Hi Christine: I do have a couple of suggestions for your example of student's who believe they never use this in real life. For my humanities courses I put together a resource list called "That was then, This is now". In it I list places within our daily lives or popular culture that we encounter (I tell them "bombarded by") these ideas. For example, when we talk about the earliest civilizations in the Fertile Crescent, Egypt and Aegean Sea, I list popular literature including mysteries set in these areas by Elizabeth Peters. I also include music and if there is a music video, show it. My students love to see Steve Martin performing King Tut, or the They Might Be Giants cartoon for "The Mesopotmians". I mention television shows, Stargate is based on some Egyptian mythology. Many of my students have young children that they are greatly proud of, and want a better life for. I try to remember to show them ways in which they can share their new knowledge with their children. This may be through books, television, new foods, trips to the museum (I used to work in museums, you are never too young to go!)