Bingham's Place
Go on, grab some coffee and pull up a chair...
I just received this email from a former student - it might help!
Subject: Strayer Haunts Me
22 February 2021
Good afternoon Mr. Bingham,
My name is Emma F****, and I hope you remember me. Anni **** and Liza ***** spent many afternoons eating lunch with you and Ms. Diaz. I wanted to reach out to you to express my well wishes as well as my thanks. I'm currently in my first year of law school at STCL downtown with a scholarship. Since the beginning of my time here, I've found myself cracking open Ways of the World many, many times. Following along with Strayer as I brief Torts and Property I cases is so helpful in contextualizing developments in the legal system (beginning roughly with feudalism). I thought after graduating in 2016 I had finally wriggled out of Strayer's grasp; however, it seems like I may be referencing Ways of the World for the rest of my time in law school, and most likely beyond that. On a similar note, I wanted to thank you for pushing your students so hard. Without your guidance, I would have never made it through the countless essays assigned to me in undergrad. I distinctly remember your comment about "throwing s#!t at a wall and hoping it sticks" being one of the fastest ways to bomb an essay, which is very true in both undergrad AND law school. Looking through my old notes in my textbook makes me laugh, because as a young teenager I couldn't quite understand the importance of world history and how it would fit into my daily life. Now, I think about history every day. I loved it so much in college that it became one of my majors. I wanted to write this email to you because when I was a student at HSPVA, I knew you to be one of my favorite teachers, and that's still true today. This is largely because your lessons made me a better student (whether I realized it at the time or not). Thank you.
All the best,
Emma F.
I have edited names and profanity.
22 February 2021
Good afternoon Mr. Bingham,
My name is Emma F****, and I hope you remember me. Anni **** and Liza ***** spent many afternoons eating lunch with you and Ms. Diaz. I wanted to reach out to you to express my well wishes as well as my thanks. I'm currently in my first year of law school at STCL downtown with a scholarship. Since the beginning of my time here, I've found myself cracking open Ways of the World many, many times. Following along with Strayer as I brief Torts and Property I cases is so helpful in contextualizing developments in the legal system (beginning roughly with feudalism). I thought after graduating in 2016 I had finally wriggled out of Strayer's grasp; however, it seems like I may be referencing Ways of the World for the rest of my time in law school, and most likely beyond that. On a similar note, I wanted to thank you for pushing your students so hard. Without your guidance, I would have never made it through the countless essays assigned to me in undergrad. I distinctly remember your comment about "throwing s#!t at a wall and hoping it sticks" being one of the fastest ways to bomb an essay, which is very true in both undergrad AND law school. Looking through my old notes in my textbook makes me laugh, because as a young teenager I couldn't quite understand the importance of world history and how it would fit into my daily life. Now, I think about history every day. I loved it so much in college that it became one of my majors. I wanted to write this email to you because when I was a student at HSPVA, I knew you to be one of my favorite teachers, and that's still true today. This is largely because your lessons made me a better student (whether I realized it at the time or not). Thank you.
All the best,
Emma F.
I have edited names and profanity.
The Only Thing Certain is Change!
Welcome to the Humanities at HSPVA. During our time together, I believe we will discover the way change is the timeless structure that binds us to to each other and to our past. (And hey, if things didn't change, there would be no "history"!) As with all the social sciences, just as with literature and the arts, we will bear down on the question, "what does it mean to be human?" That is, what are the essential qualities that we possess, what are the answers that everyone has sought, to what degree is our destiny determined and what can we do about our fate? History is much more than mere maps or text books, it is the story of a planet, and the narrative of one species that inhabits that planet. 
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What do I want from you? I Expect You to Save Our Planet!
"You’re not here to become an entertainer, and you don’t have to sell yourself. The truth is you don’t have anything to sell; being a musician isn't about dispensing a product, like selling used cars. I’m not an entertainer; I’m a lot closer to a paramedic, a firefighter, a rescue worker. You’re here to become a sort of therapist for the human soul, a spiritual version of a chiropractor, physical therapist, someone who works with our insides to see if they get things to line up, to see if we can come into harmony with ourselves and be healthy and happy and well.
Frankly, ladies and gentlemen, I expect you not only to master music; I expect you to save the planet. If there is a future wave of wellness on this planet, of harmony, of peace, of an end to war, of mutual understanding, of equality, of fairness, I don’t expect it will come from a government, a military force or a corporation. I no longer even expect it to come from the religions of the world, which together seem to have brought us as much war as they have peace. If there is a future of peace for humankind, if there is to be an understanding of how these invisible, internal things should fit together, I expect it will come from the artists, because that’s what we do. As in the concentration camp and the evening of 9/11, the artists are the ones who might be able to help us with our internal, invisible lives.” ~ Dr. Karl Paulnack Read the entire inspiring and enlightening speech to the freshman class of the Boston Conservatory here. 
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Wyatt Bingham
Welcome to my place, your one stop shop for everything you need to be successful in my classes. Your intellectual, emotional and ethical growth are my primary goals. I'm here to help people think independently, to be their own teachers. Everything else is just paperwork to me! I also want you to feel comfortable that my class is a "safe place" for your learning where you are respected while being pushed to the next level, all I hope with a sense of humor, and a little hyperbole (look it up) mixed in to keep you on your toes. This site is designed to help with those goals and it is updated regularly. Check in often. Strap in, I promise to challenge you! I refer to Advanced Placement World History as "WHAP", and Academic World History as "World." You can learn more about me here. For beginning of the year supply lists, go here. Click your way around. There's lot's of stuff to make your life easier and help you look cool in class. Learning goals vs. Ability/Outcome goals; the former make you happier & more successful! Learn more here. 
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