Quartet connects historical facts
History is boring and difficult to remember, according to many students. Simon de Wilde, historian and teacher of People & Society, devised a quartet that enlivens the curriculum and makes learning easier.
Image: Angeliek de Jonge
When does the oldest human history date? How many centuries are there between the periods of the "Hunters and Farmers" and the "Monks and Knights"? What do Anne Frank's person, poison gas, a red-blue chair and decolonization have to do with each other?
These are questions that come up in a playful way as students Ten Epochs Quartet Game play. Simon de Wilde invented the game when he did his LIO internship at the Trajectum College in his hometown of Utrecht. “I noticed that my first-year students found it difficult to keep the ten periods apart. They easily got confused about the order. Which epoch also follows after the 'Monks and Knights'?' Or: What was before: the 'Wigs and Revolution time' or the time of 'Regents and Sovereigns'?
To make it easier to remember, De Wilde invented a game that combines the time slots with different 'windows' from the Canon of the Netherlands: an overview of the history and culture of the Netherlands in fifty themes. The canon gives schools direction in the interpretation of the subject of history for primary education and the first two years of secondary education.
Quart set
Each quartet set consists of four categories: a person, an invention, a building and a development. For example, the set of cards of the 'Greeks and the Romans' (3000 BC to 500 AD) consists of Julius Caesar, the script, the Roman Limes and the spread of Christianity. The era of the 'Hunters and Farmers' (until 3000 BC) consists of Neanderthals, the wheel, dolmens and first farmers.
Quartets helps students playfully remember facts
“I enjoyed coming up with a quartet,” says De Wilde. “And I was able to try it out on VMBO students from my internship school. Together with my supervisor, I put the finishing touches and came up with activating teaching methods that can be downloaded free of charge. ”
Competitive
The quartet is popular in the classroom. “Most children are competitive and want to win. That's why they like playing a game. They are absorbed in it, because they can be the best at it. ” The fact that they also learn something from it is by-catch, smiles De Wilde.
Most children are competitive and eager to win
And the learning gain extends beyond history. The quartet also helps with vocabulary and reading development. European integration, crusades, Viking attacks, canal belt. “There are words that some children have to read syllable by syllable. And there are also words they don't know. By talking about it, the children learn new words. ”
Teaching methods
'Guess your card' is one of the working methods. Students must guess which card another student is holding. The person with the card can only answer 'yes' or 'no'. A simple assignment is to ask the students to arrange the cards in chronological order. For the juniors of secondary school it is nice to organize an election: 'Who is the most important historical person?'
In groups, students prepare arguments for why this person deserves this honorary title. "They have to put themselves in the shoes of the person and have a short chat."
“It invites you to discover and follow your own curiosity. What kind of man was Charlemagne or Floris the Fifth? ” De Wilde also encourages colleagues to design their own quartet, possibly together with students. “You have to think it through carefully in advance. Make sure there is a line and that there are categories that you can cluster. ”
De Wilde graduated as a historian in Utrecht and completed the second-degree history teacher training. It is no coincidence that he came up with a quartet. He previously developed a quartet for the municipality of Utrecht in which the most beautiful places in the Overvecht district are highlighted. “The neighborhood does not have such a positive image. In the quartet I show the other side of the neighborhood. ”
He and his wife put it on it company quartet shop in the market. The Time Periods Quartet Game is now played in dozens of primary and secondary schools. The reactions are positive. Miss Inger, a well-known Instagram face, emailed: 'What an incredibly educational game this is! I learned new things about periods in Dutch history. '
But De Wilde liked the order of the quartet by his former high school history teacher. “I recognized his name and emailed if it was him. So yes! He is about to retire, but he still likes to use new materials. ”
