Tea Party Or Share the News (8.0) GLE 0601.8.4

Tea Party or Share the News (8.0) GLE 0601.8.4

Materials:

Slips of paper with dates, inventions, and events from the Industrial Revolution
Patriotic cups

Description:

This activity is used to gather information, assess prior knowledge and actively engage students. Using the slips of paper with dates, inventions, and events in the Tea Party format, lead a discussion which will allow them to decide the central underlying theme is the Industrial Revolution. Discussion might include why some of the inventions led to a change from Agriculture Society to Industrialized Society. This, of course, led to a population explosion in the cities bringing many problems with it, such as congested traffic, sanitation, housing, disease. Another outcome of the Industrial Revolution and the Transportation Revolution, which came with the invention of the steam boat, was an influx of immigrants and goods from across the ocean. Many immigrants arrived from Ireland and Germany. One contributing factor to the Irish immigration was the potato famine. We will examine the trials and tribulations of the Irish immigrant in the next few activities.

Step-by Step:

Give students the patriotic cup with the slips of paper already inside.
Explain the name of the activity is Tea Party and we are going to pretend we are at a Tea Party and share some “gossip” or in this case, knowledge, with others in the room. ( this can be Share the News, also) Demonstrate with a partner how to go about the room, introduce yourself, and repeat EXACTLY what is on the slip of paper. Meet and greet as many folks as possible, to gain as much knowledge as you can in the time given. This also creates classroom climate in a room where others don’t know one another, such as the beginning of school or a workshop setting.
Instruct them to listen carefully to what is said by others. Try to remember as much knowledge as possible for later reflection.
Allow the group to mix and mingle for approximately 3-5 minutes.
Direct the group back to their seats.
Instruct the group to share their slips with their table group and decide what these slips of paper have in common, what might the central theme be.
If the participants are having trouble, read some of the slips out loud and ask leading questions to guide them to the central theme of the Industrial Revolution, inventions, dates, and events.
Lead a discussion which allows participants to connect the Industrial Revolution to immigration. Questions might include: What kind of society were we in America and England before the IR? (agricultural) What problems did the IR bring about? What outcomes did the IR bring? What did the invention of the steam boat help to create? (transportation of people and goods from across the ocean)
Tell participants that the next several activities will center around immigration and the Industrialization of America.

CONTENT STANDARD 8.0 LITERATURE

Grade Level Expectations

GLE 0601.8.4 Analyze works of literature for what they suggest about the historical period in which they were written.

Language Arts Indicators

SPI 0601.8.10 Determine the author’s purpose for writing
SPI 0701.8.11 Recognize and identify words within context that reveal particular time periods and cultures.

Materials needed:

Assessment activity: Tea Party