John Harris

Harris believes that history should not simply be studied, it should be experienced. That is why he designed "History Hunt - Discovering Your Hometown" to reach beyond the walls of his social studies classroom and utilize popular technology to help students learn more about their surrounding community. Approximately 150 seventh through ninth-grade students will travel in small groups to a pre-determined location in their hometown, such as the courthouse, post office or church. They will be divided into groups of no more than five students each. With the assistance of an instructor, community leader or volunteer, each group will use items contained in a project kit. Hand-held global positioning system (GPS) units, digital cameras and other documentation materials will be used to locate 10 nearby historically significant sites. Data collected at each site will then be compiled into a project portfolio which each team will be responsible for presenting in front of their peers. The purpose of collecting data at each site will be twofold: 1) to identify proposed improvements that the students will subsequently oversee themselves and 2) to publish a walking tour guide for visitors to the area to enjoy. Harris is a resident of Somerset.