Unit Lesson Plan
Learning Outcomes:
- Second graders will locate America on a world map. They will learn that it is made up of 50 states and many different cities.
- Students will correctly answer the question: Which city, state and country do you live in?
- They will understand that the Declaration of Independence, written to begin our American nation, is a document to be proud of. The words in it are important. They will identify, recite and memorize key phrases from it.
- Students will understand that the Declaration is a promise to all Americans that happiness is achievable for all, and that no one person is better than another.
- Students will compare and contrast how and why Martin Luther King Jr., Barack Obama, Cesar Chavez and Jane Adams used the words from The Declaration to gain equality for suffering groups of Americans.
- Students will identify the differences between equity and equality.
- Students will examine their own consciences and make observations to determine who doesn't have freedom and equality, and decide what they can do to change that.
- Students will read personal narratives from children who have had to deal with inequalities or a lack of freedom. They will learn how to respect differences while recognizing that people have many commonalities. One important one is that they all live in America.
Strategies
This unit is culturally responsive. It implements ELD (English Language Development) structures throughout the lessons.
Time: 12 lessons (10-60) minutes per lesson
Introduction:
Pre-Assessment
Students will be given a world map and asked to locate America. They will orally respond to the question, "What do Americans have in common"? Answers will be video-recorded.
Lesson 1- Who am I?
Students will be given a homework assignment. They must speak to their families about family history. They will find out where their parents, grandparents, great-grandparents and/or other family members were born. They will color on a map where their family came from.
Lesson 2- Where am I from and who am I?
On the class map students will put pins on the cities/states/countries they came from.
They will read the book, "It's Okay." This book, contains drawings of kids who are diverse in a variety of ways. Sample pages say, "It's okay to wear glasses" or "It's okay to be skinny" or "It's okay to have two dads".
Each student will fill out his or her own "It's okay" page. They will determine what they want to say about their own uniqueness.
The teacher will introduce the word "contrast" and discuss that there are many ways that we are different and that it's okay to be different.
Lesson 3- Who are Americans?
Students will review the map. They will see that although some families come from all over, they all live in the Bay Area now. They will notice that they go to the same school and many have been to the same grocery stores, malls, and pizza parlors. Students will start seeing the geographical ways they are alike. This will be introduced through share-outs and by the teacher using repetition (ELD strategy) to bring the point that although we are all special and unique "The interesting thing is we are all Americans."
The teacher will read the book, "The Important Thing" which is similar to the "It's Okay" book. This time students will learn how to compare. They will again write something special about themselves, but they will add the same last line to their page.
The line is: "The interesting thing is that we are all Americans"
Historical Content Instruction
America is not just a place with land on a map. It's not just where we live. America has a deeper meaning. Through the next series of lessons, students will develop their ideas of what it means to be an American.
Lessons 4-6 Where did America come from?
The intention is to have the idea of America as unique for the students as they are unique individuals. The teacher will guide the discussion by focusing on the words of The Declaration of Independence and the meaning behind them. It is important to initially introduce students to the actual text and not a kid-friendly version. The actual text should be posted clearly in the room and referenced throughout the unit.
The teacher should use the historical background of the Declaration of Independence to develop a mini-lesson providing context for the document and the birth of the nation.
The class will choral read the words, clapping once where there are words they most likely won't understand. The idea is to give it some rhythm. Speed and word emphasis are important.
We hold these (clap) to be self-(clap), that all (really emphasize the all) (clap) are created (clap), that they are (clap) by their (clap) with certain (clap) Rights, that among these are (clap), (clap) and the (clap) of Happiness.
Repeat this a few times. Make it fun! Allow individual students to show off their own style. The rhythmic idea continues by introducing the vocabulary words through chanting.
"Truths mean…the truth!"
"Ev- i- dent means…it's obvious!" (Give it attitude)
"Equal means…the same!"
This process of introducing the language should take the form of a mini-lesson lasting between 5-10 minutes daily. You can also use the vocabulary as a way to quiet down the class. When I say "created," you say "made."
Lesson 6 What does it mean to be an American?
In this lesson, students will begin to understand that Americans have the right to fairness and when they aren't treated fairly, they can make changes. The teacher will begin to guide the students through chunking the first sentence of the Declaration of Independence into kid-friendly pieces. It's important not to do the whole thing at once or on the same day. The students may create a kid friendly version that looks something like this: "We agree the truth is so obvious that all people are born the same." Lead students through a discussion of what that means to them. They may agree that we are all born from our mothers and begin our lives as babies. That makes us equal at birth. The focus is on what makes Americans the same. However, it is also important to have them recognize that all people are not treated exactly the same and there actually is fairness in that.
The teacher can lead a discussion on times when it is more important to treat people fairly instead of equally. The teacher can ask questions like, "Should second graders have the exact same homework as kindergartners? Should children and adults both be allowed to drive? If a student uses their own money to buy the class cookies, is it okay for that student to have two cookies when everyone else has one?" This can start some good discussion on what it means to be fair and they will notice that not everyone agrees on what is fair.
It's important to tie the discussion back to our American Declaration of Independence and make sure the students know that it was written for them. They need to get familiar with the vocabulary and to begin to understand the meaning behind the words. Continue with translating the original text into the kid-friendly version. It might say, " Either God or something made humans and we have the right to live our lives, be treated fairly and do things that make us safe and happy". They need to know that America was created as a place where those words are true for everyone. Explain that The Declaration goes on to say that if the government does not let some of that happen, that Americans have the right to change laws so that it starts happening. The teacher will tell them that there are many famous Americans who did make changes to ensure people are treated fairly and are working for their happiness.
Lessons 7-10 Who are the freedom fighters?
Martin Luther King Jr., Barak Obama, Jane Addams and Cesar Chavez are just a few of the people who have changed injustices in America. Although they lived during different time periods, they had many things in common: they came from humble beginnings, valued education, they used non-violent means to inspire change in the hearts of others, and most importantly they took the words from the Declaration of Independence to heart, thereby inviting change to occur in the hearts of others. The freedom fighters changed societies into treating disenfranchised groups of Americans better.
Within these lessons, the teacher will provide historical details about each of the freedom fighters. The teacher can use children's literature or online resources to assist in communicating their individual stories to the students. The teacher will display a large graph with four columns and four rows. Each row within the first column lists the name of the freedom fighter. The second column lists quotes from that freedom fighter referencing the Declaration of Independence. The third highlights important events in that person's life. The fourth column states that the person is American. The goal is to introduce the students to some famous Americans who fought for equality and who changed an unjust American society. They will use critical thinking skills to compare and contrast the actions and accomplishments of these famous people.
Applying History to Student Life
Lesson 11- Can a child like me become a freedom fighter?
This lesson has students reading personal narratives of American children. Some of these are realistic fiction and some are memoirs. They are children of different racial and cultural backgrounds. They include stories of homeless children, children who have unmanageable hair, and those who are separated from a parent. The teacher will read the narratives, and construct a compare and contrast chart of the literary children. For the comparison portion, the teacher will make sure to include in the list that the child is American.
Each student will have his own "America placemat" where each child will glue a picture of the characters from the books as well as the more famous freedom fighters read about. On the mat of America, they will write a sentence that says, "It's okay to be (fill in the blank)" Students will write down something unique about the famous and not famous freedom fighters read about and then they will write "The interesting thing about (character from book's name) is that she/he is American and a child of the Declaration of Independence just like me."
The goal is for the students to see that everyday kids (just like them) can inspire change when injustices occur.
Lesson 12- How else can I think about the Declaration of Independence in my life?
The teacher will once again bring the classes attention to the Declaration of Independence which has been posted on the wall throughout all of the lessons. She will emphasize the phrase, (We all have) "certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Students will conclude the unit with a discussion on their dream for happiness. They will look toward the future and each student will have their own page in a class book where they will explain not only their dream for future happiness but they will also explain their plan to pursue it. They will both write and illustrate a personal goal and explain how they intend to achieve that goal.
Lesson 12- Post assessment
Students will locate America on the map again and orally respond to the question, "What do Americans have in common?"
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