Rationale:
· One of the overriding themes of my unit teaching about the United States’ actions during the age of imperialism as a vehicle for studying the characteristics of empires in general, has been for the students to view these historical events not only from an American point of view, but also from the perspective of the indigenous peoples that were “liberated” by the United States, only to find themselves now subject to our authority.
· In many of the previous lessons I have instructed the students to complete writing activities based on the content we covered in class from a perspective that I assigned them to; this activity will allow the students to have the opportunity to choose from a multitude of options which perspective they will be writing from in an interior monologue writing assignment. Additionally, in previous lessons I have given the students much more direct instructions on specific details that they should be on the look-out for during lectures, when reading texts, or when viewing a film. In this lesson it there will be far less prompting from me about what information need to find and allow the students to exercise their analytic skills by determining for themselves which details are most important.
· This activity is intended to be a fun way for the students to obtain kinesthetic learning gains by participating in a physical activity that will increase their knowledge and understanding of individuals from the time period we are studying. Furthermore, I thought that this would be a fun final activity in which students writing from multiple multi-cultural perspectives.
· One of the overriding themes of my unit teaching about the United States’ actions during the age of imperialism as a vehicle for studying the characteristics of empires in general, has been for the students to view these historical events not only from an American point of view, but also from the perspective of the indigenous peoples that were “liberated” by the United States, only to find themselves now subject to our authority.
· In many of the previous lessons I have instructed the students to complete writing activities based on the content we covered in class from a perspective that I assigned them to; this activity will allow the students to have the opportunity to choose from a multitude of options which perspective they will be writing from in an interior monologue writing assignment. Additionally, in previous lessons I have given the students much more direct instructions on specific details that they should be on the look-out for during lectures, when reading texts, or when viewing a film. In this lesson it there will be far less prompting from me about what information need to find and allow the students to exercise their analytic skills by determining for themselves which details are most important.
· This activity is intended to be a fun way for the students to obtain kinesthetic learning gains by participating in a physical activity that will increase their knowledge and understanding of individuals from the time period we are studying. Furthermore, I thought that this would be a fun final activity in which students writing from multiple multi-cultural perspectives.
· SWBAT examine a photographic primary source document and reenact the events portrayed in the image with their fellow students.
· SWBAT articulate in writing what they believe was going on in the mind of the individual they portrayed from the primary source document their group analyzed and replicated. Specifically the students will be responsible for answering: Who do they think their individual is? What are they doing in the photograph? Where are they doing it? When is it taking place? Why are they doing it?
· SWBAT articulate in writing what they believe was going on in the mind of the individual they portrayed from the primary source document their group analyzed and replicated. Specifically the students will be responsible for answering: Who do they think their individual is? What are they doing in the photograph? Where are they doing it? When is it taking place? Why are they doing it?
· In this lesson students will be assessed in both a formative and a summative fashion.
· Students will be assessed formatively based on their level of participation in the Snap Shot in Time group activity itself and during the planning phase of the same activity.
· Students will be assessed in a summative fashion through their successfully completing a graphic organizer and an interior monologue writing assignment where they write from the perspective of the individual they portrayed in the Snap Shot in Time activity. In this interior monologue the students will be responsible for clearly answering: Who do they think their individual is? What are they doing in the photograph? Where are they doing it? When is it taking place? Why are they doing it?
· Students will be assessed formatively based on their level of participation in the Snap Shot in Time group activity itself and during the planning phase of the same activity.
· Students will be assessed in a summative fashion through their successfully completing a graphic organizer and an interior monologue writing assignment where they write from the perspective of the individual they portrayed in the Snap Shot in Time activity. In this interior monologue the students will be responsible for clearly answering: Who do they think their individual is? What are they doing in the photograph? Where are they doing it? When is it taking place? Why are they doing it?
· HS.10. Evaluate a historical source for point of view and historical context.
· HS.19. Evaluate how differing points of view, self-interest, and global distribution of natural resources play a role in conflict over territory.
· HS.60. Analyze an event, issue, problem, or phenomenon from varied or opposing perspectives or points of view.
· HS.19. Evaluate how differing points of view, self-interest, and global distribution of natural resources play a role in conflict over territory.
· HS.60. Analyze an event, issue, problem, or phenomenon from varied or opposing perspectives or points of view.
Time: This lesson should last one-two standard fifty-minute class periods.
· Photos for the Snap Shot In Time Activity Handout
· Snap Shot In Time Graphic Organizer
· Snap Shot In Time Interior Monologue Activity Handout
· Digital Camera
· Snap Shot In Time Graphic Organizer
· Snap Shot In Time Interior Monologue Activity Handout
· Digital Camera
· My anticipatory set for this lesson will be to ask the students a question: If you could time travel to any place or point in history, where would you go? Who would you want to meet and why? Hopefully this will create a brief, but spirited conversation about historical periods the students would like to visit or the individuals from ages past that they would like to talk to. This anticipatory set is intended to get the students thinking in a frame of mind that will make them more amenable to a creative and unusual activity such as they will be participating in today. An activity like this is quite outside the comfort level of normal activities that the students participate in for school so I am hoping to ease them in to it with a brief discussion about time travel.
· The students will be made aware of the purpose & goals of the lesson prior to my beginning any instruction. These will be written on the board so I and the students can refer back to them should we lose focus or get off track. It will also inform the many late arrivals in my class of what we will be doing today if I do not have an opportunity to engage them as soon as they enter the classroom.
· I will inform the students that the purpose of this lesson is for them to try and not just mentally, but physically as well, to get inside the minds of individuals that participated in the events we have been studying. I will likewise inform the students that the goal of this lesson is for them to successfully complete a Snap Shot in Time activity with several other students, fill out their graphic organizer based on the individual they portrayed and then to complete an interior monologue writing assignment in the form of a journal entry.
· I will then explain the protocols for a Snap Shot in Time activity:
· A) With your group members select a photographic primary source from those provided and discuss in detail what you think is going on in the minds of the individuals shown in the picture.
· B) The students will then choose an individual from the photograph who they wish to portray and write about for this activity.
· C) The students will reenact the image for their classmates
· D) The students will fill out their graphic organizer which will require the students to answer the Five W’s (Who, What, Where, When, and Why) about their individual.
· E) The students will then utilize their graphic organizer to complete their interior monologue writing activity in the form of a journal entry.
· The students will be made aware of the purpose & goals of the lesson prior to my beginning any instruction. These will be written on the board so I and the students can refer back to them should we lose focus or get off track. It will also inform the many late arrivals in my class of what we will be doing today if I do not have an opportunity to engage them as soon as they enter the classroom.
· I will inform the students that the purpose of this lesson is for them to try and not just mentally, but physically as well, to get inside the minds of individuals that participated in the events we have been studying. I will likewise inform the students that the goal of this lesson is for them to successfully complete a Snap Shot in Time activity with several other students, fill out their graphic organizer based on the individual they portrayed and then to complete an interior monologue writing assignment in the form of a journal entry.
· I will then explain the protocols for a Snap Shot in Time activity:
· A) With your group members select a photographic primary source from those provided and discuss in detail what you think is going on in the minds of the individuals shown in the picture.
· B) The students will then choose an individual from the photograph who they wish to portray and write about for this activity.
· C) The students will reenact the image for their classmates
· D) The students will fill out their graphic organizer which will require the students to answer the Five W’s (Who, What, Where, When, and Why) about their individual.
· E) The students will then utilize their graphic organizer to complete their interior monologue writing activity in the form of a journal entry.
· At this point I will have the students form groups of two-four students and have them arrange themselves at a table accordingly.
· I will then distribute a copy of the fifteen photographic primary source documents to each of the groups. They will be instructed to carefully look through all of the options and discuss with their group members which photograph they want to reenact for their classmates. I will explicitly state that they have to take all of their groups members’ opinion’s into account and that when they have chosen a photograph the entire group should raise their hands so I can come over and take note of their choice. No group may reenact the same photograph as another; if there are two groups who wish to reenact the same photograph, the group that chose it and all signaled to me first will be able to have their first choice. I will tell the students that a first come, first serve basis is only fair in a situation such as this.
· After the groups have all chosen their photographs they I will five-ten minutes to discuss what segment of the photograph do they want to reenact and who wants to portray certain individuals from the image. I will inform the students that they should discuss among themselves the details in the picture and what do they think is going on in the minds of the individuals in the photographs. What happened in their day before this picture was taken? What do they think happened afterwards?
· I will remind them be careful in their selections, because they will be completing a writing activity from their perspective.
· The groups will then reenact their chosen photographic primary source and hold the pose for sixty seconds. The rational I will give the students for holding their pose for this long is that in the 19th century cameras often took up to a minute to record a photograph. In reality it gives them an opportunity to really experience the moment they are reenacting, but also provides me with an opportunity to take several photos of the students to record the event so I can show them side by side comparisons of their group and the image they are recreating. After they are done I will ask if any of the other students have any questions about why they chose that picture and if applicable why they chose to reenact that particular segment of the photograph.
· I will thank the students for their effort and have them return to their group’s table.
· I will then distribute a copy of the fifteen photographic primary source documents to each of the groups. They will be instructed to carefully look through all of the options and discuss with their group members which photograph they want to reenact for their classmates. I will explicitly state that they have to take all of their groups members’ opinion’s into account and that when they have chosen a photograph the entire group should raise their hands so I can come over and take note of their choice. No group may reenact the same photograph as another; if there are two groups who wish to reenact the same photograph, the group that chose it and all signaled to me first will be able to have their first choice. I will tell the students that a first come, first serve basis is only fair in a situation such as this.
· After the groups have all chosen their photographs they I will five-ten minutes to discuss what segment of the photograph do they want to reenact and who wants to portray certain individuals from the image. I will inform the students that they should discuss among themselves the details in the picture and what do they think is going on in the minds of the individuals in the photographs. What happened in their day before this picture was taken? What do they think happened afterwards?
· I will remind them be careful in their selections, because they will be completing a writing activity from their perspective.
· The groups will then reenact their chosen photographic primary source and hold the pose for sixty seconds. The rational I will give the students for holding their pose for this long is that in the 19th century cameras often took up to a minute to record a photograph. In reality it gives them an opportunity to really experience the moment they are reenacting, but also provides me with an opportunity to take several photos of the students to record the event so I can show them side by side comparisons of their group and the image they are recreating. After they are done I will ask if any of the other students have any questions about why they chose that picture and if applicable why they chose to reenact that particular segment of the photograph.
· I will thank the students for their effort and have them return to their group’s table.
· At this point I will distribute the graphic organizers and interior monologue activity handouts to the students to complete. I will inform them that they will have the rest of the class period to complete these handouts and that they should draw on their fellow group members as well as me for assistance.
· I will then proceed to read through and explain both handouts to the students; I will then ask if anyone has any questions about the activities. If no one needs any further explanation at that time I will proceed to have the students begin working on their assessment device for this lesson. I will also explicitly tell the students that to fill out the When section of their graphic organizers, they should look through the chapters from Howard Zinn's book A People's History of the American Empire. They should be able to find out during what years did the fighting begin in Cuba and the Philippines respectively, If they have trouble find what year their event took place in, then they should raise their hands and I will come over and show them where to find the answer in their readings.
· By completing the graphic organizer the students will be forced to flesh out the back story that they have created for their individual from the photograph; this will make it much easier for the students to complete the interior monologue portion of the assignment.
· As the students work on their writing activity I will be circulating throughout the classroom to help students if they are stuck or to help them brainstorm ideas.
· Once again I will be actively encouraging the students to share their work with their peers. As an incentive to motivate the students to share, I will offer an additional 10 bonus points that can be used to make up for a small assignment that they have yet to complete for this unit or simply boost their grade as extra credit if they are up to date on all of their deliverables for the unit.
· If no one is willing to share their assignment with the class then so be it; I will not try and force them to share their work as I know many of my students are quite self-conscious about their writing skills and sharing their work with their peers, so today I will not press the issue.
· I will then collect their assignments.
· Class Dismissed.
· I will then proceed to read through and explain both handouts to the students; I will then ask if anyone has any questions about the activities. If no one needs any further explanation at that time I will proceed to have the students begin working on their assessment device for this lesson. I will also explicitly tell the students that to fill out the When section of their graphic organizers, they should look through the chapters from Howard Zinn's book A People's History of the American Empire. They should be able to find out during what years did the fighting begin in Cuba and the Philippines respectively, If they have trouble find what year their event took place in, then they should raise their hands and I will come over and show them where to find the answer in their readings.
· By completing the graphic organizer the students will be forced to flesh out the back story that they have created for their individual from the photograph; this will make it much easier for the students to complete the interior monologue portion of the assignment.
· As the students work on their writing activity I will be circulating throughout the classroom to help students if they are stuck or to help them brainstorm ideas.
· Once again I will be actively encouraging the students to share their work with their peers. As an incentive to motivate the students to share, I will offer an additional 10 bonus points that can be used to make up for a small assignment that they have yet to complete for this unit or simply boost their grade as extra credit if they are up to date on all of their deliverables for the unit.
· If no one is willing to share their assignment with the class then so be it; I will not try and force them to share their work as I know many of my students are quite self-conscious about their writing skills and sharing their work with their peers, so today I will not press the issue.
· I will then collect their assignments.
· Class Dismissed.