The Big Sandy Mountaineer -

There are no classes more popular for a good share of students in high school than history classes. And yet, there can be no more frustrating classes to teach or to attend than those same history classes. It is all a matter of time.

Take United States history. When teachers in the Woodrow Wilson era taught that class, they had too much to teach. Imagine trying to teach it now. Some classes get to World War II if they are lucky and unless special attention is given to modern history, it sometimes isn’t even taught.

That is why teachers have taken more ingenious ways to teach history, some which have worked and some which have not. For the student, the most easily understood way to understand history is to go through it year after year in chronological order. However, that misses a lot. Other ways of presenting history is by category, like doing all the wars, all the depressions, all the presidents, all the expansions and so on and so forth.

Luckily for Big Sandy, history teacher Emily Wheeler had her classes vote on how they wanted their history presented and they chose chronological for this year at least.

For any way to teach history, Emily Wheeler has a spark in her eye that says her classes are fun and history can be made to come alive and enjoyable all at the same time.

This is Wheeler’s first year teaching and her first year at Big Sandy. She teaches American History, World History, Government, Montana History, Geography and a class of Psychology.

Lots of prep there but Wheeler seems to be really enjoying it.

Born and raised in Bozeman and attended Montana State University, Wheeler has strong roots in Big Sandy. Steve O’Malley was her grandfather and Nora O’Malley is her grandmother. Long time principal of the elementary school, John O’Malley would have been her great uncle.

As a matter of fact before interviewing to teach in Big Sandy the last time she had been here was for her grandfather’s funeral. That was the day of the chain saw incident at the Bear Paw Deli. Wheeler wondered what kind of a town Big Sandy was.

Once she got a job here and got settled in, she found it to be a great community with great people and students. She made a good choice for a first year teacher.

Oh, and by the way, with all those history classes to choose from, World History is Wheeler’s favorite to teach.

Great teacher Emily Wheeler is going to be. Wish her well when you see her on the street.