National History Day 2016-2017

What is National History Day? It’s a national contest between kids from schools across America…over 500,000 students compete! blogs.sacbee.com/sac_history_happenings, nhd.org, 2.bp.blogspot.com

What’s it About? Study a historical topic/person and create a project about it A new theme each year Students choose any historical topic that fits the theme

This Year’s Theme: Taking a Stand in History Take a stand against disease discrimination, an old way of doing things, etc. It can be an individual, a group, a movement, an event

Fitting Topic to the Theme Your topic has to fit the theme closely! Not every person who took a stand is a good choice—avoid the obvious first choices Look through the sample topics list to see some examples

What’s in it for You? It’s a great experience and it will push you Many BHS History teachers require it You’ll receive extra credit for work produced You could travel and even win a prize Colleges love to see it on applications

Things to Consider… It’s a lot of work, and competition is fierce You have to really love your topic You can’t be afraid of reading (like, books) If you procrastinate, this will either help you or make you insane Subpar work can be really embarrassing at the contest

Check Out Sample Topics and Explore Topics shouldn’t be too recent (20 years or older, so before 1994) If you want to move on in the contest, find a topic with a clear connection to the whole theme

Individual or Group? Individual Advantages Disadvantages No one can let you down Don’t have to deal with disagreements over topic, workload, etc High achiever types may prefer having power over all decisions and final outcome All the responsibility falls on you—no one can bail you out or spur you to action when you don’t feel like working Don’t have the input of others to help make decisions, come up with ideas, etc. Heavier workload

Individual or Group? Group Advantages Disadvantages Less work per person Access to better resources Share ideas and help motivate each other You can complement each other’s skills, knowledge, and focus level Some projects really are better suited for groups Undependable group mates are the number one headache Hard to get all people on same page Social drama can lead to academic drama

Project Types Exhibit / Project board (Individual or group) Website (Individual or group) Paper (Individual only) Documentary (Individual or group) Performance (Individual or group)

Exhibit / Board Exhibit: Less writing (500 words on board) Less complex than other choices Layout is extreme headache, takes days Work quality is instantly obvious www.wisconsinhistory.org

Website Website: More writing than other choices Digital: Easier and faster to reformat, start over, edit text, etc. Shorter deadline: Must be completed early Easier for groups Flashy: Must be interactive, have excellent visuals (charts, graphs, diagrams, etc)

Project Examples: Websites http://44934519.weebly.com/ http://13379618.weebly.com/ http://51713941.weebly.com/ http://onthebrinkofdisunion-theelectionof1860.weebly.com/ http://67046089.weebly.com/

Paper Paper: Only project which doesn’t require the process paper More writing than others No groups! Individual only Nothing flashy required, just excellent research and good writing www.professays.com

Documentary Documentary: Less writing, much of it will be recorded in voiceover Are you really ready for: Filming Editing Adding or mixing Audio Transitions / Graphics Technical issues These are nearly professional Requires a lot of coordination, travel, other people’s help www.madeinla.com

Performance Performance: Not for the meek! Act out your thesis for the judges Requires practice, memory, timing, props, and nerves Strangers will be present Must be polished and smooth Wisconsin Board of Education

Performance Example Luddite Rebellion of 1800s http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5VKUpxSz0o