I. Curricular Framework

Concept:

Conflict

Essential Question:

How might conflicts among nations be avoided?

Bridge:

Predicting Outcomes

Content:

World War 1

Outcomes:

II. Standards Aligned

III. Instruction and Assessment

1. Connect: Connecting to the Concept Experientially

Objective: Students will experience an act of imperialism.

Activity: Prepare a statement to read to your students explaining that a neighboring school district or city has annexed part of your school district. The statement should be worded as though the annexation has already taken place and explain in detail the part of the district that has been annexed. Set a deadline after which students in the annexed zone will be required to attend the other districts school. To give added weight and gravity to the statement ask one of your school administrators to come to class and read it.

Allow your students time to react. Make sure you get reactions from students who live in the annexed area and those who do not.

Introduce the idea that part of their resistance to annexation is due to their pride in their community and loyalty to the school.

When you feel the time is right explain that the statement was a hoax.

Assessment:Angry. If you choose the annexing district or town carefully you should provoke feelings akin to nationalism.

2. Attend: Attending to the Connection

Objective: Students will write an essay about the things for which they would fight.

Activity: Assign your students the following essay or journal writing topic:
How did you feel when you heard the statement about annexation? Why did you oppose or support the annexation?

Assessment: Student essays can be collected and graded based on classroom writing standards and the depth of the exploration of the topic

Assessment, Phase One, Level of Engagement, Fascination:

3. Image: Creating a Mental Picture

Objective: Students will create a cartoon showing sources of conflict and different outcomes.

Activity: Have students choose a partner. Tell them to share the feelings and thoughts they included in their essay or journal entry. Then have them create two visuals showing different ways in which the issue of annexation might be resolved.

When students are done display their work around the room and allow students time to walk around and look at them.

Assessment:Thoughtful. Students should now be contemplating different ways in which conflicts can be resolved and thinking about how things like the actions of government and feelings of pride in their school and community could lead to conflict

Assessment, Phase Two, Seeing the Big Picture:

4. Inform: Receiving Facts & Knowledge

Objective: Students will understand the factors that led to World War I.

Activity: Students will listen to and take notes over a teacher delivered lecture of the causes of World War I – Nationalism, Militarism, Imperialism, and the System of Alliances. Explain how each of these factors contributed to hostility between the countries of Europe without discussing directly which country was most motivated by each factor.


Assessment: Confident. Students should feel secure in their knowledge of the underlying causes of World War I.

Assessment, Phase Three, Success with Acquiring Knowledge:

5. Practice: Developing Skills

Objective: Students will identify the events which led to the outbreak of fighting in World War I.

Activity: Provide your students either with copies of reading about the outbreak of World War I, a section of their text, or show The Guns of August. Give each student a copy of Student Handout 1 and have them complete it.

Have your students count off one to six. Write the following countries on the board assign a number (1-6) to each: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, France, Great Britain, the United States. Assign students a country based on their number and have them research the reasons why their country got involved in World War I. Remind your students to keep the four underlying reasons for World War I in mind, but not to limit themselves to those generic reasons.

Students should seek to learn
a) What their country felt was at stake?
b) What their country hoped to gain?
c) The nature of their country’s relationship with the other nations involved in World War I.

Assessment: Student Handout 1 can be collected and graded for accuracy.

Assessment, Phase Four, Success with Acquiring Skills:

6. Extend: Extending Learning to the Outside World

Objective: Students will share information and discover the connections between conflict among nations and individuals.

Activity: Once students have completed their research form groups of six making sure that each group contains one person who researched each of the six countries. Have students share the findings of their research. Then ask students to look for parallels between the reasons the nations of Europe went to war and conflict among individual.

After groups have shared their information and ideas have them plan and create a brief scene, visual presentation, cartoon, song, or short story demonstrating the sources of conflict between individuals. Allow your students as much creative freedom as possible, but remind them to try to make the connection between the reasons the nations of Europe went to war and the reasons for conflict between individuals.

Assessment: Satisfaction. Students should now feel that what they have learned about the causes of the First World War has relevance in their own lives

7. Refine: Refining the Extension

Objective: Students will give and receive peer critiques.

Activity: Have student groups combine and outline their creative projects. Make sure that each group shares the connections they make between the reasons why the nations of Europe entered World War I and conflict between individuals. Groups should critique each others projects and share ideas to help improve them.

Assessment:Inspired. Following the peer critiques students should be motivated to refine and improve their creative projects.

8. Perform: Creative Manifestation of Material Learned

Objective: Student groups will plan and perform a “news conference” explaining why each nation entered World War I.

Activity: Student groups present their dramatic scenes, stories, cartoons, songs, or visuals to the class. Following each performance have the class discuss the reasons for conflict between individuals presented in the performance.

Assessment:Pleasure. Students should enjoy sharing they creative work with the class

Assessment, Phase Five,Performance, Creative Use of Material Learned: