This activity allowed my partner and me to create a lesson plan that would foster creativity and incorporate technology
Lesson plan
Lesson Plan description
Click here for a link to our lesson plan website!
Background Information:
Activity Name: Digitizing World War II
Grade/Subject: High School World History; World War II
Goals: Demonstration, has objectives and goals, can provide given feedback (measurable)
Curriculum Standard: SSWH18 The student will demonstrate an understanding of the global political, economic, and social impact of World War II.
1. Describe the major conflicts and outcomes; include Pearl Harbor, El-Alamein, Stalingrad, D- Day, Guadalcanal, the Philippines, and the end of the war in Europe and Asia.
2. Identify Nazi ideology, policies, and consequences that led to the Holocaust.
3. Explain the military and diplomatic negotiations between the leaders of Great Britain (Churchill), the Soviet Union (Stalin), and the United States (Roosevelt/Truman) from Teheran to Yalta and Potsdam and the impact on the nations of Eastern Europe.
4. Explain allied Post-World War II policies; include formation of the United Nations, the Marshall Plan for Europe, and MacArthur’s plan for Japan.
NETS Standard:
1. apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes.
2. create original works as a means of personal or group expression.
3. use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues.
Technology Tools: Device with Internet access, Weebly
Introduction
In order to introduce this activity, it would be best for the teacher to come up with an example website to show their students. By doing this, the students become aware of what is expected from this activity and allows their mind to begin flowing with ideas of how they will present their information. This activity should only be introduced after the teacher completely covers the topic of World War II; this ensures that the student groups will have plenty of topics within World War II to create their website off of.
Main Activity
First, split the students off into groups of 5. There will be 5 to 6 groups. Within each group, there will be an editor, a person over graphics, a person over the webpage design, and a content coordinator. The content coordinator is responsible for making sure that the topic chosen is fully covered with the main details, as well as making sure that there is some new information that the teacher did not previously discuss. The person over graphics is responsible for coordinating with the content person so that they find pictures that are relevant to the information. The webpage designer also works with the other members of the group to create the layout of the website so that all information can be accurately displayed in a way that is pleasing to the eye. Finally, the editor is responsible for overseeing it all, and making sure it all comes together.
Next, each group will be assigned a specific topic within World War II to complete their website off of. Some of these topics can include:
Once each group's website is complete, take some class time to have the student's look at the other websites that their peers have created and allow them to give some constructive criticism on each webpage.
Guidance
At first creating a webpage can seem overwhelming. Especially to students who have never done it before. With that being said, some guidance from the teacher might be necessary. So, to start off with, before splitting the class into groups, give the students a brief run-through of how Weebly works. However, part of this assignment (although they are not graded on this component) is to learn and explore new technology, so the teacher should not teach them every single aspect of this website generator. Some of what they learn needs to be taught through trial and error. This also allows them to take more creative liberties and have fun exploring something new.
Another way to indirectly guide the students is to present them with a rubric at the beginning of the project. By letting them see what they are being graded on, they know exactly what they need to include and what will get them the full amount of points awarded. A rough outline of a rubric can be seen under the Assessment tab.
Assessment
They will be evaluated based on their content. What details are given on their topics, but not too wordy. Their aesthetics: how visually appealing their website it. Teamwork: how well each person worked in the group and if everyone gave equal effort. The students will be assessed on many different components regarding this activity. First off, they will be evaluated based on their content.
Content:
Then, they will be evaluated on the aesthetics.
Aesthetics:
Finally, they will be evaluated on how well they worked as a team. Part of their grade will be determined by the other members of the "staff", through a peer evaluation.
Teamwork:
Technological Resources
The students will be solidifying what they know, as well as adding on to what they know about World War II while learning how to use new technology such as Weebly. Each student will have a chance to use the technology in different ways to express each student's creativity and innovation skills. Students will be required to have access to a device with Internet capabilities in order to unleash their creativity, however. But in the end, the technology will serve as a facilitator as they piece together what they know about their specific topic within WWII and create a website based off of it.
Activity Name: Digitizing World War II
Grade/Subject: High School World History; World War II
Goals: Demonstration, has objectives and goals, can provide given feedback (measurable)
Curriculum Standard: SSWH18 The student will demonstrate an understanding of the global political, economic, and social impact of World War II.
1. Describe the major conflicts and outcomes; include Pearl Harbor, El-Alamein, Stalingrad, D- Day, Guadalcanal, the Philippines, and the end of the war in Europe and Asia.
2. Identify Nazi ideology, policies, and consequences that led to the Holocaust.
3. Explain the military and diplomatic negotiations between the leaders of Great Britain (Churchill), the Soviet Union (Stalin), and the United States (Roosevelt/Truman) from Teheran to Yalta and Potsdam and the impact on the nations of Eastern Europe.
4. Explain allied Post-World War II policies; include formation of the United Nations, the Marshall Plan for Europe, and MacArthur’s plan for Japan.
NETS Standard:
1. apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes.
2. create original works as a means of personal or group expression.
3. use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues.
Technology Tools: Device with Internet access, Weebly
Introduction
In order to introduce this activity, it would be best for the teacher to come up with an example website to show their students. By doing this, the students become aware of what is expected from this activity and allows their mind to begin flowing with ideas of how they will present their information. This activity should only be introduced after the teacher completely covers the topic of World War II; this ensures that the student groups will have plenty of topics within World War II to create their website off of.
Main Activity
First, split the students off into groups of 5. There will be 5 to 6 groups. Within each group, there will be an editor, a person over graphics, a person over the webpage design, and a content coordinator. The content coordinator is responsible for making sure that the topic chosen is fully covered with the main details, as well as making sure that there is some new information that the teacher did not previously discuss. The person over graphics is responsible for coordinating with the content person so that they find pictures that are relevant to the information. The webpage designer also works with the other members of the group to create the layout of the website so that all information can be accurately displayed in a way that is pleasing to the eye. Finally, the editor is responsible for overseeing it all, and making sure it all comes together.
Next, each group will be assigned a specific topic within World War II to complete their website off of. Some of these topics can include:
- ¥ D-Day
- ¥ Pearl Harbor
- ¥ Science and Technology of WWII
- ¥ The Holocaust
- ¥ Winston Churchill
- ¥ Women during WWII
Once each group's website is complete, take some class time to have the student's look at the other websites that their peers have created and allow them to give some constructive criticism on each webpage.
Guidance
At first creating a webpage can seem overwhelming. Especially to students who have never done it before. With that being said, some guidance from the teacher might be necessary. So, to start off with, before splitting the class into groups, give the students a brief run-through of how Weebly works. However, part of this assignment (although they are not graded on this component) is to learn and explore new technology, so the teacher should not teach them every single aspect of this website generator. Some of what they learn needs to be taught through trial and error. This also allows them to take more creative liberties and have fun exploring something new.
Another way to indirectly guide the students is to present them with a rubric at the beginning of the project. By letting them see what they are being graded on, they know exactly what they need to include and what will get them the full amount of points awarded. A rough outline of a rubric can be seen under the Assessment tab.
Assessment
They will be evaluated based on their content. What details are given on their topics, but not too wordy. Their aesthetics: how visually appealing their website it. Teamwork: how well each person worked in the group and if everyone gave equal effort. The students will be assessed on many different components regarding this activity. First off, they will be evaluated based on their content.
Content:
- ¥ how detailed the website is
- ¥ not too wordy with extraneous details
- ¥ how interesting the information is
- ¥ any new information that was not mentioned in class
Then, they will be evaluated on the aesthetics.
Aesthetics:
- ¥ how visually appealing the website is
- ¥ organized
- ¥ easy to follow
- ¥ graphics on almost every page that are relevant to the information
Finally, they will be evaluated on how well they worked as a team. Part of their grade will be determined by the other members of the "staff", through a peer evaluation.
Teamwork:
- ¥ how well each person worked in the group
- ¥ everyone giving equal effort
Technological Resources
The students will be solidifying what they know, as well as adding on to what they know about World War II while learning how to use new technology such as Weebly. Each student will have a chance to use the technology in different ways to express each student's creativity and innovation skills. Students will be required to have access to a device with Internet capabilities in order to unleash their creativity, however. But in the end, the technology will serve as a facilitator as they piece together what they know about their specific topic within WWII and create a website based off of it.
Reflection
Throughout this entire process of developing a lesson plan, all I could think of is how much work and planning goes into being a teacher. It was truly astonishing. The most helpful part of this process was looking into already existing lesson plans in our grade and subject area. This was helpful because it got my mind jogging about what my lesson plan would look like and how we could modify it to fit the needs of the assignment. Our goals were to create a lesson that could be measurable, had objectives, and could be demonstrated. I do believe that our lesson plan matched the goals that were set. Through our lesson plan, the students will be able to solidify what they know about WWII as well as let their creativity shine through their own webpage. Not only are we teaching creativity and innovation, but we are also reiterating the importance of communication and collaboration by having the students work in a “staff” setting. If this lesson plan were to actually be implemented in a classroom, it would take a week most likely to complete, only because there are a lot of different aspects that go into creating a website. All in all, I have learned that it is not hard to implement technology into the classroom and that teachers should not be afraid of it. I believe that I still can learn how to incorporate technology through all subjects, because some subjects are more difficult to use technology than others. However, I know that technology is the perfect facilitator in a classroom setting.