"A World Without History" Activity

This is a fun one! The purpose of this activity is to get students to understand why studying and learning history is so important and how problematic it would be if we lived in a world where no one cared to learn history and it was forgotten. (A world many students might initially think would be great!)  Students start off with a warmup thinking about why many of their peers think studying history is useless and a waste of time. Then, either in discussion groups or individually, they start imagining a world without history (there is a scenario for you to read to set this up), and students start to really think about the benefits and detriments of living in such a world. They think about how some things could be better but what major problems this world would have. Then they about how it would impact them individually. If they had no knowledge or connection to history- what kind of lives would they live and what kinds of people would they be? This can lead to such a powerful discussion and get students realizing why history is so vital and how terrible it would be if it were forgotten or lost! The whole activity is completed on google slides with questions organized neatly on different slides which can help them more easily navigate all the questions than just a normal worksheet.  Then part II, is called, "RESCUED HISTORY", students or student groups research a dictator or government that has tried to erase or rewrite history (like the Nazis, The Cultural Revolution in China, and ISIS' destruction of museums and ancient texts). They complete a 5 slide presentation with specific guidelines to help support their research. They learn who this leader/government was, how they tried to erase or rewrite history, and most importantly, why they did this. They then reflect on what this tells us about the importance of history and being connected to the past.  Students will discover how erasing history can take power away from people and why learning history is empowering!  When they are done they can present to the class or do jigsaws and present in small groups or just not present at all- your call! There is a link so you can edit anything you might need to support your students!