Periodization

Journal OBJECTIVE: Students will be able to… Successfully use periodization to understand the connection of events in history AGENDA: Story Time Periodization Periodize Your Life! “No periods make absolute sense, but some time frames make more sense than others.  This is a fun intellectual problem that demonstrates, for me anyway, how history is really made by historians who are sympathetically attempting to understand the past.” – Kevin Schultz, On Periodization, Sept. 7, 2011 What the heck is this quote trying to say?

Moment of Truth… The Nest The Bird's Word The Birdhouse The Roost Mr. Bird's Boring Website Title Rip off a piece of paper and write the name (not just the number!) of the website you like. I’ll pass around the tip jar and submit your vote.

Story Time! I’m going to read you guys a story. Your job is to divide the story into chunks (beginning/middle/end, rising action/falling action, good/bad/ugly, etc.) Describe when the story shifted between your chunks and how you knew Turn to a partner and share why you divided the story the way that you did.

What is Periodization? Categorizing history/time into periods and eras Provides useful terminology for classifying events Specific time frame containing common characteristics People don’t place themselves in periods, the creation of periods happens by historian’s years after the period Examples Colonial America, Civil War America Middle Ages, Dark Ages, Renaissance

Does the way we divide up time affect how we understand history?

Can we divide your life? Divide your life into “eras.” For each era, you need to give it a name, describe what defines that era, and draw a picture representing it. When you finish, put your timeline on the back wall.

Periodizing the U.S. In groups of four… Make a list of every major event in U.S. History that you can think of. Categorize those events into periods For each period, make sure that you have a name, description, and picture. List your group’s periods on the board