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Dr. Annette Laing was a breath of fresh air for our entire social studies department ~ grades 6 -12. Teachers found her to be engaging, motivating, and entertaining.  She did a great job of reminding teachers why they love their content.  She spoke to their craft of teaching!"

Debbie Sarratt, Academic Support/Bulloch County Schools, GA

Literacy Coach
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Charles Spencer Elementary, Tifton, GA

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"Creativity, excitement, info given in an interesting way"
"Very exciting and informative"
"Learning ways to make social studies a fun experience for my fourth graders"
"You got me excited about going in and teaching social studies"
"Really enjoyed the performance and all the wonderful resources"
"I enjoyed the presentation of applied history"
"Annette Laing was wonderful!"

Comments from Evaluations at Teacher Workshop, Jimmy Carter National Historic Site

Literacy Coach
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Charles Spencer Elementary, Tifton, GA

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Thinking and/or Reading Like A Historian

Audiences: Elementary, Middle, or High School Teachers 


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Everyone knows what history is, right? 
Well, kind of. For one thing, it's not the past.


Starting out with an entertaining ride through what most Americans remember from history classes, Annette blows apart what we think history is, and why we teach it.
When most historians don't think consciously about how they think, and when they are trained by years of apprenticeship, how can we dip into the art and mystery of the craft of history with schoolkids? More importantly, why should we?
Focusing on essentials such as asking questions, building contexts, change over time, empathy, the contingency of knowledge, and the connections between past and present, Annette gives a crash course in historical thinking (as well as non-boring history). She also explains how historical fiction encourages the learning-by-osmosis method essential to history, and how, as author of The Snipesville Chronicles series, she communicates how historians think to an audience that ranges in age from  nine to adult.
Along the way, Annette inspires teachers to think anew about a subject they thought they knew inside out. 
Speaking of which . . . Historians never assume they know a subject inside out.
And that's just one clue to the value of Thinking/Reading Like a Historian.

Depending on available time, this presentation may also show how historical thinking can be taught using a variety of primary sources, including artifacts, and encourages selecting resources for their appeal to students. Annette also shows the kinds of questions that students and teachers can pose as they approach subjects and sources alike.

Note: There are two slightly different versions of this presentation (Thinking and Reading), and each can also be calibrated to different audiences of elementary, middle, and high school teachers. Annette will discuss your needs with you before finalizing a booking.
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A Speech in Barnesville

Audience: High School Teachers

 Context and Contradiction in Reading Primary Sources



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When President Franklin Roosevelt arrived in Barnesville, GA,  in August, 1938, he was sure that his speech would be a hit. After all, he was a wildly popular president, and he was bringing a gift. He would flip the switch that would bring electricity to Barnesville for the very first time: It was made possible by New Deal programs created by his administration, including the REA and the TVA. FDR had great affection for the people of this area. He had lived part-time in nearby Warm Springs for over a decade at his retreat, the Little White House, and he had come to know many of his neighbors.
So when he addressed the large audience of local people on a football field in Barnesville, he was confident that they would do as he asked, and vote against the longtime U.S. senator from Georgia, Walter George.
But things did not go as President Roosevelt had planned.
The crowd booed him. 



We dramatize Franklin D. Roosevelt's Barnesville speech, and analyze it as a mystery in two acts:

Act I: An Electric Question
Why did FDR care whether people in a small rural community  had electricity? He had a home nearby in Warm Springs, GA, and he was paying four times more for electricity than he was in Warm Springs. But he was also a wealthy man, so the answer isn't just that he wanted cheaper power for himself! We consider FDR's motivations.
Why did the people of Barnesville want electricity? Who stood to benefit most from rural electrification? Who turned up to hear the President speak, and who did not?
​Starting with photographs of that day, we talk about who was in the audience-- and who was not. Using primary sources and empathy, we asked what electricity would mean to the the people of Barnesville, and why FDR was so keen they should have it. 

​Act II: A Political Blunder
Why did President Roosevelt ask the crowd in Barnesville to vote for Sen. Walter George's opponent, even as Senator George sat right behind him? Why and how did FDR, a brilliant politician, misjudge and offend his audience?  

 We examine how historians detect nuanced meanings and significance in primary sources, by looking outward to multiple contexts, using  available archival evidence, and secondary sources.
We discuss how to inspire students to ask questions, an essential skill in historical research.
This program is suitable for high school teachers regardless of content, since it models an approach to teaching that can be applied to many subjects.