while you've ty been in the nation's capital? >> i have loved walking running e and everywhere, particularly in the the library behind of congress, has been just a history in itself, and had ney been there, so other than to the mary bethune park so i've been enjoying the of allty, and this city, the different neighborhoods that i've gone to and purposefully whethercheck those out, it be up on u-street, or whether potomac o out to the park. >> did you get into the library of congress? i did. i had been there once before and got my library card. use itou can go back and now, now that you've gotten your library card? >> absolutely. get their citizen can library card? >> just have to go down to the

basement. absolutely. >> maureen mcguirl, thank you of our fellows and being with us this summer. >> appreciate it. >> for more information about education resources, including lesson plans and our go her fellowship program, /classroom.rg every year, c-span awards fellow and highseveral middle school teachers who have demonstrated innovative methods c-span programsg in their 250e67g. they join c-span's education team in washington, d.c. for four weeks in july to teaching materials. they also help lead c-span's summer educator's conference. three 2019 teacher fellows is middle school teacher lowe of sumter, south carolina. our 2019 one of c-span teacher fellows. at middle school

in sumter, south carolina. your s a little bit about students. >> my students come from a very rural area, impoverished backgrounds. very on the edge of sumter county in south carolina. like haped a little bit oklahoma. our school comes from the so we're completely away from the city. we have about 400 kid, grades k small schoola very as well. but the kids are determined to grow and they are determined to and, just great personalities, and desire to try nd make their communities a better place. >> your focus as a teacher is state history. history.olina state what prompted you to apply to be fellow?er what did you think would you learn? >> i came to c-span's educator years ago.four it was my first big professional development experience. it was right after my first year teaching. it's kind of hard for my students to realize what happens in washington because so many of

them have not really ever left sumter county. trip that we ld actually took last year where it was the first time that most of ae kids had ever even been to zoo. that conference kind of planted c-span footageing and clips in my classroom to actually show them what's happening in washington and why it's so important. so over the last couple of years i've made it a point to use sources and this fellowship would offer an opportunity for me not only to earn more about the state history resource that is c-span ffers but try and contribute some more and build on top of what already exists. >> what practical things to you away from this experience in washington as a teacher and secondarily what do you think policy or about that maybe you you changed your opinion on? how much t realize c-span had to offer. we had referenced that

years ago a couple of about american history tv, the cities tour, book tv and things but as teachers, as practitioners we often don't have a ton of time to watch those videos and see exactly what's inside so this experience really showed me just how much stuff there is, place based history, museum other discussions with people, that i didn't realize existed with c-span. i think, there is that ddage, there is more that unites us than what divides us. this experience showed me that in to fruition, not just politics, if you're viewing your legislators, communicating with each other in a friendly nature, friendly discourse, not so much ou might see on, across the media and things of that nature, but working together, to try and solve some of the issues that are in our country. but then also, the pride that have in their es history and their stories, that

to the top when you're watching lou this footage. >> what history in south arolina, you said that's primarily you focus but you told us before the interview that ou're from youngstown, ohio, south carolina, obviously, one ompt original 13 colsis, start of the succession crisis and the civil war. it must have taken you quite a to get up to speed on south carolina history. >> south carolina history course i guess you could say, u.s. history but with a couple of extra things. youngstown there is a ton of good history but in south carolina, of course what you just mentioned, one of the 13 colonies, a couple, at least another hundred or 200 of history there, and just cameample, my grandparents down to visit about two or three weeks ago and their big thing is they like to go visit cemeteries, right? see who is buried where. i didn't realize, town has the uy whether or not shot the

cannon at the battle of fort sumter at the start of the civil war. don'tare so many things i know about. i'm still learning in the rocess but i think that's the fun of history, there is always something to be discovered and showing my students that, maybe then be empowered to find their own history. > if you could take them on a bit longer field trip, if you could bring them here to washington, among the places visited while you're in washington, where would you take them to teach them a lesson? would that lesson be? >> i would have to try and bring them here for like a month and everywhere. >> i'm just kidding. >> well, i think you definitely have to go to the history museum. that directly connects to a lot of my students' lives, that's their interest, it's kind of their own her stage. so that an-american covers a lot about their history and also some of the challenges that they are dealing with today 21st century, but i think

right here, the u.s. capitol is place to visit, to see the actual process in action. taking them by the white house, about the ittle bit office of the presidency, and the role of the executive ranch, and trying to filter through all the divisiveness that's currently occurring in our country, and getting down to what are they actually doing for you, as a citizen of the united states. > you and your colleague, eleanor green, your fellow colleague, have used the term abouty sources in talking teaching your kids where to find information. how hard is it, a challenge is it to get them to use those to use less ot reputable sources of information? . >> i think my students generally knowledge of good what constitutes a reputable source. with some of the terminology that's being thrown round in our country today, that they are questioning everything, which is good. so they are trying to find the answers to questions what can we use what can't we use? but i think, to dive a little it's really not just

saying what's reputable and what's not but can we find a on both sides and how can we use that to exam a claim but then also to look at the other as well. >> as you leave your fellowship and head back to class this is what sort of practices or things that you've picked up from either your teacher fellows broader summer conference ere at c-span what sort of things may you bring back to the classroom? >> for me personally, just a new american teach about government and the principles of democracy, being here, location, d history, being in the middle of it all has just been a rejuvenating my students, for i think the idea of personal stories, right? all of these professional developments that i've done over the last couple all about what tick, looking through footage from all 50 states, talking with people here

in the town of washington, d.c. honed my focus in telling individual stories and how they have an impact on everyone around. american overed history tv and sort of local cities tour folks have been into a bit.arolina quite >> yeah. yeah. greenville, charleston, and i as well, yes.ia >> as you've been in washington fun interesting sites or things have you had a chance to seeing aside from which, the capitol, et cetera? >> we actually got to go to the south lawn of the white house the president give a press conference. t was actually, announcing the resignation of the secretary of labor, alex acosta and we got to depart on resident marine one. a pretty cool once-in-a-lifetime experience. this is my fourth straight some sort of for fellowship, so i really got a chance to kind of go find those off the beaten path. 2/4 my first time getting to go

o the zoo myself, which i referenced. >> the national zoo? >> right. but, kind of maybe going back spending some more time at places i've already been. for instance, african-american history museum. to spend a couple of hours. it wasn't terribly crowded. apollo 11 up the on the washington monument which is very cool. anniversary? >> yeah. just kind of getting into more focus on what washington, d.c. has to offer. come into dents class&there are big political things happening, president trump, et cetera, says something or congress does something, what is the number one thing you sort in ear from your students terms of current political events that they come to you and say? regurgitate in a way whatever their parents say. whatever viewpoints that they arry from home into the classroom. that's pretty much their focus, right? so regardless of issue, it could be gay marriage, could be abortion, could be the military, it's whatever their parents have

taught them. we definitely try and instill the capacity and the ability for the kids to read the sources themselves, and make their own determinations. n fact, i had some of my students this last year take one of the -- polls to find out they wouldical party lign w. there were several, they were solidly democrat, take the quiz and it's completely conservative. on the flip side. so teaching them really how to understand what the political arties represent, their platforms, and what each individual candidate brings to the table, and counteracting hearsay things that they hear in the news or from their family members. teacher fellow19 for c-span. e're glad you're here this summer. >> glad to be here. >> for more information about -span's education resources including lesson plans on our teacher fellowship program go to c-span.org/classroom. c-span's washington jumper,

live every day. with news and policy issues that impact you. coming up this morning. victims ofh from the communism memorial foundation. on the hong kong pro democracy china, also, st voting machine security, with the university of michigan science and engineering halderman.j. alex and pbs host, talks about his international convation work and television series. be sure to watch c-span's washington journal live at 7:00 morning.ern this join in the discussion. > today, senator kirsten gillibrand speaks live. on h 9:00 a.m. eastern c-span 2. tuesday, mike pence chairs the meeting of the national space council in that lly, virginia, watch

hive on c-span 2 at 9:00 a.m. online watch both events or listen live on the free c-span radio app. tonight, on the communicators -- castro, vice president, at the information technology and innovation foundation. data privacy and if enough is being done to protect americans from harm. we ne thing, for example, could do, is make so it that it's illegal to use social ecurity numbers for identification and verification purposes outside of social security. his is something that the social security numbers were never intended to do, for a long time it even said it on the for this is not identification purposes, they stopped printing that. but that's something that could be done. that's something that could be a requirement, no bank, for example could, ever open an social security number. you have to prove your identity through other means. communicators" tonight at 8:00 eastern