Transcript for Tough to Teach – Slavery in America
01:00:00 / Classroom / [MUSIC]01:00:01 / Kids reading / LOREDANA:
History is a hard thing to teach forth graders. Mainly the amount of information in the paragraphs. If the kids...
01:00:07 / Loredana on screen / LOREDANA:
…are not able to grasp it it’;s like they’re just reading but they’re not understanding anything.
01:00:12 / Books on shelves / LOREDANA:
But the structured informational reading is a lot different. The vocabulary is different, this is the time; I've had big years ago is really difficult for them,
01:00:20 / Students reading / LOREDANA:
Those are big ideas. The theme; the idea of slavery in America is a difficult concept to be able to explain to children providing them the opportunity to talk about things like slavery and not making it such a taboo thing.
01:00:34 / Loredana on screen / LOREDANA:
Why not I mean lets hear what they have to say. I think they have a lot more than, than some Loredanas maybe the leads that they have.
01:00:39 / TOUGH TO TEACH / [MUSIC]
01:00:42 / SLAVERY IN AMERICA / [MUSIC]
LOREDANA:
I was a struggling student.
01:00:45 / Loredana on screen / LOREDANA:
I was a LEP student; limited English proficient. I have a lot of language issues.
01:00:49 / Pan around walls of room / LOREDANA:
Honestly I had such a negative experience in school.
01:00:53 / Loredana on screen / LOREDANA:
School was not done for me. I didn't like it.
01:00:55 / LOREDANA WICKETTS
FOURTH-GRADE TEACHER
EISENHOWER ELEMENTARY / LOREDANA:
I didn't like anything about it. And so...
01:00:59 / Loredana on screen / LOREDANA:
... and so knowing how long my days were as a student I really try hard...
01:01:02 / Post it on the screen / LOREDANA:
... to not have that environment for my kids..
01:01:04 / Students in line / JEAN:
She doesn't want any...
01:01:06 / School building on screen / JEAN:
... to feel like she did
01:01:08 / School exterior / JEAN:
... or anyone to feel like they can't be successful.
01:01:11 / JEAN TREVINO
PRINCIPAL EISENHOWER
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL / JEAN:
And she’s passionate about what she does. She's passionate about her students.
01:01:15 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
Well today boys and girls what we're starting is the new unit. You're going to determine the big theme for the big idea of our unit today with an opening activity.
01:01:23 / Posters on the wall / LOREDANA:
The lesson today is about Black history month.
01:01:26 / Loredana on screen / LOREDANA:
It's kind of the big idea.
01:01:27 / Books on screen / LOREDANA:
Trying to hit background knowledge on a difficult subject.
01:01:30 / Loredana / LOREDANA:
I like students to see if they can come up with the big idea. So I we had a word to work.
01:01:34 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
On your desk you have a small envelope. You don't need to open the envelope just yet because I want to explain it to you.
01:01:40 / Loredana / LOREDANA:
There were approximately 20 words in an envelope. They have to take the words out of the envelope.
01:01:45 / Students on screen / LOREDANA:
And sort them categorize them any which way they wanted to.
01:01:48 / Loredana / LOREDANA:
To see if they could determine the meaning of those words and then the big idea of the lesson.
01:01:52 / Students on screen / LOREDANA:
You're just taking these words to see what you know, see if you can categorize them and then your goal is to learn from one another.
01:02:00 / Loredana / LOREDANA:
It provides an opportunity for them to get; not only to learn from one another but there's really no wrong answer. They take risks because they know they're not going to get shot down.
01:02:07 / Students on screen / LOREDANA:
You're working with your group there are no wrong answers. That level of comfort allows them to just be free with their. So once we create that...
01:02:14 / Loredana and students / LOREDANA:
... then I'm able to look at the student and say okay lets go from here, let's see what you can do now. It's kind of a warm-up activity. Let's see what you know.
01:02:22 / Students sorting cards and working in groups / LOREDANA:
Let's talk about pronunciation of words. Let's see if you can learn something new. Are you guys doing okay? What did you guys choose; give me one of your ideas
STUDENT 1:
Journey route and north.
01:02:31 / Loredana with her students
We get…
Because, journey’s, you could go north. / LOREDANA:
Journey route and north.
STUDENT 1:
That’s because like journeys you could go like north.
LOREDANA:
You usually have a route on a journey, right?
01:02:38 / Students sorting cards and working in groups / LOREDANA:
The words sort is extremely powerful because they're not only able to cooperatively learn.
01:02:42 / Loredana with a group of students / LOREDANA:
But they're also able to make connections to other things. A whip with slave catcher why did you put those together?
01:02:48 / Because... in old times... white people whipped them to get the slaves / STUDENT 2:
Because in old times white people with them to get the slaves.
STUDENT:
Whipped people.
LOREDANA:
Really.
01:02:59 / Students working in group / LOREDANA:
Determining the main idea or the big idea where the theme.
01:03:01 / Loredana in class with student / LOREDANA:
I use that a lot in my classroom
01:03:03 / Students working in group / LOREDANA:
Because most of the things that we do...
01:03:05 / Loredana / LOREDANA:
... on a daily basis your determining the big idea. You're looking at the, the big picture. Understanding...
01:03:11 / Student working in group / LOREDANA:
... how these are details that support it. Okay boys and girls let's read like freeze for a second.
01:03:17 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
I'm seeing some amazing things out there. I love the way that you're conversing with one another. I love the way that I hear lots of positive comments. In talking to some of you I got to see how much you know about this topic. Also how much we need to learn about this topic. Who wants to share one category that you guys feel really strongly about you’re like oh yeah this is for sure something I think goes together? This is for sure.
01:03:38 / Students with hands up / LOREDANA:
Frausto?
FRAUSTO:
Um 1821, Abraham Lincoln, Civil War, Harriet Tubman, plantation and route.
LOREDANA: And what why did you choose those words?
01:03:48 / Loredana with students in study session / FRAUSTO:
Uh because people had to find routes um to escape.
LOREDANA:
Okay.
01:03:52 / Loredana on screen / LOREDANA:
And then it gives me a lot of information. It directed my, my teaching points throughout the rest of the, of the time because I was able to refer back to a lot of the comments they made during the word sort.
01:04:02 / Loredana with students / LOREDANA:
Is there one word that stands out to you that you’re like oh man I don't know what this is. I don’t know. And he; I can’t even say it but I’m going to try. Casey what word stood out to you?
01:04:11 / Casey on screen / CASEY:
Deo onus [PH]?
LOREDANA:
Yeah something like that. Does anyone he also wants to take another shot at the word.
01:04:14 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
But you're right that was close That sounds a lot like it. Sam?
SAM:
Um segregation.
LOREDANA:
Segregation. Aubrey?
AUBREY:
Racism.
01:04:22 / Students on screen / STUDENT 3:
Racist.
LOREDANA:.
Okay so the purpose of this activity...
01:04:24 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
... and it is to say okay these are some of the terms I need to know. Here's what I already know; maybe I can learn from others.
01:04:30 / Students on screen / LOREDANA:
What you're going to do now is as we...
01:04:32 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
... go through the lessons we're going to talk about some of the words that you didn't know and some of the words that you actually felt strongly about. At this time I want you guys to put those words back inside the little envelope and we're going to hopefully answer all your questions.
01:04:46 / Students on screen / LOREDANA:
And then those will come and they'll make sense afterwards.
01:04:48 / Loredana / LOREDANA:
Had I done the word sort and they were like the new all the vocabulary might lessen would have looked completely different.
01:04:53 / Loredana and classroom / LOREDANA:
So it really helps guide what I need to do and yeah it's kind of teaching on the fly but that's the art of teaching.
01:05:00 / Loredana addressing classroom / LOREDANA:
Okay I want to focus your attention up here to the PowerPoint. Now I know earlier I said what do you think the big idea is of our themes that were launching today. What do you think Marley?
MARLEY:
Black History Month.
LOREDANA:
Black History month. I love the way she didn’t just say well Harriet Tubman. Because remember we have we usually look at the big idea, a big theme.
01:05:20 / HARRIET TUBMAN
CONDUCTOR OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD / LOREDANA:
Why do you think we have a whole month dedicated to Black history?
01:05:23 / Loredana and students / LOREDANA:
A whole month dedicated; Stephen?
STEPHEN:
They were slaves.
LOREDANA:
They were slaves at one point.. Andrew?
01:05:31 / Students on screen / ANDREW:
For all the cool things the blacks did.
LOREDANA:
Okay.
01:05:34 / Loredana addressing students / LOREDANA:
Our lesson today is on the Harriet Tubman and I know that many of you have a lot of information about her already. While our goal and our purpose for this PowerPoint is that we are going to see how many words we can clarify from the word sort and how many words that we need to continue to clarify when we do the read aloud later.
01:05:50 / Papers on the desk / LOREDANA:
Mainly the amount of information in the paragraphs if the kids aren’t...
01:05:54 / Students reading book / LOREDANA:
... or if they're not able to grasp but it's just like they’re...
01:05:57 / Loredana / LOREDANA:
... just reading that they're not understanding anything.
01:05:59 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
What do you think of the word kind doctor?
01:06:02 / Students / LOREDANA:
What do you think about the word conductor before we start? Madison.
MADISON:
It's like a train person like the person who liked conducts the train.
01:06:09 / Loredana addressing students / LOREDANA:
Right it’s the person who controls the train very good. So Conductor of the Underground Railroad what does that mean?
01:06:16 / Loredana / LOREDANA:
Initially when I asked the students you know what is the Underground Railroad? It was like well she's the conductor she's actually driving the train.
01:06:23 / Loredana addressing students / LOREDANA:
Does anyone have a different perspective for a different idea based on information that you know? Sam.
SAM:
She um uh has a train that she drives a subway.
LOREDANA:
A subway and I thought that was interesting because we take for granted...
01:06:38 / Loredana / LOREDANA:
... that we understand the figurative language. But not often times the kids understand that.
01:06:42 / Students / LOREDANA:
And to so they really had little knowledge about the Underground Railroad.
01:06:47 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
Okay sorry objectives is to understand the...
01:06:49 / OBJECTIVES
After completing this lesson will, we
will be able to...
Understand the existence of
slavery in America
Understand the life and escape of
Harriet Tubman
Understand Herriot Tubman's role
in the Underground Railroad / LOREDANA:
... existence of slavery in America and understand the life and escape of Harriet Tubman. .
01:06:54 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
And understand Harriet Tubman's role in the Underground Railroad
01:06:57 / Students / LOREDANA:
We talked about everything from figurative language to context clues to social studies. It wasn't just one lesson with one specific objective.
01:07:06 / Loredana addressing students / LOREDANA:
Slavery of African-Americans in the United States began as early as the fifteen hundreds when the first African slaves were brought to the New World by the Spanish. This is a picture of a slave ship right here.
01:07:16 / SLAVERY IN THE UNITED STATES
Slavery of African
Americans in the United States began as early as 1500 when the first African slaves were brought to the New World by the Spanish. / LOREDANA:
When we did we studied maps in our last June and you realized what the...
01:07:21 / Loredana addressing class / LOREDANA:
... America's looked like prior to um European exploration. Okay.
01:07:26 / Students / LOREDANA:
This was a word that you guys had in your, in your word sort and Casey said oh it’s abolol [PH] or something like that. Everyone say abolitionists.
STUDENTS:
Abolitionists.
LOREDANA:
Take ten seconds and I want you to read these two points and then I want you to pair./share with someone what you know about abolitionists after you read that to yourself. Okay pair/share with someone next to you what did you learn about abolitionists?
STUDENTS:
[TALKING IN GROUPS]
01:07:56 / “ABOLITIONIST”
MOVEMENT
ABOLITIONISLOREDANA: anyone who
was against slavery
abolitionists included many kinds of people white and blacks; men and women; rich and poor; and religious and nonreligious / LOREDANA: