High School - U.S. History
Toward the end of the quarter, students in my high school U.S. History classes were asked to identify which topic we had covered this quarter that they felt most connected to their lives as young people living in rural Northern Arizona. After analyzing their responses, some major themes emerged.
Work, Responsibility, and Family Sacrifice
The most common connection students made was to work and responsibility, especially through lessons on the Industrial Revolution and child labor. Many students related these topics to their own experiences helping their families, working jobs, doing chores, or hearing stories from parents who had to work hard when they were young. Students recognized that historical workers—especially children—often had limited educational opportunities and had to contribute to their families’ survival. This helped them reflect on their own responsibilities and appreciate the opportunities they have today.
Fairness, Inequality, and How People Treat Each Other
Many students connected lessons about slavery, discrimination, and historical conflicts to issues they see today. They reflected on how people are sometimes judged unfairly, taken advantage of, or treated differently. These connections helped students think about justice, fairness, and empathy, showing that they are able to apply historical lessons to modern social situations and personal relationships.
Personal Identity, Community, and Family History
A third major theme was connection to place and personal identity, particularly through learning about local history in Ash Fork, Arizona, and family backgrounds. Students expressed that studying the history of their town, their families, or migration stories helped them feel like they were part of a larger historical story. Learning about the railroad, Route 66, and local development made their community feel more meaningful and connected to national history.
Overall, responses show that Social Studies connects most strongly to their lives when it relates to real-world work experiences, fairness/ human relationships, and their own families or communities.
High School - Economics
As their final quarter project, students in the Economics class were asked to interview adults in their lives about their budgeting habits. This comes off the tail of covering Personal Finance through Ramsey Solutions, a great addition to our curriculum! Students could interview family members, coworkers, or even teachers to gather data.
Students asked a variety of questions, including:
Do you keep a budget?
If not, why don't you keep a budget?
Are giving, saving, and spending a part of your budget?
What types of categories are in your budget (utilities, food, gas, etc)?
Why do you think budgeting is an important skill to learn?
Overall, 79 adults were interviewed. Of those 79 adults, 53% reported that they did keep a semi-regular budget. On the other hand, 47% reported that they did not keep a regular budget.
When asked to summarize why budgeting is an important skill to learn, some student responses included:
“Budgeting is important to learn to be more financially comfortable, be able to control your money, build savings, deal with unexpected expenses, and to make room in the budget for fun and important expenses.”
“Budgeting is important because it helps you keep track of your money, avoid debt, and save for things you want.”
“Budgeting is important because it helps people be financially smart and to keep track of where every dollar is being spent. Budgeting can also reduce financial stress and help with future circumstances.”