Learning Unit
Remembering The Hate In Order To Remember Compassion

Title: Remembering the Hate in Order to Remember Compassion

Authors: Gail Filas and Sonya Esposito

Grade Level: Eighth

School Address: Sackets Harbor Central
P.O. Box 290
Sackets Harbor, NY 13685

Subject Area: English

Phone: 315-786-0797

 

Content Knowledge

Declarative

Procedural

 

Integration Issues

It would be best to start this unit after or during the time the students are learning about W.W.II in social studies. The English and social studies teacher could feasibly teach this unit together using block scheduling. If block scheduling is not possible, it is still a good idea to develop the unit together.

Essential Questions

 

Connection to Learning Standards

Note: The learning standards relevant to each activity within this unit are clearly stated before the procedure for the activity.

 

Initiating Activity (Day 1)

Declarative

 

Procedural

Essential Question

 

Connection to ELA Standards:

1. Read, write, listen, and speak for information and understanding

4. Students will read, write, listen, and speak for social interaction

Connection to Social Studies Standards:

2. Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in world history and examine the broad sweep of history from a variety of perspectives.

5. Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the necessity for establishing governments; the governmental system of the United States and other nations; the United States Constitution; the basic civic values of American Constitutional Democracy; and the roles, rights and responsibilities of citizenship, including avenues of participation.

1. Procedure:

The students will be put into small groups of three or four to work on a KWL. Each group will be given a worksheet that contains three questions addressing the students' prior knowledge of the Holocaust (see appendix A). The students will be given five minutes to complete the task.

 

2. Assessment:

Learning Experience #1: Fictional Families (6-7 Days)

Declarative

Procedural

Essential Questions

Connection to ELA Standards:

1. Read, write, listen, and speak for information and understanding

2. Students will read, write, listen, and speak for literary response and expression.

3. Students will read, write, listen and speak for critical analysis and evaluation.

4. Students will read, write, listen, and speak for social interaction

Connection to Social Studies Standards:

1. Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United States and New York.

2. Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in world history and examine the broad sweep of history from a variety of perspectives.

5. Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the necessity for establishing governments; the governmental system of the United States and other nations; the United States Constitution; the basic civic values of American Constitutional Democracy; and the roles, rights and responsibilities of citizenship, including avenues of participation.

 

1. Procedure:

Learning experience one is designed to enable the students to recognize that the victims of the Holocaust were real people, not simply faceless, nameless figures in history.

Materials:

The students are divided into groups of four. Each group represents a family and is given a Jewish surname. Each group, or family, must decide which students in the family will represent the mother, the father, and the two children. Once this decision has been made, the teacher gives them their first names.

The students then trace the outline of each other’s figures on white paper. The outline of each student is hung on the walls outside the classroom. Each figure represents the student’s position in his or her fictional Jewish family. Each figure will have the Star of David drawn on it (2 Days). Next to the figure is a computer-generated diary entry sheet (see appendix B).

Throughout the Holocaust unit, students are given information about their fictional selves and their fictional families based on actual events in history. The events that occur in their fictional families will be based on actual events that the students have learned about through literature. On the first day, the only information the students put on their diary sheet is their Jewish name. Additional information will be given to the students as the Holocaust literature is read.

Although the teacher may choose any events from the Holocaust, four historical events are provided here for the teacher to draw upon (see the list of declarative knowledge). After each event is taught, the teacher decides upon which information to give each family. For example, after reading chapter four from Alicia: My Story, the teacher will tell each group whether or not the influential men in their fictional families died. Once the information is given, each student writes a diary entry on his or her sheet. The students must base their feelings, information, and reactions from the literature. Their reactions should show insight into the events read in the literature. The families must all discuss what is written on each diary sheet and then hang them back up on the walls in the hall with their paper figures (4-5 Days).

Warning: The teachers may want to adjust the scenarios if they feel that their students can not cope well with the sensitive issues.

2. Assessment:

Culminating Performance: Students Will Create a Newspaper concerning the Holocaust

(9 Days)

Declarative

 

Procedural

Essential Question

Connection to ELA Standards:

1. Read, write, listen, and speak for information and understanding

2. Students will read, write, listen, and speak for literary response and expression.

3. Students will read, write, listen and speak for critical analysis and evaluation.

4. Students will read, write, listen, and speak for social interaction

Connection to Social Studies Standards:

1. Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United States and New York.

2. Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in world history and examine the broad sweep of history from a variety of perspectives.

5. Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of the necessity for establishing governments; the governmental system of the United States and other nations; the United States Constitution; the basic civic values of American Constitutional Democracy; and the roles, rights and responsibilities of citizenship, including avenues of participation.

MST Learning Standards:

2. Students will access, generate, process, and transfer information using appropriate technology.

1. Procedure:

The purpose of creating a newspaper is to teach the students the parts of a newspaper and evaluate their knowledge of the facts surrounding WWII and the use of Microsoft Publisher.

Note: Sackets Harbor is lucky to have a computer lab available for classroom teachers to utilize with full classes. As a result of this luxury, the teacher teaches all the students how to use Microsoft Publisher for the creation of the newspapers.

Materials:

To introduce the students to the parts of a newspaper, each student should have his or her own copy of the same newspaper. Give the students time to browse through the paper. Put the students into their groups (the families) and give them the list for the scavenger hunt (see appendix D). Each group needs to work together to locate and circle the scavenger hunt items in their newspaper.

The first group to locate the items wins the Snicker bars. The teacher may then go through the paper with the entire class. Next the students and the teacher discuss the terms related to the newspaper found on the computer generated vocabulary sheet (see appendix E) (2 Days).

Once the students are familiar with the newspaper, the students may work in their "families" to create the newspaper. They may create the newspaper from any point of view they wish, but before they begin, they must decide on the following (2 Days):

The students may then begin the process of creating the newspaper on Microsoft Publisher. Each student must write an article using the writing process (3 Days). The students must then insert their articles themselves onto the final newspaper template they created as a group (3 Days). The final products will be displayed in the library.

2. Assessment:

The students will be graded on an individual basis based on the rubric found on appendix F. The teacher may also grade the students based on the checklist rubric found on appendix G.

Extending and Refining (4 Days)

Declarative

Procedural

Essential Question

Connection to ELA Standards:

1. Read, write, listen, and speak for information and understanding

2. Students will read, write, listen, and speak for literary response and expression.

3. Students will read, write, listen and speak for critical analysis and evaluation.

4. Students will read, write, listen, and speak for social interaction

Connection to MST Standards:

2. Students will access, generate, process, and transfer information using appropriate technology.

  1. Procedure:

The teacher and students read poems and stories from Chicken Soup for the Soul out loud in class. All poems and stories relate to compassion and kindness. As the exerpts are read, students discuss the importance of compassion and kindness and relate the exerpts to the Holocaust (2 Days).

Once the literature is read, the students will be asked to purposely do something kind for someone that very day. The next day they will be asked to share their kind deeds and explain how they felt afterwards.

In addition, the students will write their own poems about compassion and use Microsoft Publisher to enhance their poems.

 

Appendix A

Initiating Activity For The Holocaust Unit

DIRECTIONS: Answer the following questions about the Holocaust based on your prior knowledge and information you have learned in social studies.

  1. Make a list of everything your group knows about the Holocaust.
  2. Make a list of information your group would like to know about the Holocaust.
  3. Make a list of any information your group feels may not be accurate.

 

Appendix B

Victim Of The Holocaust Fictional Diary

 

NAME:

 

DAY:

 

 

Appendix C

Holocaust Unit

Reaction Rubric

Directions: Write a well - developed paper discussing your reaction to or opinion about the Holocaust unit we recently completed. Your grade will be based on the following:

_____1. Your introduction includes a broad statement, a thesis statement, and at least two sub – topics.

_____2. You include well - organized paragraphs, including topic sentences.

_____3. You use transitional words or phrases, such as however, unfortunately, in addition, etc.

_____4. There are few or no mistakes in grammar.

_____5. Your sentences vary in length and structure (compound sentences, introductory phrases, etc.)

_____6. You use sophisticated language (incredible instead of good)

_____7. Your final product includes the following: rough draft, computer-generated final, and team revising sheets.

_____8. Your thoughts and ideas are insightful.

_____9. The paper is turned in on time.

_____10. Your conclusion does not simply restate the introduction and does not begin with In conclusion…

Note: each item is worth ten points.

 

Appendix D

Newspaper Scavenger Hunt

Directions: Locate each of the following items in your newspapers and circle them. The first group finished wins a Snicker bar!

 

Appendix E

Newspapers: Important Terms To Know

1. HEADLINE -

2. DATELINE -

3. NEWS ARTICLE -

4. FEATURE ARTICLE -

5. EDITOR -

6. EDITORIAL -

7. FLAG -

8. CAPTION -

9. THE FIVE W’S AND THE H OF A NEWS ARTICLE:

 

Appendix F

Newspaper Rubric

_____1. The newspaper is neat

_____ 2. The newspaper includes a picture the student took with the disk camera.

_____3. The name of the newspaper is original.

_____ 4. The name of the newspaper was created using Word Art and includes a border.

_____ 5. Five sections of a newspaper are represented.

_____ 6. The individual’s article is accurate and based on the literature read in class.

_____ 7. The individual’s article follows the conventions of Standard English.

_____ 8. At least one illustration from Clip Art is included.

_____ 9. The individual’s article follows the standards of the type of article that it is representing.

_____ 10. The newspaper does not simply look like several essays written in a row.

Note: each item is worth ten points

 

Appendix G

Newspaper Assessment Criteria

Exemplary/Excellent ("A")

Good ("B")

Acceptable ("C")

Unacceptable ("D")

Appendix H

Assessment Criteria for the Poem

Exemplary/Excellent ("A")

 

Good ("B")

Acceptable ("C")

Unacceptable ("D")

A zero

 

Appendix I

COMPASSION POEM

RUBRIC

_____1. The poem is at least fourteen lines.

_____2. Compassion is clearly the theme of the poem.

_____3. The format of the poem enhances the meaning of the poem.

_____4. The poem follows the conventions of Standard English.

_____5. The poem is created on Microsoft Publisher.

_____6. The finished product includes a border.

_____7. The finished product includes two different fonts.

_____8. The finished product includes Clip Art.

_____9. The finished product includes at least three different colors.

_____10. The title of the poem is made from Word Art and includes shading or shaping.

Note: Each of the ten items is worth ten points.