How does one inspire grade nines??

The other day while preparing my unit plan for this class, and for my actual class in February, I found myself contemplating just exactly HOW I was going to get my grade nine students interested in not only the English Civil War, but also in Social Studies itself. Every Tuesday and Friday afternoon, I sit in ECS 130 and get absolutely excited about teaching social studies. "Yes!" I think, "I'm going to affect change and inspire students, at 14 or 16, to want to consider and potentially solve the problems that our generation and those before us have created." This elation carries me through my 20 min walk home and I burst into my house with all new and amazing ideas. Immediately, I sit myself down at my computer to create lessons that will not only inspire students but CHANGE their views of the world and embed personal belief that their say, regardless of the size of the issue, matters and will make a difference.

However, as I glance over to my list of curricula and the corresponding time frames I feel the elation that so miraculously floated me down Sinclair Hill without being hit by a truck deflate inside me. How, can I do it all? Inspire both activists and socially conscious students and cover all the curriculum (which at the grade nine level provides little to no room for current events).

So perhaps, my question here is how do I fit in social justice and current event issues in a grade nine curriculum that focuses on 15th-16th century history? While I do not have an straight up answer, I do have some ideas and have decided to share them with you. Any comments or recommendations are more than welcome.

First and foremost, I am an avid believer that History must be relevant to our students. Illustrating how the causes and results of a past event is directly related to our societal norms and politics of today is absolutely imperative. This may seem simple, but it's amazing how much we, as teachers, take for granted our own knowledge of these connections. On this note, I've decided that in order for my grade nine students to understand that the basic human rights that they exercise today were at one time or another fought for by earlier generations. I plan to start the course with a set of rules which I alone have created. The idea is to establish myself as the authority in the classroom, appointed by a supreme being (the principal), and have a divine right to teach rule over the classroom. As we progress through the unit, we, as a class, will create our own Bill of Rights, where the students, my subjects, will have the opportunity to challenge my original rules and bring forth their own recommendations. They will have to earn these rights, through proper and thorough arguments. In this activity I hope to not only connect the importance of this historical event to our own concepts surrounding parliament and democracy, but to also teach my students to question and challenge authority in order for their own personal sense of equality and fairness.

Additionally, I wish to really urge all social studies teachers to celebrate Canadian Black History Month. While the curriculum does not recognize this celebration of African Canadians, it is an official celebratory month on the Canadian Calendar. Use this opportunity to discuss what multiculturalism means to Canada, our communities and and our students themselves.

An interesting website with the history of the African Canadians is :

http://blackhistorycanada.ca/ Here you will find lesson ideas and timeline for teachers.

Bring in music: soul, Blues, Rap and discuss their significance are in representing the struggle of the African person was and still is today.