In preparation for the the beginning of the World War II Inquiry Project, senior Alec Bohlman presented his History Day project to all sophomore classes on May 15.

The purpose of having Bohlman share his project was to engage the students with hopes that they would choose an intriguing topic to research. The teachers also hoped that their students would learn how to carry out the inquiry process thoroughly.

“I hope that students learn and take in and understand the research process, but also learn to implement this into aspects of daily life so they can formulate their own substantiated opinions on the world. I want people to be freethinkers who are well versed in what they are discussing. The presentation went really well. I was able to be very articulate and informative to my audience,” Bohlman said.

Social studies teacher Patrick Mulcahy was pleased that Bohlman would be presenting to his classes.

“Having a peer leader explain the process of developing a research question, conducting research and creating a phenomenal final product will be much more genuine than teachers standing at the front of the room doing the ‘research is great’ dance,” Mulcahy said.

The idea for bringing Bohlman in to present was given by his History Day advisors, social studies teachers Kara Trubia and Emma Tuthill.

“The presentation was fantastic. Alec was very comfortable speaking in a room of unknown faces and was able to present his process confidently, concisely and clearly. It was a great model for public speaking,” Trubia said.

During the presentation, students were guided through defining research questions and selecting primary and secondary sources appropriate for their topic.

“He also discussed the importance of argumentation and advocated for creative and new ways to demonstrate learning in a final product,” Trubia said.

Bohlman’s ended his presentation by showing the students the documentary he created on Claus von Stauffenberg, a man who tried to assassinate Adolf Hitler.

“I most enjoyed watching the documentary he made because it was very inspirational and helped me to think more about the overall project,” sophomore Marin Quigley said.

Sophomore Maggie Tharpe was pleased with what she learned from the presentation.

“I learned that it’s important to be passionate about the subject that you are researching so that you can do your best work for the final project,” Tharpe said.