Amelia Earhart: A True American Hero
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Rachel Gannaway
Fox Creek Elementary
Summer 2009
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
DN-0085880, Chicago Daily News negatives collection,
Chicago Historical Society.
This lesson guides students in their understanding of one of our true heroes, Amelia Earhart. Students will not only understand that she was a true American hero but that in 1932 she was also the first woman to fly a solo non-stop trans-Atlantic flight.
Overview/ Materials/Historical Background/LOC Resources/Standards/ Procedures/Evaluation/Rubric/Handouts/Extension
Overview Back to Navigation BarObjectives / Students will:
· recognize who Amelia Earhart was which was not only an aviator but also considered a feminist.
· realize the importance of Amelia Earhart to aviation and women’s history.
· study the timeline in which Amelia Earhart first set out on her flight to her death in 1937.
Recommended time frame / Three 40 minute lessons; 1-20 minute homework worksheet assessment
Grade level / 4th- 5th
Curriculum fit / Social Science
Materials / · Images found on the image table enlarged, printed, and laminated to pass around the classroom.
· Handout -- Amelia Earhart—A Timeline http://www.ninety-nines.org/earhart.html
· Worksheet -- Who was Amelia Earhart?
· Computers with Internet access (reputable sites such as loc.gov)
· Homework sheet entitled What does a Hero Mean to Me?
· Rubric for Who was Amelia Earhart?
· Rubric for What does a Hero Mean to Me?
Illinois State Learning Standards Back to Navigation Bar
Social Sciences:
GOAL 16: Understand events, trends, individuals and movements shaping the history of Illinois, the United States and other nations.
· 16.D. Understand Illinois, United States and world social history.
· 16.D.2C Describe the influence of key individuals and groups, including Susan B. Anthony/suffrage and Martin Luther King, Jr./civil rights, in the historical eras of Illinois and the United States.
Procedures Back to Navigation Bar
Lesson One/Day One:
· The teacher will pass out the pictures from the image table that have been printed, enlarged, and laminated. He/she will ask the students to talk amongst themselves while trying to discover who this person was and what she was famous for.
· After the class has come to some sort of consensus, the teacher will lead a discussion on Amelia Earhart and the timeline of her life. The teacher will pass out the handout entitled Amelia Earhart—A Timeline.
· The teacher will briefly discuss the pictures and the timeline. He/she will prepare the students for Lesson Two/Day Two.
Lesson Two/Day Two:
· A quick review on Amelia Earhart will be given by the teacher.
· The students will be asked to find a partner in their classroom. After students are partnered, each set of partners will be given the worksheet Who was Amelia Earhart? The students will be told that these worksheets will be collected at the end of the class period for a grade/points.
· With the use of their timelines, the internet (including reputable sites such as loc.gov) the student will be asked to complete the given worksheet.
· When the class period is over, students will be asked to turn in their worksheets for further and final discussion.
· The teacher will grade the students’ worksheets prior to Lesson Three/Day Three.
Lesson Three/Day Three:
· The teacher will have the students return to their partners and hand out their graded worksheets. Students will be asked to take 10-15 minutes to review their graded worksheets.
· Afterwards, the teacher will lead a discussion on what it means to be a “hero.” She will ask the students questions such as:
ü What is a hero?
ü When you think of the word hero, who do you think of?
ü Do you have any personal heroes?
ü Do you personally know any of your heroes?
ü Besides Amelia Earhart, who are other historically known heroes? Why?
ü Why are heroes important?
· Finally, the students will be given the homework sheet What does a Hero Mean to Me? The students will be asked to complete this worksheet for homework. The teacher will tell the students that they are responsible for completing the homework sheet and that it shouldn’t take much longer than 20 minutes to complete. The teacher will tell the students that they will be given a grade on their completed homework.
Evaluation Back to Navigation Bar
Students will be evaluated using the rubrics for:
· the worksheet entitled Who was Amelia Earhart?
· the homework sheet What does a Hero Mean to Me? Both will be given a letter grade based on accumulated points.
Extension Back to Navigation Bar
· The following worksheet from nga.gov would be an excellent extension activity for students to complete:
· http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/heroes_and_heroines/life.pdf
· Students could visit the site: http://www.myhero.com in order to research all types of heroes. This site also has a search engine; therefore students can type in particular, personal heroes he/she would like to further research. When you find a particular hero on this site, there are wonderful, quick biographies on the hero’s life that students might find interesting.
· Go to: http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/wb-timeline.html
o and have the students discover the true timeline of flight from 1000 B.C.E. to 2000.
Historical Background
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Amelia Earhart was born in Atchison, Kansas in on July 24, 1897. She was a pioneer for aviation, a feminist, and a true American Hero. Earhart was the first woman to receive the Distinguished Flying Cross, awarded for becoming the first aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, wrote best-selling books about her flying experiences, and was instrumental in the formation of The Ninety-Nines (an organization for female pilots).
During an attempt to make a circumnavigational flight of the globe in 1937, Earhart disappeared over the Pacific Ocean near Howland. She was reported missing on July 2, 1937 and was declared dead on January 5, 1939.
It’s important to truly understand the heroic things that Amelia Earhart did because not only was she a woman defying many odds stacked against women at the time, she was also an inspiring hero.
:
Primary Resources from the Library of Congress
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Image / Description / Citation / URLPhotograph of Amelia Earhart. / DN-0085880, Chicago Daily News negatives collection, Chicago Historical Society. / http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/cdn:@field(NUMBER+@band(ichicdn+n085880))
Amelia Earhart. / Courtesy of the Special Collections Department, University of Iowa Libraries. / http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/tccc:@field(DOCID+@lit(tccc002123))
Amelia Earhart in Denver. / Western History/Genealogy Department, Denver Public Library. / http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hawp:@field(NUMBER+@band(codhawp+00185089))
Amelia Earhart holding a floral arrangement, standing with a group of men and women in a railroad station. / DN-0086060, Chicago Daily News negatives collection, Chicago Historical Society. / http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/cdn:@field(NUMBER+@band(ichicdn+n086060))
Rubric 1
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Amelia Earhart: A True American Hero
Who was Amelia Earhart?
Name:______
CATEGORY / 4 / 3 / 2 / 1The student: / Fully understands who Amelia Earhart was / Partially understands who Amelia Earhart was / Slightly Understands who Amelia Earhart was / Does not understand who Amelia Earhart was
The student: / Fully understands why Amelia Earhart was famous / Partially understands why Amelia Earhart was famous / Slightly understands why Amelia Earhart was famous / Does not understand why Amelia Earhart was famous
The student: / Fully understands why Amelia Earhart was a true American Hero / Partially understands why Amelia Earhart was a true American Hero / Slightly understands why Amelia Earhart was a true American Hero / Does not understand why Amelia Earhart was a true American Hero
The student: / Fully depicted and described an important event in Amelia Earhart's life / Partially depicted and described an important event in Amelia Earhart's life / Slightly depicted and described an important event in Amelia Earhart's life / Did not depict or describe an important event in Amelia Earhart's life
Total Points:______
16 Points=A
12-15 Points=B
8-11 Points=C
4-7 Points=D
3 Points or Less=F
Rubric 2
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Amelia Earhart: A True American Hero
What does a Hero Mean to Me?
Name:______
CATEGORY / 4 / 3 / 2 / 1The student: / Fully understands what a hero is / Partially understands
what a hero is / Slightly Understands what a hero is / Does not understand
what a hero is
The student: / Fully describes the qualities of hero / Partially describes the qualities of hero / Slightly describes the qualities of hero / Does not describe the qualities of hero
The student: / Fully describes why it’s important to have heroes / Partially describes why it’s important to have heroes / Slightly describes why it’s important to have heroes / Does not describe why it’s important to have heroes
The student: / Fully describes a personal hero / Partially describes a personal hero / Slightly describes a personal hero / Does not describe a personal hero
Total Points:______
16 Points=A
12-15 Points=B
8-11 Points=C
4-7 Points=D
3 Points or Less=F
Handouts
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Image 1
Image 2 (the teacher would black out her name on this photo)
Image 3
Image 4
http://www.ninety-nines.org/earhart.html
Amelia Earhart - A Timeline
Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail, their failure must be but a challenge to others.Amelia Earhart to George Putnam, 1935
1897 / Amelia Mary Earhart is born in Atchison, Kansas
July 24th
1916 / Graduates from Hyde Park High School in Chicago, Illinois
1917 / Volunteers as a nurse at Spadina Military Convalescent Hospital in Toronto, Canada, for the "walking wounded" of World War One
1919 / Enrolls in the pre-med program of Columbia University, New York
1920 / Leaves Columbia University after one semester
Joins her parents in Los Angeles, California
Takes her first flight with Frank Hawks
1921 / Completes her flying lessons with Neta Snook and purchases her first aircraft - the Kinner Airster
1922 / Sets an unofficial women's flying altitude record of 14,000 feet
1924 / Sells Kinner Airster and buys an automobile
Drives her mother to Massachusetts and settles with her younger sister, Muriel
1926 / Works as a social worker with children at the Denison House in Boston, Massachusetts
1927 / Writes Ruth Nichols about forming an organization for women who fly
1928 / Is recognized as the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean as a passenger (June)
Buys Avro Avian Airplane
Writes 20 Hrs. 40 Min
Completes the first transcontinental flight by a woman (Sept/October)
1929 / Acquires a single engine Lockheed Vega aircraft
Competes in Women's Air Derby (Santa Monica to Cleveland) - finishes in third place
Helps organize The Ninety-Nines (November)
1930 / Sets the women's world flying speed record of 181.18 mph (July)
Acquires her air transport license (October)
1931 / Becomes the first president of The Ninety-Nines
Marries George Palmer Putnam in Noank, Connecticut (February)
Acquires an autogiro and sets a women's autogiro altitude record of 18,415 feet (April)
Completes her first solo transcontinental flight in an autogiro for the Beechnut Company (May/June)
1932 / Writes The Fun of It (read an excerpt)
Becomes the first woman (and second person) to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean in her single engine Lockheed Vega and the first person to cross the Atlantic twice by air
Sets women's record for fastest non-stop transcontinental flight (Los Angeles, California to Newark, New Jersey) in 19 hrs and 5 mins (August)
Is awarded the Army Air Corps Distinguished Flying Cross
Becomes the second non-British pilot to receive Honorary Membership in the British Guild of Airpilots and Navigators
Is awarded the Gold Medal of the National Geographic Society, presented by President Herbert Hoover
Receives honorary membership in the National Aeronautic Association
Wins the Harmon Trophy as America's Outstanding Airwoman
1933 / Participates in the National Air Races in Los Angeles, California
Breaks her own North American transcontinental record with a flying time of 17 hours, 7 minutes, 30 seconds
Wins the Harmon Trophy
1934 / Wins the Harmon Trophy for the third year in a row
1935 / Is the first person to fly solo across the Pacific Ocean from Honolulu, Hawaii to Oakland, California in 17 hours and 7 minutes (January)
Is the first person to fly solo from Los Angeles, California to Mexico City, Mexico by official invitation from the Mexican Government (April)
Is the first woman to compete in the National Air Races in Cleveland, Ohio
Named America's Outstanding Airwoman by Harmon Trophy committee
1936 / Takes delivery of Lockheed twin-engine airplane financed by Purdue University (July)
Starts to plan her round-the-world flight
1937 / Begins her round-the-world flight in Oakland, California and sets a record for east-west (Oakland to Hawaii) travel in 15 hours and 47 minutes (March)
Ground loops plane while taking off from Hawaii for Howland Island and badly damages it (March)
Airplane is repaired and a second round-the-world attempt is started from Miami, Florida (June)
Disappears near Howland Island July 2, 1937
Compiled by Pamela O'Brien
1998
Here are some other sources of information about Amelia Earhart:
The George Palmer Putnam Collection of Amelia Earhart Papers at Purdue University
Amelia Earhart Snapshots, Oahu, 1935
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Updated 7/18/07
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University
Amelia Earhart: A True American Hero
Who was Amelia Earhart?
Name:______
Date:______
1. Who was Amelia Earhart?
______
2. What was Amelia Earhart famous for?
______
3. What were three things she did to make her a True American Hero?
A.______
B.______
C.______
4. Draw a picture of one important event that happened in Amelia Earhart’s life. Describe its importance below the picture.
______
What Does a Hero Mean to Me?
Name:______
Date:______
1. What is a hero?
______
2. Describe three qualities that you think a hero must have. Why?
A.______
B.______
C.______
______
3. Why is it important to have heroes?
______
4. Name a personal hero (someone famous, a family member, a friend). Why is this person one of your heroes?
______
______
Teaching with Primary Sources
Illinois State University