Who Was William Weatherford?

Learning Resource Type

Lesson Plan

Subject Area

English Language Arts

Social Studies

Grade(s)

Overview

William Weatherford was a Creek leader during the Creek War of 1813-1814. This lesson explores who William Weatherford was as a person, as a Creek leader, and his role in the Creek War of 1813-1814. Students will view a PowerPoint, read an excerpt from an article about William Weatherford from the Encyclopedia of Alabama, share information with peers, and view the engraving of William Weatherford surrendering to Andrew Jackson. At the end of the lesson, the students will draw a conclusion about William Weatherford and support it with evidence from the lesson. This lesson should be done in conjunction with studying the Creek War of 1813-1814 so that his role in this historical event can be better understood.

This lesson was created as a part of the Alabama Bicentennial Commission's Curriculum Development Project.

Social Studies (2010) Grade(s): 4

SS10.4.3
Explain the social, political, and economic impact of the War of 1812, including battles and significant leaders of the Creek War, on Alabama.

Vocabulary

culture
settlement
relocation
acquisition
territory

Knowledge

Students know:

Key battles of the War of 1812 that took place in Alabama including the Battle of Burnt Corn Creek, Fort Mims, the Canoe Fight, and the Battle of Horseshoe Bend.
Key leaders of the Creek War including Andrew Jackson, William Weatherford, Tecumseh, and Alexander McGillivray.
Reasons for and the impact of the Trail of Tears in Alabama.

Skills

The students will:

Analyze the social impact of the War of 1812 including the adoption of European culture by American Indians, opening of Alabama land for settlement.
Analyze the political impact of the War of 1812 including the forced relocation of American Indians.
Formulate an opinion of whether or not Andrew Jackson was a hero and will defend that opinion.
Analyze the economic impact of the War of 1812 including acquisition of tribal land in Alabama by the United States.
Analyze the impact of the Trail of Tears on Alabama's American Indians' lives, rights, and territories.

Understanding

Students understand that:

The political, economic, and social decisions made by Alabama's early settlers impacted the lives of American Indians living in the territory.

ELA21.4.14

ELA21.4.28

Primary Learning Objectives

1. I can use multiple sources to locate and identify important information about William Weatherford.

2. I can explain William Weatherford's role in the Creek War.

3. I can determine the importance of details when reading informational text.

4. I can draw a conclusion and support it with evidence from an informational text.

Procedures/Activities

BEFORE:

1. Begin this lesson by engaging students in a discussion about current studies. Tell students that today the class is going to learn more about William Weatherford, a prominent Creek leader.

2. Show students the primary source on the first slide of the PowerPoint. Ask students to examine the image, and jot down their thoughts about Weatherford, his role, his responsibilities, etc.

3. Have students turn and talk about observations. Allow students to share their thinking based on their observations.

4. Proceed to slide 2 and share with students the information about William Weatherford.

5. Share slides 3-7 with the students, allowing time for students to discuss and for the teacher to clarify information.

DURING:

6. Proceed to slide 8, "Let’s look at an article to learn more about this Red Stick leader, William Weatherford." The first paragraph of the article is on the slide show. Read the paragraph aloud and model how you determine what is important.

7. Distribute student copies of the article. Ask students to "Read paragraphs 3, 4, 5, and 6 with your partner. Highlight anything you think is important or interesting." These directions can be found on slide 9.

AFTER:

8. Distribute the copies of the graphic organizer to the students. Have students reread the paragraphs with the same or different partner. Then, students should record what they have learned, what questions they have, the answers to their questions, and where they found the answers on the graphic organizer. (Students may ask to do some extra research in order to locate the answers to some of their questions. This is up to the teacher's discretion when they allow this to happen.)

9. When students have finished reading their paragraphs and recording learning, questions, and answers, return to the PowerPoint and discuss the highlighted points. The following should be shared with students:

Even though many thought he was a villain because of Fort Mims, his powerful family worked to celebrate his bravery and horsemanship and helped to make him known as a hero. They promoted him as the noble leader who tried to serve his misguided people bravely and attempted to restrain their excesses. He wasn't always known as Red Eagle. Before A.B. Meek's poem, he was known as, Hoponika Fulsahi (Truth Maker) and Billy Larney, which translates as Yellow Billy.

10. Proceed to the next slide where the primary sources are shown once again. Have students write a conclusion statement, possibly using "character traits" they learned about William Weatherford. Students should use text evidence to support their conclusion. The teacher can determine if students should provide one or two pieces of text evidence.

11. Allow students to share.

Assessment Strategies

Formative

When conducting this lesson, take time to observe students in action: are they paying attention, are they taking notes, are they reading the article, are they discussing the article with their peers, are they recording information? If not, provide support as needed. Teachers can also use questioning to aid students in meeting outcomes.

Summative

Teachers can examine the graphic organizer to see if students understand the assignment and if they are able to locate important information.

Teachers can assess the conclusion statement to identify if students can make an accurate conclusion and support it with evidence from text, the PowerPoint, or the primary source (engraving of William Weatherford surrendering to Andrew Jackson).

Acceleration

Students can use these links to learn more about William Weatherford and the Creek War.

Photo of the Grave of William Weatherford

Weatherford's Leap

Battle of Holy Ground

Battle of Calabee Creek

Creek War of 1813-1814

Intervention

Providing the text at a lower reading level would benefit students who need more support in the area of reading.

Chunking the text for students, as done in this lesson, may aid students in comprehending. If needed, chunk text at the sentence level for students who need it. The teacher should check for understanding after students have read each sentence.

Total Duration

31 to 60 Minutes

Background/Preparation

The teacher should review the PowerPoint and the article before the lesson. Prior to implementing this lesson with students, the teacher should introduce the Creek War and national issues related to Native Americans, their wish to protect their way of life, and settlement of the "white man" in this part of the country. In order to successfully complete this lesson, students need to be able to follow along with a PowerPoint presentation, work in small groups, read a text to find important information, and record important information from reading.

Also, the teacher will need to determine which version of the article will be used and if more revision is needed in order to meet the needs of the students.

For Further Information on William Weatherford see the following articles from The Encyclopedia of Alabama:

William Weatherford Article

Photo of the Grave of William Weatherford

Weatherford's Leap

Battle of Holy Ground

Battle of Calabee Creek

Bibliography with additional texts

Materials and Resources

Students will need paper and a pencil or pen to write notes during the presentation.

PowerPoint on William Weatherford (includes primary source engraving of William Weatherford surrendering to Andrew Jackson)

-Direct link to the primary source: William Weatherford's Surrender

Copies of William Weatherford article from www.encyclopediaofalabama.org or access to technology devices for individuals or small groups of students

A simplified version (approximate sixth-grade reading level) of article (PDF). You can make further accommodations to the text if needed by revising the Word file.

A graphic organizer for the lesson is provided.

Technology Resources Needed

A device and projection system are needed to project the PowerPoint for student viewing.

iPads, laptops, desktop computers, etc. can be used for the viewing of the article, but are not necessary.

Approved Date

2017-08-18