Alabama's Early Governors

Before beginning this lesson, teachers need determine which governor each student will learn about. There should be four groups of students. 

Before: Have students write down one thing they know about early Alabama or what they know about governors on a sticky note. Allow students to share with a partner. During this time, the teacher should monitor discussion to promote engagement. 

The teacher should share something like this with the class, "Each state in our union has a governor. We have had a governor in our state since it was a territory. William Wyatt Bibb was our first governor. Today we are going to learn about him, his responsibilities, and his influence on our state. Also, you are going to collaborate with a team to learn about another early governor of Alabama." 

During: Begin by displaying the visual primary source of William Wyatt Bibb. Tell students who he is and that he is the focus of the first part of the lesson. Students can be asked what they think about him based on the visual, but this should lead into the next part of the lesson.  Then, either post the article about William Wyatt Bibb on the projector screen, or provide each student with a copy of the article. Have chart paper displayed. 

Read the article aloud once all the way through. Then go back paragraph by paragraph. Stop at the end of each paragraph. Discuss with students what they think is important and interesting about William Wyatt Bibb. Record these items on the "notes" chart. As you chart, remind students of the importance of taking notes in your own words. Continue this process until you get through the entire article. 

Read the notes aloud to your class and decide if there is anything else that the class would want others to know about William Wyatt Bibb.

Then examine the quote provided that William Wyatt Bibb shared with the General Assembly of Alabama. Discuss the quote and determine what Governor Bibb was conveying to them. 

Assign students to their predetermined group. Provide students with the visual of their governor and his quote. Have students:

1. View the visual first, and determine if any information about him is provided by examining the portrait.

2. Provide a copy of the the group's article to students. Follow the model for taking notes. Students can use notebook paper for this part. Assign each group its governor. Students will work with a partner within their group to read and take notes about their given governor. It is best to have groups with the same governor to sit in a common area. When all students in the group are finished, they will meet to discuss what is most important about their governor and what is interesting about him. Students also need to discuss, "is there anything else we'd want others to know about this person?" Students will put these important and interesting facts on their governor graphic organizer in the coordinating box. 

3. Examine the quote provided that each governor shared and examine the context. Discuss the quote as a team and determine what their governor was trying to convey through this quote. Add important information from this discussion to the graphic organizer in order to share it with peers. 

If you are making this a two day lesson then stop here and recap the importance of reading for information and taking clear notes. Explain to students that tomorrow they will be sharing their information with others. 

During Part 2: Divide students into groups of four; one person should be from each governor expert group. Have students in these groups sit together in a manner that promotes discussion and collaboration. Students will take turns sharing about their governor. When one person is presenting, then the other three members are listening and recording important information. Students should each have an opportunity to share their learning and record the learning of others. 

After: Once students have had time to share information, pose the following discussion questions for the jigsaw groups to answer: (A graphic organizer is provided.)

• What do your governors have in common?
• Which governor do you think had the biggest impact on Alabama? Why? 
• Did any of our governors have an impact in other states, territories, or the federal government? How?  
• Are you surprised by any of the achievements of these governors? 
• What kind of qualities do you think these governors needed to lead our state during its early years? Why do you think so? 
• How can learning about our first few governors help us to possibly understand the beginnings of other states?  

After students have had an opportunity to discuss each question, then have students share out to the class their discussion and thinking. A ThinkSheet organizer is provided for students to record their answers to these questions, in order to hold their thinking. 

Students will write an organized paragraph about one of the four governors they studied. Students should write it for someone who is not in their class and should include information they think others should know about this governor.  If your students are not proficient at writing organized paragraphs, then take time here to model how to write one using the information on William Wyatt Bibb. Encourage student input, and have students write their own copy so they can use it as a reference. A rubric is provided to use when grading.