Date: May 12, 2010
Teacher: Mr. Cavanaugh
Subject: 6th World History
Chapter 5 – Ancient Greece
Standards:
Compare and contrast the geographic, political, economic, and social characteristics of the Ancient Greek, Ancient Roman, Ottoman, Indian, Arabic, African, and Middle Eastern civilizations and their enduring impacts on later civilizations to include:
• influence of Mediterranean geography on the development and expansion of the civilizations
• development of concepts of government and citizenship (e.g., democracy, republics, codification of laws, Code of Hammurabi)
• scientific and cultural advancements (e.g., networks of roads, aqueducts, art, architecture, literature, theater, philosophy)
• contributions and roles of key figures (e.g., Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Augustus)
What we will learn (objectives):
Describe which segments of society were included in the original Athenian democracy. Students will compare and contrast early Greek democracy to democracy as it is exercised in the US today.
What we will read or study (content):
Chapter 11, Sections 1 and 2
How we will study it (process):
The general education teacher will teach Sections 1 and 2, through discussion, notes, guided reading and notes.
During Section 2, the general education teacher and the gifted education teacher will guide the students through Ancient Democracy simulation:
Have enough copies of the Ecclesia cards for one-half the male membership of class and enough copies of the Metic and servant cards combined for the other one-half of the male membership of class.
Start a discussion with the class regarding an upcoming project. Tell the students that we are undecided about what kind of project we want them to do as a final project on Greece. We have thought about a report, a diorama, a play or a mural. We thought it might be fun to let democracy rule on this project.
The gifted ed teacher will hand out the role cards to the male students only. Explain that only the students who possess an Ecclesia card may enter in discussion about the proposed project. As deftly as possible, garner responses only from those boys holding an Ecclesia card. Those holding other cards or the girls must be politely, but firmly, told that their opinion in this matter doesn’t count.
Hold a vote on the project choices, only allowing the ecclesia members to vote.
After the eligible voters have made their decision, the teachers may have to deal with some upset students. The following questions may help defuse and clarify the lesson succinctly:
• How was or wasn’t this a democratic way of dealing with the project dilemma?
• What part of the classroom membership was totally left out of the decision-making process?
• Who among the boys were able to participate in the “democratic” process?
Let students know that this activity simulates the earliest forms of democracy as it was born in Ancient Greece. Ecclesia means: 1.an assembly, esp. the popular assembly of ancient Athens, also from the Latin and Greek: to summon forth. Metics, or foreign males, and servants or slaves, as well as women, were denied a part in the governing process. Only those males age 18 and over whose ancestors had been citizens of Athens were given the right to vote. Have students compare those qualifications to modern voter qualifications in our country, where all citizens age 18 and older may vote, regardless of race, religion, gender or political beliefs.
How we will know we learned something (product):
Discussion
End of section quiz
Who will score/grade what?:
General ed teacher
How will we differentiate content/process/product (if applicable):
Content: Chapter 11, Ancient Greece, Prentice Hall World History
Process: Ancient Democracy Simulation
Product: n/a
Homework:
As needed
Extension:
Ecclesia: 1.an assembly, esp. the popular assembly of ancient Athens. 2. a congregation; church. Origin:
1570–80; < L < Gk ekklēsía assembly, equiv. to ékklēt(os) summoned (ek- ec- + klē-, var. of kal-, s. of kaleîn to call, + -tos ptp. suffix) + -ia -ia
1. The political assembly of citizens of an ancient Greek state.
2. A church or congregation.
[Latin ecclēsia, from Greek ekklēsiā, from ekkalein, to summon forth : ek-, out; see ecto- + kalein, klē-, to call; see kelə-2 in Indo-European roots.]
What will we do at our next meeting?
Discuss how the simulation went, how to incorporate more next year, plus/delta for the year.
Retrieved from:
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/ecclesia
Retrieved and modified from:
Ancient History Simulations – Teacher Created Resources
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Language Arts: Lesson 9 - Declaration of Independence
Date: May 6, 2010
Teacher: Mr. West
Grade/Subject: 6th Language Arts
Persuasion – Lesson 9, Declaration of Independence
Standards:
Interpret and synthesize information from a variety of sources.
Use specific strategies to clear up confusing parts of a text.
Respond to historically or culturally significant works of literature to develop an awareness of perspectives.
What we will learn (objectives):
To develop analytical and interpretive skills in reading historical documents
To apply the elements of reasoning to an argument
To explore new vocabulary words
To develop persuasive writing skills
Describe and list the sections of the Declaration of Independence and explain the basic purpose of each.
Give an example of a document that served as a precedent for the Declaration.
List and explain one or more of the colonists' complaints included in the Declaration.
Demonstrate an awareness of the Declaration of Independence as a historical process developed in protest of unfair conditions.
What we will read or study (content):
The Declaration of Independence
How we will study it (process):
Tuesday, May 11
The gifted ed teacher will complete Lesson 1 with the students, while the general ed teacher helps to facilitate the teams.
Lesson 1 Complaints, Complaints...
Discuss with students that you have overheard them, at times, make various complaints about the treatment of young people. Complaints not unlike those motivated the Founding Fathers at the time of the American Revolution.
Give the students a short time in small groups to list complaints they have about the treatment of young people. The complaints should be of a general nature (for example: recess should be longer, fourth graders should be able to see PG videos, etc.). Collect the list. Choose complaints to share with the class, so you can guide the discussion to follow. Save the lists for future reference.
There are moments when all of us are more eager to express what's wrong than we are to think critically about the problem and possible solutions. There is no reason to think people were any different in 1776. It's important to understand the complaints of the colonists as one step in a process involving careful deliberation and attempts to redress grievances.
Ask questions to help your students consider their concerns in a deliberate way. WHO makes the rules they don't like, WHO decides if they are fair or not, HOW does one get them changed, WHAT does it mean to be independent from the rules, and finally, HOW does a group of people declare that they will no longer follow the rules?
Lesson 2 So, What are You Going to Do About It?
Ask the students to imagine that, in hopes of effecting some changes, they are going to compose a document based on their complaints to be sent to the appropriate audience. As they begin to compose their document, they should consider the following questions. (Note to the teacher: The following questions correspond to the sections of the Declaration, as noted in parentheses, which will be discussed later. This discussion serves as a prewriting activity for the writing assignment.)
• 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? Aren't there good reasons why things are the way they are? Why should things as they are be changed? Would it be possible to summarize the thinking behind your desire for change in a single sentence? (statement of beliefs, or the thinking behind the complaints)
• Is there anything in particular the reader should notice about your complaints? Is there anything you need to keep in mind to make sure your audience understands and appreciates your complaints? What kinds of events inspired your complaints? (the list of complaints)
• Have you already tried to make any changes in the treatment of young people? In what way? (prior attempts to redress grievances)
• Is it possible to say in a single sentence what it is you really want to happen? It would take time to change the system to accommodate all of your complaints. What should happen right away? (declaration of independence)
• Who would be willing to sign his/her name to this list of complaints even if it were going to be seen and read by many people? (the signatures)
End by asking the students if they would still sign the list of complaints if it was posted in the office? What about if they got suspended? What if they got expelled?
Wednesday, May 12
At the beginning of class, have another teacher come in and say that they were just in the office and heard that the principals were angry about the list of complaints, and that the teachers may lose their jobs and all the students who signed will be put on contract and have to go to the hearing authority. Go on with the charade as needed. Then, “SIKE!” Talk about how the founding fathers were doing just this, but with their lives.
Lesson 3 The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America
The Declaration of Independence was created in an atmosphere of complaints about the treatment of the colonies under British rule. Students will be given the opportunity to compose a document based on their own complaints; however, the resulting "declarations" might be more convincing if based on some models already proven effective.
Provide every student with a transcript of the Declaration. There is no need to do a close reading of the entire document at this point. The immediate goal is to understand the structure of the document and the basic intent of each section. Discuss the Declaration with students, using the following section-by-section questions help students relate this overview of the Declaration to the previous discussion.
• Preamble: the reasons for writing down the Declaration (from "WHEN, in the Course of human Events" to "declare the Causes which impel them to the Separation."). What reason(s) did the Founding Fathers give for their decision to write out a declaration?
• Statement of beliefs: specifying what the undersigned believed, the philosophy behind the document (from "We hold these Truths to be self-evident" to "an absolute Tyranny over these States"). What beliefs did the Founding Fathers declare they held?
• List of complaints: the offenses that impelled the declaration (from "To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid World" to "unfit to be the ruler of a free people"). What are a few of the complaints? Are any specific events mentioned? If not, is the information given sometimes sufficient to figure out to which events the complaints refer?
• Statement of prior attempts to redress grievances: (From "Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren," to "Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.") In what way(s) did the framers claim to have already tried in addressing the complaints?
• Declaration of independence: (From "WE, therefore" to "and our sacred Honour.") What will change in the colonies as a result of the Declaration?
• The signatures: Which signers do students recognize?
Thursday, May 13
The gifted ed teacher will facilitate the reading of document. Students will then work with a team member sitting next to them to answer the following questions:
o Word Choice: Jefferson uses the words “dissolve the political bands” to describe the efforts towards separation from Great Britain. What efforts were actually taking place to dissolve those bands? Why are the words “rebellion” and “revolution” not used?
o Word Choice: Find several adjectives used to describe the people of the colonies and adjectives used to describe the British. How do the word choices influence the reader’s understanding of events?
o Figurative Language: Find examples of figurative language in the Declaration. Why does Jefferson use the phrase “swarms of Officers” and compare the actions of the “foreign Mercenaries” to those of “the most barbarous ages?”
o Sentence Patterns: Look at the series of sentences in which Jefferson outlines the actions of the King. How does each sentence begin? What is the effect of the repetition?
o Sentence Patterns: Some of the most well-known words of this document are near the beginning – “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness” and at the very end – “our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.” What do you notice about the structure of these two phrases? Why do you think they are memorable? Why did Jefferson not include four or five items, or only one or two, in each case? Try to find other examples in the document of phrases which reflect numerical patterns.
o Imitative Language Patterns: Why does Jefferson continually refer to Laws throughout the document?
o Concrete and Abstract Images: Find the instances of the words “tyrant” and “tyranny” in the document. What are the implications of the words? Does Jefferson ever call the King a tyrant directly? Why or why not?
o Concrete and Abstract Images: Why does Jefferson not refer to any specific dates, events or colonies in the document? How does he make the words generalizable across the thirteen colonies?
Both general education and gifted education teachers will be facilitating the groups to help direct to appropriate answers. Teams will be given between 5 – 7 minutes at each question.
Teams will then come together to discuss answers as a whole class.
Friday, May 14 and Monday, May 17
The students will then get into small groups and looking at their list of class complaints, will begin to draft their own declaration. The Declaration of Independence will serve as a model. The student document should contain the same sections.
The students will then finish their draft declaration and share with the other groups. Each group will sign theirs, and will be posted in the hall.
How we will know we learned something (product):
Student Declaration
Who will score/grade what?:
To be determined
How will we differentiate content/process/product (if applicable):
Content: Declare the Causes lesson plan added to the W&M as a way for students to have a personal understanding of the document.
Process: n/a
Product: Student declaration
Extension: (if time)
*Have the students reflect on what they learned and discussed yesterday. The students will then individually answer the following question in an ACE+ format:
Imagine that you were one of the representatives at the Second Continental Congress. Would you have signed the Declaration right away, or would you have still argued about certain pieces of it? Why? What would have persuaded you one way or the other? Write a paragraph to explain your decision and reasons.
*Creative writing assignment to conclude our civil rights unit – students will choose a time period, a type of writing and write about what is happening during that time.
*Do some research on Thomas Jefferson. Read a biography of Jefferson and find out what led him to be part of the Second Continental Congress and how he was chosen to write the Declaration. What other important documents did Jefferson write?
*Many other groups that have worked for liberty since the time of the American Revolution have used Jefferson’s words to inspire their own actions. Find out about other revolutions that have based their own work toward freedom on the Declaration of Independence.
*Read another famous document of American history, Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Compare the Gettysburg Address to the Declaration of Independence. How did Lincoln imitate parts of the Declaration in order to make his own speech more effective? Complete a Literature Web for the Gettysburg Address, paying particular attention to key words and to structure.
Homework:
To be determined
What will we do at our next meeting?
Discuss how this lesson went, as well as the year. How can we improve services next year?
Teacher: Mr. West
Grade/Subject: 6th Language Arts
Persuasion – Lesson 9, Declaration of Independence
Standards:
Interpret and synthesize information from a variety of sources.
Use specific strategies to clear up confusing parts of a text.
Respond to historically or culturally significant works of literature to develop an awareness of perspectives.
What we will learn (objectives):
To develop analytical and interpretive skills in reading historical documents
To apply the elements of reasoning to an argument
To explore new vocabulary words
To develop persuasive writing skills
Describe and list the sections of the Declaration of Independence and explain the basic purpose of each.
Give an example of a document that served as a precedent for the Declaration.
List and explain one or more of the colonists' complaints included in the Declaration.
Demonstrate an awareness of the Declaration of Independence as a historical process developed in protest of unfair conditions.
What we will read or study (content):
The Declaration of Independence
How we will study it (process):
Tuesday, May 11
The gifted ed teacher will complete Lesson 1 with the students, while the general ed teacher helps to facilitate the teams.
Lesson 1 Complaints, Complaints...
Discuss with students that you have overheard them, at times, make various complaints about the treatment of young people. Complaints not unlike those motivated the Founding Fathers at the time of the American Revolution.
Give the students a short time in small groups to list complaints they have about the treatment of young people. The complaints should be of a general nature (for example: recess should be longer, fourth graders should be able to see PG videos, etc.). Collect the list. Choose complaints to share with the class, so you can guide the discussion to follow. Save the lists for future reference.
There are moments when all of us are more eager to express what's wrong than we are to think critically about the problem and possible solutions. There is no reason to think people were any different in 1776. It's important to understand the complaints of the colonists as one step in a process involving careful deliberation and attempts to redress grievances.
Ask questions to help your students consider their concerns in a deliberate way. WHO makes the rules they don't like, WHO decides if they are fair or not, HOW does one get them changed, WHAT does it mean to be independent from the rules, and finally, HOW does a group of people declare that they will no longer follow the rules?
Lesson 2 So, What are You Going to Do About It?
Ask the students to imagine that, in hopes of effecting some changes, they are going to compose a document based on their complaints to be sent to the appropriate audience. As they begin to compose their document, they should consider the following questions. (Note to the teacher: The following questions correspond to the sections of the Declaration, as noted in parentheses, which will be discussed later. This discussion serves as a prewriting activity for the writing assignment.)
• 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? Aren't there good reasons why things are the way they are? Why should things as they are be changed? Would it be possible to summarize the thinking behind your desire for change in a single sentence? (statement of beliefs, or the thinking behind the complaints)
• Is there anything in particular the reader should notice about your complaints? Is there anything you need to keep in mind to make sure your audience understands and appreciates your complaints? What kinds of events inspired your complaints? (the list of complaints)
• Have you already tried to make any changes in the treatment of young people? In what way? (prior attempts to redress grievances)
• Is it possible to say in a single sentence what it is you really want to happen? It would take time to change the system to accommodate all of your complaints. What should happen right away? (declaration of independence)
• Who would be willing to sign his/her name to this list of complaints even if it were going to be seen and read by many people? (the signatures)
End by asking the students if they would still sign the list of complaints if it was posted in the office? What about if they got suspended? What if they got expelled?
Wednesday, May 12
At the beginning of class, have another teacher come in and say that they were just in the office and heard that the principals were angry about the list of complaints, and that the teachers may lose their jobs and all the students who signed will be put on contract and have to go to the hearing authority. Go on with the charade as needed. Then, “SIKE!” Talk about how the founding fathers were doing just this, but with their lives.
Lesson 3 The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America
The Declaration of Independence was created in an atmosphere of complaints about the treatment of the colonies under British rule. Students will be given the opportunity to compose a document based on their own complaints; however, the resulting "declarations" might be more convincing if based on some models already proven effective.
Provide every student with a transcript of the Declaration. There is no need to do a close reading of the entire document at this point. The immediate goal is to understand the structure of the document and the basic intent of each section. Discuss the Declaration with students, using the following section-by-section questions help students relate this overview of the Declaration to the previous discussion.
• Preamble: the reasons for writing down the Declaration (from "WHEN, in the Course of human Events" to "declare the Causes which impel them to the Separation."). What reason(s) did the Founding Fathers give for their decision to write out a declaration?
• Statement of beliefs: specifying what the undersigned believed, the philosophy behind the document (from "We hold these Truths to be self-evident" to "an absolute Tyranny over these States"). What beliefs did the Founding Fathers declare they held?
• List of complaints: the offenses that impelled the declaration (from "To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid World" to "unfit to be the ruler of a free people"). What are a few of the complaints? Are any specific events mentioned? If not, is the information given sometimes sufficient to figure out to which events the complaints refer?
• Statement of prior attempts to redress grievances: (From "Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren," to "Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.") In what way(s) did the framers claim to have already tried in addressing the complaints?
• Declaration of independence: (From "WE, therefore" to "and our sacred Honour.") What will change in the colonies as a result of the Declaration?
• The signatures: Which signers do students recognize?
Thursday, May 13
The gifted ed teacher will facilitate the reading of document. Students will then work with a team member sitting next to them to answer the following questions:
o Word Choice: Jefferson uses the words “dissolve the political bands” to describe the efforts towards separation from Great Britain. What efforts were actually taking place to dissolve those bands? Why are the words “rebellion” and “revolution” not used?
o Word Choice: Find several adjectives used to describe the people of the colonies and adjectives used to describe the British. How do the word choices influence the reader’s understanding of events?
o Figurative Language: Find examples of figurative language in the Declaration. Why does Jefferson use the phrase “swarms of Officers” and compare the actions of the “foreign Mercenaries” to those of “the most barbarous ages?”
o Sentence Patterns: Look at the series of sentences in which Jefferson outlines the actions of the King. How does each sentence begin? What is the effect of the repetition?
o Sentence Patterns: Some of the most well-known words of this document are near the beginning – “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness” and at the very end – “our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.” What do you notice about the structure of these two phrases? Why do you think they are memorable? Why did Jefferson not include four or five items, or only one or two, in each case? Try to find other examples in the document of phrases which reflect numerical patterns.
o Imitative Language Patterns: Why does Jefferson continually refer to Laws throughout the document?
o Concrete and Abstract Images: Find the instances of the words “tyrant” and “tyranny” in the document. What are the implications of the words? Does Jefferson ever call the King a tyrant directly? Why or why not?
o Concrete and Abstract Images: Why does Jefferson not refer to any specific dates, events or colonies in the document? How does he make the words generalizable across the thirteen colonies?
Both general education and gifted education teachers will be facilitating the groups to help direct to appropriate answers. Teams will be given between 5 – 7 minutes at each question.
Teams will then come together to discuss answers as a whole class.
Friday, May 14 and Monday, May 17
The students will then get into small groups and looking at their list of class complaints, will begin to draft their own declaration. The Declaration of Independence will serve as a model. The student document should contain the same sections.
The students will then finish their draft declaration and share with the other groups. Each group will sign theirs, and will be posted in the hall.
How we will know we learned something (product):
Student Declaration
Who will score/grade what?:
To be determined
How will we differentiate content/process/product (if applicable):
Content: Declare the Causes lesson plan added to the W&M as a way for students to have a personal understanding of the document.
Process: n/a
Product: Student declaration
Extension: (if time)
*Have the students reflect on what they learned and discussed yesterday. The students will then individually answer the following question in an ACE+ format:
Imagine that you were one of the representatives at the Second Continental Congress. Would you have signed the Declaration right away, or would you have still argued about certain pieces of it? Why? What would have persuaded you one way or the other? Write a paragraph to explain your decision and reasons.
*Creative writing assignment to conclude our civil rights unit – students will choose a time period, a type of writing and write about what is happening during that time.
*Do some research on Thomas Jefferson. Read a biography of Jefferson and find out what led him to be part of the Second Continental Congress and how he was chosen to write the Declaration. What other important documents did Jefferson write?
*Many other groups that have worked for liberty since the time of the American Revolution have used Jefferson’s words to inspire their own actions. Find out about other revolutions that have based their own work toward freedom on the Declaration of Independence.
*Read another famous document of American history, Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Compare the Gettysburg Address to the Declaration of Independence. How did Lincoln imitate parts of the Declaration in order to make his own speech more effective? Complete a Literature Web for the Gettysburg Address, paying particular attention to key words and to structure.
Homework:
To be determined
What will we do at our next meeting?
Discuss how this lesson went, as well as the year. How can we improve services next year?
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