Goals and Objectives
Students will learn about the Declaration of Independence, its contents, and its purpose.
Students will analyze and dissect the important elements of The Declaration of Independence and what it meant during the colonial time period.
Students will analyze and dissect the important elements of The Declaration of Independence and what it meant during the colonial time period.
California State Content and Common Core Standards
8.1 Students understand the major events preceding the founding of the nation and relate their significance to the development of American constitutional democracy.
8.1.2. Analyze the philosophy of government expressed in the Declaration of Independence, with an emphasis on government as a means of securing individual rights (e.g., key phrases such as “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights”).
Common Core Standards 6-8.2: Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.
8.1.2. Analyze the philosophy of government expressed in the Declaration of Independence, with an emphasis on government as a means of securing individual rights (e.g., key phrases such as “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights”).
Common Core Standards 6-8.2: Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.
Lesson Introduction
The teacher will introduce the lesson by reading a fake break-up letter he or she found on the ground to the class. The teacher will say this is an authentic break up letter he or she found lying on a desk in the classroom the other day and read it directly to the class. It will read:
“I’m very upset over things that have happened between us that I feel the need to talk. Things used to be so perfect. We understood one another and were in love. I thought we would be together forever but that clearly was not the case.
I feel taken advantage of. I no longer feel respected. You never asked me how I felt about everything.
After everything we’ve been through, I feel like we need to break up. Clearly it’s not going to work. I need some time alone to see how things would work without you. In this case it’s definitely not me, it’s you. The story of us is over.”
Then the instructor will give the class a few minutes to guess who wrote this letter. After taking some responses from students that volunteer answers, the class will vote. After all the votes are tallied, the instructor will surprise the students by saying this is one of the worst breakup letters ever. It was done by the United States to Britain. The instructor will say the letter wasn’t quite stated like this, but was among the same lines. The document the colonists ultimately used to “break up” with Britain was the Declaration of Independence.
“I’m very upset over things that have happened between us that I feel the need to talk. Things used to be so perfect. We understood one another and were in love. I thought we would be together forever but that clearly was not the case.
I feel taken advantage of. I no longer feel respected. You never asked me how I felt about everything.
After everything we’ve been through, I feel like we need to break up. Clearly it’s not going to work. I need some time alone to see how things would work without you. In this case it’s definitely not me, it’s you. The story of us is over.”
Then the instructor will give the class a few minutes to guess who wrote this letter. After taking some responses from students that volunteer answers, the class will vote. After all the votes are tallied, the instructor will surprise the students by saying this is one of the worst breakup letters ever. It was done by the United States to Britain. The instructor will say the letter wasn’t quite stated like this, but was among the same lines. The document the colonists ultimately used to “break up” with Britain was the Declaration of Independence.
Vocabulary
Many vocabulary terms will need to be defined by the instructor and the student in order for them to grasp a conceptual understanding of the Declaration of Independence. They include, but are not limited to: Preamble, Declaration, Natural Rights, endowed, Despotism, Grievances, usurpations, Quartering, jurisdiction, rectitude, Resolution. Many of these vocabulary terms are directly defined to the left of the reading in the textbook, which certainly makes it easier for students to comprehend.
Content Delivery
The instructor will first Segway the students into the Declaration of Independence by recapping the previous lecture, how the colonists were very upset with the British after all the taxes and injustice inflicted upon them. The document they chose to break away with was the Declaration of Independence. The instructor will go over key elements of the Declaration before having students work on the assignment. This will include going over the various headings of the Declaration and what they mean: a Preamble (introduction), Declaration (declaring a fact), Grievances (Complaints), and Resolution (the decision). Going through these various parts will make it clear before the students read what they will tackle in each section of the reading.
Student Engagement
Students will read the Declaration of Independence on their own to try to grasp their understanding of it. It is available in their textbooks. (http://admin.bhbl.neric.org/~mmosall/ushistory/textbook/Chapter%204%20American%20Revolution/ch%204%20sect%202a%20Declaration%20of%20Independence.pdf).
Students will make a four-door book to organize the various sections of the Declaration of Independence into their notes:
1. Make a shutter fold using a larger sheet of paper, by folding a piece of paper hamburger style and then folding the two outer-flaps halfway in.
2. Fold the shutter fold in half like a hamburger. Crease well.
3. Open the project and cut along the two inside valley folds.
4. These cuts will form four doors on the inside of the project.
Students should first label the four-door book as the “Declaration of Independence”, with each door representing a section of the Declaration – the Preamble, Declaration itself, Grievances, and Resolution.
Behind each box students will take notes on each section, answering the following questions that correlate with each door:
Door 1: What does the Preamble say? Rephrase it in your own words. (At least 3 bullet points)
Door 2: What truths are self-evident? Why is government formed? Why is government abolished? (At least 5 bullet points)
Door 3: How many grievances are there total? Pick the top 5 that you think are the worst and rank them.
Door 4: Why did we resolve? (At least 3 bullet points). Draw a picture that represents the Declaration of Independence the best.
An example four-door book is provided below.
Students will make a four-door book to organize the various sections of the Declaration of Independence into their notes:
1. Make a shutter fold using a larger sheet of paper, by folding a piece of paper hamburger style and then folding the two outer-flaps halfway in.
2. Fold the shutter fold in half like a hamburger. Crease well.
3. Open the project and cut along the two inside valley folds.
4. These cuts will form four doors on the inside of the project.
Students should first label the four-door book as the “Declaration of Independence”, with each door representing a section of the Declaration – the Preamble, Declaration itself, Grievances, and Resolution.
Behind each box students will take notes on each section, answering the following questions that correlate with each door:
Door 1: What does the Preamble say? Rephrase it in your own words. (At least 3 bullet points)
Door 2: What truths are self-evident? Why is government formed? Why is government abolished? (At least 5 bullet points)
Door 3: How many grievances are there total? Pick the top 5 that you think are the worst and rank them.
Door 4: Why did we resolve? (At least 3 bullet points). Draw a picture that represents the Declaration of Independence the best.
An example four-door book is provided below.
Lesson Closure
The instructor will close the lesson by having the various students share with a fellow classmate what they included in their four-door book. The instructor will tell students at the end of the day that America’s breakup with Britain was great, because it provided a chance for America to prove that it could survive on its own, independently, and eventually surpass Britain as the most exceptional nation in the world.
Assessment
One Progress-Monitoring form of assessment instructors can use is walking around the room answering any questions students might need clarification on. By constantly checking how the students are performing the instructor can gauge the level of depth and understanding students have of the reading material as a whole.
The summative assessment will be reflected in the completed Four-Door books, the instructor being allowed to see if students got the major and most important points of the Declaration inside their notes.
The summative assessment will be reflected in the completed Four-Door books, the instructor being allowed to see if students got the major and most important points of the Declaration inside their notes.
Accommodations for English Learners, Striving Readers and Students with Special Needs
The four-door book itself is a great accommodation for English learners allowing them to organize information in a new way. Allowing them to illustrate at the end what the Declaration of Independence means gives them a chance to “own it” essentially as their own. Framing the Declaration as a breakup gives students a greater chance of connecting with the source material as a whole.
Lesson Resources
The Declaration of Independence Reading
Dictionaries if necessary for students
Construction Paper
ScissorsBreakup Letter Source Idea (modified from source): http://speakingofhistory.blogspot.com/2008/10/teaching-declaration-of-independence-as.html
Dictionaries if necessary for students
Construction Paper
ScissorsBreakup Letter Source Idea (modified from source): http://speakingofhistory.blogspot.com/2008/10/teaching-declaration-of-independence-as.html