My journey into using literature to teach history in paired passages did NOT begin in college. Obviously, no one goes into teaching thinking the following: “I cannot wait to prepare my students for analyzing paired passages on a standardized test!” I think we all have slightly more lofty goals. Most people go into teaching because of a particular teacher who had an impact or because they thought school was fun. We also desire to make a long-lasting impression on students. Maybe we can help them think more critically, read more thoughtfully, or write more coherently. For me, it was a mixture of many reasons:
Why I Went Into Teaching
In high school, I had 2 fantastic teachers: Mr. Canning, my English Teacher, and Mrs. Allen (formerly Ms. Smith), my math teacher. Both teachers taught me for more than one year, and I really enjoyed their teaching styles. Ms. Smith was a one-of-a-kind math teacher, which for a reader and lover of language, was quite rare. I actually enjoy math, because I am quite good at it. She taught every problem step by step, and her methodical style really appealed to me. I am most certainly an “I Do, We Do, You do” proponent. I got to have Ms. Smith for 4 full years through Calculus, and I will never forget her.
Ultimately though, one of my favorite moments of high school was in 11th grade English. When Mr. Canning challenged us to present a novel in a creative way, I became a Civil War nurse from The Red Badge of Courage who sang “When Johnny Comes Marching Home.” My mom helped me to put together a Civil War looking nurse outfit complete with a button-down white shirt and dark navy blue skirt. I even tied my hair into a bun; oh yeah, I looked the part 🙂 Hey, I tried! In my ten minute presentation, I spoke of the horrific conditions that the soldiers experienced in the North and in the South, described the various medical tools used, and sang the entire song “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” as my finale.
This project helped to integrate history into literature, and it became a memory I still treasure today. With this one project, I had to read a piece of classical literature ( The Red Badge of Courage ), research the historical time period, prepare by drafting what I would say or sing ( “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” ), and present this information in an original format in front of a bunch of high school students, along with my teacher, Mr. Canning, of course. This memory instilled a belief that as an English Teacher I should be using literature to teach history in paired passages, so my own students can benefit!
How can I start using literature to teach history in paired passages for my own classroom?
Today, I think, “How can I expose my own students to history and literature as well as prepare them for paired passages they will encounter on standardized tests?” I can do both! Choosing texts is SO important. One of the first paired passages I put together was inspired by The Red Badge of Courage and “When Johnny Comes Marching Home.” I broke down 5 of the standards including Citing Evidence, Central Idea/Theme, Characterization, Words and Phrases, and Structure. You can do the same thing too!
Use Paired Passages with Questions to prepare for Standardized Tests & Teach History in Literature
Here is a list of possible combinations for using literature to teach history in paired passages:
- The Red Badge of Courage and “The Charge of the light Brigade” >>>Linked to War and Courage
- “Ain’t I a Woman” and “Declaration of Sentiments”>>>Linked to Women’s Rights
- “Gettysburg Address” and “Ain’t I a Woman”>>>Linked to Freedom and Rights
- “Paul Revere’s Ride” and “The Speech at the Virginia Convention”>>>Linked to the American Revolution
- “To My Dear and Loving Husband” and “The Gift of the Magi”>>>Linked to Love in History
- Joshua Slocum’s Sailing Alone Around the World (autobiography) and Howard Phillips Lovecraft’s The White Ship (short story) >>>Linked to Sailing the High Seas
- Mark Twain’s Life on the Mississippi River and Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn >>>Linked to Life in Early America
- Mark Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer and William Henry Davies’ poem “Leisure”>>>Linked to Life in Early America
- The Declaration of Independence and “One Song America” by Walt Whitman>>>Linked to Independence and Unity
- The Declaration of Independence and “The Speech at the Virginia Convention” >>>Linked to Independence and War
