A Famous Person: Harriet Tubman

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A Famous Person Harriet Tubman

• Jennifer Turner
• Technology-Infused Lesson Plan

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Harriet Tubman Mini-Unit

• Grade Level 4th
• Subject Social Studies
• Unit Topic A Famous Person Harriet Tubman
• Duration of Unit 7 Days

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Content Standards

• EL(4)
• -Use a wide range of strategies to interpret,
  evaluate, appreciate, and construct meaning from
  print materials.
• 4. Demonstrate literal understanding of print
  material
• 5. Interpret passages in print material.
• 7. Use literary analysis.
• 23. Know and apply principles of grammar and
  usage in writing, speaking, and presenting and
  apply mechanics in writing.
• TC(3-5)
• 14. Use the Internet to locate information.
• 16. Evaluate the relevance and appropriateness of
  electronic information sources.
• 17. Relate search results to class or individual
  assignments.
• SS(4) Alabama Studies
• 6. Identify cultural, economic, and political
  aspects of the lifestyles of early
  nineteenth-century farmers, plantation owners,
  slaves, and townspeople.
• 7. Identify reasons for Alabama's secession from
  the Union, including sectionalism, slavery, state
  rights, and economic disagreements.

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Overview

• The students will tell what they know about a
  famous person name Harriet Tubman. This lesson
  will integrate some famous writings to encourage
  students to develop their questioning techniques
  for analysis of literature while furthering their
  knowledge of this era in American history. They
  will dress up and tell stories and about her,
  discuss a video, make a timeline, and map out a
  different route of freedom.

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Lesson Overview

• Information Literacy Model
• When you are solving an information problem
  of answering a research question, you follow a
  research process or research steps.  It is like
  climbing steps to your answers. 

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Lesson Overview

• Technology
• -Students will use pictures and print to gather
  information
• -Final projects will be presented in PowerPoint
  format
• Student assessment
• Teacher observation
• Collaboration rubric
• Powerpoint rubric
• Teacher Collaboration
• - Collaborate with a 4th grade teacher to put
  students in groups into give students background
  information

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Objectives

• Students will be able to identify famous people
  and events of the Civil War era.
• Students will be able to identify hardships
  Tubman encountered by giving an explanation of
  what they would do in a similar situation.
• Students will be able to list as a group 2
  positive and 2 negatives effects of slavery.
• Students will be able to create a time line with
  10 historical events that occurred during
  Tubman's lifetime.
• Students will be able to correctly answer 6 of 8
  questions about other famous people during the
  time of Harriet Tubman.
• Students will be able to create 2 different
  "routes to freedom" and identify the approximate
  distances and time for each route.
• Students will explain in writing, 3 historical
  facts about Harriet Tubman.

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Lesson Resources

• Books
• The Value of Helping by Ann Donegan Johnson
• Freedom Train by Dorothy Sterling
• The Grolier Library of North American
  Biographies. (1994). Activists, Volume One.
  Danbury, CT Grolier Educational Corporation.
• Harriet Tubman (Biography) by Harriet Tubman
• Videos
• Video - Follow the Drinking Gourd

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Lesson Resources

• Technology Resources
• Computer with access
• PowerPoint software
• LCD projector

• Materials and Equipment
• Map of the United States
• Map of local County or State
• Handouts for Jigsaw

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Procedures/Activities

• Day 1 Think-Pair-Share
• Have students individually think of what they
  know about slavery, Harriet Tubman, the Civil
  War, Underground Railroad, and any famous people
  during this era of the 1800s. In pairs, have
  students share what they remember and write it
  down. Then have the whole class contribute to a
  class list on the chalkboard of everything that
  was shared. If time permits, share the
  "background" portion of the Harriet Tubman
  mini-unit.

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Day 2 Mini-Lecture/Story

• Dress up like a southern farmer and tell how you
  helped some slaves escape from the South. "I'm
  under the leadership of a person called Moses,
  only this person is a woman who is a conductor
  for the Underground Railroad." Explain that she
  accomplished much for her people. Tell of the
  hardships and dangers of an escaping slave or
  helping one and what consequences could result if
  caught. The time period of her popularity was
  between the 1850s and 1860s around the Civil War
  period. Tell students that you will share a story
  of Harriet Tubman's life then begin reading the
  book "The Value of Helping" by Ann Donegan
  Johnson. Explain where this takes place by
  pointing to the state of Maryland on the United
  States map as you read. Continue pointing out
  places on the map throughout the story. At the
  conclusion of the story, students write an
  explanation answering "If I were a slave, I
  would...." Students explain how they feel about
  being a slave, explain what they would do, and
  explain why/how they would carry out their plan.

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Day 3 Video/Discussion

• Introduce the video "Follow the Drinking Gourd"
  with an explanation of why slavery existed and
  why others opposed it. Continue with showing of
  the video. Following the video, group students (4
  to a group) and have each group list 2 negative
  effects and 2 positive effects of slavery. Have
  each group share their results with the class.
  Also discuss if the issue of slavery alone was a
  good enough reason to start the "War Between the
  States."

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Day 4 Time Line

• Using the following resources (story, video
  notes, history text, and encyclopedia), students
  will make a time line. Time line dates will begin
  at Tubman's birth (1920) and end with her death
  (March 10, 1913). Each student will make their
  own time line and include at least 10 historical
  dates. These dates may include events relating to
  famous people and their accomplishments,
  political events, battles, or other historical
  facts. Include dates from United States history
  only.

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Day 5 Jigsaw

• Students will be assigned to groups of 4
  students. Each student will get one of the four
  short biographies previously prepared by the
  teacher with the aide of an Encyclopedia or other
  current references (see Activities References for
  one example). The biographies will be of William
  Still, Sojourner Truth, Frederick A. Douglass,
  and James Forten.
• Each student will read the assigned material of
  their famous person.
• Each student then prepares a short presentation
  of their persons life and accomplishments.
  Remember that this is a verbal summary or
  overview and not a written paper.
• Each student teaches other classmates about their
  person. (Students may take notes as each person
  shares their summary.
• After presentations, students will be given a
  basic 8 question "learning experience" previously
  prepared by the teacher. For each famous person
• A. Name the movement or organization he/she was
  involved in.B. Name one major accomplishment
  towards their goal.
• You may conclude with a class discussion about
  what they found most interesting about these
  people.

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Day 6 Map out a route

• Prepare copies of your county or state map for
  cooperative groups (4 students to a group). When
  students are in their groups, they must map out a
  course to free territory which you will
  determine. Give a starting point and a final
  destination. (For example, begin in Salt Lake
  City, UT and map out a route that you could walk
  to get to free territory in Logan, UT.) Each
  group must
• Draw out their route on their map.
• Calculate the distance for each route using the
  distance key on the map.(Measure distance with
  yarn then use mileage key to add up the total
  miles of the route.)
• Estimate how long the trip would take.(Time how
  long it would take to walk a mile. Multiply that
  time with the total miles of the route to get
  total hours. Also add in minutes/hours you would
  need to sleep or rest. Total up all the hours for
  the journey and find the number of days as well.)
• Explain why they chose this route. (Example What
  barriers were in the way? Terrain too rough?
  Would you use roads? Is their too much traffic to
  risk being caught on this route?).
• Have groups pair-up with another group and share
  the results explaining why they chose their
  particular route. Then have each group share
  their route with the class, the distance and time
  for the route, and reasons for choosing it.
  Discuss what route would be the best. This
  activity would help students appreciate how far
  some people had to travel on foot to reach free
  territory.

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Day 7 Learning Journal/Powerpoint Presentations

• In a learning journal, have each student write an
  entry telling 3 historical facts they have
  learned in studying Harriet Tubman's life.
  Explain why these facts are important.
• Present PowerPoint presentations

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Assessment Rubric

• Teacher observation
• Collaboration Rubric
• Powerpoint Rubric