April 2021 – Hunt the Past

The Bad Apples of Education: Bill Gates, Pearson, Child Left Behind, and Common Core…

Apr 22, 2021 | Uncategorized

Everyone,
Question for you. What is one big thing that homeschoolers have against public schools??? That it is failing our students. Who is behind this failure? Hint: It is not the teacher’s fault. There are some bad actors that have done this to the education system, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and others. So, let us go a little bit deeper.

Let us review what has happened to the education system in the past 20 years. 1) In 2001, the federal government passed No Child Left Behind, creating standardized testing for K-12 schools. Though this may have had good intentions, it had adverse results. Schools automatically began focusing on memorizing what these assessments would test, instead of teaching the actual subjects. They focused on the tests because their funding was attached to it. The main education company, providing the tests, was also providing the curriculum to answer the tests. Because they focused on Standardized testing, they began over-emphasizing the three subjects that were to be tested consistently: Math, English, and Science. While studies of these three subjects increased, schools began to deemphasize social studies. 2) In 2010, Common Core was developed by the federal government in a joint effort with organizations such as the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation, to help standardize learning across the country. This has upset over half of the country, yet only 11 states have designed their own standards. Even though the federal government and non-profits used their powers to direct the education system, what are the results:

Students in the public schools have progressed 0% in their academic record, according to NAEP’s National Report Card.
Students have reached their lowest scores since 1994 in history, according to the NAEP’s National Report Card on History.
Students’ literacy level continues to decrease to an all time low around the U.S.
The world is exploding in ignorance, in the subject of social studies, and everyone is in some way affected. Young people are not being taught to develop and use their critical thinking skills.

I wish the bad news stopped there. According to Fortune Magazine, and even the Washington Post, the one company who has had their hands in both horrible regulations was the United Kingdom’s own Pearson Education. They were around to help develop No Child Left Behind with George W. Bush and were well paid as their sales increasing by over 175% in the United States (according to Fortune magazine’s article “Everybody Hates Pearson”). They also worked hand in hand with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop Common Core and then tried to hide it. Bill Gates let it slip in a Washington Post interview. He claimed that they are worked together on other projects but would not divulge which projects. In return for their cooperation, Pearson Education earns $7 Billion in US curriculum sales every year – remember they are based in the United Kingdom – while their next closest competitor, a U.S. based company is earning only $2 billion in revenue in the U.S. Thanks to Common Core, Pearson now only needs to design one test per subject and modifying it slightly to fulfil the needs of 39 Common Core states. The Texas state government just paid Pearson over $126 million this year alone on standardized testing, not counting the individual curriculum sales they make to individual districts and schools, preparing the paying district’s students to pass their tests.

Recently, Pearson (UK) has changed their educational policies in designing curriculum to comply with Chinese standards and pandering to their demands to sell to the Chinese market. They also have released editorial guidelines in a recent press release that will advance the company’s commitment to fighting systematic racism in education and report more on race, gender, sexual orientation, social classes, and religion. So now their curriculum will be more in tune with current trends and certain agendas. They also mentioned how their previously written curriculum was systematically racist and that they need to make changes to address the current trends in society.

If you have been with Historical Conquest over the past 7 years, you would know that we have always promoted minorities, and those not regularly represented in history, in our games and curriculum. We never pandered to any political or government entity and we treat everyone as equals without needing political pressure to fulfill someone else agenda, whether foreign or domestic. We plan to keep this high standard of teaching history without a lens or biases. While companies like Pearson confessed to their own maleficence. The question is, who is controlling what is being taught in U.S. history class in public schools?

Now, why are we telling you all this. We are planning to compete against the behemoth Pearson Education and those who were instrumental in the development of Standardized Testing and Common Core. Zack Edwards, founder of Historical Conquest, was warned by his business mentors that if he goes down the road of using investors, that he will lose the majority control of his company; potentially being forced to become another Pearson, making lots of money, but losing their mission to teach pure unbiased history without a lens pressured by investor, political, and government agendas.

For this reason, we have come to all of you, our loyal fans and supporters, to ask for some help as we finalize our software and continue with the creation of our units. Now, we are not asking for anything big, but a $5 or $10 subscription to our website as we raise financing to fund our historians, finish our gaming portal, and prepare our curriculum. This year we will be releasing our entire American History curriculum from Mesoamerican and Native American history, through the American Revolution, Civil War, and Civil Rights, to the Cold War and recent U.S. history. Though our last programmer – who was developing the digital version of Historical Conquest – burned out, we have found someone to take over and finalize HC Digital, as well as our second game Timeline Conquest and our gaming portal, which allows for Stealth Testing (ST). ST basically means testing while playing a video game. This is the newest and truest way to test students without the anxiety and stress of taking a test.

So, by August, with your help, we will have both Historical Conquest and Timeline Conquest up and running, our American History curriculum available and our newest promotion and a new way to get the word out, a national history podcast, which will be premiered within the next two weeks and new episodes produced weekly, starting with Mesoamerica and teaching throughout U.S. history. We are producing it as we speak. You will be the first to hear it here on this newsletter; so, please stay tuned.

With your help we believe we can get the United States to be the leader in History curriculum development and bring control back to the American public and not government or foreign entities.

Genealogy of History: Real-Life Video Game Activities

Apr 14, 2021 | Uncategorized

This week-long activity is best used at the beginning of the school year, or the end of the school year. Here, you will be teaching your students about how history builds upon itself. In other words, every event and person was influenced by some other event or person before them, and those events were affected by other events before them. The same goes with looking forward to history. This will help them build their critical thinking skills and will allow them to understand the background behind larger events in history. Now imagine you are in a classroom and about to teach this lesson:

Day 1 – Genealogy: Okay class, this week we are going to learn about whatever you want. Truly, you have control over this week and which path your studies go, except, that you are going to teach yourself through an activity called, the Genealogy of History.

I want you to open your journal and write down these questions written on the board: “1. What is your favorite thing to learn about in history?” Is it an invention, wars, love stories, tragedies, treaties, heroes, destruction, or natural disasters? “2. What, in this category, do you want to learn more about?” Write down what you think the greatest thing to learn about would be? What is one example of this type of event you wrote down, that you really like (one event or invention that was built)? Write that down. Now, take 5 minutes to write down what you know about this one topic (event, person, object). I want you to fill at least half a page about it. If you do not know what was happening back then, then write a few questions that you have, and what you would like to find out.

5 minutes later – How many of you know what genealogy is? It is the study of our ancestors and how they are related to us. If you have seen this before, it is called a family tree or a pedigree chart. It shows the relationship between you and your relatives. I am related to my parents; they are related to their parents, and so on.

Now, if you are the center of your family tree, you would write down your parents, their parents, and each of their parents, until it looks like a large tree of all your ancestors. You know, let us do this as an activity.

Activity #1: Go home tonight and trace your family tree, as well as you can. Some may not know one of their parents or grandparents. That is okay not to know, because the fact that you don’t know helps you understand the history of your family. You will probably need help to do this assignment, so ask your parents or even your grandparents about where you came from. If you were adopted, try mapping out your adopted family’s history. Whomever you ask to help, ask them questions about their parents and grandparents, and maybe learn a little more than just their names. Take this worksheet home and see how far you can get with the names on your own, then ask your parents and see how far back they can go; and if your grandparents are available, see how far back they might know. There are not a lot of generations in this chart, so you should be able to get the tree started. and then you can go back as far as you want.

Let us begin by filling out this chart in class. Place your name in the rectangle marked “You.” Now, write in the next two rectangles – your mom’s name and your dad’s name. If you do not know either one, that is okay. That may be something to ask your parent. Now, how many of you know your grandparents actual name, and not just ‘grandma’ or ‘grandpa’? Write those down. Now put these in your journal, and work on them at home.

Preview: Tomorrow we will explore the part of history you really like, and let you take it in the direction you want to study it.

Day 2 – History Pedigree Chart: Consider what you did last night. Please bring out your Family Trees and take a look at them. You came from your parents, each of them came from their parents, and so forth. Now, take out your journal. What was the one thing you liked learning about in history class? What was the one example of the type of event, of which you wrote down? Now, you can take a second, and if you thought of a better example and want to change it, you can. Take a second pedigree chart, and write in the “You” rectangle the name of that one event you liked. Now, under the Mother and Father section, write in something that influenced the individual, object, discovery, or event that possibly caused this event to happen, or make that person great. Write it in the pedigree chart. What made them do what they did; what caused this event to happen? You do not have to be right, because you don’t know what they were thinking (unless they wrote that in a journal), but surmise why it happened, from the events leading up to it. If you struggle, try using an earlier person, invention, or event that caused the original event. This time, you need to study up and find out how each of these occurred. I will grade them accordingly. As I am reviewing them, I will make notes of other things that may have occurred, if I know of any.

Activity #2: Tonight’s homework is to fill all these boxes. Hint: Red flags will go off if the events are not in chronological order, or they do not flow within a timeline. Please take your time and put a little research into what caused each of these events, so we can learn how cause and effect influences history.

Next, I want you to study the first rectangle, the “You” rectangle, and tell us what happened to make it significant. Please write this in your journal on the next page, titled “Day 2.” I want you to learn more about this one event, and become a mini-expert on that one event. We will talk about it tomorrow.

Now when did these occur? Or, if a person, that significant event in that person’s life that took place, or person in their life, which influenced what they did. Find out what you can do to learn about that event, and why that occurred.

Example: I would pick Marie Curie. She was a great scientist, who discovered many different cures using radiation. She was influenced by Pierre Curie, a well-known physicist, who later became her husband, and Henri Poincaré. Now there were many others who influenced her, but I will just focus on these two. The others I will list under the Mother and Father Rectangles at the bottom of the page, for extra credit. As for Henri Poincaré, placed in the mother rectangle, I now need to know who he was, and what he was doing? As a preview, tomorrow you will study either the Mother or the Father. Now as for Henri Poincaré, besides working on radiation, he was also known for his work on the Theory of Relativity, which is the geometric (mathematical) understanding and theory of gravity. You know who else was studying it? Albert Einstein. Now you can put all those in the rectangles.

Preview: Tonight, work on this history pedigree chart, and how history built on itself. Tomorrow, we will learn more about the events that you wrote into the parent column of the pedigree chart. We want to know a little more on how they influenced your topic to happen.

The activity tomorrow will be the creation of another pedigree chart, and looking forward in history to what this caused to happen, learning about topics that influenced our initial event or person, and then we will build on that, going forward in history. We need to find out what was influenced by this one event we chose. How did it affect the entire world and the history that transpired?

Day 3 – Cause and Effect Day: I hope you enjoyed yesterday’s activity. Now it is time to report back. We will take 2 minutes per student to discover more about this event. The student with the earliest event in history will start first. Okay, whose event was that.

Figure out whose event was first, by having everyone return their History Pedigree Chart (HPC) and placing them on your desk in order. Then, as the presenter comes up, they can grab their HPC and present their one event, and how it was influenced by those they wrote down. Make a list of the order they presented, so they may present again tomorrow.

Future Group Discussion: After presenting, and while the students are starting their next activity, list your students in groups of similar themes or events that lined up with other events. This will be for tomorrow’s assignment.

Journal Entry: I would like each of you to report, in your journal – titled “Day 3” – how your chosen event was influenced by an early historic event. What do you know about the two events, and how they worked together, or why they caused your event to happen. Think deep into how one event influences another event to occur. Now research the event that occurred after your chosen event, why it was important, and how it was influenced by your event and/or the next event in the pedigree chart.

Activity: Now reverse the Pedigree chart. Where did this event lead? Take your chosen event forward in time and see if there are events, inventions, or people influenced, because of this event. Find out who, and what, was influenced because of this happening. List as many as you can find. Hint: You should be able to fill out this pedigree chart.

Example: Let me give you another example. How I love learning about Rome. I went there once, and it was amazing to see all of the art, sculptures, and ruins. Anyone who knows Rome, knows about the assassination of Julius Caesar and the coming of the Second Triumvirate. This is the group of three well-positioned friends and supporters (Octavian – future emperor Augustus, Mark Antony, and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus), who took revenge on those who killed Caesar, and took back Rome. They then divided the kingdom into three regions, each to be ruled over by one of them. Now Augustus took the capital, and sent the others to their areas. A rivalry soon pursued between the three, and Lepidus was exiled, with Octavian taking his third. Mark Antony was left with no funding, as a war was underway in the area around Israel. Now, Mark Antony, who had fallen in love with Cleopatra, an Egyptian born Greek, asked her to fund his purchase of an army, to join Herod the Great’s Siege of Jerusalem, in taking back Jerusalem from the Hasmoneans. After Judea had settled, and the people were back to living their lives, a census was called upon the entire land of Judea, to find out who was in this region, and then tax them. This is what leads to the Christ story. So, you can see the cause and effect of all these events, and how they all worked together to create another event, or events.

Take one of the lines and write up a summary, in your journal, on how the original event caused another event to happen, then the next event in the line, and another event, and then, the final event. How did one event help form a more recent event?

Preview: Tomorrow, you will be able to choose an alternative reality, and figure out what would have happened if the event ended differently. How would the world have changed if that event ended differently? Would it have been the end of the world? Would someone else end up resolving the conflict? Would anyone have noticed? What do you think?

Day 4 – Alternative Reality: I hope you enjoyed yesterday’s activity! Now it is time to report back. We will take 2 minutes, per student, to discover more about your original event, moving forward in history. Okay, whose event was first (Since, yesterday, you learned the order of events and made a list of the order of student presentations)? Now have them report again in the same order. Have them share how each of their events lined up. Were there any that listed each other’s events in their Historical Pedigree Chart? Consider lining those presentations together, and have them presented one after another.

Activity #4: Today you will reach a little deeper into your thinking. We want you to take your original event and create an alternative reality with it. This is how things could have turned out, if things had gone differently. On a fourth pedigree chart, I would like you to write multiple scenarios that may have occurred, if things had gone different in the original event.

Journal Entry: Now in your journal, in a new page, titled “Day 4,” I would like you to write down the original event that occurred, and how it would have influenced a change in the timeline. Use what you found in the last History Family Tree, and find out how it would have changed that timeline. What did you find out about the timeline, and what did you learn about yourself? How do you believe those would have affected the world?

Group Discussion: Group those students with similar events together, to discuss possible outcomes that could have happened in each of their scenarios. This is a group activity, to help each student consider how the world would have changed if their event had ended differently.

Example: I would like to give you an example. I have always been interested in World War II, and how it influenced the formation of a split German country, with a wall that separated East from West Germany; then the Cold War occurred between the United States and Russia, with President Ronald Reagan telling Gorbachev to “Tear Down that Wall,” which led to the spread of Western ideology into all of Germany, creating a freer society. But, what may have happened instead: say the united Allies and Russia did not make it to Germany, but instead, Germany took over Moscow – as it tried to do – and the United Kingdom, which is where they were heading before D-Day occurred. What would have happened? For one thing, Germany would not have been split. The greatest opposition to Germany’s power, after they tried to take Moscow, was Russia and the Allied Forces (U.S., Canada, British, Irish, Scottish, etc). What if Pearl Harbor never happened, and Japan never spurred President Roosevelt and the United States to finally enter the war? What if Germany never tried to take Russia, and they were still allies in the war? It is easy to surmise that Germany and Italy would have taken all of Europe and Africa. Russia, Japan, and China would have taken everything from Asia to the Pacific Islands, and Australia. The war would have spread, eventually, to North and South America. The Holocaust would have spread throughout the world, and millions more Jews, Christians, and those with disabilities would have been murdered. The advancements of the United States would have been halted, and more technological advances would have turned militarily, instead of the emphasis that had been put on medicine, the environment, and technology.

This is only an example of how the world is globally connected, and how events spur other events to occur, to the eventual outcome that we have today. If your original event had changed, how would it have changed the world, in any specific way?

Preview: Tomorrow, we will talk about what you want your history to look like, and focus on a boy who was picked on in school, and yet, become the wealthiest man in the world.

Day 5 – Your Future Career: I hope you enjoyed yesterday’s activity. Now it is time to report back. We will take 2 minutes, per student, to discover more about what would have happened if your original event had a different outcome, looking forward into history, as it may have been. Okay, whose event was last?

Since you made a list of the order of student presentations, you can reverse the order. Now have them report again, with the last being first. Have them share how each of their events lined up. Were there any that listed each other’s events in their Historical Pedigree Chart? Again, have those with similar events present after each other.

Journal Entry: Now, please write down in your journal, on a new page, titled “Day 5,” what five careers you would be happy with, in the future. Then list, out of those five careers, which one you would really like to have. What are the 5 reasons you want that specific career? Then ask 5 questions you would have about that career. Please take 10 minutes to fill out your journal today.

Activity: Today’s activity, your fifth pedigree chart, will be to map out your future career. I want you to list what you would like to do in the future, specifically your career. What career would you like to have in the future? Pick one. Now that you have picked just one career, write “education requirements” in the mother’s rectangle and “experience required” in the father’s rectangle. Map what it would take for you to reach that education and experience level. We want to know, step by step, what it takes to get the career you so desire. There will be more requirements than can fit on the pedigree chart, but simply focus on the ones that are the most important. You will need to research the requirements you may have.

Example: Give the students an example of a famous person, and how they made their way to the career that they had. For our example, I will share the life history of Elon Musk. Elon is now an engineer and CEO of two companies, and Founder or Co-Founder of another three companies. But how did he get there? Let’s take his engineering degree, for example. To become a billionaire, he needed a few things: three separate bachelor degrees, in Engineering, Physics, and Economics. He received those from Stanford, University of Pennsylvania – as an undergraduate, Queen’s University in Canada, and the University of Pretoria in South Africa, where he began (he had his primary and secondary education in South Africa, where his parents divorced). Now as for work experience, Elon has a large ownership in five-billion-dollar companies, but this is not where he started. Before that, he co-founded X.com, an online bank that then merged with Confinity to form PayPal, which was purchased by eBay. X.com was designed thanks to the money he had previously raised from designing Zip2, out of a Stanford dorm. He was able to build this software company with his younger brother, and it was later acquired by Compaq. And yet, what got him started in computers, was that he taught himself programming from age 10, and created his first video game by 12, selling it for $500. And yet, while he attended school in South Africa, he was bullied, and even hospitalized, by other kids that thought he was different and threw him down a flight of stairs. This is everything that happened to a young man who would later become the wealthiest man in the world. Makes you think that you, too, could be as successful as he is – right?

Preview: Tomorrow will be the last step of this adventure. I hope you enjoyed it! We will be talking about where you want to see your life going and how you will get there. I know you will enjoy this one.

Day #6: I hope you enjoyed yesterday’s activity. Now it is time to report back. We will take 2 minutes, per student, to discover more about what career you want to have and what it would take with your education and experience to reach it. What did you find out about this career? Remember from our story about Elon Musk, how anyone can reach their dreams if they put their mind to it. So, I expect everyone to be respectful to everyone’s dreams. You never know, the one you tease may the person you come to, later in your life, for a job.

Now that it does not matter the order of the students and who presents first ask those that presented in the middle to present first. You want them to present their careers first.

Group Discussion: Group the same students together as the days prior and ask them to discuss different careers they are interested in pursuing. Have their group ask questions about their desired careers and see if there are other thoughts their classmates can come up with. They may have some great insight into each potential career.

Journal: Write in your journal, on a new page, titled “Day 6”, about the career you would like to take. Answer these two questions: 1) what may stand in your way from obtaining your goal? 2) What can you do that will keep those obstacles from stopping you from obtaining your goals? Pick potential scenarios that may get in your way and see how planning ahead could stop that opposition, before it even happens.

Activity: This next activity will not be presented to your classmates. Today’s activity is your personal treasure map. This is how you see your future looking. This will be your sixth and final pedigree chart, and you are to map out your future. This time it will be from the perspective of you living your life. You can map out what will happen with you in the future, if you take one path, or if you take another path. Pick different paths you may want to follow into the future. Take the rest of the class time to map out different scenarios. This is too personal to share with the rest of the class. If you need multiple pedigree charts, please ask.

Example: Give the students your life, as an example, and what you have experienced, what could have happened if you took a different path in your life, or moving forward some of the paths you could take that could change your life. Take time before class to design this chart for yourself. Anything that is too personal leave out; only map out thoughts that you want to share.

I hope you enjoyed this activity, and everything you learned about cause and effect in history – and how one decision or event can change the world forever. Likewise, in your own life, a decision you make can make a great difference in your future, and you can plan for things that may try to send you off course. You control your own future, and how you will react to opposition.

Real Life Video Games – Activity #2: A Student’s Marketplace

Apr 1, 2021 | Uncategorized

STUDENT MARKETPLACE: A REAL-LIFE VIDEO GAME SIMULATION

Time for another Real-Life Video Game activity, for face-to-face or virtual classroom, provided by Historical Conquest and their digital curriculum, www.HuntThePast.com. Now that testing is coming to an end, it is time to have some extra fun with your students! This is mainly for use in Elementary and Middle School, this time, but may also be modified for High Schoolers (we provide this modification in our full curriculum access). This game includes a cross curriculum of different subjects, such as English, Math, Social Studies, Business, and Diversity Studies. I know you will enjoy this one.

Welcome to the Marketplace

This is a program where students team up with other students to create new innovations and crafts to sell to fellow classmates, while also experiencing how others have taken steps to create new paths in their lives. The object of this activity is for students to create a product that they can sell to their classmates, and to test out the market before selling it (to one or more other classes within their school). Some of the instructions are written as if spoken directly to the students, for your convenience.

Day #1 – Dream Stage: A product is something of substance that is manufactured, assembled, or refined for sale. In this activity, the student will be able to run their own business and see how people respond to it. First, have the student consider what they like to do, or make. Are you into video games, or beauty supplies? Encourage them to think about what they like to do and want to do. This is important in life, to think about what you want and like to do, so you can enjoy it for a long time.

Assignment #1a: Write in your journal what you like to do. What are your hobbies, what are your desires as you get older? What great idea would you like to make? There are no limits – imagine all the possibilities! If you’d like, draw a picture to go along with it. (3-4 lines)

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Assignment #1b: Write in your journal what you think others would like to buy – something that you can make. What items do you think would your classmates buy, if they had the money to spend? (3-4 lines)

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Now, let’s design your product(s). Think of something you can create in your classroom. This can be a product, decoration, or anything that is simple enough to recreate, and does not take too long to produce many units. You will then present it to other students in your classroom, and see if they would be interested in buying them. When considering what to make, think about what your other classmates would purchase, and for how much. Keep the price under $10. They will be given fake money to spend, and you will see how well they like it. After the results come out, you will then present them to another classroom and see if they would buy this craft/project. This project can be done through virtual or face-to-face interaction (more on this later on).

Here are just a few ideas:

Craft Idea	Craft Link	Historical Figure
Creature Stress Balls	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz5iEBdJM84	Confucius https://huntthepast.com/topics/confucius/
Bracelets/Anklets	https://youtu.be/eaX4T0BxtJs	The Caddo Tribe https://huntthepast.com/topics/caddo/
Fancy Bookmarks	https://youtu.be/w9F1DXU2tlc	William Shakespeare: huntthepast.com/topics/william-shakespeare/
Slime in a Tin	https://youtu.be/jhEzOctkju8	Florence Nightingale huntthepast.com/topics/florence-nightingale/
Puff Ball Creatures	https://youtu.be/SJNuw9xKvvU	Brothers Grimm huntthepast.com/topics/brothers-grimm/
Corner Bookmark Creatures	https://youtu.be/YVkJPCp_1UQ	Bram Stoker huntthepast.com/topics/bram-stoker/
Bottle Cap Stamps	https://youtu.be/E5knOzuLxkE	The Invention of the Printing Press huntthepast.com/topics/the-printing-press/
Kid Stuck in a Bottle – DIY Snow Globe	https://youtu.be/ob40dRhF-i4	Sybil Ludington huntthepast.com/topics/sybil-ludington/
Cork Boat Racers	https://youtu.be/o5U2PxHXBOg	Christopher Columbus huntthepast.com/topics/christopher-columbus/
Paper Airplanes	https://youtu.be/54noZe-0B1c	Bessie Coleman https://huntthepast.com/topics/bessie-coleman/
Origami Fortune Tellers	https://youtu.be/BxyXk1sr2io	Tokyo Rose huntthepast.com/topics/tokyo-rose/
Melted Crayon Hearts	https://youtu.be/YqgqDjsl-HI	William Kelley https://huntthepast.com/topics/william-kelly/
Hair Clips	https://youtu.be/2D4fad2-Kdc	Madam C.J. Walker
Scrunchies	https://youtu.be/lBQWHZAecQA	https://huntthepast.com/topics/ Margaret Kemble Gage huntthepast.com/topics/margaret-kemble-gage/
Homemade Chia Pets	https://youtu.be/yWfRVIBoppo	Laika the Dog (Astronaut) https://huntthepast.com/topics/laika-the-dog/
Buggie Magnets	https://youtu.be/Tln4g3jYsQ0	Thomas Crapper (Inventor) https://huntthepast.com/topics/thomas-crapper/
Can Organizers	https://youtu.be/dAIDbFtgOQQ	Lewis Howard Latimer (Inventor) huntthepast.com/topics/lewis-howard-latimer/

Assignment #2: Draw a design and write the steps it would take to make this item, so that if you couldn’t do it, someone could follow your steps and make their own. Make sure to include a list of the items you would need to buy to make it (one full page of drawing or writing).

Take your time to consider each of these options, or find another craft that you can make that your classmates would be interested in buying.

Day #2 – Idea Development (Prototyping, Phase I): At the beginning of class, all students should return their journals, reporting back what they want to make, to sell to other students. Find two people with similar crafts and team them for this project. If there are two whose projects are not similar, see if you can team them up and they can choose one of their two ideas to produce.

While you are reviewing what they submitted, have the students go to www.HuntThePast.com/topics/ and search someone who may be linked to the craft you are designing. If it is a Paper Airplane, have them look up and study Bessie Coleman (stunt pilot); if it is a Hairclip, have them look up and study Madam C.J. Walker (first woman and African American Millionaire in the year 1899); if it is about Engineering or inventing, have them read about Lewis Latimer (a black inventor who worked with Thomas Edison on the lightbulb, and so much more, back in 1879). These are all people to be studied and learned from. They took hard situations and created something that no one else thought they could do. That is what helped them succeed.

Assignment #3: In your journal, write a one-page summary of who this person was; why they were so well known (or what they are known for); and what they were able to accomplish.

While you are helping other students, tell the kids to consider different alterations they can make to their designs, to make them more attractive to their buyers. For instance, with a hair clip, you don’t want to sell just one, but list a few options in your journal. Maybe add a picture to spark your creative side and discover all new hair clips. How about puffball monsters? How can you make alterations that would sell? Maybe design them to look like Disney characters or Minions – yellow with one eye – which will bring more interest from classmates who like those shows.

Assignment #4a: What would the buyers (classmates) pay to obtain these items you designed? When we get to this point, each student will receive a sheet of paper of fake money. They will need to cut each dollar out and use them to buy one or more items from their classmates. They may only charge $1 to $9 for each of their items. Students will need to write out how much they will charge each student, and why they think their items are worth that much.

Assignment #4b: Now that your students know what they will be creating, they need to figure out how to obtain these materials to make them. Have them make a list of materials.

After these shopping lists are completed, have your students sit down while you present Amazon.com or Walmart.com through the projector, and search out a few of their items. You should only need a few of each item for this prototype stage. Also, recommend students make a few variations of their product in case one would be more acceptable to the buyers than the original.

Assignment #5: Since you do not want your students spending their own money, and you may not want to spend your money to buy these materials, it is time for the students to ask an investor. They should start by thinking of their parents, then a family friend; if they are unable to find one on their own, try someone that you know that may want to help. To obtain these materials or this money, the students need to write a personalized letter to someone, asking them for the materials they need, or the money to make the purchase. There are three options that you can suggest, to include in their letter explaining this program to the investors.

Providing the materials needed by ordering them online and having them shipped to your school c/o your name;
Have them purchase part of the order and send them with their student; or
Provide the funding for you to purchase the materials.

However you decide to do it, this normally takes a good amount of time, depending on the materials. Hand delivering it would be the best option. If this is requested on a Wednesday or Thursday, the hope is that the materials will be there by Monday, which will give you time to complete the other assignments before crafting the product.

Day #3 – Prototyping Stage (Speech and Art Class Cross Curricula): In the first half of the class period, have the teams present their study on people from history. Allow them each 1-2 minutes to discuss this person. Allow them to use their laptop or tablet to present the person’s image to the class. At the end of the presentation, start a discussion about each of these people and how they made a difference in their own life, and the lives of others.

Assignment #6: In the second half of the class period, see if they can build a working prototype of their product. Even though your students do not have the materials to make multiple products, the hope is that you could gather the materials that would allow them to create their first working prototype, or even a few alterations.

Walk around the class and see how you can help them. Tell them that the next time you meet, they will be presenting the items to their classmates, who will have the chance to buy them.

Day #4 – Scientific Method (Science): Now that your students are excited to start building their little creations, it is time to teach your students a little science, through the Scientific Method (SM) of discovery. Here are the steps you could write up on the board, which they should add to their journal as they are writing.

1. Ask Questions – List 5 questions about your product and the potential customers it will attract.

Question 1: ______________________________________________________________
Question 2: ______________________________________________________________
Question 3: ______________________________________________________________
Question 4: ______________________________________________________________
Question 5: ______________________________________________________________

2. Research – Are there products sold today like yours that are successful, or are competitors? (What competitors do you have and how were they successful? What makes them different? Find one competitor and write a one-page journal entry on what it is and how they are different.

3. Hypothesis – Think of what you believe to be true about your product and future sales.

____________________________________________________________________________________

You are here in the process. Tomorrow you will experience the “Experiment” phase, and then future steps.

4. Experiment – In-class marketplace to experiment the interest other students may have.

5. Analyze Data – Was your hypothesis correct, or were you off in some way? What happened?

6. Accepted – If your hypothesis was correct, keep it, and move forward with sales.

7. Rejected – If your hypothesis was incorrect, make alterations, and try again!

Teams will create a unified Hypothesis they agree on, but each student should keep this in their journal.

Day #5 – Research and Development (Speech and Financial Education Cross Curricula): Today is the first day of the marketplace. You want your students to test their idea with other classmates, and see if they are interested and will buy. The first half of the class will finish their projects and prepare to present them to those in their class. The idea is, that each team will have 3-5 minutes to present and talk about their product, and how it will change the buyer’s life.

Before the presentations, pass out a worksheet that lists the items that are for sale, including their prices. Each student is told that they have $10 to spend on these items. They must spend it all. They will receive each of the items in return, when the class builds the products. If they have money left over, it is lost. This will spur a student to use up all their money and receive, in return, the items they want the most, giving a realistic perspective of what may sell. Students may not buy their own product. While the teams are presenting, have the students fill out a line of insight (suggestions and helpful critiques) about the product each team is presenting, as seen below. The critiques will give feedback to the students and the items purchased will allow the students to know how successful they were in pricing the item, and what can be changed before selling it to another class within the school.

Corner Mark Monsters – How many units do you want to buy: ________________________

Comments on the Products: ____________________________________________________

This insight for each of the projects will provide the team with more understanding of their SM experiment. Students may then take this information and analyze whether their product is ready for the marketplace. Each student will be able to meet as a team to discuss this, but should fill out their own journal with any insight they may have.

This is a great time to discuss with them the value of money, and how to spend it wisely.

These products will be built when the other class comes through and all purchases are made.

You will take these student surveys from the students and form them into a single report, to present each team. From this report, you may also consider telling the class who made the most sales and the team that made the most money. You also need to provide each team with any critiques that were given.

This report should be simple and include: the number of units that were sold, for what price, and the comments that were made on each of the forms. The students who wrote them are not to be divulged, to keep bullying or any type of intimidation away. All comments will be viewed and vetted by the teacher.

Consideration: If no one buys a product, this may be a good time to meet with the team and look at the critiques that were given. These will tell a better story of what people were looking for, and why they wouldn’t buy the product. Allow the students to consider alterations, substitutions, or even lowering the price.

Day #6 – Manufacturing (Math Cross Curricula): Students should estimate how many items will be needed to produce, when selling it to another classroom. Each student can take the number of students who bought their product in their room, and then add a safe quantity to the number of students in that classroom. Will they need more or will they need less? You decide, but you want to have the crafts on hand when the student comes to buy. People rather buy something that is on-hand rather than something backordered.

Assignment #7: Create a worksheet with help from their Math teacher, or design it yourself. You want them to see how Math can find its way into their products. Include questions such as these:

Ten units of your product were sold in your classroom of 20 students. The next class to visit will have one half more students in attendance. Of this amount of information, how many products do you think this next class will buy, if they buy at the same rate as your class? Hint: For every two students in your class, one item was purchased.
______ units (actual numbers from the classroom marketplace) of your product were sold in your classroom of ______ students. The next class to visit will have ______ students attending this marketplace. How many units do you think you will sell to this next classroom?
If you are to make 20 units for the marketplace and you need two eyeballs for each creature craft you are making, how many eyeballs will you need? How many feet will you need, if you need two per unit?
If you are to make ______ (how many units did you choose to make) units for the marketplace and you need ______ of Material A, ______ of Material B, and ______ of Material C, how many of each of these items will you need to make these units? Fill out the table below:

5. In the critiques by fellow classmates, did they have alternative options for their classmate’s products? What were they? List them above.

6. What if the world stopped producing Product A and Product C? What alterations could you make, and what materials would you use in their place? Would these items be a better seller than your original idea?

____________________________________________________________________________________

7. Would you spend more money on materials if you were to create your product twice the size? What materials would you need more of (list the Material you must buy more of)? Would you be able to charge more for these larger items?

____________________________________________________________________________________

Day #7 – Manufacturing: With all the supplies arriving, provided by those who can afford the donations, it is time to build your crafts. Each student has a number they have estimated will be the number they need. The classroom can be a factory floor, and each of the students today are factory workers, building their own crafts. When they complete their entire order, they can join up with their classmates and help with their crafts. Today, the entire class will be used for creating your products and making them presentable. This can take more than one day, but all products that are estimated should be complete before the day that is set up for the next class to come in and make their purchases.

Day #8 – Marketplace: It is now time to invite the other class to visit your physical or virtual classroom. Before they attend, provide the teacher with one sheet of play dollars for their students to cut out and provide to the merchants (your students). The sheet will be provided and contain ten $1 bills. Each buyer (their student) may visit a booth and purchase an item for the set price of the item. The students may walk away from the table with the craft that they purchased. If COVID is still a worry, then instead of using the play money that will be passed around, feel free to give them all a student survey (as you did with the classroom marketplace) and allow them to mark down the items they want, with their names on the papers. These crafts will be collected and stored for two weeks, and then passed out to the buyers’ classroom for them to collect their items.

When the marketplace is finished and the class is sitting back down, allow the students to count their money and write about the experience in their journal. Have them write a summary of what happened, how many orders they had, and what they have learned. If they believe that they sold the wrong type of item, have them list other types of items they think they should change their business plan to include. This is a learning experience for all – those who sold a “ton,” and those who were not as successful. Make sure to encourage your students that businesses fail all the time, but those that get back on their feet will be the ones that succeed. Perseverance is key!

Alternative Ending to this Activity: In the future, we will be creating a marketplace so the top selling craft from each class that participates will be able to sell on the worldwide web, and use this project as a fundraiser. Their class will compete against classes from around the United States for the greatest products and the greatest interest from real paying customers. The cash can be used by the PTA or the school directly, depending on who is coordinating the efforts.

Month: April 2021

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