Pam You are doing a great Job IF you are challenging those students to THINK and question history and other diciplines. That, in my humble opinion, IS the purpose of schooling. NOT pointless facts and especially not political viewpoints.

"Columbus sailed the Ocean blue in 1400 and 92."

To me I was more interested in Why he sailed at all. The fact that the more learned sailors knew the earth was round and not flat. But that they were extremely unsure how far that ocean was before they would reach land on the other side to resupply their ship. That was the importance of Columbus' adventure. Proving that ships could use a Southern Route, rather than the much more dangerous northern Viking route, to reach a "New World" before their supplies ran out.

Yet we only teach the date as being important. What a waste of precious educational time and school resources.