Instructional Lesson Plan:

Pearl Harbor

By: Marilyn Fenichel

Adapted by: McKayla Sutton

                           

Teacher Candidate: McKayla Sutton	Date: March 6, 2006
Cooperating Teacher: N/A	School & District: Selah High School/Selah
University Supervisor: Dr. Ian Loverro	Grade Level: 10
UNIT/SUBJECT: World War II	LESSON TITLE/FOCUS: Pearl Harbor

                                                                                                                     

Input:

This lesson plan focuses on the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, which led the United States to enter World War II. As a part of the larger unit on World War II, this lesson relates to the emotional reaction of Americans to the surprise Japanese attack that killed 2403 people, destroyed planes, and damaged battleships.  Students will watch a brief movie clip about Pearl Harbor and then research independently in order to produce a news magazine story from the perspective of someone that lived through it.The focus of this lesson is to encourage students to partake in research, view events from multiple perspectives, and produce an original and professional piece of work that demonstrates an understanding of various historical themes. Estimated time for lesson: 3 days.

 

Lesson Objective (Learning Targets):

A. Students will be able to perform the following:

1. Research the events that took place at Pearl Harbor
2. Write an in-depth article as though they experienced those events firsthand
3. Discuss what lessons can be learned from Pearl Harbor 
4. Construct a collaboration of student news magazine articles in an organized publication on the classroom webpage
   

B. EALRS

1. Writing

• 2.2 Write for different purposes
• 2.3 Write in a variety of forms
• 3.5 Publish and produce a completed writing project

      2. Communication

• 3.2 Work cooperatively as a member of a group
• 3.3 Seek agreement and solutions through discussion                

       3. History

• 1.1 Understand and analyze historical time and chronology
• 1.2 Understand events, trends, individuals, and movements shaping United States, world, and Washington State history

C. NETS-S

• 3: Technology productivity tools
• Students use productivity tools to collaborate in constructing technology-enhanced models, prepare publications, and produce other creative works.
• 4: Technology communications tools
• Students use telecommunications to collaborate, publish, and interact with peers, experts, and other audiences.
• 5: Technology research tools
• Students use technology to locate, evaluate, and collect information from a variety of sources.                                          

Instructional Materials Needed:

• Pearl Harbor  video
• Television with DVD player
  
• Paper and pencils
  
• Library
• Computer lab with Internet access
• Classroom webpage
  

 

Learning Experiences:

1.     Introduction: Set the stage for the lesson by showing a few segments of the video Pearl Harbor. Encourage students to imagine what it was like when the military base at Pearl Harbor was surprised by the Japanese attack. [7-10 minutes]

 

2.     Learning Activities (5 E's):

1. Engage: Tell students that their assignment is to write a news magazine story about Pearl Harbor as though they were living at the time. Students can write a general article about the attack or one from the perspective of military of medical personnel. Students could also write an article from a Japanese perspective. [4-5 minutes]
2. Explore :  Give students enough time in class to do their research; the websites below have helpful information. Suggest that students download pictures from the Internet to include in their articles. Encourage students to use vivid language to make the events come alive for the reader. [40 minutes]
• Write these websites on the board to help direct students:
1. http://teacher.scholastic.com/pearl/transcript.htm
2. http://www.execpc.com/~dschaaf/phraner.html
3. http://www.history.navy.mil
4. http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/w2frm.htm
5. http://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/timeline/pearl.htm
6. http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/rep/Pearl/Medical.html
7. http://www.navsource.org/Naval/arph.htm
3. Explain: Have students share their ideas about potential articles with the class. Make sure they include in their presentations the perspective of their article and the experiences of the individuals featured. Students may get into small groups and discuss some of the information they have learned through research and offer ideas on how to complete the project. Students will complete their news magazine article by using a word processor to type the final product and add pictures or graphics accordingly to make it attractive and interesting to the reader.  [50 minutes]
4.  Elaborate:  Once the students have completed their individual articles, they will work together as a class to organize their work into a collection of news magazine articles to be posted on the classroom webpage. The collection will resemble an actual news magazine with links to each of their articles and provide a broader view of the impact that Pearl Harbor had on the American People. Each student will have access to the website and be able to view all of the articles in their own news magazine publication to be named by the class. [50 minutes]
5. Evaluate: Students will be graded on the following rubric for the completion of their individual news magazine article, participation in the organizing the class project, and posting their own article on the webpage:

CATEGORY	4	3	2	0
Articles - Interest	The articles contain facts, figures, and/or word choices that make the articles exceptionally interesting to readers.	The articles contain facts, figures, and/or word choices that make the articles interesting to readers.	The article contains some facts or figures but is marginally interesting to read.	The article does not contain facts or figures that might make it interesting to read.
Layout - Headlines & Captions	The article has a headline that capture the reader's attention and accurately describe the content. All graphics have captions that adequately describe the people and action in the graphic.	The article has a headline that accurately describe the content. All graphics have captions.	The article has a headline that accurately describe the content. Most graphics have captions.	The article does not have adequate an headline OR many graphics do not have captions.
Use of Primary Sources	Reading of primary source material was thorough.	Reading of primary source material was fairly thorough.	Reading of primary source material was incomplete.	Reading of primary source material was not done.
Spelling and Proofreading	No spelling or grammar errors remain after one or more people (in addition to the typist) read and correct the article.	No more than a couple of spelling or grammar errors remain after one or more people (in addition to the typist) read and correct the article.	No more than 3 spelling or grammar errors remain after one or more people (in addition to the typist) read and correct the article.	Several spelling or grammar errors remain in the final copy of the article.
Participation in Organization	Student actively participated in organizing the news magazine publication. Student gave many suggestions and worked cooperatively in a group.	Student participated in organizing the news magazine publication. Student gave some suggestions and worked cooperatively in a group.	Student attempted to participate in organizing the news magazine publication. Student gave few suggestions and had difficulty working with a group.	Student did not participate in organizing the news magazine publication.
Posted Article on Webpage	Student posted article on webpage successfully, including article, graphics, and correct format.	Student posted article on webpage successfully, but graphics did not work correctly.	Student posted article on webpage, but the format was incorrect and did not include graphics.	Student did not post article on webpage.

                                                                           

3.     Checking for Understanding/Questions: Ask the students to describe how their articles were similar and different. Were they different because of the perspectives the articles were written from or for other reasons? How did the response of the American people influence the United States decision to enter the war?  Do historical events like Pearl Harbor produce different reactions in people across the world and within the same nation?

 

4.     Closure: Ask students to describe the importance of Pearl Harbor and viewing historical events from multiple perspectives. Why is it important to consider the response of ordinary citizens in a national crisis? Have students write a brief response on new knowledge gained about Pearl Harbor, World War II, or  the emotions experienced by people that lived through it.

 

Grouping of Students for Instruction:

• Students will work individually to produce their own news magazine article. They will collaborate as a group for ideas in completing the project and will work together to combine all of the articles on the classroom webpage.

 Lesson Plan Rationale

 

Learning Target(s)

1. The learning targets relate to :

1. EALRS

• Writing: The Writing EALRS 2.2, 2.3, 3.5 are evident in this lesson since the students write for the purpose of telling a story, in the form of a news magazine article, and publish the articles by turning in  hard copies as well as posting them online through the classroom webpage.
• Communication: The Communication EALRS 3.2 and 3.3 are met during this lesson because students work in cooperatively in a group to organize their articles on the classroom webpage and complete the project by coming to an agreement on the most effective way to create a collaborative news magazine publication.
• History: The History EALRS 1.1 and 1.2 are satisfied by this lesson as students demonstrate their understanding of historical time, events, trends, individuals and movements in U.S. and world history through their publication of accurate news magazine articles that require the synthesis of information in order to create original works. Students will analyze multiple perspectives and historical narratives to understand historical time at the high school grade level. By obtaining information through research and incorporating basic themes into pieces of historical fiction, students accomplish the goals of understanding the events, trends, individuals and movements associated with Pearl Harbor and World War II. 

                   
                2.  NETS-S

• 3: The completion of the news magazine article uses technology as a productivity tool because students produce a creative final publication  with the use of computer templates to design their articles, the Internet for research and graphics, and the classroom webpage to share their work. Thus, technology is used by students throughout the process of completing their article.  
• 4: By posting their articles on the classroom webpage, students will use technology to publish, collaborate, and interact with their peers. Since their articles will be available to everyone, this lesson incorporates technology by allowing students to communicate their final products and ideas with others.
• 5:  Students will use technology to assist them in research by using the Internet to search for valuable information and sort through other data found in several different sources related to Pearl Harbor. Students will also be collecting graphics from multiple online sources and using other computer programs to format and crop pictures as necessary.      

   
    b. The Learning Targets relate to future lesson plans because we will next discuss the United States entry into World War II and the role that Pearl Harbor played in that decision.

 

Original lesson plan can be found at: http://school.discovery.com/lessonplans/programs/pearlharbor

 

 

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