History Day Theme Presentation
September 25, 2012
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Turning Point:
•a point at which a significant
change occurs
• decisive change of direction
•departure from long held
tradition or rule
•a point where history effectively
turns a corner
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Turning Point:
•a point at which a significant
change occurs
• decisive change of direction
•departure from long held
tradition or rule
•a point where history effectively
turns a corner
Climax
Landmark
Milestone
Watershed
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Turning Point:
An event or set of events
that, had it not happened as
it did, would have prompted
a different course in history.
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Turning Point:
An event or set of events
that, had it not happened as
it did, would have prompted
a different course in history.
* Be careful of “What If” History!
Watch out for “What If” history
Be wary of “if not for this, then
that” analysis
Watch out for “What If” history
“Without Winston Churchill,
the whole world would be
controlled by the Nazi’s”
Have the students supported
their claims with evidence?
“Through his leadership during
WWII, he saved not only the
British people, but the free
world”
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Challenge to students will be to
argue that an historical person,
idea, or event is actually a
turning point
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
People
Ghandi and his implementation
of peaceful protest to achieve
Indian Independence
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
People
Ideas
Ghandi and his implementation
of peaceful protest to achieve
Indian Independence
James “Crash” Ryan’s idea of seatbelts
to improve car safety
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Events
1960 televised Presidential
debate changes the role of
media in the election process
People
*Should use at least 1
tag word
Ideas
Ghandi and his implementation
of peaceful protest to achieve
Indian Independence
James “Crash” Ryan’s idea of seatbelts
to improve car safety
Turning Points should be historically significant
Topics should be at least 20 years old
Hurricane Katrina
September 11, 2001
Consequences
A turning point may not be positive for all
Consequences
A turning point may not be positive for all
Ex. Executive Order 9066
Consequences
A turning point may have
unintended consequences
Consequences
A turning point may have
unintended consequences
Ex. Borlaug and Green Revolution
When does an event become a
turning point?
Historical perspective
When does an event become a
turning point?
Historical perspective
Immediately
Ex. Pearl Harbor, dropping of the Atomic Bomb
When does an event become a
turning point?
Historical perspective
Immediately
Ex. Pearl Harbor, dropping of the Atomic Bomb
Retrospect
Ex. Stock market crash,
oil embargo
Not all turning points will have a
dramatic event!
Ex. Shift from conformist 1950s to radical 1960s and 1970s
Turning Points can be controversial
Ex. U.S. involvement in Vietnam War
A Turning Point can occur in
response to crisis or perceived
threat!
Ex. 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre
Cause & Effect
Second Sino-Japanese War
U.S. enters WWII
World War II begins between
Axis and Allied powers
Tension between Japan
And Western powers
Bombing
of Pearl
Harbor
Atomic Bomb
Submarine Warfare
Iwo Jima
People, Ideas, Events
Use the subtext to narrow within a topic
People, Ideas, Events
Use the subtext to narrow within a topic
Ex. Women’s Suffrage Movement
People – Women’s Suffrage Movement
Alice Stone Blackwell
Belva Ann Lockwood
Carrie Chapman Catt
Ideas – Women’s Suffrage Movement
• Th
National Woman Suffrage Association
and the 15th Amendment
National Women’s Party and political protest
Events – Women’s Suffrage Movement
1848 Seneca Falls Convention
1890 Wyoming admitted to the Union
as the first state allowing women to vote
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Historical Context & Impact are crucial!
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Historical Context & Impact are crucial!
What was happening before that led to
pivotal change?
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Historical Context & Impact are crucial!
What was happening before that led to
pivotal change?
What was the significance of the change?
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Historical Context & Impact are crucial!
What was happening before that led to
pivotal change?
What was the significance of the change?
How will the change alter various aspects of society?
•Business
•Government
•Transportation
•Religion
•Education
•Technology
•Communication
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
Historical Context & Impact are crucial!
What was happening before that led to
pivotal change?
What was the significance of the change?
How will the change alter various aspects of society?
Why did this change occur at this time and place?
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
“Heart of the Story” is the Turning Point
Title
Historical Context
Heart of
the Story
Short & Long Term Impact
Thesis Statement
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
U.S. Government & War
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
U.S. Government & War
Supreme Court Decisions
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
U.S. Government & War
Supreme Court Decisions
Transportation
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
U.S. Government & War
Supreme Court Decisions
Science & Technology
Transportation
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
U.S. Government & War
Supreme Court Decisions
Science & Technology
Civil Rights
Transportation
2013 NHD Theme – “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas Events”
U.S. Government & War
Supreme Court Decisions
Sports
Civil Rights
Transportation
Science & Technology
Top 25 News Stories of the 20th century
1. U.S. drops Atomic Bomb (1945)
2. Men first walk on the moon (1969)
3. Japan bombs Pearl Harbor (1941)
4. Wrights first fly airplane (1903)
5. U.S. women win the right to vote (1920)
6. JFK assassinated in Dallas (1963)
7. Nazi Holocaust exposed (1945)
8. World War I begins (1914)
9. Court ends “separate but equal” (1954)
10. U.S. stock market crashes (1929)
11. Antibiotic penicillin discovered (1953)
12. DNA’s structure discovered (1953
13. Soviet Union dissolves (1951)
14. Richard Nixon resigns (1974)
15. Germany Invades Poland (1939)
16. Communists take over Russia (1917)
17. Ford creates assembly line (1913)
18. Soviets launch first satellite (1957)
19. Einstein conceives relativity (1905)
20. Birth control pill approved by FDA (1960)
21. New polio vaccine works (1953)
22. Hitler named chancellor (1933)
23. M.L.King, Jr., assassinated (1968)
24. Allies invade France on D-Day (1944)
25. Deadly AIDS disease identified (1981)
“Stories of the Century, 1900-2000,” Newseum, http://www.newseum.org/century/finalresults.htm
(accessed September 3, 2012)
Advanced Topic Tips
Advanced Topic Tips
Ask a different question of a well studied topic
Advanced Topic Tips
Ask a different question of a well studied topic
Ex. “What did Jackie Robinson do during the
Civil Rights Movement”
Advanced Topic Tips
Avoid Biography!
Advanced Topic Tips
Avoid Biography!
Ex. Study a smaller part of someone’s life with
more depth
Hubert Humphrey
Advanced Topic Tips
Avoid Biography!
Ex. Study a smaller part of someone’s life with
more depth
Hubert Humphrey
Elected Mayor of Minneapolis in 1945
1948 Democratic Convention
Elected Vice President in 1964 – unclear
stance on Vietnam War
Advanced Topic Tips
Find a “Sub-Iconic” Topic
Advanced Topic Tips
Find a “Sub-Iconic” Topic
Who were other leaders of the Civil Rights
Movement besides MLK?
Advanced Topic Tips
Find a “Sub-Iconic” Topic
Who were other leaders of the Civil Rights
Movement besides MLK?
Medgar Evers
Harry T. and Harriette Moore
Roy Wilkins
Advanced Topic Tips
Get to the Roots of a Current Event
Advanced Topic Tips
Get to the Roots of a Current Event
Middle East and anti-American sentiments
Arab and Ottoman Empire
British Imperialism
Formation of a Republic
“Six-Days War”
“October War”
Advanced Topic Tips
Analyze a Common Topic from a Different Perspective
Advanced Topic Tips
Analyze a Common Topic from a Different Perspective
What was the perspective of Parliament on the
American Revolution?
Advanced Topic Tips
Connect a Local Topic to the National Narrative
Advanced Topic Tips
Connect a Local Topic to the National Narrative
Ex. Farm protests during the Great Depression
in rural Minnesota
Pitfalls of the Theme
Arguing multiple “turning points” within a topic
Good overview of an historical event, but no evidence
before or after the topic to prove it was a turning point
Overuse of the phrase “turning point”. Use synonyms to
get your point across
“A turning point is ultimately a construct of historical reflection,
and a historical unit of analysis, rather than an event that
reveals itself to the people living through it at the time.”
- Roger Launius, curator National Air and Space Museum