Technology Lesson Plan Competition

Submitted by: Heidi Bush Hubbard Heights Elementary

4^th/5^th Grade HAP/ESL Reading, Language Arts, and Social Studies Teacher

Subject Areas: Social Studies, Language Arts, Technology

Grade Level: Fifth Grade

Timeline of Lesson: Four 60-minute time periods

Content Objective: Students will list and explain three colonists’ complaints that were included in the Declaration of Independence. Students will demonstrate an awareness (through synthesis and application of ideas in their own “Declaration“) of the Declaration of Independence as a historical process developed in protest of unfair conditions. Students will describe and list the sections of the Declaration of Independence and explain the basic purpose of each.

Essential Questions: Why was the Declaration of Independence written? How is the Declaration of Independence organized?

Process: Students work in both small groups and individually to create a document similar to the Declaration of Independence to voice their complaints about the treatment of young people. Students use technology to: access pictures of and information about documents using the internet and to also produce a document using word processing that looks authentic for the time period of 1776.

Multi-Level: Students working in heterogeneous groups are able to mix skill-levels, using multiple intelligences to fit tasks instead of a “one size fits all” approach. The different levels of English Language Learners in my class also make discussion a must between peers. Through my experience, incorporating technology with history/writing objectives to produce a written product allows all levels of students a chance to truly understand and apply what they have learned.

Multi-Modalities: Students requiring additional instruction/alternate activities would include:

TEKS Correlation:

Social Studies TEKS are: (5.16A) Government The student is expected to identify the purposes and explain the importance of the Declaration of Independence. (5.25A) Social Studies Skills The student applies critical-thinking skills to organize and use information acquired from a variety of sources including electronic technology. (5.26A) Social Studies Skills The student communicates in written, oral, and visual forms; including expressing ideas orally based on research and experience.

English Language Arts TEKS are: (5.13) Reading/Inquiry/Research The student inquires and conducts research using a variety of sources.(5.15) Writing/Purposes The student writes for a variety of audiences and purposes, and in a variety of forms.(5.21) Writing/Inquiry/Research The student uses writing as a tool for learning and research, including framing questions to direct research, producing a graphic organizer, and taking notes from a relevant source.

Technology Application TAKS are: Foundations The student demonstrates knowledge and appropriate use of hardware components, software programs, and their connections. Information Acquisition The student acquires electronic information in a variety of formats, with appropriate supervision. Solving Problems The students uses research skills and electronic communication, with appropriate supervision, to create new knowledge. Communication The student formats digital information for appropriate and effective communication.

Real World Application of Activity or Objective: Students must be familiar with technology to be competitive in their classrooms long before high school. Not only are language arts skills such as researching and composing drafts expected, but publishing for an audience is an expected task of a student in junior high. To better prepare my students for the Sixth Grade, I have found exposing them to the internet and the word processor motivates and engages their interest in high-subject matter areas such as American History. These are two lifelong skills the students will take with them into high school, college, and the work force.

Correlated Web Sites: All web sites are located throughout the lesson, according to the time the students are to access them. In case of website failure, student-accessible sites are also provided so they may conduct an electronic search to acquire information using keywords.

Links to Long Term Planning: Students should be familiar with both the internet as a research tool and word processing as a tool for publishing prior to these lessons. Following the lessons, many extension/enrichment ideas can be found after the “Student Activities” to link this activity to long term planning in both American History and Language Arts. The Declaration of Independence as a whole appears in the Pathways to Excellence during the Third Six Weeks of the school year, in Unit Four- Colonization and Conflict in the Macmillan/McGraw-Hill textbook.

Assessment: Students will be asked the following four questions as a written exam on the fourth day of the activities.

Ÿ Why was the Declaration of Independence written?

Ÿ How was the Declaration of Independence structured?

Ÿ Compare and contrast two complaints brought forth by the framers and by your own group of students. Use a venn diagram to get your ideas organized before you write your answers.

Ÿ Tell me how to produce an authentic-looking 1776 document using the word processor, a 3 ½ inch floppy disk, card stock paper, and tea.

Materials/Resources Needed: Students must have access to both the internet and a computer with word processing. They must also have a 3 ½ inch floppy disk to hold their information from day-to-day, a clip board to take notes on, individual student sheets to take notes on, white card stock, a 9” by 13” baking pan and a tea bag.

Student Activities

Day 1

Discuss with students that you have heard them make, at times, various complaints about unfair rules and conditions for young people. Explain that there were complaints similar to these by the Founding Fathers at the time of the American Revolution. Following is the “activity sheet” which should be utilized for the organization and prewriting of the student “Declaration”. These should be passed out to each student and discussed.

In small groups of 4-5 students, have them brainstorm (and write down in Part I) a minimum of ten complaints they have of the treatment of young people. Everyone in the group lists all complaints stated. These complaints are collected after 15 minutes, and students can share their top three complaints with the whole group. These lists are saved for future use.

Students should understand the complaints of the Colonists were a step in a process to address grievances and resolve differences through the Declaration of Independence. Jump-start the discussion of the students by asking questions like: WHO makes the rules they don’t like, WHO decides if they are fair or not, HOW could students get them changed, WHAT would it mean if they chose to not follow (or be “independent of”) the rules, and HOW does a group of people say (or “declare”) that they are not going to follow the rules any longer?

Now students may begin organizing their complaints, using the table in Part II of their activity sheet. This is the prewriting activity. Walk around and conference with each group, giving more detailed instruction and support as they attempt to organize their ideas and answer the guided questions. Collect tables and, as time permits, have students begin their rough drafts on the word processor. Each student group should save their work to a 3 ½ inch floppy disk.

Day 2

Students will conduct research on the Declaration of Independence through a virtual field trip online. The Declaration should be explained as a list of complaints followed by their declaration of freedom from British rule.

First, have students look/discuss the original document found at the following link:

http://www.archives.gov/exhibit_hall/charters_of_freedom/images/us_declaration_preview.jpg

Next they will look/discuss the stone engraving of the document at this link, which is much easier to read:

http://www.archives.gov/exhibit_hall/charters_of_freedom/images/us_declaration_stone_engraving_preview.jpg

Now they will read/discuss a transcript of the Declaration of Independence. It is located on the NARA, or the US National Archives and Records Administration site:

http://www.archives.gov/exhibit_hall/charters_of_freedom/declaration/declaration_transcription.html

Have all students look at the same document link at the same time to keep this virtual field trip on course.

Students now will use their guided questions from Day 1 activities to investigate the organization of the Declaration of Independence. You will fill the organization chart out on chart paper as the students answer questions for each portion on their own individual charts. Included on page three is the student organized chart used to discuss and research the structure of the Declaration of Independence.

As time allows, have students work on their rough drafts of the declaration they have created. They will again save to disk, this time printing out as much of the text that they have completed. The teacher is monitoring to ensure the students are organizing their text into sections similar to the original Declaration of Independence. To make these distinct separations, students should be using paragraphs to organize ideas.

Day 3

Students will again take a virtual field trip, this time looking at rough drafts and revision marks made by the framers as they drafted the Declaration. Students will visit:

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/declara/images/frag1.jpg

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/declara/images/draft1.jpg

These are links to two versions of rough drafts of the Declaration of Independence. This is great evidence that “rough drafts” have been around for hundreds of years. This is a link to a transcript of the latter rough draft by a professor…

http://lcweb.loc.gov/exhibits/declara/ruffdrft.html

After looking at and discussing the changes made between the two different documents, students will make changes to their drafts in colored pen, keeping in mind the main way that revision is used: to add/delete ideas to clarify meaning and promote understanding. They will have 15 minutes to make these changes by orally reading the document to each other. After the changes have been made, students access their document through disc, and make changes using the word processor. They will print the document out (this time using white card stock) for the final time, changing the font to represent writing similar to that used on the Declaration of Independence. Students will sign the documents and present them to the class. Before displaying the group declarations, students stain the paper with tea in a 9” by 13” baking pan to make the paper look like the original Declaration‘s tan paper.

EXTENSIONS:

Students will look at other documents written before 1776 that were of use to the framers of the Declaration. Just as prior reading and writing experiences influence the wording and structure of our drafts, The Magna Carta (June 1215), The First Charter of Virginia (April 10, 1606), The Mayflower Compact (November 1621), The English Bill of Rights (1689), The Stamp Act Congress (October 19, 1765) and The Articles of Association (October 20, 1774) influenced the Declaration of Independence. Assign each group a different document to look at online.

As students visit these documents in small groups and discuss their meaning, guide students to identify the sections/wording that is similar to the Declaration. As students recognize the similarities, have them record them on the sheets provided. Then, create a web from the Declaration in the center to the six documents to relate the common features. Post them for the entire class to read and share. Students now present their findings orally.

Links to Documents:

The Magna Carta: http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/medieval/magframe.htm

The First Charter of Virginia: http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/states/va01.htm

The Mayflower Compact: http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/amerdoc/mayflower.htm

The English Bill of Rights: http://yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/england.htm

The Stamp Act Congress: http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/resolu65.htm

The Articles of Association: http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/contcong/10-20-74.htm

In the event that the following sites are no longer accessible, have students research documents through such search engines/websites as: www.encyclopedia.com, www.google.com, www.ushistory.org, www.thehistorynet.com, or www.yahooligans.com. They will need to enter appropriate keywords to access sites.

Student Pages

Name: _____________________

STUDENTS’ DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

Part I: Brainstorm List of Complaints: ________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

PART II: Get Organized! Fill in this chart below using your complaints.

*SECTION/QUESTIONS*	*ANSWERS*
To whom would you send your complaints? Why? What reasons would you give for your decision to write out your complaints? (PREAMBLE)
What makes you think your complaints are worthwhile? What are the reasons the rules are the way that they are? Why should rules be changed? Can you summarize your complaints in a single statement? (STATEMENT OF BELIEFS)
What should the reader notice specifically about your complaints? What do you need to keep in mind to make sure that your audience understands your complaints? What kinds of events inspired your complaints? (THE LIST OF COMPLAINTS)
Have you already tried to make changes in rules? How did you try to change the way things are for young people? (PRIOR ATTEMPTS TO REDRESS GRIEVANCES)
Have you already tried to make changes in rules? How did you try to change the way things are for young people? (PRIOR ATTEMPTS TO REDRESS GRIEVANCES)
Is it possible to say in a single sentence what it is that you really want to happen for young people? What changes should happen right away? What changes should happen later on? (DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE)