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Be the Thing graphic organizer for each student (see attachment)
Highlighters
Pencils
Technology Resources Needed:
Document camera to display primary documents, if available
Laptops to research early postal services (Benjamin Franklin's creation of the colonial postal service; the pony express; stagecoaches; railroads, etc.), if available
Laptops to view primary documents and complete graphic organizer, if available
Background/Preparation:
Students will need to be familiar with the beginnings of the U.S. postal service (Benjamin Franklin and the colonial mail service). They should also be aware of the typical modes of transportation for the early nineteenth century (e.g.: horseback, wagon, stagecoaches, etc). Finally, students should be aware of the possible problems that could have occurred on the Federal Road, such as tension with the Creek Indians, bad road conditions, lack of communication, and mishaps with stages.
Be prepared to display the Federal Road map that is attached.
Teacher may read from The Encyclopedia of Alabama Federal Road in Alabama for further information about the Alabama road system and postal service in the early nineteenth century.
Before:
If time and equipment are available, allow students to research early US postal services (Franklin's establishment of colonial service, the Pony Express, stagecoaches, railroads, etc).
Allow time for students to discuss successes and failures of early postal delivery.
The teacher should display the Federal Road map and photograph of the remains of the road today.
Discuss the path of the road (Creek territory) and the possible problems that may occur.
Discuss how populated the area was and how the lack of communication may have been a problem.
During:
Put students in pairs for this activity.
Distribute the illustration and description of the American Stagecoach to each set of partners.
Allow the students to read the description and discuss the illustration with their partner.
Highlight any information that may be used as evidence of the difficulty of postal service through lower Alabama.
Discuss the stagecoach illustration and description as a class, and allow the students to ask clarifying questions and make comments about what they found interesting in the article.
Distribute the newspaper article about the difficulties of the postal service in lower Alabama.
Display the article under the document camera, if available. The teacher should read the article and encourage the students to ask questions and discuss the information.
Allow partners time to re-read and discuss the article.
Highlight any information that may be used as evidence of the difficulty of postal service through lower Alabama.
Discuss the textual evidence the students highlighted.
Distribute the Be the Thing graphic organizer to each student.
Instruct the students that they will complete the graphic organizer from the perspective of someone who has mailed a letter to a family member in New Orleans. (Description)
The perspective should include the concerns about the letter arriving safely to their family member.
The students should utilize highlighted information from the texts as evidence for the concerns.
After:
Allow students to work with their partners to complete the graphic organizer.
Discuss some examples of evidence from the texts to clarify any questions, if necessary.
Encourage students to complete the face on the graphic organizer to be that of the letter writer.
Assessment Strategies
Formative:
Students should be able to discuss the evidence that reflects the difficulty of the postal service in the early nineteenth century.
Students should highlight applicable evidence that reflects the difficulties of having mail delivered safely and timely.
Summative:
Students should complete the graphic organizer with evidence that reflects the difficulties of the early nineteenth century postal service in lower Alabama.
Acceleration:
Students may read the Mobile Centinel and select an article they can use to complete the Be the Thing graphic organizer. The teacher should remind the students that they should select an article where evidence is given to support a specific perspective.
Additional reading on the Federal Road:
Bridges, Edwin C. ALABAMA: THE MAKING OF AN AMERICAN STATE. Tuscaloosa, AL: The University of Alabama Press, 2016, pp. 45-48.
Intervention:
The teacher should pair students with lower reading abilities with students comfortable with reading primary documents.
Highlight and/or discuss words found in the text that may be difficult for students.
Allow students to turn in one graphic organizer as a team.
View the Special Education resources for
instructional guidance in providing modifications and adaptations
for students with significant cognitive disabilities who qualify for the Alabama Alternate Assessment.