my 301 lesson plan

Target Audience of the Lesson:
High School Freshman and Sophomores

Big Idea of the Lesson:
Fascism vs. Democracy in WWII, Differing political ideologies, their effects on a citizenry, their beliefs on nationalism and patriotism, their civil and political liberties, their representations in time and space

Overall Goal for the Lesson:
Give the students a better understanding of two political ideologies, Fascism and Democracy, as well as a wide scope of representations and interpretations that have shaped how we view both.

Indiana Content Standards Addressed: (Copy and paste entire standard from http://www.indianastandards.org/)
World History and Civilization
This two-semester course emphasizes key events and developments in the past that influenced people and places in subsequent eras. Students are expected to practice skills and processes of historical thinking and inquiry that involve chronological thinking, comprehension, analysis and interpretation, research, issues-analysis, and decision-making. They examine the key concepts of continuity and change, universality and particularity, and unity and diversity among various peoples and cultures from the past to the present.
Geography and History of the World
Students use geographical and historical skills and concepts to deepen their understanding of the global themes contained in the standards. Geography and History of the World is an alternative to the standard World History course. The skills provide the research tools needed to think geographically and historically: ask geographic and historical questions; acquire geographic and historical information relevant to these questions; produce maps, timelines, and other graphic representations to organize and display the information acquired; interpret maps, timelines, and other graphic representations to solve geographic and historical problems and to analyze world events and suggest feasible solutions to world problems; reach conclusions about the geographic and historical questions posed and give verbal, written, graphic, and cartographic expression to conclusions. The concepts provide the intellectual tools needed to think geographically and historically: change over time, cultural landscape, diffusion, human environment interactions, human livelihoods, national character, origin, physical systems, sense of place, spatial distribution, spatial interaction, spatial organization, and spatial variation. These concepts are indicated in parentheses in each standards indicator and are defined at the end of the GHW standards document.
Across Grade Levels



ISTE CNETS Student Standards Addressed (Copy and paste from http://cnets.iste.org/students/)
Technology Foundation 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.
2. Social, ethical, and human issues
• Students understand the ethical, cultural, and societal issues related to technology.
• 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
• Students evaluate and select new information resources and technological innovations based on the appropriateness for specific tasks.
6. Technology problem-solving and decision-making tools
• Students use technology resources for solving problems and making informed decisions.
• Students employ technology in the development of strategies for solving problems in the real world.


Student Objectives for the lesson. (Given a condition, the students will, to what level).
When asked to cite key differences as well as similarities between Fascism and Democracy during WWII, young high school students will be able to respond with eloquent, thoughtful answers, possibly responding with…
Similarities-
“Fascism in Nazi Germany consisted of Hitler’s belief that the German peoples were a pure race. This race, the Aryan race, was believed to be superior in all aspects of life. Hitler incited the German people to hold Nationalism to be a key element of the Third Reich, which excluded some groups completely, including Jews, blacks, and pretty much all who were “non-Aryan.” Ironically, the US, which was making a claim for world peace and even equality for all peoples, had a similar history of oppression against minority peoples, most notably African Americans. Similar to the Nazi Concentration Camps and forced labor, African Americans had been stuck to forced bondage in the early years of America until the Civil War in 1865 and Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation.”

Differences-
“While oppression, racism, and xenophobia were both common in America’s “Democratic” history as well as Nazi Germany’s Fascist Regime, what separated slavery in America from the persecution Jews went through in WWII is the act of genocide. African American slaves in America, before 1865, were forced from their homelands in Africa and were forced to work for life, with no economic gains or a hope for a better life. What was different in Nazi Germany is that while concentration camps were the main form of oppression on Jews in the early years of the Third Reich, with back breaking forced labor being a staple, the Nazi’s moved past forced labor and into systematic killing of Jews, what Hitler called his “Final Solution.” America implemented forced labor for life with slavery; the Nazi’s enacted a Holocaust with systematic murder camps.

In short, students will be able to point out key similarities and differences that were integral to WWII and how we as Americans understand that time and place.
Length of Lesson: (minutes, number of class periods, or days or weeks needed).
3 lessons, 45 minutes per lesson.

Schedule of Activities: (Break down your activity into a timeline of events. Focus on what students will be doing and what teachers will be doing during each part of the activity.)
Monday- Teacher will give the definition of Fascism and Democracy out of Webster’s Dictionary- students to write them down. Then teacher will ask students to give words that they believe represent Democracy in America (freedom of speech, civil liberties etc). Then teacher will ask students to give words they believe represent Fascism (Holocaust, Third Reich, Hitler) This open forum will give teacher an idea of the knowledge students have of Fascism and Democracy. Pretty much open up the lesson and find out where kids are at, what they know and where they could sharpen their knowledge. Give an overview of what was being fought for, what were the consequences, in WWII.
Tuesday- Students will focus on two pieces of legislation that were State enforced and that justified racism in both America and Nazi Germany. For the US, students will focus on the laws that legally enforced racism, such as Jim Crow laws which legalized segregation and made the phrase “separate but equal” and enduring term in American history. Then students will look at the Nuremburg Laws in Nazi Germany which excluded Jews from jobs, citizenship, and even marriage to “Aryans.” Both legal enforcement measures will be compared and contrasted as well as put in a historical context.
Wednesday- Students will look at the hypocrisy that the United States was enacting by sending African American troops, separated from their white counterparts, into a battle to fight for the equality of another oppressed group, the Jews across the Atlantic, when the at home had not been treated as equals. Students will then look at measures both here and across the globe that were taken after World War II to further the equal protection of peoples. These measures include the US forces integrating as well as human rights laws that protected individuals, and ideas and notions about human rights.

How will these activities be assessed? (Go back to your objectives, what will the students do? Make sure that each objective is paired to an assessment measure that allows students to show it).
Students will understand, analyze, and interpret historical events, conditions, and issues to develop historical perspective.
For one, students will be able to conjure up similarities and differences in Fascism and Democracy. Students will show this with similarity/difference charts.
Students will be able to develop useful skills in analyzing history, including the ability to analyze records and significant data.
Students will be able to understand some of they key racist elements that culminate in society and how they are further pursued through legal and governmental measures.


Adaptations: How might the lesson need to be adapted for students with special needs?
Some of the concepts might need to be broken down and simplified in order for special needs students to grasp the ideas. Often times something as complex as political ideologies might need to be specially tailored to a slower learner. For the most part I believe this lesson can be adjusted to benefit students of all learning abilities and calibers.

Materials Needed: Go through each activity and identify what items (both technology and not) are needed to complete this lesson. Include a breakdown according to individual student or student groups.
-Similarity/differences chart, two circles hooked together, similarities in middle two connecting circles, differences on both sides. Simple worksheet.
-overhead projector for the actual teacher lesson, say for instance, when giving Webster’s definition of Fascism and Democracy
-Television and DVD player to show History Channel documentary clips on WWII, not only are shows interesting, pull kids in, give visuals that stimulate mind and thinking.
Computer sessions, each student has a designated time to look at recommended sites from a teacher. Students are to print some of what they looked at and give a quick synopsis to teacher: “what they learned, what was the importance, questions, comments” Teacher could also show speeches, such as FDR’s Pearl Harbor address.
Text book, as well as original sources AE speeches, documents, protocols that will give students a sense of the time, urgency, and magnitude of WWII. Something like the Wannsee Protocol could be used to debate whether or not it was the original and official document proposing Hitler’s “Final Solution.” The language could be analyzed. Numbers could show the estimated casualties of death camps such as Treblinka and Auschwitz to give students the sheer magnitude of the Holocaust and all its destruction.