Gallery of Teaching Ideas

Hey there internet! I am taking a small break from my copious amounts of school work to bring you a blog post on my Gallery of Teaching lesson plan that I am going to present to my honors program (SCATT)  and honor society (KDP). Its called Social Networking with the Founding Fathers. Its a way for kids to connect technology to today. Below is the overview of the project and the student handout. Pictures soon to follow! I know its going to be long but let me know your thoughts!

Social Networking with the Founders

Gallery of Teaching Ideas 2011

Learning Objective: Students will learn about how the founding fathers contributed to the cultivation of America by researching in groups and creating a presentation.

Description of the lesson plan: In groups of four to five, students will research a founding father assigned to them by the teacher. Using this information, the groups will create a science board modeling the design of a popular social networking site. Each board will contain a profile and profile picture of the founding father the group is assigned, a wall for comments left by other groups. The students will be shown an example and receive a diagram for them to follow. Each group will give a brief presentation on their founding father that is 10-15 min long. After each group has gone, the students will list each board for a one- three minute period and leave comments for their fellow founding fathers. By doing this, the students are able to connect to the topic and learn more about the founding fathers of our nation.

Examples of Founders to Use

1. Benjamin Franklin
2. George Washington
3. John Adams
4. Thomas Jefferson
5. John Jay
6. James Madison
7.  Alexander Hamilton

Materials Needed

1.      Handout with directions on the project

2.      Rubric for grading

3.      Science Boards for the projects

4.      Materials to decorate the science boards

5.      Sticky notes or scraps of paper with tape

 

Social Networking With the Founding Fathers

     The world that we live in today is becoming increasingly connected with the internet and various social networking sites. Now imagine what it would be like if the people that shaped this nation were alive in this time? How would they connect and share themselves with others in the colonies and could this technology have changed the way they shaped America? In this assignment you are to create social networking profile for a founding father that I assign to your group. After constructing your poster following the guidelines on this sheet projects will be presented to the class. Following the presentations each group will add comments to other groups’ projects as your assigned person.

On Poster Include:

1. Biography Section (middle of the science board)
1. Profile Portrait.
2. Name
3. Date of birth
4. Where they were born
5. Occupation
6. Short biography up to the ratification of the Constitution on June 21, 1788
7. Famous quotes by your specific founding father
2. Further Information/ Photo Section (right side of the poster board)
1. Include your founding fathers philosophy- what did he believe in for America? Was is small or large government influence, freedom for all or freedom for some, did they dislike taxes or welcomed them etc.
2. Activities and interest- Did your founding father love to write or travel? What did he like to do in his spare time?
3. Photos- include 2 more portraits of your founding father that are different from the profile portrait.

3.      Wall (left side of board)

a.       Leave this section blank, it is where your fellow fathers will place their comments.

Presentation Guidelines

Time Limit and Parameters:

a.       You will have 10-15 minutes to go over your founding father.

b.      Each member of your group has to speak 

c.       After all of the presentations each group will have a chance to go to each presentation with post it notes to make a comment on their fellow founders wall. The comments that are left on the wall must be relevant to the time and be historically accurate.

Rubric for the projects

a.       Attached is the rubric that I will use to assess your project, presentation, and comments left on each board.

b.      If there is any questions on the project or the rubric do not hesitate to ask, I am always available to answer questions regarding any part of this project.