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Integrated Social Sciences

Proving the Earth Isn’t Flat: A 9th Grade DBQ Inquiry

August 31, 2026August 31, 2026 / Shane Twaddell / Leave a comment

I opened the school year by asking 9th graders to prove or disprove the flat earth myth. The hinge of the whole inquiry is a fabricated 1828 source that some textbooks still reference without knowing it's fiction. Four days later, every student had a full DBQ, a writing sample, and (I hope) a little more suspicion toward a good story.

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“History gives answers only to those who know how to ask questions.”

Hajo Holborn, German-American historian (1902-1969)

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