Teaching American History Project:
Elementary Level Teachers
Liesl Loudermilk
Fourth Grade
Topic: Thinking like an Historian
Lesson type: Teaching Big Ideas
Big Idea: Changemakers in Society
The change makers: a TAH lesson about the Nature of an Historical Thinker
Scholarly knowledge: The most intriguing and exciting learning I have had during these years of involvement with the Teaching American History grant is the notion of the ways we can teach our students to “think” like historians think. No matter what people, places, or events we study, there are several big ideas used by scholars at any level.
Historical Thinkers use Big Ideas to gather their thoughts: democracy, independence, settlement, freedom…
Historical Thinkers use essential questions to guide their thinking.
Historical Thinkers use examples and non-examples to define their thinking.
Historical Thinkers place famous people behind and among the crowds of change makers and not just in front of them. History is filled with unsung heroes and infamous people including outliers who defy the usual definitions of that time and place.
Big Idea: Change Makers- in this lesson we will gather our thoughts around the idea of change in society and who brings about those changes. It is not always who you think it might be...
Focus In Activity: The Story Of Ruby Bridges by Robert Coles
Scholastic Paperbacks; Rep Anv Sp edition (September 1, 2010)
Have students use thumbs up for True and thumbs down for false for the following questions. Repeat after the story. Discuss how ideas have changed after reading.
1. Schools can show how society changes over time.
2. Children have always been able to go to their neighborhood schools.
3. Everyone supported Ruby being able to go to her neighborhood school.
4. Ruby Bridges had strength and courage.
5. Ruby Bridges brought about a change in how schools work today.
6. In America all people are equal and deserve the same treatment.
Essential Questions: Use these questions to guide your thinking on the topic of Change Makers.
1. What is a change maker? How would you define this type of person?
2. Do change makers exist in other cultures and societies? Explain.
3. How do we hear about the change makers in our culture?
4. Do people choose to become change makers? How would a person become a change maker? What characteristics would they have to have?
5. What types of changes are brought about by change makers? Are there changes for the better? For the worse? Can the same change be viewed as both good and bad? Can the opinion of the change maker and the changes change over time?
Procedure: Create a PowerPoint to lead the following discussion:
1. Show images of people who are clearly influencing our society: speaking, writing, leading, and artwork depicting this behavior from past eras. Be sure that each image includes crowds in the background.
2. Experiment with photo shopping the crowd out of the picture. What impression does that give? Who really influences the change? The person or the crowd that supports and perhaps paves the way for that person to lead?
3. Possible PowerPoint images: Who are the change makers? Show image of Daniel Boone coming through the divide; Dr. King speaking at the Lincoln memorial, President Obama at the inauguration,
4. Use Einstein’s “I stand on the shoulders of giants.” Women’s suffrage parades, voters in lines.
5. Have the power point show gradually that we look away from the person who speaks toward the people who are supporting them to show that they, in themselves, have no power unless the people listen and support them.
6. Can also include one of Hitler and the crowd to show that the people can bring positive changes and negative changes.
Discussion: Be sure to highlight the following ideas.
1. Examples and non examples of who creates change in society
2. Images of famous and not so famous
3. Behind the scenes workers for change
4. Daily workers for change
5. Unsung heroes
6. Changes for good
7. Changes that were bad
8. Changes seen as both good by one group and as bad by another
9. Changes seen as both good in one period of time and then as bad in another period of time
10. Quotes that show this: I stand on the shoulders of the giants who came before. I would like to thank the academy and my agent.
11. Remember to look behind and around the person who is speaking, writing, reacting. These are the real change makers without whom the person we are learning about or celebrating would never exist. (Reference Hitler, the 9/11 attackers, etc.)
Assessment:
Return to the essential questions. Discuss them again. Essential Questions: Use these questions to guide your thinking on the topic of Change Makers.
1. What is a change maker? How would you define this type of person?
2. Do change makers exist in other cultures and societies? Explain.
3. How do we hear about the change makers in our culture?
4. Do people choose to become change makers? How would a person become a change maker? What characteristics would they have to have?
5. What types of changes are brought about by change makers? Are there changes for the better? For the worse? Can the same change be viewed as both good and bad? Can the opinion of the change maker and the changes change over time?
Students write an exit slip telling what they have learned about historical figures and change makers in our society.
Extension: Students design an inquiry project studying an unsung hero who helped bring about large changes; can be someone famous or a family member. Present these to the class.
Resources: PowerPoint: Change makers, (provided as an example of a possible picture collection.)