Unit 7: Europe’s Renaissance and Reformation
Types / Resources
from / Writing Ideas
from / Comments / Additional Ideas
Biography Resources / There are no biographical sources for this unit. / . /
- Research a Renaissance figure independently.
- Write a letter to your figure of choice, and write a response from your figure that reveals his/her important characteristics.
- Create a Power Point presentation that includes important contributions.
- Write/illustrate a graphic novel depicting the life and contributions of an important Renaissance figure.
Literature
Resources / Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes (1547 - 1616) / Students create an illustrated postcard
written from Don Quixote to his lady, Dulcinea. / Uses an excerpt from a primary source, Don Quixote. Students will appreciate the humor of attacking windmills. /
- The postcard can be expanded to a full letter.
- Create a story-board or graphic novella of the excerpt, with speech bubbles.
Essays / The Reformation Plants Seeds of Modern Democracy and Federalism / Students discuss and answer questions about the impact of the Protestant Reformation on the American Constitution. / The TCI source provides a good basis for a Socratic Seminar. /
- Socratic Seminar or other whole class discussion, with a written processing/reflection component
- Can be expanded into a full essay, expository or persuasive (can be used for common assignment)
Investigating
Primary Sources / Boke of Nurture by Hugh Rhodes (1577) / Students interpret excerpts from Rhodes Boke of Nuture with written explanations and illustrations. / Students will recognize the parental tone in this excerpt. This source highlights similarities between the relationship between children and adults then and now (how little things have changed!). /
- Identify several “manners” taught to children today, and further research this source or others to find comparable ones taught to medieval children. Create your own “ten and now” illustrated book of manners.
Internet Project / Unit 7: Europe's Renaissance and Reformation
Internet Connections:
/ Students create a newspaper with articles that address the question “how did innovation and reform during the Renaissance and Reformation change life in Europe?” / The project is ambitious, but interesting. Good for high level readers and writers as outlined by TCI.
. /
- Jigsaw the project, dividing up the parts of the paper amongst a group of students.