A Learning Activity is a strategy a teacher chooses to actively
engage students in learning a concept or skill using a digital tool/resource.
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Phase:
Before/Engage
Activity:
The students will watch the video, PBS-The Children's March, in order to build on others' ideas so that they can express their own ideas clearly and persuasively. In order for this Learning Activity to be successful, there should not be ANY prior discussion of the contents of the PBS-The Children's March video.
Preparation for the class should merely be an introduction that asks that the students be attentive and listen carefully.
Show the PBS-The Children's March video to the class. (Do not stop the video for discussion while the video is playing.)
After the video has been completed, the students should initiate and participate effectively in collaborative discussions with diverse partners about the events in the video.
Sample question: Do you think it was a good idea to involve the children in the Civil Rights Movement?
Next, the teacher should lead a whole group discussion about the events in the video so that the students will be able to express their own ideas clearly and persuasively.
Finally, the students should take out their phones and call or text their parents or any adult relative to present the following scenario and ask the prompted question:
The students will say to the parent or adult relative, "It is 1963 and the children are walking out of the schools in Birmingham to march for Civil Rights. Can I go march with the other students from my school?"
Allow the students to propel a discussion of the answers they received from their parents or relative.
End the discussion with the students writing a post discussion reflection.
Assessment Strategies:
The activity can be assessed using classroom participation or by having the students submit their post-discussion reflection.
Advanced Preparation:
View the video before showing it to the class to be aware of what type of questions may arise.
Have an interactive whiteboard or a projector to view the video. (Schools with one-to-one programs can give the link to each student and have them watch individually.)
Students will need to be told to bring their cell phones to class.
The students should be grouped diversely while watching the video.
Variation Tips (optional):
In situations where mobile devices are not allowed, use the activity as an end of class activity and have students go home to ask their parents the questions. The discussion and reflection can be completed during the next class meeting.
This activity can be used as a cross-curriculum activity in either U.S. History and English Language Arts.
Notes or Recommendations (optional):
Keywords and Search Tags:
Childrens March, Civil Right, Collaborative Discussion, Persuasive, Responding to questions