Lesson One – Bad Christmas Presents

This lesson was originally posted in January of 2010, but it always makes for a great discussion piece after the holidays.

Christmas is always a memorable experience….sometimes it may not be a pleasant memorable experience but memorable at best. This week my students and I discussed bad Christmas presents throughout history, and I shared with them my story about the rock tumbler I received one Christmas. I was about 11 or 12 and at the age where parents are not quite sure what to buy you anymore….toys are no longer cool and your not quite into clothing at this point.

For those of you not aware of what a rock tumbler is, it is basically a container that you fill with a set of rocks and a “secret” mixture then place on a motor that spins (or tumbles) the rocks for about two weeks. After the end of the two weeks, you then take your rocks and rinse and repeat with another “secret” mixture….for another two weeks. At the end of a month you have nice pretty rocks that you are not quite sure what to do with….turns out they are great throwing rocks. Can you beat this bad Christmas present? If so, leave us a comment.

Lesson Two -Arkansas History

The picture above is a copy of the tattoo that can be found on the back of my arm…pride, stupidity, or maybe both?

Starting this week we will be changing our curriculum from social studies to Arkansas history. This is a semester course and will highlight the role that Arkansas had in many important events in American history. For many of my students they have been dreading this switch for quite sometime, but for me I have been really looking forward to the switch. I really enjoy teaching Arkansas history because it allows me to teach American history while instilling a sense of pride for being from the great state of Arkansas by explain how we fit into the big picture. Often times the thinking of students, in regards to Arkansas history, is that nothing cool has ever happened in Arkansas…however that couldn’t be further from the truth. As Arkansans there is plenty to celebrate and there are also many events that happened within our own borders that have shaped our national landscape. Hopefully once we are finished with this semester my students will feel the same way that I do and start taking pride in the fact that they are from Arkansas as oppose to thinking nothing cool has or ever will happen in our state.

Lesson Three – The Bitter Taste of Sugar

A large portion of the state of Arkansas is still walking around in a stupor after the soul crushing loss of the Razorbacks in Tuesday’s Sugar Bowl. After going on a 16-3 run in the second half of the ball game, Arkansas was primed for the go ahead score from the 20 yard line late in the game after a blocking a punt…only to throw an interception on the second play of the drive.

No region of the state took this worse than the folks here in Fayetteville and Northwest Arkansas. Teachers and students alike have been walking around for the past few days talking about what could have been, and discussing possible “what if” or “they should have” stories. Despite how bitter we all are here in Fayetteville, the bottom line is that this was a fantastic year and it should be celebrated for the many accomplishments of the year…easier said than done, I know. Oh well, just remember that there is always next year.

Mr. McClung