In first grade, boys deepen their understanding of geography and mapping as they study historical maps of New York City. In second grade, they learn about the various ways New York City has changed over time while remaining connected to its historical roots. And in third grade, boys explore, with depth, the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, focusing on how Americans have demonstrated perseverance and ingenuity throughout their lives. The boys study New York City first and then slowly shift their focus outwards, mirroring their development as young men.
Importantly, and beginning in first grade, boys embark on a three-year partnership with New York Historical, New York’ s first museum. What are the benefits of such a partnership? First, the partnership includes visits by a senior educator from NYH, a true expert in the field, who shares not only their content knowledge but also their love of history with the boys. In recent years, the boys have worked with Ms. Cheryl McGinnis, often across the three-year partnership, and we are incredibly grateful for her efforts. Second, the partnership gives the boys access to a trove of primary source material— over 400 years of art, documents, and artifacts— from the archives of NYH. Third, the partnership includes purposeful arts integration; at each grade level, boys create original works of art that showcase their learning. Finally, as a culminating experience in the spring, boys synthesize and present what they have learned to their parents, faculty, and administrators.
Most importantly, this partnership introduces and develops the aforementioned“ historical approach”— it compels boys to think critically and ask questions, as historians do, by examining primary sources through visual inquiry and hands-on learning.
This process of visual inquiry really means close-looking or, as the boys often hear from Ms. Cheryl and their teachers,“ looking is learning.” This routine drives the instruction and prompts the boys to look at material from the past and ask themselves,“ What do I see?” and“ What do I think, based on what I see?” A second grader might ask“ What does a delft tile tell me about the lifestyle of Dutch settlers in New Amsterdam?” while a third grader wonders“ What does the development of Tiffany lamps tell me about the technological effects of the Industrial Revolution?” We are purposeful and consistent with the implementation of this routine; from early on, boys use source material to answer historical questions.
This process of visual inquiry is not complete without a hands-on learning experience. After learning about a particular historical time period, and examining the primary source material associated with that period, boys create original projects. For example, as part of their study of the American West, third graders learn about the Navajo people and their practice of making sand art. Then, they create their own works of sand art, experiencing the landscape of the American West like a settler who came from the east would have all those years ago.
By engaging in visual inquiry and handson learning with primary source material from first through third grade, the boys develop fundamental critical thinking skills
The partnership includes visits by senior educator Cheryl McGinnis from NYH, an expert in the field, who shares not only her content knowledge but also her love of history with the boys.
that will serve them well throughout their educational careers.
Our commitment to cultivating a
32 • Saint David’ s Magazine