So, when we talk about history in school many people will remember that they were bored by it, or it was taught by the football coach, or they watched a lot of movies in class, but not much else. I feel sad when I hear these comments, as history touches every subject in the world, it also is a great way to teach both tactical and strategic thinking to help students realize that actions have consequences, and even acts by little known individuals have changed a nation's history, for example few people remember the names of the individual pilots of the Imperial Japanese Navy who attacked Pearl Harbor on 12-07-1941, almost everyone remembers that it lead to the US being fully involved in WW2.
Pearl Harbor, and other major events, can be recreated in the classroom by using strategic and tactical games, events can be discussed and cause and effect can be explored in a way that is more substantial than worksheets and lectures, I have designed easy to play games for the Civil War, Spanish-American War, the Great Depression, and many for WW2. Many students enjoy these activities and benefit from the enrichment that happens from the ability to dive deeper into a topic, I hope to design many games for future use on more topics!
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