Peacefield History

Teaching Critical Thinking Creatively

  • Home
  • Blog
  • Shop
    • The Peacefield History Shop
    • Shop Teaching Materials on TpT
  • Community
    • Join our Email Community
    • Join our Collaborative Facebook Group
  • About Peacefield History

How to Talk to Your Students About War

March 3, 2019 By: peacefieldhistory

How to talk to your students about war when they think it's a game.

If you’ve been teaching history long enough, you’ve probably had some students in your classroom that seemed a little too excited about war. Gross wartime injuries are “awesome!” Students think that the solution to any confrontation is to just, “drop a giant bomb on them.” When I first started teaching, these comments were too common, and I didn’t know how to respond. More recently, I’ve developed an approach that works every time. This approach validates student comments and also frames them with context to help students develop a greater understanding of war.

The Demographics of my Classroom

Before I discuss how I approach the topic of war in my classroom, I must make clear the demographics in which I teach. This approach may work for your classroom also, however, it may require some nuance to make sure that it’s effective. I teach middle school in a small rural community. My students are largely white, and most have only experienced war through video games. Many of my male students also hunt and have some familiarity with guns. Therefore, war is something most of my students think they already know about.

Back in the Day

I teach the first half of U.S. History. Therefore, there are many wars that we discuss as part of the class. In my early years of teaching, I used to be really frustrated by the seemingly violent and “out of touch” comments my students made when we discussed the wartime experience. I couldn’t figure out why they would make these comments. Didn’t they know that war was awful? Didn’t they recognize that there was a difference between the video games they played and actual war experience? I would inevitably get annoyed and try to shut down these types of comments.

Finally, it dawned on me. They really didn’t know the difference between real war and the war they had experience on a screen.

These were students who were entirely removed from war. They had never experienced any type of war firsthand. Therefore, what they knew from war did come from video games or from movies. They didn’t know what war was really like.

My Current Approach

I recognized that I needed to change my approach. Instead of getting annoyed with kids for “out of touch” comments, I spun those comments in a positive direction.

Now, when students act like war is a fun experience, I say something like the following:

“That’s really great that you think that way about war. That means that you’ve never had to experience war in your lifetime. That’s a good thing. I would much rather that you see war in this way than any real life war experience. If you’ve ever talked to anyone who has actually served in a war, or been through war, they will tell you that war is simply awful.”

This elicits a much different response. The student who made the innocently inappropriate comments doesn’t feel like he or she been scolded. Other students immediately chime in with stories about family members who served in war, and the conversations they’ve had about a wartime experience.

Students come out of this conversation more knowledgeable about what war really is without feeling bad about the fact that they didn’t understand that previously.

Obviously, this is my technique to serve the students I teach. Those of you who teach students who have experienced gun violence directly would probably need to change how you discuss this information. Still, I hope this helps my students to develop my empathy towards those who have fought in a war, lived through a war, or experienced gun violence in their community. I also hope it increases their own understanding of what war does to all of us.

How do you talk to your students about war?

  • Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
    To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • You May Also Like

    About Peacefield History

    Peacefield History is filled with all topics teaching and history related. Follow me for trends in education, teacher tech tips, history related reading, and other more general musings.

    Search

    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

    Join the Facebook Group

    Categories

    • AP U.S. History
    • Assessment
    • Classroom Management
    • Curated Book Lists for Teachers
    • Digital Learning
    • Inquiry Based Learning
    • Lessons
    • Loves, Links, Reads, and Reviews
    • Professional Development
    • Standards Based Grading
    • Teacher Budgeting
    • Teacher Interviews
    • Teacher Self Care
    • Teacher Tech
    • Teaching Strategies
    • Teaching the Election

    Popular Posts

    • Designing your Social Studies Classroom Cheaply and Easily
      Designing your Social Studies Classroom Cheaply and Easily
    • Keeping Students Organized With a Binder Organization System
      Keeping Students Organized With a Binder Organization System
    • My Middle School Students Don't Take Notes Anymore
      My Middle School Students Don't Take Notes Anymore
    • 4 Fun Websites for Teaching Geography Interactively
      4 Fun Websites for Teaching Geography Interactively
    • A Critical Thinking One Pager Assessment
      A Critical Thinking One Pager Assessment
    • The Best Inquiry Based Social Studies Lessons on the Web
      The Best Inquiry Based Social Studies Lessons on the Web
    • 10 Ways to use Pear Deck in your History Classroom
      10 Ways to use Pear Deck in your History Classroom
    • Utilizing MEAL for Paragraph Writing in Social Studies
      Utilizing MEAL for Paragraph Writing in Social Studies
    • Standards Based Grading in Middle School
      Standards Based Grading in Middle School
    • Creating Stations for your Social Studies Class
      Creating Stations for your Social Studies Class

    Find me on Facebook

    Find me on Facebook

    © 2018–2022 Peacefield History.
    • Contact Me
    • Privacy Policy

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.View Terms and Conditions
    Cookie SettingsAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
    CookieDurationDescription
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
    viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
    Functional
    Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
    Performance
    Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
    Analytics
    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
    Advertisement
    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
    Others
    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
    SAVE & ACCEPT
     

    Loading Comments...