Objective:
The student will be able to explain the life and accomplishments of a famous person as seen through the eyes of a fish who lives in the person’s aquarium.
Materials Needed:
Activity:
Ask students to select a famous man or woman who made history. (For students who are having trouble thinking of someone, they can flip through their textbook, look at historical biographies or the teacher could conduct a five-minute brainstorming session where students can make a list of famous people from which to choose.)
Once the famous person has been selected, students are given an allotted time to write a story about what it would have been like to be a fish in that person’s aquarium. Students should be required to answer the following questions which would be listed on the chalkboard:
• What type of fish would best fit the personality of the subject?
• What exciting events or people would the fish witness from the tank?
• How could the subject’s aquarium or fish have played a key role in history?
• Does the fish agree or disagree with what the famous person is doing? Why?
• Have the fish comment on why this person made such an impact on history.
• Why might a fish be happy or unhappy to be in this person’s aquarium?
At the conclusion of the allotted time, students will share their stories with the class. After all the reports have been presented, the teacher can ask the students if they learned something new about the person or the event.
Result:
By answering these questions (and any others that the teacher would like to add), students gain experience at analyzing a historical event and expressing it from a new perspective. This exercise also should enable students to remember more details about important historical events.
