Photo Finish

A Land Where History and Imagination Meet

Photo by John Clement

When Richard Scheuerman looks at this landscape along the lower Palouse River, he sees more than the riotous color of spring wildflowers in bloom. The Seattle Pacific University associate professor of curriculum and instruction also sees the Old Colville Trail, “one of the major routes taken by the fur trade brigades in the early 1800s.” And through his “place-based” history curriculum, he’s inviting high school students to see a landscape infused not only with beauty but also with meaning.

“We connect history to arts, sciences, and mathematics,” Scheuerman says, “to make vital connections to what kids care about in the present day.”

Co-written with Arthur Ellis, SPU professor of education, the “Pacific Northwest Frontier Journey of Discovery” curriculum invites students to imagine themselves traveling with explorers. As they “travel” through primary source documents, stories, and activities, students discover the history of the Northwest and its native peoples. Images included in the curriculum, such as this one, by Eastern-Washington-based photographer John Clement, help connect past and present.

See more landscape photos at John Clement Photography.