Fighting in the Trenches – A History Lab

No fifth graders were actually harmed during this simulation

The goal:

1. Show my students how trench fighting had waged for years without really gaining significant territory for either side
2. Help them understand how the U.S. entry into the war tipped the balance of power.

The Set-Up/Materials

• Two boxes of “ammunition” (50 sheets of balled up black construction paper, 50 sheets of balled up brown construction paper – artillery)
•  2 balled up sheets of  yellow construction paper (mustard gas)
• Desks set up in opposing rows, with a “no man’s land” in the center.
• Trench Warfare Powerpoint
• Trench Warfare Animation
• Teacher Costume (optional)

Procedure:

• Meet students at door in costume. I took on the persona of a trainer giving new troops a primer on trench warfare before being shipped “over there”.
• I divided them into two teams by counting them off, they “stowed their gear” in the back and took up positions in the trenches.
• I showed the first part of the Trench Warfare Powerpoint, then explained the rules of the “training exercise”.

Rules:

• Recruits are to begin firing as soon as they hear battle sounds and stop when the sounds stop. (Roughly a 1 minute to 2 minutes)
• There will be two rounds of fighting so ration your ammunition.
• Artillery only the first round. You may use only your ammunition.
• If you get hit at all, you’re dead, and you must fall where you are.

Firing commences. (I liked using the sounds from the Trench Warfare Animation) After enough time passes, I cut the sound.

• Casualty count from each side. Short debrief – how did it feel to be under fire? To “lose” a fellow soldier?
• Short talk on conditions in the trenches, with or without more slides from the powerpoint. The rat quotes and trenchfoot pictures were a tad intense I felt for my fifth graders – so I just told the edited stories and read a few actual letters from soldiers.
• I move the “casualties” to the back row for the next round.

Round 2

• The only new ammunition is the “mustard gas”. I explain that if that gets into your trench it is “game over”.
• Students play another round when the noise starts.

Debrief:

• What will happen is that with equal ammunition and equal numbers, most of the “soldiers” will die on both sides, with no side “winning”.
• This segues into a “what if” – what if you had twice as many soldiers and ammunition? Would there be a winner then?
• Short talk about how America’s entry into the war gave the Allies superior numbers and led to the Central Powers surrender.

Students then wrote a letter home from the trenches describing their experience while the sound effects blared away in the background. It was a great day in class, and their letters were terrific.

The lesson was based on an idea I had read about in Bring History Alive, and this handout http://teacherlessonplanwarehouse.com/WWI%20Trench%20Warfare.doc

Special thanks to Mr. Berlin, for his Trench Warfare Powerpoint.

Also invaluable is the Trench Warfare Animation from Class Zone.

Find Someone Who – A Preview/Review Activity

A twitter post reminded me of “Find Someone Who” icebreaker – you know the one where you have a list or bingo-style board of characteristics (hair color,  has moved, has a pet, etc) and you circulate around the room looking for “someone who” fits that characteristic.

If you’ve never participated in this, here is a link with a thorough description.

I love motion activities, and so I’ve adapted it to use for content – either as a preview or review activity.

For a preview activity, make a list of things that relate (however tangentially) to your unit. Allow for the Find Someone Who procedure.

Example for the Middle Ages:

• FSW has played chess
• FSW has seen a movie with a knight in it.
• FSW has ever dressed up as a princess.
• FSW has been to Medieval Times.
• FSW thinks sword fighting is cool.
• FSW can tell you about King Arthur and Camelot
• FSW has read one of these books: Crispin and the Cross of Lead, Catherine called Birdy, A Door in the Wall

Review games are even easier, because you are dealing with a common body of content.

• FSW can sketch the Feudal Pyramid
• FSW can show where the Crusades were fought on a map
• FSW can list three types of jobs a serf might perform
• FSW can explain why the Church was so important
• FSW can define the word “cathedral”

When I do content based Find Someone Who activities, I make sure I circulate so that I can monitor conversations. Students must sign off that they have actually explained, showed, or drawn what was required. If I suspect students are randomly signing, I’ll ask that student to explain, show, or draw for me. If they can’t they must sit down, and do a quiet review activity at their seat.

Trench Warfare Animation – an Interactive Whiteboard Resource

There are some really terrific resources available on the internet, and this is one of them.

The site features a great graphic of trench warfare in action, complete with sound effects. The graphic is clickable, allow viewers to learn more about the scene – trench warfare, no man’s land, machine guns, chemical warfare and dogfights. High interest and informative, without a high “gross” factor.

Trench Warefare Animation

Quiz Quiz Trade – A Review Game

It’s fun, it’s fast, it’s useful.

What you need:

• A set of questions and answers printed or written out on cards.
• One card for each student.
• About five minutes.

You can create the cards, or let students do this, or you can do it yourself using index cards or a table in Word.

Procedure:

• Teacher announces: Quiz Quiz Trade
• Students:
• Find a partner.
• Student 1 asks Student 2 the question on the card.
• Student 2 either answers it or says I don’t know. (It is important to the speed of the game that students admit when they don’t know)
• Student 1 either congratulates Student 2 or goes over the answer.
• Student 2 then repeats the procedure with Student 1.
• Student 1 and Student 2 trade cards and find a new partner.
• I usually let students play Quiz Quiz Trade for about 5 minutes.

They know I will stop the game immediately at the first sign of inappropriate behavior, and since they love it that is enough to keep this activity running smoothly.

When I introduce the game, I have two students come stand at the front of the room, and wallk them through the process I have written out above.  I review “deal-breakers” which for me include: running, refusing to take a question from a classmate, faces made at classmates, anything derogatory or rude, anything that is not class/topic related.

I usually monitor by wandering through the milling crowd with a card. Some students like to ask me the questions, so I always carry a card.

I learned this strategy at a Kagan Cooperative Learning workshop, and if you ever get the opportunity to attend one I highly recommend it!

Title Pages – An Interactive Notebook Assignment

Whenever we start a new unit of instruction, I have my students create a title page to preview the content.

Together, we set up the page and write the title of the unit.  I always draw one on the board and let them know which pages in the book they can choose their pictures from. Pictures can be charts, maps, and actual images. They can be from the students’ imaginations. No stick figures, and they need to have captions.

Before they start drawing, I preview essential question and the the guiding questions from the unit. I lead them through a chapter walk highlighting key events. Then the students choose their pictures and draw them.

It takes a good half-hour of student work to create a solid title page, so I feel that the intro and chapter walk are key in making it a worthwhile activity.

    

Don’t have a half-hour? Students not big on the drawing thing?

Alternatives to picture gallery title pages:

• Acrostics – Acrostics of the title can be great title pages.
• A-Z wordsearches – students scan the chapter/lesson and look for words that start with each of the letters of the alphabet. This activity is based on the Janet Allen strategy: http://www.usd416.org/pages/uploaded_files/14Words_fromaz14.pdf
• History One-Pager from Mr. Roughton – (although as a title page activity, I would limit this to one period. Students could complete it on a legal size sheet of copy paper and then glue it in, or use a two-page spread.

 

Clock Partners

This is a partnering strategy that I believe will be the trifecta:

• everyone pairs with everybody else at some point
• once practiced, it should be a seemless and easy transition to partners
• something the students can see as fair – thus limiting complaints

In this strategy, students are given a blank clock face, and asked to “make appointments” with each other to fill up the hours, for up to twelve partners. I say “up to” as some teachers only assign even or odd numbers to make the number of partners more manageable.  Eve Heaton, of Science Notebooking, has posted about this in detail on her blog, along with a nice clock face.

After re-reading her posts, and doing some additional reading on Proteacher and AtoZ Teacherstuff forums I’ve thought through my procedures. I’m going to start doing this in January, and break the process down into steps. If it goes well, I’ll do it next year starting in August. I don’t plan on spending more than 10 minutes per day over three days on the setup and practice.

Day 1:

• Introduce the idea and “ground rules”
  • If someone asks you to be their buddy, you must say yes. No making faces, no backing away.
  • Walk and talk quietly as you make your appointments.
  • Pass out the clocks, and have them write their name in the middle.
  • Today we will make appointments for 2, 6, and 10 o’clock.
  • These will be partners I have chosen for them. I will review the ground rules of being polite. No making faces or comments.
  • To create these pairs I will rank the students ability-wise in order from highest to lowest. Then I will split this list in half and place them side by side. Since there are three appointments needed, I pair the student at the top of the left column with the first three students on the right, making adjustments as needed.
  • I will make a master spreadsheet of these teacher created pairs and show them on my Promethean board.
  • Procedure for students:
    • Find your 2 o’clock partner and stand back to back.
    • I will check to make sure everyone is responding appropriately and in they are paired correctly, then they can write their partners names in the correct part of the clock.
    • To avoid accidental “overbooking” I’m going to have them color in the space for that hour.
    • Repeat for the other two teacher chosen appointments.
    • Students will glue clocks in to their notebooks.

Day 2

• Students will pair with their clock partners to answer some review questions from yesterdays lessons. Three questions, one for each appointment we made yesterday.
• Today we will make three more appointments – 2, 6, and 10 o’clock.
• Procedure for finding partners:
  • Students will choose a partner of the opposite gender and turn back to back.
  • When I see that everyone has a partner, then they can write their partners names in the correct part of the clock.
  • To avoid accidental “overbooking” I’m going to have them color in the space for that hour.

Day 3

• Students will answer review questions from yesterday’s lesson by working with their clock partners. 2 questions today, one partner from the first day and one partner from the second day.
• We will make 3 appointments today at 12, 4, and 8 o’clock. These will be “student choice” partners – they will only be limited to students who are not already on their clocks.
• Procedure for finding partners:
  • Students will choose a partner and turn back to back.
  • When I see that everyone as a partner, then they can write their partners names in the correct part of the clock.
  • To avoid accidental “overbooking” I’m going to have them color in the space for that hour.

This will leave three open spaces on the clock, but will create 9 pairs. My average class size is eighteen, so I could add a friend for a class of twenty, or take one away for a class of 16. I still control what groups I want them to work in by calling the hour, so it doesn’t matter.

Random thoughts:

• students whose partner is not there will report to the board and I will assign them to a group.
• I think I will use a spinning wheel on my promethean board with the clock numbers on it to occasionally choose “hours” to increase the “random” factor.
• I want to make a concerted effort to use the strategy at least two to three times a week.

Variation on the Clock:

• Baseball Partners – Diagram of a baseball field, four partners.
• Ocean/Continent Partners – Outline Map of the world, 7+ partners depending on how many you fill in.
• Cell phone partners (same principle as clock using the keypad numbers instead of hours)
  • Cell Phone Buddies

I would love to hear from you if you successfully use this strategy – please include your tips and tricks or if you know another variation!

The Ball Game – A Motion Strategy

Sometimes the simple things can make the biggest difference.

I use this anytime I feel my kiddos need “waking up” as it generates immediate interest. I keep an inflatable world globe ball by my desk at all times, just in case.

The game couldn’t be simpler. I ask a question, if the student knows the answer then they raise both arms to catch the ball. I throw it, they catch it, and answer the question. They throw it back. Repeat. The kids absolutely love this. If I ask a question that has a list for an answer, we’ll do a “think fast” round. In a “think fast” round I announce the topic (inventions, presidents, etc.) and start the game by throwing the ball to a student. If the student gives a correct answer, they then toss the ball to another student, who then answers.

Any ball will do, but the globes are great for social studies. A teacher friend of mine and fellow blogger uses a numbered soccer ball and pre-written questions. There are also commercially made inflatables with reading comprehension questions for informational texts that  the children also adore.

Here is a link to those on Amazon.

A teacher I work with kicked this up several notches, using a soccer ball and pre-written questions. I asked her to write it up for me, and she was kind enough to write a very descriptive post as a comment. Be sure to scroll down!

Content Carols – The Most Fun You Can Have The Week Before Break!

What happens when you combine Christmas carols and history content? Content Carols!

I give the children a lyrics sheet to some very common and easy to sing Christmas carols, because you would be surprised at how many don’t know all the words to the songs. I introduce the project by having a quick “sing a long” of the first verse and chorus of each song.

I use: Winter Wonderland, Let it Snow!, Here comes Santa Claus, Santa Claus is coming to Town, O Christmas Tree, Up on the Housetop, Jingle Bells, Joy to the World, Deck the Halls, Silent Night, Little Drummer Boy, and You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch. I only copy enough for a class set for partners (15 copies for 30 students, for example)

Lyrics Sheet for Content Carols

Then the students pick a topic from a list (I usually take the topics from our most current unit). We were studying Industrial Revolution and Immigration, so their topics were:

Inventors/Inventions, Big Business, Immigration, or Progressive Reforms

I always model the process, so after the sing-a-long, I choose a topic and write a song that the class sings. My sample:

Living in the US Gilded Age (to the tune of Winter Wonderland)

Factory bells ring, are you listening?

Hours are long, sweat is glistening

Children, women and men

Are working in them,

Living in the US Gilded Age

Tenements are where they’re living

Though small rooms, they are giving

Often no running water or heat

or electricity

Living in the US Gilded Age

In the mansions you can see the rich men

Carnegie and Rockefeller too

Monopolies made them very rich men

But they showed the other rich men what to do

Later on, reforms are coming

The Progressives must do something

Food and Drugs follow rules

And kids go to school

Living in the US Gilded Age

Living in the US Gilded Age

Living in the US Gilded Age

Requirements:

• Topic must be clear in the song
• Each song must have a minimum of three verses
• Each verse must be singable to the tune of the song selected
• Each verse must contain two pieces of information about the topic.

Then, they write. Allow at least two class periods for this. In my room I spend these two days being the “teacher jukebox” running from partner to partner “singing” their songs with them. On the third day we edit/make final copies.

The culminating activity can take any form you are comfortable with:

• A performance in your classroom – pairs sing their songs for each other.
• A classroom sing a long – type up your songs as a booklet, and sing them all together.

This year, the whole grade level did this project, and we had a grade level sing-a-long with parents in our lecture theater. We couldn’t sing all the songs, but selected two per class period for a total of sixteen songs. It was lovely, fun – and educational. The children work very hard on this project, and it gets them very motivated during a week that is traditionally tough going in the classroom.

By varying the songs, you could do this at any time of the year!

Assembly Line Simulation – A History Lab

I’m teaching a unit on Industrialization and Immigration, and I was searching for an experiential exercise for my students.

I found a simulation for making cars on an assembly line online (the original lesson is bookmarked at the bottom of this post), and set about trying to make it work for my fifth graders.

After reading through the simulation and trying it out for myself, this is how it worked for me:

1) I assumed the role of the plant owner. I decided what the finished product would look like, and all “finished” automobiles had to pass my personal inspection.

2) I broke the jobs down to what could be completed in 1 minute. It would take 11 students to run the assembly line using my job set.

3) I placed 11 desks side by side to create the assembly line. I used perforated paper (the stuff that ran through the old dot matrix printers) to create the conveyor belt. (You could use butcher block, but after having done this once – I will be using fabric next year.) Here is a picture of what it looked like:

4) I typed up directions for each line worker in powerpoint, then printed the slides two to a page and attached the directions for each line worker to their desk.

Assembly Line Simulation

5) To assign parts, I had the students draw randomly from a container. I printed the PowerPoint six slides to a page, cut them out and put them in a container. I loved this – random is random and this minimized complaints. They could also easily match the slide they drew to the slide on their desk.

Assembly Line Simulation Drawing Slips

6) One student was the “line mechanic” and that job was to move the conveyor belt every minute.

7) All other students were inspectors. Their job was to make sure the line workers were doing their jobs correctly, to bring materials as needed, and to keep the line clear. They had the power to fire a worker and take their place. At the halfway point, all inspectors and the line mechanic switched places with people on the line. We called it “second shift”.

In a sixty minute period, this allowed me to take 10-15 minutes to introduce and explain the activity, 25 minutes for the actual simulation, and 15-20 to debrief and have the students write their reflection. If you have access to Brainpop, there is one on Assembly Lines that I used to introduce. I also showed them this clip from I Love Lucy as part of the wrap-up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yx1rx_dDVF4

It worked terrifically. Students experienced the frustration of line failure, little training to do the work, and the boredom of doing the same task over and over – all in all, a successful learning experience!

This is the original lesson I modified – thank you for posting it!

Teacher Handouts: There is a detailed description of the lesson written as a pdf.
Student Handouts: Page through to “Student Handout 3″ for the car pieces and student directions.

Morse Code Generator/Decoder

- …. .. …   .. …   .-   –. .-. . .- -   .- -.-. – .. …- .. – -.–   – —   -.. —   — -.   -.– — ..- .-.   .. -. – . .-. .- -.-. – .. …- .   .– …. .. – . -… — .- .-. -.. .-.-.-

My state’s standards include the invention of the telegraph. I found that my students were having a hard time wrapping their mind around it and found this wonderful site:

Morse Code Generator/Decoder

You can type in plain text and convert to Morse Code with a single click. I showed the students on my interactive whiteboard and they were amazed. You can also download the message as a wav file and listen to what it would have sounded like.

My teaching partner and I discovered that you could then copy and paste the morse code and email it, so we sent messages back and forth between our classes all day.

Other extension ideas:

After demonstrating Morse code, students could use Morse code charts to create and decode messages. Some links that would be useful for this:

• http://www.conversion.ws/morse-code-alphabet.php
• http://freenet.msp.mn.us/people/calguire/morse.html
• http://www.learnmorsecode.com/