Lesson Plan

School is in Session!

Subject Area

English Language Arts
Social Studies

Grade(s)

4

Overview

In this lesson, students will be able to describe cultural aspects of early nineteenth century townspeople by reading a newspaper article describing the opening of a new school. Students will also be able to discuss, infer, and write from a variety of perspectives when explaining the roles of various people mentioned in the article.

This lesson was created in partnership with the Alabama Department of Archives and History.

Social Studies (2010) Grade(s): 4

SS10.4.6

Describe cultural, economic, and political aspects of the lifestyles of early nineteenth-century farmers, plantation owners, slaves, and townspeople.

Unpacked Content

UP:SS10.4.6

Vocabulary

  • plantation
  • Yeoman
  • townspeople
  • inequity
  • agriculture
  • fertile

Knowledge

Students know:
  • During this time, most families in Alabama did not own slaves; most slaves were owned by Plantation Owners.
  • Most of Alabama's families made a living through agriculture.
  • The Black Belt and fertile river valleys were major areas of agricultural production.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Compare and contrast cultural, economic, and political aspects of the lifestyles of early nineteenth-century farmers, plantation owners, slaves, and townspeople.
  • Describe major areas of agricultural production in Alabama, including the Black Belt and fertile river valleys.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • There were cultural, political, and economic inequities in Alabama in the early 19th Century between slaves, Yeoman farmers, and Plantation owners.
English Language Arts (2021) Grade(s): 4

ELA21.4.22

Analyze events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in informational texts, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text.

Unpacked Content

UP:ELA21.4.22

Vocabulary

  • Analyze
  • Events
  • Procedures
  • Ideas
  • Concepts
  • Informational texts

Knowledge

Students know:
  • Informational text often describes events, procedures, ideas, or concepts.

Skills

Students are able to:
  • Use specific information in informational text to describe events, procedures, ideas, or concepts.
  • Explain the causes and effects of the events described in text.

Understanding

Students understand that:
  • They can use information from the text to examine and interpret events, procedures, ideas, or concepts from informational texts.
  • Some informational text will explain the causes and effects of certain events.

Primary Learning Objectives

Students will

  • Describe the educational opportunities available to early nineteenth-century townspeople as described in an 1819 newspaper article.
  • Produce clear and coherent writing to describe 3 different perspectives described in an 1819 newspaper article.

Additional Learning Objective(s)

Students will highlight information from a primary document that reflects a variety of perspectives about a new school.

Students will use their own background knowledge about schools to infer details about early Alabama education.

Procedures/Activities

Before:

  • Review the educational opportunities available to children in the early 1800s.
  • Review terms such as rural and urban, tutor, tuition, and board.

During:

  • Distribute copy of A School newspaper article and transcript to students.
  • Display newspaper article under document camera, if available.
  • Read article aloud and discuss well.
  • Explain terms as needed.
  • Allow students to re-read the article and highlight the different people mentioned in the article.

Allow students to use the "Think, Pair, Share" strategy while discussing the following points: 

  • Discuss how the Leverts might be related and their various roles in the school.
  • Discuss the subjects that would be taught and by whom.
  • Discuss why the boys and girls would have been separated.
  • Discuss why students would have been required to provide their own bedding and candles.
  • Discuss how the Leverts would have had different perspectives of the school than that of the students.
  • Introduce or review The Way I See It graphic organizer.
  • Allow students to re-read the article silently and select 3 of the people mentioned in the article: Mr. Levert, Miss Levert, Mrs. Levert, a male student, or female student.
  • Allow time for students to complete the talk bubble for the selected individuals (Be sure the students label each one).
  • If time allows, ask students to illustrate each character appropriately.

After:

  • Allow students to share a talk bubble after giving a few minutes to begin working. This may spark some ideas for those that are struggling.
  • After most students have finished, allow students time to share talk bubbles.

Assessment Strategies

Formative:

  • Students should highlight passages that refer to Mr. Levert, Miss Levert, Mrs. Levert, and the male and female students. Some students may also select to give a parent's perspective and include inferences supported by the text.
  • Students should participate in partner and whole group discussions.

Summative:

  • Students should include information that is explicitly detailed in the article as well as appropriate inferences when completing "The Way I See It" graphic organizer.

Acceleration

Students may read from the Alabama Republican to learn more about the events occurring in January, 1819 in Huntsville, Alabama.

Students may read another article from the same newspaper and complete the graphic organizer describing different perspectives.

Intervention

Additional vocabulary words may pre-taught, if needed.

Students may be paired with stronger readers.

Provide examples of completed graphic organizers to encourage complete talk bubbles and illustrations.

Approximate Duration

Total Duration

31 to 60 Minutes

Background and Preparation

Background/Preparation

Students should be familiar with the educational opportunities available to children in the early-nineteenth century. For example, many rural students, whose families farmed the land, were not able to attend formal schools. Children did not have access to town schools and were often needed to assist on the farm.

Girls and boys were generally not given the same opportunities for learning. Girls often concentrated on more "womanly" tasks like sewing and other household needs. Boys often were allowed to stay in school longer. Very few minorities were able to attend desegregated schools. The families had to pay for the schooling; tutors were often paid if schools were not available.

Students should be familiar with reading primary documents and understand the language. They should be able to highlight specific details within a newspaper article.

For more information on nineteenth century education in Alabama, see the Encyclopedia of Alabama article.

For additional information about early Alabama education and Huntsville, Alabama, see Alabama Education Bibliography.

Materials and Resources

Materials and Resources

Each student will require:

Technology Resources Needed

Document camera, if available

Laptops to view documents and complete graphic organizer, if available

Approved Date

2017-05-18
ALSDE LOGO

This site may contain links to other websites or content belonging to or originating from third parties or links to websites and features in banners or other advertising. Such external links are not investigated, monitored, or checked for accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability, or completeness by us. WE DO NOT WARRANT, ENDORSE, GUARANTEE, OR ASSUME RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ACCURACY OR RELIABILITY OF ANY INFORMATION OFFERED BY THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES LINKED THROUGH THIS SITE.
Alabama Learning Exchange © 2002-2023 by Alabama State Department of Education is licensed under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International

Design by Adaptive Theme