The Bill Of Rights - 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.

Model Schools Learning Experience

Taken from State Education Department Learning Experience Form

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DESCRIPTION OF LEARNING EXPERIENCE

OUTLINE

Title of Learning Experience: The Bill of Rights

LEARNING CONTEXT

New York State Education Department Social Studies Standards:

Standard 1: History of the United States and New York (Intermediate Level)

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.

1. The study of New York State and United States history requires an analysis of the development of American culture, its diversity and multicultural context, and the ways people are unified by many values, practices, and traditions.

Students will:

• interpret the ideas, values, and beliefs contained in the Declaration of Independence and the New York State Constitution and United States Constitution, Bill of Rights, and other important historical documents.

Context of Unit

This lesson fits in context with other learning in many areas. This lesson fits in the continuum of American history and is thus in context with New York State standards for Social Studies. The content of these lessons fits into the Grade 5 - Content Understandings in the scope and sequence; however, the format of this lesson is easily adaptable to many content areas.

This lesson also addresses a complex-thinking standard, an effective communicator standard, and a self-directed learner/producer standard. The skills learned in this lesson can be applied to subjects throughout the curriculum.

Additionally, the technology used in this lesson is easily adaptable to other lessons. The skills needed for this project include word-processing, use of graphics, accessing servers and peripherals, knowledge of file handling, use of internet, and use of HyperStudio for presentations.

Prerequisite Knowledge

This lesson is used as a conclusion for our study of the Bill of Rights. Lessons from the unit "The New Nation" had to be completed previous to the HyperStudio project. In "The New Nation" unit, students learn about the period of American history from the end of the Revolutionary War through the ratification of the Constitution.

Additionally, students must be familiar and comfortable with Macintosh Computers and HyperStudio. Students must have experience with reading for factual information and will need explanation of the vocabulary used in the Bill of Rights. Students additionally need to be familiar with the Writing Process, especially the editing and revising stages.

PROCEDURE

During a study of the unit "The New Nation", student groups must produce a HyperStudio stack on an assigned amendment from the Bill of Rights.

Work on the HyperStudio presentation took place either in the classroom or in the computer lab. In the classroom, there are only four computers available. Three 30 to 40 minute sessions were blocked during the day. During these sessions, four groups worked on the computers while the other groups worked on their other assignments, then four new groups would rotate to the computers while the previous groups moved to their desks to work and so on. "Non-computer" work included work associated with this unit, such as reading articles, working on the information for their HyperStudio, or graphically organizing information, and also included work in other subject areas. This included science comprehension questions, reading assignments for the day, work in writing and/or spelling, and other independent activities. All the work during this time was primarily self-directed, so I was available to help students as they needed. Groups that needed more time were allowed to come in at recess to work on the computers.

Lesson A: Together the class reads The Constitution’s Missing Piece and Are You under Eighteen?, articles from the September, 1991, issue of Cobblestone magazine. Students complete the Know Your Rights activity from the same issue of Cobblestone. This article provides situations that deal with a specific right. Students read the situation and decide which right is being addressed. As a class, brainstorm other situations in kids’ lives that address a right guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. Assign one amendment from the Bill of Rights to each prearranged group of two to three students.

Lesson B: (This lesson takes several days.) Student groups research their amendment using the textbook, Cobblestone magazines, Internet, and/or research books. As the research is completed, the teacher checks each group’s graphic organizer for correct content information. When students are ready to complete cards 3 and 4 on the graphic organizer, the teacher conferences with each group (or several groups together) on constructing meaningful questions. Students are to avoid questions where the answer is a simple yes or no. If an answer will be yes or no, the question needs to be accompanied by an "explain why" part. Conferencing also takes place regarding the situation that each group must write. Students brainstorm situations where rights may be violated and structure a situation question around these ideas. Students may refer to the Know Your Rights article. Questions, situations, and answers to both must be approved by the teacher before the students may work on the computer. When the teacher approves the graphic organizer, student groups may begin their HyperStudio stack.

Before students begin their HyperStudio stacks, a discussion takes place about the purpose of this presentation and the audience. Students, through teacher-led discussion, decide that the primary goal of this exercise is to teach others about the Bill of Rights and that the audience will be other students, teachers, and parents. The class then discusses the use of backgrounds, sounds, fonts, styles, and graphics that will enhance or detract from the purpose of the stack.

Groups work for several days on their stacks. During this work, time is set aside for groups to critique each other’s stacks and offer suggestions for revision.

Lesson C: When all groups have completed their stacks, the teacher links each stack to an introductory stack that was produced by the teacher. Student groups then use all the Bill of Rights stacks that were produced by other student groups. Students complete the "Rights Review" worksheet by using the HyperStudio stacks.

The information on the Constitution and Bill of Rights may also be used to compare the U.S. government with the governments of Canada, Mexico, and some Latin American countries.

INSTRUCTIONAL/ENVIRONMENTAL MODIFICATIONS

Instructional modifications were made for students classified in language and reading. Current classroom procedure allows for the resource room teacher to "push in" to the classroom, thus assisting the classified students with work that is ongoing in the classroom. Modifications were made to assure that assignments were scheduled to coordinate with the resource room teacher’s scheduled time in the classroom. Modifications were also made in reading text required for these lessons. IEP students and remedial reading students received additional help reading and summarizing the information, both by the classroom teacher and the special area teachers.

The use of graphic organizers also aided the students with disabilities. Graphic organizers and written work were monitored by the resource teacher and IEP students were given additional time and supervision to master the content. Additional modifications were made with the use of the computers, as each classified student’s IEP allows written work to be composed on a word processor.

Furthermore, the students worked in groups for this project. Groups were designed by the classroom teacher to mix above-average, average, and below-average students.

The current physical setting of the classroom and school aided this unit. The classroom has four Power Macintosh 5260 and 5400 computers with Internet capability, two ink-jet color printers, and a scanner. Classroom computers are networked to the school’s computer lab, which has twenty-seven Macintosh G3 computers, three ink-jet printers, and one laser printer.

MATERIALS & SUPPLIES

Books and Articles:

Balboni, Jennifer. " Are You Under Eighteen?" Cobblestone, September, 1991, pp. 30 - 33.

Banks, James A., et al. United States and its Neighbors. New York: MacMillan/McGraw-Hill School Publishing Company, 1993.

Blohm, Craig E. "The New Nation in Trouble." Cobblestone, September, 1987, pp. 6 - 8.

Boyer, Candace. "’Father of the Constitution’." Cobblestone, March, 1996, pp. 8 - 12.

Damon, Duane. "The Child of Fortune." Cobblestone, September, 1987, pp. 35 - 37.

"Ebenezer’s Atlas." Cobblestone, September, 1982, pp. 24 - 25.

Fritz, Jean. Shh! We’re Writing the Constitution. New York: The Putnam & Grosset Group, 1998.

Nankin, Frances. "September 17, 1787: The Constitution of the United States." Cobblestone, January, 1995, pp. 10 - 14.

Polites, Gloria R. "The Constitution’s Missing Piece." Cobblestone, September, 1991, pp. 16 - 23.

Rife, Douglas M. Bill of Rights. Carthage, Illinois: Teaching & Learning Company, 1988.

Schilder, Rosalind. "Know Your Rights!" Cobblestone, September, 1982, pp. 26 - 29.

"The View from the Crow’s Nest: The Constitution of the United States." Cobblestone, September, 1982, pp. 4 - 10.

Internet sites:

School House Rock: http://genxtvland.simplenet.com/SchoolHouseRock/song.hts?lo+preamble

National Archives and Records Administration: http://www.nara.gov/exhall/charters/billrights/

USA Government: http://pittsford.monroe.edu/Schools/Jefferson/Government/GovFrame.html

America Pie: Constitution of the United States: http://www.pbs.org/point/constitution/index/html

The Karpeles Manuscript Library Museums: http://www.rain.org/~karpeles/

United States Founding Documents: http://www.law.emory.edu/FEDERAL/

ASSESSMENT TOOLS & TECHNIQUES

Assessment techniques included observation and evaluation of both content and the final HyperStudio stack using rubrics (attached).

Before the students start the HyperStudio stack on the Bill of Rights, several assessments on their understanding of prior declarative knowledge have taken place. These include comprehension questions about information they have read in the text, vocabulary exercises, graphic organizers on the Articles of Confederation and the branches of government, chapter review exercises, and class discussions. Students also must complete an exercise on the Preamble and a quiz on the rights outlined in the Bill of Rights. Additionally, the students evaluate each other as they work in groups to complete a vocabulary exercise Class discussion and teacher monitoring of groups is also used as informal evaluation of content understanding.

For the Bill of Rights HyperStudio, initial assessment was conducted while the students worked on the graphic organizer. The graphic organizer had to be approved by the teacher before the students could move to the computers. For this, the induction rubric was used to evaluate their interpretation of the amendment.

While the students were working on the HyperStudio, I monitored their progress and was able to informally assess their level of proficiency and independence using HyperStudio. The students evaluated their own performance while working in the group to develop the HyperStudio stack. Time was also set aside to allow groups to critique each other’s stacks while they were being produced. Each student also had to complete the HyperStudio rubric before I would evaluate the stack. Upon completion of a group’s stack, I evaluated both the content and use of technology using the HyperStudio rubric. Students used the HyperStudio stack to complete a quiz on the Bill of Rights.

The unit is completed with a unit test to evaluate individual students’ understanding of the content of this unit.

TIME REQUIRED

The time required for the planning of this experience is estimated at three to five hours. The bulk of this time was devoted to creating the "home stack" for the project. The home stack was created using HyperStudio itself, but also with graphics imported from the Internet and scanned graphics. A novice HyperStudio user may need more time to create an introductory stack. Other planning includes preparing the graphic organizer for the experience and gathering research materials beyond the textbook for completion of the organizer. Additional time is needed to link all the stacks together.

Implementation and assessment of this experience is integrated. Much assessment was self-evaluation by the students and evaluation that I conducted as the students were creating their stacks. An example of this is the degree of independence individual students showed while using HyperStudio. Additionally, the final stack was evaluated using a HyperStudio rubric, and each group’s interpretation of the amendment was assessed with the induction rubric.

The total teaching/work time for this experience ranges between 3 and 6 days of 40 to 50 minute periods, which includes time in the classroom and also in the computer lab.

STUDENT WORK

With revisions from last year’s plan and from the suggestions from Peer Review, the students’ work was very good. I am especially pleased with the interpretation of each amendment in the Bill of Rights. This gave a very clear picture of the students’ understanding of the meaning of the Bill of Rights. Additionally, the inclusion of a situation question allowed me, as the teacher, to look at the students’ application of the amendment.

I also felt that the students demonstrated a high level of proficiency using HyperStudio. Each group produced a stack of cards and showed good use of text boxes, buttons, and transitions.

With careful discussion about the purpose of this presentation, the students were able to choose appropriate backgrounds, graphics, button icons, and sounds for the HyperStudio. I feel that their selection of these items enhanced the presentation.

REFLECTION

It may be argued that the Bill of Rights is the most important document in our history. The historical context surrounding the Bill of Rights portrays a cornerstone of our government. Certainly, even today, we still read about questions that have arisen and court cases being conducted concerning these rights. People sometimes take these freedoms for granted and students often lack an understanding of how these freedoms came to be and how valuable they are in our society. It is with this in mind that I structured my learning experience on the Bill of Rights.

The Bill of Rights, however, is not an easy document for fifth graders. The vocabulary is lofty and dated, and the text is somewhat dry. Thus, my question became "How can I make the Bill of Rights interesting and meaningful to my students?" and "How can my students demonstrate that they understand the Bill of Rights?" The meaningful part is not difficult, especially through discussion of rights and privileges, and the solid background the students have understanding the reasons our forefathers felt so strongly about certain, guaranteed rights. Making the information interesting presented more of a challenge.

In my experience, I have found that a HyperStudio project in the classroom is extremely motivating for the students. It is a great way to have students learn content while having fun. The drawback that I find is that my HyperStudio projects are usually done in groups and it is sometimes difficult to accurately assess individual performance in a group situation. I also see different levels of comfort with technology among students, ranging from those students who will "try anything" to those who are "techno-phobic". This often leads to one or a few students completing the bulk of the computer work for the others, and this must be monitored carefully.

I have also noted in working with children with computers that I need to teach and model for students how to teach others. I am often saying to students to tell the other student how to do a task on the computer instead of doing it for him or her.

A HyperStudio project such as this could better meet the needs of all learners by making sure that each learner has a strong basis of instruction in HyperStudio and has time to work on the project independently. With these conditions in place, a HyperStudio project is easily adaptable to many learning standards in all content areas. A HyperStudio project is also an excellent way to help students with oral presentations, using the stack as a visual aid. Students who are reluctant to speak in front of a group often do very well with a project because the creation of the stack(s) has allowed the student to plan and prepare the information very well. The student also feels more comfortable presenting the information because the audience is focusing on the HyperStudio project and not necessarily the speaker.

This type of project clearly reflects current scholarship in the field and "best" classroom practice. Students are applying content and are extending and refining their knowledge as they work to include it in a presentation so that their audience will understand it. The integration of technology is clearly a "best" classroom practice, not only because it is highly motivating, but because it is certainly a life skill. Presentation is also a life skill, and HyperStudio is a tool that prepares students to organize information and present it. The preparation involved in composing a presentation includes everyday skills such as organizing, proofreading, editing, and revising. Additionally, a lesson such as this addresses several different intelligences, especially verbal-linguistic and visual-spacial.

The overriding advantage of using HyperStudio in the classroom is its motivational force. Students are anxious to "do social studies" because they want to work on their stacks. I often hear the question right after attendance, "When are we working on social studies today?" Children want to stay in at recess or stay after school to continue working on their projects and they talk about these projects at home when parents ask them what they learned today in school. Combined with this motivational advantage is the instructional benefit of using HyperStudio. It allows a different venue of assessing students’ understanding of content and allows students to demonstrate this understanding without the traditional paper and pencil test.

Prior to submission, this lesson was reviewed by the Model Schools Committee for Social Studies at the Oneida-Madison BOCES. This group was getting ready to begin peer review and I was asked to present a lesson as a model. My review was very favorable, with few revisions suggested. It was reviewed from the standpoint of integrating technology with social studies, so I believe the review focused more on technology than content, although comments about both were offered.

I found the review to be very beneficial to me. The suggestions were professional, insightful, and constructive. I left the review feeling positive about my lesson.

Name _______________________________________ Amendment # ______

Group Members _______________________________

Bill of Rights HyperStudio Stack

Graphic Organizer

Bill of Rights HyperStudio Rubric

Group: Amendment:

Your HyperStudio must contain the following:

Card 1: Card 3:

_____ title _____ contains two questions about your

_____ names of members in your group amendment

_____ the amendment exactly as it is written in the _____ contains a situation that illustrates

Bill of Rights your amendment

_____ a working button to the Home Stack _____ a working button to card 1

_____ a working button to the next card _____ a working button to the next card

_____ appropriate background _____ appropriate background

_____ appropriate sounds for each button _____ appropriate sounds for each button

_____ correct spelling and grammar _____ correct spelling and grammar

Card 2: Card 4:

_____ tells what the amendment means in your _____ contains answers to the two questions

own words _____ contains an answer/explanation to the

_____ a working button to card 1 situation question

_____ a working button to the next card _____ a working button to card 1

_____ appropriate background _____ a working button to the Home Stack

_____ appropriate sounds for each button _____ appropriate background

_____ correct spelling and grammar _____ appropriate sounds for each button

_____ correct spelling and grammar

Scoring Guide: 25 – 28 items=4 Score: _________

18 – 24 items=3

11 – 17 items=2

1 – 10 items=1

Rubric:

Key Questions:

What are the key elements, traits, or dimensions that will be evaluated?

Are the identified elements of equal importance or will they be weighed differently?

Element #1 Element #2 Element #3

Elements Scale	Identifies Items	Interprets Information	Articulates the Conclusion
Weights
4		Rewrites the amendment so that it is easily understood. The rewritten amendment is accurate and complete. The rewritten amendment shows insight and thoughtfulness.	Questions show clear and logical links between the amendment and the answers to the questions. The questions reflect insight and thoughtfulness.	Rubric Scale: 8 pts=4 7 – 6 pts=3 5 – 4 pts= 2 3 – 1 pt=1
3		Rewrites the amendment so that it is easily understood. The rewritten amendment is accurate and complete.	Questions show clear and logical links between the amendment and the answers to the questions.
2		Rewrites the amendment so that it is understood. The rewritten amendment is somewhat accurate and complete	Some questions show links between the amendment and the answers to the questions. Some questions may not be clear or lead to incorrect answers.
1		Rewrites the amendment but it is not easily understandable. The rewritten amendment is not accurate and/or complete.	Questions show no links between the amendment and the answers to the questions. Questions are not clear and lead to incorrect answers.