Celebrating to Create A Historical Milestone: 1066

A ccording to some English medievalists, the year 1066 is one date that every English schoolchild knows by heart. That may be the case; however, in my teaching career, I've discovered that every American schoolchild does not know 1066 by heart nor what famous battle was fought in that year (I don't mean to imply that the Battle of Hastings was the most significant event of 1066 world-wide; it's just that that date is the focus of this activity). In order to fix mentally a chronological milepost, I have developed activities which allow students to "celebrate" those events and put these dates and events associated with them into their long-term memories. One example of my "celebration" approach is the activities related to our study of 1066, the Battle of Hastings.