My class will be operate on a block schedule with 75-minute classes. In this unit, students will analyze the original text of the first 10 amendments, known as “The Bill of Rights.” Through careful reading, they will study the language of the amendments in order to understand not only the intent of the Founding Fathers, but also the way these words have been interpreted over time. By the end of the unit, students will demonstrate this knowledge by writing summaries of selections, answering questions in an argumentative writing style, engaging in a Socratic Seminar and acting out a skit to show how the Bill of Rights affects their daily lives.
I chose to begin this unit with an introduction to the Bill of Rights, in which the students examine their rights and limitations in the classroom to relate this topic to their everyday life. On Tuesday, we begin to delve into the Bill of Rights on a basic level by having the students examine each amendment as they read and re-write the amendments in their own words. They will finish this lesson with a quiz to gauge their understanding before moving on to more complex ideas. On Wednesday, the students will play an interactive Connect Four review game with the Bill of Rights on the SmartBoard. For the remainder of class and homework Wednesday night, students will choose either to become familiar with the Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District or Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier court cases. They will complete a handout of questions specifically for their court case, as well as develop 2 open-ended questions to prepare for the Socratic Seminar on Thursday. On Thursday, the students will engage in a Socratic Seminar. On Friday, the students will work in their groups to develop a skit for a specific amendment that they have been given to present to the class on Monday. After these presentations, the students will post a blog post defending current or future amendments to the Constitution and their importance to our lives as citizens. We will vote on these amendments in class on Tuesday.
I chose to begin this unit with an introduction to the Bill of Rights, in which the students examine their rights and limitations in the classroom to relate this topic to their everyday life. On Tuesday, we begin to delve into the Bill of Rights on a basic level by having the students examine each amendment as they read and re-write the amendments in their own words. They will finish this lesson with a quiz to gauge their understanding before moving on to more complex ideas. On Wednesday, the students will play an interactive Connect Four review game with the Bill of Rights on the SmartBoard. For the remainder of class and homework Wednesday night, students will choose either to become familiar with the Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District or Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier court cases. They will complete a handout of questions specifically for their court case, as well as develop 2 open-ended questions to prepare for the Socratic Seminar on Thursday. On Thursday, the students will engage in a Socratic Seminar. On Friday, the students will work in their groups to develop a skit for a specific amendment that they have been given to present to the class on Monday. After these presentations, the students will post a blog post defending current or future amendments to the Constitution and their importance to our lives as citizens. We will vote on these amendments in class on Tuesday.
Monday
Introduction of the Bill of Rights Direct Instruction |
Tuesday
"Bill of Rights in Your Own Words." Concept |
Wednesday
Connect Four SmartBoard Review Multimedia Inquiry |
Thursday
Socratic Seminar Choice |
Friday
Goodbye, Bill of Rights Skits Cooperative Learning |