Terry Kaldhusdal

Terry Kaldhusdal teaches social studies at Kettle Moraine School District in Dousman, Wisconsin. In 1991, Kaldhusdal joined his wife as a classroom teacher in California before moving to Wisconsin. He currently teaches sixth grade social studies at Kettle Moraine Middle School. His goal is for students to think like a historian, and he believes that those critical thinking skills will give his students the tools they need to succeed across their curriculum and throughout life. To demonstrate their learning, his students have created documentaries, plays and websites. Their documentary films have been shown in several states and several film festivals. Says Kaldhusdal, “It is not about teaching my students to be historians or filmmakers, but to be critical thinkers.” Outside of the classroom Kaldhusdal has produced six documentaries, including Consider the Conversation, A Documentary on a Taboo Subject, which aired more than 600 times on PBS stations across the country and received several international awards, including “Use of Film for Social Change.” Kaldhusdal is a Kohl Fellowship award winner; 2007 Wisconsin State Teacher of the Year; 2011 Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Teacher of the Year for Wisconsin; and 2014 the Wisconsin Environmental Co-Educator of the Year.