Sunday, March 17, 2013

Lesson Plan - Holocaust & Atomic Bombs


Joe Buffa
CEP 800 – Lesson Plan
3/17/13

Note: The principal at the school I teach for requires that I use the table format below for all of my lesson plans. In addition, the principal has been pushing for teachers to use more and more of the lessons/materials found in the Michigan Citizenship Collaborative Curriculum. Finally, my school operates on trimesters/block scheduling so my classes last just under 2 hours each meeting.
  1. Content:
·       I included the next two lessons coming up for my US HST course because the Holocaust lesson helps set students up for the Atomic bomb lesson. By exposing students to opposing ideas about the Holocaust and Atomic bombs that challenge students' previous assumptions about both topics, it helps them consider WWII in a different way. Students tend to see both topics in black and white/right and wrong. The challenge is to show them additional aspects of human nature for the Holocaust and opposing theories on why the U.S. dropped the atomic bombs on Japan. The additional goal is for these lessons to also help them become more open minded to what side they might choose for their persuasive essays regarding the atomic bombs (see topics and lesson focus questions for both days).
  1. Pedagogy:
·       Strategies:
o   I have learners in my classroom who are not fast/strong readers. Therefore, I allowed students to read and discuss the articles on the Holocaust and Atomic Bombs in small groups.
o   Brief lecture.
o   Marzano Vocab strategy – create own definition and a visual (share using document camera).
o   Video clips.
o   Short writing prompt allowing for student refection.
o   Sum-It-Up & In-Text/In-My-Head note taking strategies.
o   Persuasive essay.
·       Theories of learning informing my strategies:
o   Marzano (different teaching techniques being used in one class… change things up. Audio/imagery from video clips & imagery/information with the Powerpoint)
o   Social Constructivist (allowing for small group work & group discussion)
o   Behaviorism (providing immediate feedback after discussion & writing prompt)
o   Embodiment Model (allowing opportunities for more active learning)
  1. Content & Pedagogy:
·       Using these strategies (especially the idea of allowing students to tackle multiple, challenging reads in small groups) allows me time to cover more content in class than I otherwise would be able to.
·       I chose these strategies over others because I believe they allow me to explore the Holocaust and atomic bombs (two powerful topics) from different angels and allows students to explore them without me simply telling them what to know.
·       Time was the biggest constraint that I had to figure into these lessons. Since my school operates on trimesters, the US HST course will be done in about three more weeks (we will meet about 6 more times before the final exam).
  1. Technology: What technology will you be using and why? Is the use of this technology absolutely necessary to achieve your objective? That is, would be impossible to teach the lesson without it? Remember that content specific technology (e.g., probes, graphing calculators, Geometer’s Sketchpad, United Streaming videos) are used to teach a content-specific concepts, whereas content-general technologies (e.g., Flash animation, Web 2.0 technologies) may facilitate deeper understanding by allowing students to manipulate information, explore a “network of ideas,” and investigate multiple representations of material.
·       Technology being used:
o   Blackboard (learning management system)
o   Video clips (posted on Blackboard)
o   Computers – word processor (for persuasive essays)
o   Powerpoint (on Holocaust)
o   Document camera
·       Are these technologies necessary?
o   I believe these are necessary to help me reach my goals for each lesson in a timely fashion.
o   Blackboard allows me to post everything we do in class online for students to review or look ahead (I actually already have some students working on drafts for the Atomic Bomb essays even though they will not be assigned until Wednesday).
o   The video clips help give further insight into each topic (Holocaust and Atomic bombs) for the students that help them consider each one more in depth.
o   Allowing students to create their essay using a computer/word processor allows students to create a better essay (ex. organization, spell check, etc.)
·       Would it be impossible to teach without these technologies?
o   It would not be impossible to teach these lessons without the use of technology, but it would not be nearly as impactful and thorough. It would ultimately just be a cut and dry lecture and some readings.  Students would not get the audio/imagery from the video clips, the information paired with images from the Powerpoint, and they would have to create their essay by hand which more than likely would not be as in depth.
  1. Technology & Pedagogy:
·       The technology used fits with my goals for the lessons. Students are able to explore content related to the Holocaust and Atomic bombs more in depth (see “theories of learning informing my strategies” section).
  1. Technology & Content: How does your choice of technology help you teach the "big ideas" and address the essential questions underlying the concept your lesson addresses? 
·       The technologies I am choosing to use again help me guide students to the learning focus questions in a more timely manner. They also help me give students a more complete picture through the video clips and Powerpoint.
  1. Assessment:
·       See lesson plans.

Class: US HST
Date: Week 27 – 3/18/13 (M)
Topic(s):
  • Holocaust
Lesson Focus Questions:
  • What happened during the Holocaust?
  • How could the Holocaust have happened?
  • Where do we see aspects of the Holocaust in U.S. HST?
Key Concepts/Questions/Vocabulary:
  • Vocab – Genocide
Materials:
  • Milgram Shock & Stanford Prison clips (on Blackboard)
  • 5 Holocaust Topics (MC3 Unit 6, Lesson 8) (on Blackboard)
  • Holocaust Chart (MC3 Unit 6, Lesson 8) (on Blackboard)
  • Holocaust PPT (my creation – posted on Blackboard)
  • Document Camera
Activities:
  • Marzano vocab strategy – own definition & visual (5 min)
  • Collect homework
    • Debrief (10 – 15 min)
  • Share the following: The word “genocide” was coined by Raphael Lemkin, a Polish Jewish jurist, in 1944.  Lemkin used this term to describe the attempt to destroy an entire people.  Throughout history there have been many instances of genocide, including the Armenian genocide during the First World War.  The Nazi regime, however, gave mass murder some additional features by employing the bureaucracy and industrial capacity of a powerful modern state to accomplish its ends.  The Greek term “holocaust” (holo- completely and caust- burnt) is the word most commonly used to describe the ferocious onslaught which occurred during WWII.  Jews, however, prefer the Hebrew “shoah” meaning “calamity” or “catastrophe.”  (5 min)   
  • Begin the lesson by cautioning students that the subject matter is profoundly disturbing and will ultimately exceed their imaginative capacities.  Holocaust survivors agree that if one was not there in the camps one cannot comprehend the experience.  Then explain to the class the following:  From 1941 to 1945 about 11, 500,000 people were systematically exterminated by the Nazis.  The largest single group was the Jews, who Hitler believed threatened the racial purity and superiority of the Aryan or Germanic “race.”  The Nazis targeted other groups as well - communists, gypsies, Jehovah’s Witnesses, homosexuals, retarded citizens (the developmentally disabled), and anyone who criticized or was perceived as a threat to Hitler’s Reich. (5 min)
  • Divide the class into five groups.  Explain to students that each group will get a topic related to the Holocaust. Their small groups constitute an “investigative journalism team.”  Distribute the materials “Holocaust Topics” located in the Supplemental Materials (Unit 6) to the groups, with each group getting the materials for a different topic.  Note that Topic #1 is probably the most difficult in terms of the extent of information available.  Instruct students to review the material associated with their topic and then engage in a small group discussion of their topic using the following questions (give student 10 min to read & highlight key ideas before they discuss answers to the questions below – write down student answers on document camera):
·       How does this topic relate to the Holocaust?
·       Which events or features that comprise their topic are the most important ones?
·       What does it illustrate about human potential for good or evil?
·       What other questions do you have about the topic?
What lessons can we learn from it today?
o   Allow about 15 minutes for students to discuss the questions, then explain to the class that they are to prepare a 3-minute news report for the class. The reports should focus on the 5 W’s of reporting:  who, what, when, where, and why.
o   Allow students about 20 minutes to prepare their news reports.
Prior to students presenting their news reports to the class, distribute copies of the “Holocaust Chart” located in the Supplemental Materials (Unit 6) to each student.  Then have each group present.  Those students not presenting should fill in the sections of their charts which correspond to the topic under consideration.  After all groups have reported, conduct a class discussion which explores the following questions (write student answers on document camera):
·  Why didn’t the international community respond more quickly and effectively to the Holocaust?
·  What can humanity do now to prevent another such outbreak of barbarism?
·  When is it legitimate for one nation to interfere in the internal affairs of another nation? 
·  If it is legitimate for a nation to interfere in the domestic affairs of another nation, how is that best accomplished? (30 min)
·       Next, show students the Milgram Shock Experiment (5 min) & Stanford Prison experiment (5 min)

Writing prompt: According to Milgram & Zimbardo, under what conditions might normal well-adjusted citizens be capable of committing harm towards others? How do these experiments help us better understand events like the Holocaust? Where do we see aspects of what occurred during the Holocaust in U.S. HST? (6 pt assignment)
Assessment(s)/Assignment(s):
  • Group reports on their Holocaust topics (5 pt assignment – 1 pt/question addressed)
  • Writing prompt
Homework:
  • Finish writing prompt if no time to complete during class (5 pt assignment)
  • Review the Holocaust PPT posted on BB & take “sum-it-up” notes (right column = summary of each section read; left column = your opinion, a visual, or a question you have)
Standards:
USHG 7.2.4:  Responses to Genocide – Investigate development and enactment of Hitler’s “final solution” policy, and the responses to genocide by the Allies, the U.S. government, international organizations, and individuals (e.g., liberation of concentration camps, Nuremberg war crimes tribunals, establishment of state of Israel).

Common Core (9 – 10): Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies 6–12

-- Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an
accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.

-- Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information.





Class: US HST
Date: Week 27 – 3/20/13 (W)
Topic(s):
  • Atomic Bombs
Lesson Focus Questions:
  • Should the U.S. have dropped the atomic bombs on Japan?
  • Why was Israel created?
Key Concepts/Questions/Vocabulary:
  • See focus questions
Materials:
  • Atomic Bomb Arguments 1 – 4 (MC3 Unit 6, Lesson 9) (on Blackboard)
  • Atomic Bomb Essay prompt/rubric (on Blackboard)
  • Creation of Israel Reading (MC3 Unit 6, Lesson 10) (on Blackboard)
  • Duck and Cover video clip (on Blackboard)
  • Lap Top Computer Cart
Activities:
  • Collect homework (writing prompt)
  • Explain the following: The atomic bomb was developed under the Manhattan Project which was organized in 1941.  The first successful test of this terrible new weapon occurred on July 16, 1945 in the New Mexico desert. J. Robert Oppenheimer, one of the leading scientists on the project, said that while witnessing the first atomic explosion he recalled a line from the Hindu poem Bhagavad-Gita “I have become death, the destroyer of worlds.” 
    • Nazis too had been working on an atomic bomb, but before they could complete their work Hitler was dead and the Third Reich conquered.  In April of 1945, President Roosevelt died leaving his Vice President, Harry S Truman with the awesome responsibility of deciding whether or not to use this fearsome new weapon against Japan.  As Allied military forces got closer to the Japanese home islands, casualties dramatically increased.  The prospect of invading Japan itself was a grim one.  In addition, relations with the Soviet Union were deteriorating and there was concern that Communist forces would join the war against Japan thereby extending their sphere of influence. (10 min)
  • Show “Duck and Cover” gov’t video clip (9 min)
    • This video serves a few purposes:
      • Students see another example of propaganda & will be asked what concepts apply from the WWII Mobilization Propaganda Poster lesson from a few classes prior.
      • Students will get a better understanding of the fear people had as a result of the development of the atomic bomb and contemplate how it goes against FDR’s Four Freedoms Speech read a few classes prior.
  • Distribute copies of Arguments 1-4 located in the Supplemental Materials (Unit 6) to the class. Allow students to work with a partner. Instruct students to read the articles and construct an outline of the arguments from each reading.  It is recommended that students read the article in its entirety before going back to take notes. Partners are asked to discuss each argument as they read/take notes.
    • Debrief (40 min)
  • Students are then given the Atomic Bomb Persuasive Essay. They will have the rest of class to begin (due next class)
Assessment(s)/Assignment(s):
  • Writing prompt homework assignment from last class
  • Whole group discussion of Atomic Bomb arguments
Homework:
  • Finish Atomic Bomb Persuasive Essay for next class
  • Read the “Creation of the State of Israel” located in the Supplemental Materials (Unit 6).
    • As they read have students make notes on the left side of the page “In the Text.”  Then, have students read the article a second time, reflecting on what they are thinking and recording it on the right side of the page “In my Head.” (6 pts)
      • At the end, students are to answer the following questions:
      • Why was Israel created?
      • What parties were involved in this process? What parties were relatively ignored?
      • How did the creation of Israel impact the Middle East then? How does it still continue to impact the Middle East? (4 pts)
      • Total = 10 pt assignment due next class

Standards:
USHG 7.2.2:  U.S. and the Course of WWII – Evaluate the role of the U.S. in fighting the war militarily, diplomatically, and technologically across the world (e.g., Germany First strategy, Big Three Alliance, and the development of atomic weapons).
USHG 7.2.4:  Responses to Genocide – Investigate development and enactment of Hitler’s “final solution” policy, and the responses to genocide by the Allies, the U.S. government, international organizations, and individuals (e.g., liberation of concentration camps, Nuremberg war crimes tribunals, establishment of state of Israel

USHG 8.1.1:      Origins and Beginnings of Cold War – Analyze the factors that contributed to the Cold War including:
·      actions by both countries in the last years of and years following World War II (e.g., the use of the atomic bomb, the Marshall Plan, the Truman Doctrine, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)[1], and Warsaw Pact).

Common Core (9 – 10): Reading Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies

-- Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an
accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.

-- Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, attending to such features as the date and origin of the information.

Common Core (9-10) Writing Standards for History/Social Studies

-- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.9-10.1 Write arguments focused on discipline-specific content.





No comments:

Post a Comment