activities are aligned with the following essential standards:
3.H.1 Understand how events, individuals and ideas have influenced the history of local and regional communities.
3.H.2 Use historical thinking skills to understand the context of events, people and places.
In conclusion, my criteria for picking cities in the United States to visit may have changed slightly. No longer will I be picking cities randomly. I intend to embark on my intercity tour, one World’s Fair city at a time. So St. Louis, here I come!
Shanise Lowery
I am very interested in American History, this class has spiked my interest. When the topic The World's Fair of 1893 was suggested I was not very sure how I felt about it. I love attending fairs and the circus anytime one is around or even traveling to see them. I thought that this was going to be to simple from the surface level and a manhunt to find information. After further research I found that it was more than just a fair and that there has been so much documented on the fair in Chicago as well as every other World Exposition. This was about America getting a shot to show the rest of the world how industrialized Americans were becoming, a chance for the economy to grow and people to show off their talents and gifts. This fair opened my eyes to the importance of showing my students not only to make connections to their city, state or country but to the world.
This project helped show me how to find resources for my students when teaching social studies courses and it in other subject matters as well. The common core is about critical thinking, global awareness and technology. I feel that this project gave me a real life connection to all of those things as well as group work. I now understand how to ask my students to become investigators. I understand how uncomfortable they may be to begin with but, I know the understanding my students will take back from looking and finding information rather than having them read from a text book.
I am very interested in American History, this class has spiked my interest. When the topic The World's Fair of 1893 was suggested I was not very sure how I felt about it. I love attending fairs and the circus anytime one is around or even traveling to see them. I thought that this was going to be to simple from the surface level and a manhunt to find information. After further research I found that it was more than just a fair and that there has been so much documented on the fair in Chicago as well as every other World Exposition. This was about America getting a shot to show the rest of the world how industrialized Americans were becoming, a chance for the economy to grow and people to show off their talents and gifts. This fair opened my eyes to the importance of showing my students not only to make connections to their city, state or country but to the world.
This project helped show me how to find resources for my students when teaching social studies courses and it in other subject matters as well. The common core is about critical thinking, global awareness and technology. I feel that this project gave me a real life connection to all of those things as well as group work. I now understand how to ask my students to become investigators. I understand how uncomfortable they may be to begin with but, I know the understanding my students will take back from looking and finding information rather than having them read from a text book.