Lesson One: Political Leaders- Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis
I. Objectives
a. Standard SOL- USI.9: The student will demonstrate knowledge of the causes, major events, and effects of the Civil War by d) describing the roles of Abraham Lincoln, Jefferson Davis, Ulysses S. Grant, Robert E. Lee, Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, and Frederick Douglass in events leading to and during the war;
b. Learning Objective- Students will be able to evaluate the roles of Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis in events leading to and during the war.
II. Materials for Learning Activities
a. Brain pop video highlighting Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis - http://www.brainpop.com/socialstudies/freemovies/civilwar/
b. Venn Diagram Student Worksheet (in supporting documents)
c. Different levels of Civil War books for research
d. Think-Tac-Toe choice board (in supporting documents)
e. Smart Board
f. Computer w/Smart Board program for the teacher
g. Student computers for research
h. Pictures of Abe Lincoln and Jefferson Davis to pass around
III. Procedures for Learning Activities (approximately 1 hour)
a. Introduction: Introduce that for the next few lessons we will be targeting six of the most influential people involved in the Civil War. State that today we will be taking a look at the two men who led the Union and the Confederacy politically during the war. Explain to the students that Abraham Lincoln was the president of the Union and Jefferson Davis was elected president of the confederacy when the states succeeded.
i. Thumbs up/Thumbs down if you know what I mean when I say that the southern states succeeded from the union (this should be review from earlier in the unit). However, if they are still struggling with the vocabulary, explicitly teach the meaning again. Call on a thumbs up student to share what they think it means. Write their definition on the board.
b. Do a KWL chart on Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis with the students on the smart board. Students will take turns raising their hand to help fill in the three columns. (pre-assessment) (5 minutes).
c. Engage the students with a BrainPop video to begin today’s lesson. This video is a recap of the Civil War, however it emphasizes the roles of Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis very well. Encourage the students to take notes about the sections on Davis and Lincoln because they can use their notes to help them with the next activity (5 minutes).
d. Explain to the students that they will use what they learned from the video as well as the resources provided (various books, articles, and Internet resources) to fill out a Venn Diagram about Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis. (15 minutes).
i. Hand out the Venn Diagram Foldable and give instructions on how to piece it together and label
1. Put together the foldable as a class
a) Walk around to make sure it is being put together correctly
ii. Let the students know that they may work in pairs with someone at their table to fill out the Venn Diagram
foldable
e. While the students are doing their research and filling out their foldable, I will walk around the classroom taking anecdotal notes on their progress and contribution to their partner. I will also offer my assistance if they have any questions.
f. After approximately 15 minutes I will use my classroom management strategy of clap echoing to get my students attention. I will ask them to return to their seats and we will share what everyone has found
g. Create a class Venn Diagram for Jefferson Davis and Abraham Lincoln on the smart board using the information the students found. I felt it was important to do this as a class to make sure that all of the students had the important information down because this will be a resource to help them with their Think-Tac-Toe board.
i. Fill out the Venn Diagram by allowing students to volunteer information that they and their partner had found. (5-
10 minutes)
ii. Use varying questions from Blooms Taxonomy including:
1. How was Lincoln similar to Davis? How were they different? (comprehension and analysis)
2. What was Lincoln’s greatest contribution (knowledge)
3. Do you think. . . (evaluate)
h. Introduce the Think-Tac-Toe board (document attach)
i. Instruct students that for the remainder of the class they will be working on their choice from the
Lincoln/Jefferson column. They can use their Venn Diagram for information as well as any of the resources in the
classroom. (25-30 minutes)
ii. Let them know that it is ok if they do not have a chance to finish, they will have extra time during the week.
However, they must use their time wisely because the entire Think-Tac-Toe board will be due at the end of the
week.
iii. While the students are working on their Think-Tac-Toe project I will go around and assist students in choosing
their project, answering any individual questions they might have, and observing their progress
j. Closing: Bring the students back together and ask them to self-evaluate their progress. Have students hold up a “1” if they are less than half way done with their Think-Tac-Toe project and feel they are going to need a lot more time to finish, a “2” if they are approximately half way done with their project, or a “3” if they are more than half-way done.
i. Introduce to the students that tomorrow we will be learning about two very important generals from the civil war, Ulysses S. Grant from the North, and Robert E. Lee from the South.
IV. Assessment
a. Pre-assessment –
i. Informal and Formative: The class will work together to fill out a KWL chart about Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis
b. During the lesson-
i. Informal and Formative: I will use the informal checks for understanding method of hand signals (Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down) to determine if the students know what it means when I say that the southern states succeeded from the Union in my introduction
ii. Informal and Formative: I will use the technique of questioning to informally check my student’s understanding. I will target specific students for specific questions based on their readiness and using varying levels of questioning from Bloom’s taxonomy. I will do this while going over the Venn Diagram as a class.
iii. Informal and Formative: Venn Diagram (graphic organizer)- students will create a Venn diagram foldable showcasing the similarities and differences between Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis. This is informal and formative because we will come back together as a class to ensure that the important information is addressed.
iv. Informal and Formative: While the students are working on their Venn diagrams and Think-Tac-Toe boards, I will observe their progress and take anecdotal notes on their collaboration, progress, and ease of finding information using the research. I will spot check their content however since the Venn Diagram will be done as a class and the Think-Tac-Toe boards are my summative assessment, I will not give them too much guidance on that while walking around the room.
v. Formal and Summative: Students will work with a Think-Tac-Toe choice board. There will be a column about Lincoln and Jefferson that students must pick from to complete before the end of this lesson sequence. It is an individual assignment and will be graded using a rubric.
V. Differentiation
a. Content differentiation by interests and readiness based on the types of resources students have access to. I have provided picture books, textbooks, encyclopedias, other non-fiction books, articles, as well as Internet resources and videos to help students fill out their Venn Diagram and complete their Think-Tac-Toe activity. A lot of our students are very interested in media, which is why it is important to include videos and media prints. Furthermore, print difficulty ranges from picture books for our ESOL students to more complex biographies and encyclopedias for our students who receive GT services and those who are at an advanced literacy level.
b. Process differentiation by learning profile through table groups and partners when the students paired up to do research for their Venn Diagram.
c. Content differentiation by readiness based on the different levels of questioning I address the students with. Bloom’s taxonomy offers questions that range from knowledge to evaluation and each level asks for a higher level of thinking that some students are ready for and other students are not.
d. Product differentiation by learning profile through the Think-Tac-Toe boards. The different rows represent different multiple intelligences that focus on the strengths of my students. These intelligences include spatial for all of our artistic students, interpersonal, kinesthetic, and musical for those with strengths in dance and music. The Think-Tac-Toe board is my high-prep differentiation task that will carry through the entire lesson sequence. It will also act as my summative assessment as mentioned earlier. A Think-Tac-Toe board gives students an element of choice while also making sure their tasks align with my objectives.
f. Accommodations- I have made several accommodations for individual groups of students I may potentially have in my classroom that go beyond the differentiating I did for the class.
i. For students with learning disabilities, I have created a checklist to help monitor their way through both the poetry journal entry and think-tac-toe board. This includes showing them what books to look at for specific information that will help him organize his assignment. I also guided him into a particular think-tac-toe assignment.
ii. For GT students, I asked them to do the artistic choice in addition to one of the other two choices if they finish their work ahead of time
iii. For ESOL students. Not only do I guide them to the easier leveled resources, I encourage them to use the videos and the Internet resources that have been translated into Spanish. I have guided them to the spatial choice for their think-tac-toe pick.
iv. Allow ADHD students to take frequent breaks and provide fidget sticks
a. Standard SOL- USI.9: The student will demonstrate knowledge of the causes, major events, and effects of the Civil War by d) describing the roles of Abraham Lincoln, Jefferson Davis, Ulysses S. Grant, Robert E. Lee, Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, and Frederick Douglass in events leading to and during the war;
b. Learning Objective- Students will be able to evaluate the roles of Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis in events leading to and during the war.
II. Materials for Learning Activities
a. Brain pop video highlighting Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis - http://www.brainpop.com/socialstudies/freemovies/civilwar/
b. Venn Diagram Student Worksheet (in supporting documents)
c. Different levels of Civil War books for research
d. Think-Tac-Toe choice board (in supporting documents)
e. Smart Board
f. Computer w/Smart Board program for the teacher
g. Student computers for research
h. Pictures of Abe Lincoln and Jefferson Davis to pass around
III. Procedures for Learning Activities (approximately 1 hour)
a. Introduction: Introduce that for the next few lessons we will be targeting six of the most influential people involved in the Civil War. State that today we will be taking a look at the two men who led the Union and the Confederacy politically during the war. Explain to the students that Abraham Lincoln was the president of the Union and Jefferson Davis was elected president of the confederacy when the states succeeded.
i. Thumbs up/Thumbs down if you know what I mean when I say that the southern states succeeded from the union (this should be review from earlier in the unit). However, if they are still struggling with the vocabulary, explicitly teach the meaning again. Call on a thumbs up student to share what they think it means. Write their definition on the board.
b. Do a KWL chart on Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis with the students on the smart board. Students will take turns raising their hand to help fill in the three columns. (pre-assessment) (5 minutes).
c. Engage the students with a BrainPop video to begin today’s lesson. This video is a recap of the Civil War, however it emphasizes the roles of Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis very well. Encourage the students to take notes about the sections on Davis and Lincoln because they can use their notes to help them with the next activity (5 minutes).
d. Explain to the students that they will use what they learned from the video as well as the resources provided (various books, articles, and Internet resources) to fill out a Venn Diagram about Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis. (15 minutes).
i. Hand out the Venn Diagram Foldable and give instructions on how to piece it together and label
1. Put together the foldable as a class
a) Walk around to make sure it is being put together correctly
ii. Let the students know that they may work in pairs with someone at their table to fill out the Venn Diagram
foldable
e. While the students are doing their research and filling out their foldable, I will walk around the classroom taking anecdotal notes on their progress and contribution to their partner. I will also offer my assistance if they have any questions.
f. After approximately 15 minutes I will use my classroom management strategy of clap echoing to get my students attention. I will ask them to return to their seats and we will share what everyone has found
g. Create a class Venn Diagram for Jefferson Davis and Abraham Lincoln on the smart board using the information the students found. I felt it was important to do this as a class to make sure that all of the students had the important information down because this will be a resource to help them with their Think-Tac-Toe board.
i. Fill out the Venn Diagram by allowing students to volunteer information that they and their partner had found. (5-
10 minutes)
ii. Use varying questions from Blooms Taxonomy including:
1. How was Lincoln similar to Davis? How were they different? (comprehension and analysis)
2. What was Lincoln’s greatest contribution (knowledge)
3. Do you think. . . (evaluate)
h. Introduce the Think-Tac-Toe board (document attach)
i. Instruct students that for the remainder of the class they will be working on their choice from the
Lincoln/Jefferson column. They can use their Venn Diagram for information as well as any of the resources in the
classroom. (25-30 minutes)
ii. Let them know that it is ok if they do not have a chance to finish, they will have extra time during the week.
However, they must use their time wisely because the entire Think-Tac-Toe board will be due at the end of the
week.
iii. While the students are working on their Think-Tac-Toe project I will go around and assist students in choosing
their project, answering any individual questions they might have, and observing their progress
j. Closing: Bring the students back together and ask them to self-evaluate their progress. Have students hold up a “1” if they are less than half way done with their Think-Tac-Toe project and feel they are going to need a lot more time to finish, a “2” if they are approximately half way done with their project, or a “3” if they are more than half-way done.
i. Introduce to the students that tomorrow we will be learning about two very important generals from the civil war, Ulysses S. Grant from the North, and Robert E. Lee from the South.
IV. Assessment
a. Pre-assessment –
i. Informal and Formative: The class will work together to fill out a KWL chart about Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis
b. During the lesson-
i. Informal and Formative: I will use the informal checks for understanding method of hand signals (Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down) to determine if the students know what it means when I say that the southern states succeeded from the Union in my introduction
ii. Informal and Formative: I will use the technique of questioning to informally check my student’s understanding. I will target specific students for specific questions based on their readiness and using varying levels of questioning from Bloom’s taxonomy. I will do this while going over the Venn Diagram as a class.
iii. Informal and Formative: Venn Diagram (graphic organizer)- students will create a Venn diagram foldable showcasing the similarities and differences between Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis. This is informal and formative because we will come back together as a class to ensure that the important information is addressed.
iv. Informal and Formative: While the students are working on their Venn diagrams and Think-Tac-Toe boards, I will observe their progress and take anecdotal notes on their collaboration, progress, and ease of finding information using the research. I will spot check their content however since the Venn Diagram will be done as a class and the Think-Tac-Toe boards are my summative assessment, I will not give them too much guidance on that while walking around the room.
v. Formal and Summative: Students will work with a Think-Tac-Toe choice board. There will be a column about Lincoln and Jefferson that students must pick from to complete before the end of this lesson sequence. It is an individual assignment and will be graded using a rubric.
V. Differentiation
a. Content differentiation by interests and readiness based on the types of resources students have access to. I have provided picture books, textbooks, encyclopedias, other non-fiction books, articles, as well as Internet resources and videos to help students fill out their Venn Diagram and complete their Think-Tac-Toe activity. A lot of our students are very interested in media, which is why it is important to include videos and media prints. Furthermore, print difficulty ranges from picture books for our ESOL students to more complex biographies and encyclopedias for our students who receive GT services and those who are at an advanced literacy level.
b. Process differentiation by learning profile through table groups and partners when the students paired up to do research for their Venn Diagram.
c. Content differentiation by readiness based on the different levels of questioning I address the students with. Bloom’s taxonomy offers questions that range from knowledge to evaluation and each level asks for a higher level of thinking that some students are ready for and other students are not.
d. Product differentiation by learning profile through the Think-Tac-Toe boards. The different rows represent different multiple intelligences that focus on the strengths of my students. These intelligences include spatial for all of our artistic students, interpersonal, kinesthetic, and musical for those with strengths in dance and music. The Think-Tac-Toe board is my high-prep differentiation task that will carry through the entire lesson sequence. It will also act as my summative assessment as mentioned earlier. A Think-Tac-Toe board gives students an element of choice while also making sure their tasks align with my objectives.
f. Accommodations- I have made several accommodations for individual groups of students I may potentially have in my classroom that go beyond the differentiating I did for the class.
i. For students with learning disabilities, I have created a checklist to help monitor their way through both the poetry journal entry and think-tac-toe board. This includes showing them what books to look at for specific information that will help him organize his assignment. I also guided him into a particular think-tac-toe assignment.
ii. For GT students, I asked them to do the artistic choice in addition to one of the other two choices if they finish their work ahead of time
iii. For ESOL students. Not only do I guide them to the easier leveled resources, I encourage them to use the videos and the Internet resources that have been translated into Spanish. I have guided them to the spatial choice for their think-tac-toe pick.
iv. Allow ADHD students to take frequent breaks and provide fidget sticks