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Teaching page No. 2: Text

You're already a hero...

Teaching tomorrow's problem solvers, but...

Note: A professional stuntwoman performed this video. Please do not attempt.

Photo: Great Heart of the Prairie Productions

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"By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest."

– Confucius

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...you still need a break occasionally! Whether you depend on these resources a little or a lot, I'm confident that I can make teaching my books easier than any other author. Below are ideas for teaching my books, according to grade level.

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MIDDLE SCHOOL

  1. Check out my YouTube channel, and you'll find chapter-by-chapter lectures if you need me to teach while you grade or catch up on other work. Auxiliary vlogs and blogs on a potpourri of topics on this website add insight and fun to my work.

  2. Have your students discuss in small groups who their hero is; they can add their heroes to the hero blog post on this website. 

  3. Nab fab merch you can get from https://www.bonfire.com/store/thrillingstuffyoucantlivewithout and https://teespring.com/stores/harrimanofficial. Then, you can give it out as prizes to students.

  4. Write to me at welcome@tharriman.com, and I'll send you the secret endings to the book. You and your class can read them and discuss: Do you like the original ending best or these secret endings? Why? Why would I have written other endings after the one in the book? 

  5. Each student in your class can draw a comic book to illustrate each chapter.

  6. Upload your fave hero songs from each student to my Spotify playlist. My intern placed one on there as an example. Just search for "T. Harriman."

  7. If you need a public speaking/essay component to your class, perhaps you could send me a vlog with your students reading a section of the first or last chapter. If your class is cool with it, I'll post their vlog on my YouTube channel (Don't forget to like and subscribe!)

  8. Although the book is primarily meant to entertain, my hope is that it will impel others to work to make the world a better place. Perhaps you all can fill out the form in the back of each book in class, and you can assign each kid community service. One of my students once started a food bank for the Milwaukee area; this is nice, but not mandatory! In fact, sometimes, the smaller the good deed, the greater the impact it has!

  9. As a mom of four, I believe that this generation is the wisest ever. Accordingly, I think even middle schoolers can write an essay on an adult with whom they disagree and ways the student can work to make lives better that won't upset the adult's belief system.

  10. Think about the problems in your own community, and discuss ways young people can work to solve them.

  11. Don't forget: I'm available to speak to/teach classes. See the "bookings" page on this website!

  12. Send me a short vlog or pic of your whole class saying hello, and if everyone is willing, I'll post the photo/vlog on Instagram and YouTube, depending on the medium.

  13. Your class will have fun consuming some of my memories and then relating how they affected my work.

    1. Three Dog Night: ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dp7KfG9AjaY

    2. Four Dead in Ohio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YX95QSKBODo

    3. You've heard of Mr. Rogers, so here's the less-heard-of Captain Kangaroo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTSmGFa_vtA

    4. To explain my love of symbolism and hidden things: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6iRNVwslM4. Really listen to this jolly song about the apocalypse.

    5. The band my generation is named after... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tr2HBJJQGU

    6. Moving into the 1980s, one of my favorite songs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxSsol3Zd7k

    7. One of my favorite songs of the 1980s: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhAgQMqVxiE

    8. The anthem of the 1990s: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTWKbfoikeg&list=RDEMDz952MrmDXLULMlo7SEXUw&start_radio=1

    9. One of my favorite bands of the 2000s: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwhBRJStz7w

    10. A very bad song to drive to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBG7P-K-r1Y

    11. This is my favorite artwork. Why do you think that is? https://www.instagram.com/p/3wFmeWNy-E/?utm_source=ig_embed

    12. Just Google Keith Haring's artwork, and your students will likely identify in a second why he's one of my faves.

    13. Another interesting exercise is to Google works by Jenny Holzer, a direct influence on my work.

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Teachers: If you can think of an idea not mentioned here, please send it to me at welcome@tharriman.com, and I'll add it to this list--crediting you, of course!

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