Bringing History to Life: A Battle in the Classroom

Watch the video of a segment in teacher David McCollister’s lesson about the Battle of Bunker Hill. This is part of a lesson series he gave for 9- and 10-year-olds at Boone Trail Elementary School, Missouri. McCollister, who is a high school teacher, believes in reenacting parts of history in order to light a fire in students. According to his principal at Lutheran North in St. Louis County, Missouri, where McCollister has taught for 45 years, “You can sense the energy in his voice.” A student at Boone Trail Elementary said, “I like when teachers are energetic,” and noted that he wished he had Mr. McCollister (Mr. Mac) for a teacher. McCollister attributes his good teaching techniques to some of the teachers who inspired him years ago and also to “The 20^th Century” with Walter Cronkite. McCollister believes in telling his students why what he’s teaching is important, and he adds acting to his teaching tools. Think of the power of this teacher in the classroom or even online through our 21^st Century technologies.