Grade Level: 5th

Prerequisite Knowledge:

·        The Student’s have already learned about the main events surrounding American Revolution.  They have learned about causes and effects from the various acts i.e. the stamp act and the sugar act, and briefly about the Boston Tea Party and the Boston Massacre.  Students have also learned about important documents such as the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence and how documents have had such a tremendous affect on the American People. 

Delaware State Standards:

•   5.447 Propose and support cause and effect reltionships among selected events
•     5.447 Form a conclusion using historical data concerning the same event and validate a conclusion  
•   5.430 Analyze the impact of major themes in Delaware and United States history through the present including:

Ø      Demographics (immigration, population

Ø      Development/changes in government

Ø      Technological Change

Technology Standards for Students:

1. Basic operations and concepts

• Students demonstrate a sound understanding of the nature and operation of technology systems.
• Students are proficient in the use of technology.
1. Social, ethical, and human issues
   • Students practice responsible use of technology systems, information, and software.
   • Students develop positive attitudes toward technology uses that support lifelong learning, collaboration, personal pursuits, and productivity.
2. Technology productivity tools
   • Students use technology tools to enhance learning, increase productivity, and promote creativity.
   • Students use productivity tools to collaborate in constructing technology-enhanced models, prepare publications, and produce other creative works.
3. Technology communications tools
   • Students use telecommunications to collaborate, publish, and interact with peers, experts, and other audiences.
   • Students use a variety of media and formats to communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences.
     
     
4. Technology research tools
   • Students use technology to locate, evaluate, and collect information from a variety of sources.
   • Students use technology tools to process data and report results.

Lesson Implementation:

The lesson will start by a review of the major events of the American Revolution as learned in previous lessons.  We will begin a discussion on how events in history can be looked at from different angles and therefore people may have different opinions of the story.  The Boston Massacre is a perfect example of this idea.  The event took place prior to war and is scene by most historians as a major cause of the American Revolution.  The actual event was also very controversial.  Students will learn to look at an event in history from multiple perspectives and write a newspaper article reflecting on this idea.

Students will then be broken up into groups of four and move into the computer lab.  Each student will be responsible for the actual research process.  The student page on this website will give students an array of sources for them to use.  Before students begin their research they will be given specific roles for writing their newspaper article. 

Ø      Student One- Event Writer: This student will write the story his/her group has decided to tell about the events of the Boston Massacre

Ø      Student Two- Bystander Interview: This student will write a creative interview with a bystander who was standing on the street during the shooting.

Ø      Student Three- Worker Interview: This student will write a creative interview with a worker who was involved in the Demonstration

Ø      Student Four- British Soldier Interview: This student will write a creative interview with a soldier from the British Troops guarding the ports that day.

These roles will aide the students to look out for specific parts of the day in their research process that would affect this people. 

How technology would be effective in teaching this lesson:

Students in this lesson will learn how events in history can be interpreted in many ways.  In order to investigate a variety of perspectives students need to see a variety of resources.  Technology is the best way to do this. In this lesson students will have the opportunity to think of themselves as a character in an event and view the event from that perspective.  The lesson will give the students purpose for learning about a specific event in U.S history.   In addition to the actual research process, students will use technology to produce a creative newspaper to further understand the information as well as present the information to their classmates in a fun and creative way.