I haven't blogged in forever, for a number of reasons, but today's history class was so good I had to share.

We are studying the War of 1812. I showed a Crash Course video about the war to begin with, which gave a great overview of the war, the reasons we got into the war and the results of the war. The kids love Crash Course videos so that was a great way to start class. Then I gave a few notes about the war. Then, we read together a play called "Rocket's Red Glare" that was in Scope magazine a while back. It was humorous, factual and the kids enjoyed being the various characters. While we were reading, one student blurted out, "I GET IT! THE ROCKET'S RED GLARE!"

 But then... this the magical part: I played the above video of the "Star-Spangled Banner". They all stood, hands on hearts and faced the flag. Not because I told them to, but because they felt the moment.

And.. I remembered why I love teaching all over again.