EGP 335

Lesson Plan
Lesson Title: Trail of Tears
Day Number: 5
Author: Ashley Pyle
Unit: Houghton Mifflin
Grade Level: 3rd
Background Information
During this lesson students will be introduced to the Trail of Tears, who was involved, and what the
outcome was. They watch a video and take notes on the event as well as create a reenactment.
Expected Duration 60 minutes
Concepts
o Cherokee Indians
o Trail of Tears
Vocabulary
o Trail of Tears
o Resist
o Congress
Skills
o Active listening
o Discussion
o Analyzing
o Creative-problem solving
1.1 Integration of Learning Outcomes/Objectives
Students will watch and analyze a short video of the Trail of Tears.
Students will organize facts of the video into a 5 Ws worksheet.
Students will demonstrate creative and respectful problem solving techniques when reenacting
the Trail of Tears.
1.2 Standards PA Civics, History, Economics, Geography & NCSS Themes I-X
PA Standards
History: 8.1.4.C: Identify a specific research topic and develop questions relating to the research
topic. (Reference RWSL Standard 1.8.3 Research)
History: 8.2.4.D: Distinguish between conflict and cooperation among groups and organization
that impacted the history and development of Pennsylvania
Civics and Government: 5.2.4.B: Describe the sources of conflict and disagreement and
different ways conflict can be resolved.
Economics: 6.1.4.D: Explain what influences the choices people make
Geography: 7.3.4.A: Identify the human characteristics of places and regions using the
following criteria:

Population

Culture

Settlement

Economic activities

Political activities

NCSS
Standard 2 Time Continuity and Change
NCSS.1.2.b demonstrate an ability to use correctly vocabulary associated with time such
as past, present, future, and long ago; read and construct simple timelines; identify
examples of change; and recognize examples of cause and effect relationships.
Standard 4: Individual Development and Identity
NCSS.1.4.g analyze a particular event to identify reasons individuals might respond to it
in different ways.
NCSS.1.4.h work independently and cooperatively within groups and institutions to
accomplish goals.
1.3 Anticipatory Set
To start the teacher can say, Yesterday we learned all about the Cherokee Indians. Today we are going to
learn about a very long journey the Cherokee faced when they were forced to leave their land.
The students will watch a short video on the Trail of Tears to give them the background knowledge they
will need for the activity. Pause when the video talks about resisting and congress and go over those
vocab words. They will be asked to pay close attention and take notes on anything they find important.
The video will be paused at a few points to make time for discussion and questions.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Q5Z4UUitdU)
Questions include:
So who forced the Cherokee Indians to leave their land?
How do you think the Cherokee felt when they were being forced to leave their land?
How could the settlers have handled the situation differently?
1.4 Procedures
Once the students have watched the Trail of Tears video and all questions have been answered,
they will have five to ten minutes to fill out the 5 Ws chart regarding the video. (Who was
involved, What the event was, Where it took place, When it took place, and Why it happened).
Once the students have completed the worksheet, they will turn to a partner and discuss their
answers. We will then review as a class to make sure everyone gets the concept of the Trail of
Tears and we can move on.
Since Andrew Jackson was only talked about a little bit in the video, tell the students that he was
the 7th president of the United States. He was nominated in 1824.
Teacher will transition and say today we are going to be reenacting the Trail of Tears.
As a class we will brainstorm the possible roles for the reenactment.
o Settlers
o Natives (Cherokees)
o Narrator
o Andrew Jackson (President)

Teacher will have a list of predetermined roles for the students in order to differentiate
instruction. The students skills and abilities will determine which role they receive.
Once roles are determined, as a class we will put together a script for the students to go off of.
The teacher will have a list of certain things that are needed in the script so that the key points are
met even if the students do not think of them themselves. For example: The Cherokee Indians
start off on the land but in 1838 and 1839 Andrew Jackson put in place the Indian Removal
Policy. The settlers took the land and the Cherokee were forced to leave their land and travel
thousands of miles to what is now Oklahoma. Have these key points in mind but allow the
children to come up with dialogue.
Once the script is prepared and agreed on by the class, the settlers and natives will have a few
minutes within their groups to practice their parts while the narrator and Andrew Jackson can
practice their parts individually.
After around ten minutes, we will all come together.
The reenactment will take place in the middle of the classrooms so all desks will have to be
moved in order to create room.
The students will use their script and their own knowledge to reenact the Trail of Tears.
Once the reenactment is completed we will put all the desks back to their original spots.

1.5 Differentiation
For Gifted Students: For gifted students, they will be asked higher order questions from the
teacher such as did the settlers have a right to force the natives out of their land? Why or why
not? They will also be given roles that challenge their abilities.
For ELL Students: The video is relatively simple but for ELL students the teacher will summarize
the video in terms he/she can understand. The vocab words will remain the same but the
definitions will also be placed into terms more easily understood. If that is not enough, the vocab
words will be written in their native language as well as English and pictures will be included.
These students will also be given roles that work with their skills and abilities.
1.6 Closure
Once the students have completed their reenactment, they will be in charge of moving all of their desks
back to the spot they belong. Once they are all seated again, the students will be asked to pull out a piece
of paper to use as their exit ticket. On this exit ticket, the students will have to write 3-5 sentences about
the Trail of Tears. They can write anything they want as long as it is related to the topic such as what they
thought the most interesting part was, how they felt after learning about the Trail of Tears, how they
believe the natives felt about their journey, etc. Once the students are finished with their exit ticket the
teacher will say I was very proud of the way you worked together today to reenact a very difficult event
in history. You used great communication and problem solving skills as a class to come up with an
awesome script! Tomorrow we will take a look into the lives of a different Indian tribe but make sure to
remember everything you learned about the Cherokee.
1.7 Formative/Summative Assessment of Students (P-12)
Formative assessment will occur throughout the lesson through teacher observation. The teacher will walk
around as the students are filling out their charts to see what types of responses the students are giving.
They will listen in to the partner conversations as well to make sure every student has an understanding of
the topic. During the reenactment the teacher will check for participation in all students.
1.8 Materials/Equipment/Resources
A. STUDENT MATERIALS/ READING RESOURCES:

Short video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Q5Z4UUitdU

Popsicle sticks with students names
5 Ws chart for each student

1.9 Technology
Smart board or projector will be needed to watch the video of the Trail of Tears.
2.1 Reflection on Planning
This lesson is very hands-on and something I think the students will enjoy doing but definitely took a lot
of time to come up with. Many ideas are transformed into one lesson in order to meet all the learning
needs of different students.
Something that concerns me about this lesson would be the students who are shy in the class or do not
easily communicate in English (ELL learners). It would be easy to allow them to play a non-vital role in
the reenactment but then you cannot see what they really understand about the Trail of Tears. In order to
make sure they are on the same page as everyone else in the class they would need extra individual
assistance when completing the chart. The exit ticket will also be a good way to see where they are with
their understanding.
I really enjoy how this lesson meets the needs of many different learners. It reaches visual learners by the
use of the video and also watching as the reenactment unfolds. It reaches the needs of auditory learners
because they have to listen to the video, their partner when they are discussing the charts, and the class as
the reenactment is taking place. It also reaches the kinesthetic learners because instead of being lectured
about the Trail of Tears they are demonstrating it themselves and using a more hands-on approach.
Content Analysis Information:
Cherokee History:
They lived in the South for thousands of years but the European settlers changed their way of life. By the
1820s, the Cherokees and the settlers began fighting over land and other resources. In the 1830s, the
United States forces the Cherokee Indians to leave their homes and head west towards Oklahoma. (They
were forced to leave when gold was discovered.) They traveled hundreds of miles and over 4,000
Cherokee died. This is called the Trail of Tears.

The Cherokee Today:

Today the Cherokee live in Oklahoma, North Carolina and other parts of the country. They value their
history and their traditions such as special food, dances, and crafts. in 1985, Wilma Mankiller became the
first woman leader of the Cherokee Nation and carried on the tradition of strong leaders.

Name________________________________________
Date_________________

WHO?

WHERE?

WHAT?

5 Ws

WHEN?

WHY?

Name_________________________________________

Date___________________

EXIT TICKET
Write 3-5 sentences on the Trail of Tears. If you need help figuring out what
to write, think about these questions: What did you find most interesting?
How do you think the natives felt about being forced out of their land? How
would this make you feel?

Name_________________________________________

EXIT TICKET

Date___________________

Write 3-5 sentences on the Trail of Tears. If you need help figuring out what
to write, think about these questions: What did you find most interesting?
How do you think the natives felt about being forced out of their land? How
would this make you feel?