Diane's+Lesson+Plan


 * Grade **: 6th


 * Unit **: World War II - Introductory activity

Prior to Pearl Harbor: what was the public opinion about the war in Europe? What were the arguments for and against entering the war? What is the purpose of political cartoons and how do they impact public opinion?
 * Essential questions **:

How to analyze a primary source document using both the SEA and the NARA method.
 * Skills**:


 * Vocabulary **: Isolationism, Appeasement, Axis,

Dr. Seuss Political Cartoons - FDR's Speech - [] SEA Graphic Organzier ** ** NARA form - ** **
 * Materials **

Day 1:
 * Hook ** : I'm going to read something to you and I want you to see if you can tell me who you think the author is. Most of you will recognize the style of writing:

Cried a clam with an agonized shout Don't be so aggressive, you lout That's Hitler's Atlantic You'll make the man frantic Good gracious, don't stick your neck out!

After we have fun discovering that this is Dr. Seuss //(I plan to give hints until someone gets it … I do not like green eggs and ham!//), I will display the political cartoon to the class and we’ll discuss the purpose of political cartoons. I will do a think aloud to model how to evaluate the cartoon using the SEA Graphic Organizer.

Then, students will work in pairs to evaluate a cartoon using the SEA Graphic Organizer that I have just modeled. The two essential questions will be written on the board to remind them of what they are trying to answer. Once all groups have finished, we will have a whole group brainstorming session on the Pros and Cons of entering the war in Europe and 2 sides of public opinion. We will also discuss the vocabulary at this time and construct a meaning for those words based on the cartoons. (See SEA graphic organizer for specific questions rlated to vocab)

Day 2: Today we will be analyzing the written version of FDR's speech using the NARA method today with the following overall question in mind: Are there similarities in the ideas expressed in his speech and the political cartoons? Explain your answer
 * Hook ** : I will play the audio of the FDR speech “Day of Infamy” and we’ll discuss, very generally, the bombing of Pearl Harbor and its impact on the United States. Discuss with your partner: Knowing what we know today, think about the cartoon you analyzed yesterday. Was its message accurate in its predictions? Share out to the class your thoughts.

Once the pairs are finished, we will again have a whole group discussion on the ideas they have come up with.


 * Closing**: Look at one final cartoon as a group and discuss its meaning. This was the cartoon that appeared in the paper December 8, 1941.


 * Extensions** (separate guidelines will be written up for each of these):
 * Research a current event and create your own political cartoon based on that event.
 * Research an historical event and create your own political cartoon based on that event.
 * Research political cartoons from the last 5 years and choose one to analyze and present to the class

The critical thinking comes from the analyzing of the cartoons and the compare/contrast of the cartoons and the speech. Higher level questioning is also used to enhance critical thinking. Applying what we've learned about political cartoons to our own work (extensions) also leads to higher level thinking.

 This is great! Isolationism and appeasement are concepts that middle schoolers seem to have some difficulty grasping. This lesson brings these topics to them in a way that they can relate to. Even with my 8th graders, the Dr. Seuss concept will work great (I've found that my students enjoy the occassional chance to just be a kid in class). (Rob Crawley)