The Great War: World War I Then and Now

Week 3 World War I Today: 100 Years of Study, Lesson 11

Lesson Title: Thinking Like a Historian
Grade Level: 12 Time/Duration: 90 mins.
Lesson Overview:
Standard(s): This lesson will require students to work with 12th grade History CCSS Skill
standards, such as:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.8: Evaluate an author's premises, claims, and evidence by

corroborating or challenging them with other information.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.6: Evaluate authors' differing points of view on the same
historical event or issue by assessing the authors' claims, reasoning, and evidence.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they
are used in a text, including analyzing how an author uses and refines the meaning of a
key term over the course of a text (e.g., how Madison defines faction in Federalist No.
10).

These standards can be found here: http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/RH/11-12/.

Color Key:
Web Resources
Lecture Types
Instructional Models/Strategies/Pedagogical Resources
Primary Sources
Essential Questions:
What do Historians do?
How do Historians perform accurate and ethical research?
What are some tools historians can use to perform their research?
What is bias?
What are ethics?
What is revisionism/revisionist history?
Instructional Objectives:
1. Students will prepare for their in-class project.
2. Students will discuss what constitutes ethical, accurate research.
3. Students will discuss what historians do.
Academic Vocabulary:
Accuracy
Authors Intent
Bias

Research
Revisionism
Revisionist History

Cross-referencing/Fact Checking
Ethics
Introduction:

Bell Ringer Historian for a Day: If you were a historian for one day, what would you
research and why? What would you do with that research? Keep it to yourself? Share
it? If you chose to share it, how would you share it? Explain. (and think outside the
box!). (~10 mins.)

Lesson Sequence:

Lecture Depending on when this unit falls, students may or may not have had exposure
to the concepts that will be covered. If they have, then this will be a recap. If they have
not, then this will be a full lecture. For the purposes of this assignment, it will be
assumed the students have had no prior instruction in thinking like a Historian.
Students will be taught what a historian does and does not do. Concepts like historical
accuracy, bias, ethics, fact checking/cross referencing, etc. will be covered. Particular
attention will be paid to the concept of revisionism since some of what the students will
be working with on their project might, in fact, be revisionist in nature. Students will
also be taught about some of the traditional tools of the trade that historians use to share
their research, such as research papers, annotated bibliographies, journal articles, etc.
The purpose of this lecture is to familiarize students with this process of accurate research
methods so that they will understand how to proceed with the upcoming class
project/assessment. (~50-60 mins.)

.
Closure:

Wrap Up Answer any additional questions. Then pass out the instructions for the inclass assignment along with a rubric and give a brief overview of what students will be
expected to do later in the week. Answer any new questions or lingering questions. For
homework, have them start deciding what aspect of World War I they would like to
research and take notes of their ideas in their journals. (~10-20 mins.)
Homework Consider what aspect of WWI you would like to research for our in-class
project and record your ideas in your journals.

Extension/Enrichment/Re-teach:
Extension: Students will be asked to extend their understanding of the information multiple
times throughout the lecture as they consider questions posed by the teacher, their own
questions, and the questions of others. Students will also be required to extend the historical
information they are learning into the conception and completion of their upcoming, in-class
research project.

Enrichment: The lesson is designed so that students with various learning styles will be able
to engage with the content in a way that they feel comfortable information will be
disseminated both visually and orally. Graphic organizers will be utilized as necessary.
Those with learning and other disabilities can be easily accommodated with various learning
aids and additional help as necessary.
Re-teach: Re-teaching will take place every day at the start of the lecture, following the bell
ringer, so that students will be reminded of what was discussed the previous day. It will also
take place throughout the lesson where appropriate and necessary.
Evaluation/Assessment:
Informal Formative Assessments will take place throughout the lecture. As students
engage with the presented material through open discussion with the teacher and other
students and through specific questions asked throughout the lecture their responses,
participation, and engagement levels will be assessed by the teacher.
A Summative Assessment will take place at the end of the week when student journals will
be collected and their responses to the assignment in this lesson as well as others from this
week will be reviewed and graded based upon their level of engagement with the assignment
and the content of their responses. Their homework assignment from this lesson will be
given a grade at that time.
Instructional Materials/Resources/Equipment:
Computer, internet access, speakers.
Compare and Contrast sheet, or other graphic organizers, such as a web diagrams or
content mappers.
White Board, markers, etc.