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Unit Planning Organizer

Subject: Social Studies______________________Grade: Eight_____________

Unit/Topic: Early Middle Ages (7th Century to 10th Century) . .

Date and Unit Duration: Jan 30th- February 27th (19 classes) .

1. Unit Overview Critical Inquiry Question

To what extent did the Early Middle Ages lay the foundations for the periods that
followed? To what extent did the Early Middle Ages effect the world you live in today?
2. General Learning Outcome for Unit
Students are expected to be able to:
- Use Social Studies inquiry processes and skills to ask questions; gather, interpret,
and analyze ideas, and communicate findings and decisions
- Asses sources and information
- Explain different perspectives and make ethical judgements
3. Focusing Questions for Unit (Related Questions)
Which civilization had the biggest impact on the world in the Early Medieval Ages?
Which sources of information from this period are the most reliable?
How do increasingly global networks of this period compare to present-day global
networks?
What kinds of negative consequences can result from a positive event, and what kinds of
positive consequences can result from a negative event?
Who had more influence in the Early Middle Ages, Monarchs or Clergy (Kings/
Emperors or Priests/ Imams)?
How are different groups represented in various cultural narratives?
What lessons can we learn from the loss of languages due to imperialism?
4. Key Concepts for Unit
Expansion, contact and conflicts, human and environmental factors shaping living,
exploration, identity, history and historical perspective, migration, and changing ideas
that bring tension

5. Specific Learning Outcomes for Unit

Knowledge:
Feudal societal structures, labor management, and rights
Religious diffusion throughout the world
Collapse of Empires, Imperialism, and state formation and collapse
Scientific and Technological Inventions
Agriculture
Arab World
Byzantine Empire
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Medieval China

Attitude:
Recognize which causes most influenced particular decisions, actions, or events, and
assess their short-and long-term consequences
Identify what the creators of accounts, narratives, maps, or texts have determined is
significant
Make ethical judgments about past events, decisions, or actions, and assess the
limitations of drawing direct lessons from the past

Skill:
Use Social Studies inquiry processes and skills to ask questions; gather, interpret, and
analyze ideas; and communicate findings and decisions
Assess the significance of people, places, events, or developments at particular times and
places
Assess the credibility of multiple sources and the adequacy of evidence used to justify
conclusions
Characterize different time periods in history, including periods of progress and decline,
and identify key turning points that mark periods of change
Explain different perspectives on past or present people, places, issues, or events, and
compare the values, worldviews, and beliefs of human cultures and societies in different
times and places

Materials:
Course Outline
Pathways: Civilizations Through Time. Michael Cranny
Assessing Resource Worksheet
Project #1 Criteria Sheet: Early Middle Ages Poster
Power Point Presentations on Each Lesson
Total War: Medieval II Game
Exit Slip Paper
Medieval Map and Required Label Sheet
Access to Laptops/ IPads/ Phones

Printed Notes (for those who struggle taking notes)

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Preparation:
Check that all technology (Smartboard and/ or projector) are working properly
Print off 65 (however many students plus a couple spares) copies of each required worksheet or
outline

Print off 12 Sets of Notes per lesson

Adaptations:
Potentially beneficial to have access to laptops or iPads for any learners that may need to move
through the aids at their own pace or with any visual impairments. Also for those students that
have trouble writing or keeping up with note taking. Also maybe have pre-printed notes for those
who struggle with note taking to highlight as we progress through the lesson.

Lesson adaptations might be necessary through time constrictions if discussion or questions take
longer than anticipated, so rather than limiting participation it might be necessary to prioritize
resources and points.

Rationale:
Through a variety of forms students will discover how the past influenced the world we live in
today. I plan that my course will be a game based and project based learning system that will let
students chose topics and methods that interest them and will hopefully increase engagement.
Students will be asked to demonstrate their learning in a variety of forms teaching them
important life skills that will benefit them in the future. My exit slips will focus on developing
their critical thinking and inquiry process rather than remembering strictly names and dates. I
will have test and quizzes throughout the semester but will place and emphasis on assignments
and most importantly projects.

Activities:

Power Point Presentations

Deliverance of curriculum mandated historical content of the course
Feudal societal structures, labor management, and rights
Religious diffusion throughout the world
Collapse of Empires, Imperialism, and state formation and collapse
Scientific and Technological Inventions
Agriculture
Arab World
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Byzantine Empire
Medieval China
Work on listening and note taking

Medieval II
A simulation game where the students are divided up into 6 civilizations that they will control
throughout the semester
Making them informed contributing members of a society
Working on Critical Thinking
Communication
Personal and Social

Exit Slips
In combination with the game after every turn each student writes their own slip telling me not
what moves they made but why they made them
Critical Thinking

Medieval Map
One of the objectives is to compare maps from the Medieval World to maps of the Modern World
Human and environmental factors shape changes

Critically Assessing Sources Worksheet

Explain different perspectives on past people, places, issues, or events
Assess the credibility of multiple sources and the adequacy of evidence used to justify
conclusions

Critically Assessing Sources

Name:
.
Name: Name:

In groups of two or three assess the credibility of each resource.

Source Author Bias/ Primary/ Credibility
Perspective Second
ary
The Iliad Homer? Poetry that is Primary Only primary source
believed to be we have on Trojan
written about War but no other
true events evidence besides
site of Troy and
some issues with
author
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From the
Gracchi to
Nero

Wikipedia

A History of Xenopho
My Times n

The Herodot
Histories us

History of
the
Peloponnes
ian War

The Caesar
Conquest of
Gaul

Eagle
Against the
Sun
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Encyclopedi
a Britannica

Questions/ Comments:

Project #1 Early Medieval Ages Poster

Use Social Studies inquiry processes and skills to ask questions; gather, interpret, and analyze
ideas; and communicate findings and decisions
Assess the significance of people, places, events, or developments at particular times and places
Characterize different time periods in history, including periods of progress and decline, and
identify key turning points that mark periods of change
Explain different perspectives on past or present people, places, issues, or events, and compare
the values, worldviews, and beliefs of human cultures and societies in different times and places
Make ethical judgments about past events, decisions, or actions, and assess the limitations of
drawing direct lessons from the past

SS8 Project #1 Criteria

Early Middle Ages Poster
The Early Middle Ages is upon us and empires have established themselves
all over the world. Surrounding the Mediterranean these six (6) factions; England,
France, The Holy Romans, The Byzantines, The Turks, and Egypt, battle for
supremacy and control. War and expansion costs money and each civilization is in
dire need of more citizens to work the fields, make weapons, and most importantly
fight! It is your job to recruit as many people to your civilization as possible. You
may use facts, exaggerations, and even lies in order to convince people to move to
your civilization, however, you will need to explain where your argument is
factual, exaggerated, biased, entirely false, and with what perspective it was
written.

The types of social class (King, Emperor, Clergy, Merchants, Peasants)

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The abundance of fertile land for farms (close to a river? A lot of rain?)

The threats from neighboring territories (or lack of)

Your peoples strengths

The technologies your people invented

Your poster can include testimonials from important people such as

Charlemagne, Otto (Holy Romans), William the Conqueror, Adrian/ Hadrian I,
Alfred the Great (England), Charles Martel, Charlemagne (France), Heraclius, Leo
III (Byzantines), Abd al-Maik, Abu Muslim, al-Jahiz (The Turks), Abu Muslim,
Abd al-Malik, al-Jahiz (Egypt), or any others from that time period you research
about and deem important.

Be sure to include a title and slogan that will convince people to settle your
civilization like The Holy Roman Empire The Home of Ravioli, The Island of
England The True North Highland, Come Dance in France, Be Boastul in
Constantinople, Rock Your Birks With The Turks, Walk a Mile Around the Nile.
They do not have to rhyme but they do need to sell you land.

Attached to your poster is a 1 page (maximum) long argument where you

explain why you had to convince people to settle in your area (can be typed). Was
life there not really as amazing in the Early Middle Ages as your poster suggested?
Was farming not as easy as your poster made it sound or was there not as much
farmable sound as it suggested? Youre your neighbors liable to attack you or were
your borders well protected/ exposed? Were aspects of your poster slightly
inaccurate, exagerated or even entirely fabricated? With what perspective/bias was
your poster created?

You will be marked using the following rubric:

Criteria 10 8 75 42 1 0 Limited
Excellent Proficient Basic
Creative Produces an Produces a Produces a Produces a
Thinking elaborate and detailed and general vague or
engaging interesting message confusing
message message message
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Visual and Presents in a Presents in a Presents in a Presents in a
Written way that is way that is way that is way that is
Literacy persuasive and mostly credible logical and has unhelpful and
has a purpose and has a a purpose that confusing and
that is clear purpose that is is somewhat does not show
mostly clear evident purpose
Historical and Builds an Builds an Builds an Builds an
Critical insightful and informative and argument inaccurate and
Thinking historically realistic based on ineffective
accurate argument common argument
argument knowledge

Total /30

Quiz #1
Feudal societal structures, labor management, and rights
Religious diffusion throughout the world
Collapse of Empires, Imperialism, and state formation and collapse
Scientific and Technological Inventions
Agriculture
Arab World
Byzantine Empire
Medieval China

First Weeks Lesson Plans

Grade 8: Social Studies Lesson Plan #2

Activity: Resource Evaluation

Goals/Key questions
What type of resource should be considered as more accurate and why?
What issues could influence the credibility of a resource?
This lesson will meet the overall goal by: Introducing students to the what critical
thinking is and how to utilize the process. Showing my class affective research methods
and discussing credibility of sources. The difference between primary and secondary
resources and the influence that perspective and bias might have on the accuracy of a
resource and why this is important to their own research and life.
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Objective (connected to PofS): To create informed citizens that are equipped with the abilities
and skills need to produce their own valid conclusions and opinions.
Prescribe Learning Outcomes:
Gather and organize a body of information from primary and secondary print and non-
print sources, including electronic sources
Interpret and evaluate a variety of primary and secondary sources
Pre lesson Considerations
Lesson overview of main ideas to be learned and prelearning required:
The value of thinking for themselves
Materials needed/preset up required/logistical considerations needed (seating
arrangement):
SMARTBoard
PowerPoint on Critical Thinking
Source Examples (Books, Magazines, Websites, Journals, Images, etc.)
Primary/ Secondary Resource Worksheet

Content:
What is the teacher doing? What are the students doing?

Display question what Volunteering to answer questions

Lesson Part 1 is critical thinking? listening
And ask students the
same
Time estimation: Begin PowerPoint
10-15 min presentation and
discuss the critical
thinking process, what
an argument is, what
fallacies might exist in
an argument,
credibility, and
accuracy
Ask if anyone can
define bias
Ask if anyone can tell
me what a perspective
is? And why it might
be relevant in
influencing my own
decisions?
Connect to primary/
secondary source
Ex. Thucydides
Histories was written
by him, an Athenian
General, about the
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course of the
Peloponnesian
Does anyone know
what the
Peloponnesian War
was?
War between Sparta
and Athens which
Thucydides fought in
for Athenian
So what issues might
arise when using his
book as a source of
information on the
war?
Write down what the
students come up with
during this process
Handout worksheets Volunteering to handout
Transition Explain how it works, worksheets
considerations you can use phone to Asking questions
research; what the
Time est: 5 mins book is, when it was
written, who is was
written by, what
possible bias or
perspective the author
might have, etc.
Circulate and help Working on their worksheets
Activity where needed
Get to know students
Time est:
10-15 min

Collect worksheets Handing in worksheets

Conclusion Ask them who can tell Answering questions
me what critical
Time est: thinking is?
2-3 min What is a bias?
What is an argument?

Assessment: Formative/Summative
Observation and conversation
Volunteers to answer questions
Collection of worksheet

Reflection (Any accommodations/Modifications?)

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Grade 8: Social Studies Lesson Plan #3
Activity: Rock, Paper, Scissors, Conquest

Goals/Key questions
What makes a civilization civilized?
What are the issues surrounding the proposed theories of the first civilization and the
spread from there?
This lesson will meet the overall goal by: Asking students to critically think about the
proposed theories for the first civilization and how it spread. Introducing them to the
Cradle of Civilization and the Fertile Crescent, Mesopotamia, and Egypt. Highlight the
fact that it is not one archaeological site linked to first civilization but many. Presenting
conflicting theories that spread from Fertile Crescent or civilization began independently
in multiple areas. Connecting the potential that civilization spread through exploration,
expansion, trade, and conquest.
Objective (connected to PofS): To create informed citizens that are equipped with the abilities
and skills need to produce their own valid conclusions and opinions.
Prescribe Learning Outcomes:
Gather and organize a body of information from primary and secondary print and non-
print sources, including electronic sources
Interpret and evaluate a variety of primary and secondary sources
Assess a variety of positions on controversial issues
Describe how societies preserve identity, transmit culture, and adapt to change
Pre lesson Considerations
Materials needed/preset up required/logistical considerations needed (seating
arrangement):
SMARTBoard
PowerPoint on First Civilizations
Source Examples (Books, Magazines, Websites, Journals, Images, etc.)
Primary/ Secondary Resource Worksheet

Content:
What is the teacher doing? What are the students doing?

Does anybody know Volunteering to answer

Lesson Part 1 where the first questions
civilization was? Is Listening
this a trick question?
Time estimation: 20-25 Not first homo
min sapiens but
civilization? Is there
only one right answer
Begin PowerPoint
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presentation on first
civilization(s)
Tell them about the
theory of the spread
from Fertile Crescent
Ask if anyone sees
any issue with this
theory?
Tell them about
theory of multiple
first civilizations,
Fertile Crescent,
Egypt, Mesopotamia
Ask if anyone sees
any problems with
this theory
How can one idea or
characteristic appear
in two places at one?
Contact?
Coincidence?
Brainstorm what
makes a civilization
civilized.
- Central government
- Organized religion
- Social classes
- Art and architecture
- Cities
- Labor divisions
- Writing
- Infrastructure
Explain how rock, Asking questions
Transition paper, scissors, Getting ready to start
considerations conquest works, rock
paper scissors but
Time est: 5 mins winner absorbs loser
into fan club

Circulate and help Playing the game
Activity where needed
Play if odd number
Time est:
3-7 min Get to know students

Ask students to find Answering questions

Transition seats
considerations
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Time est:
1-2 min

Discuss how the Answering questions

Conclusion/Activity game made them feel. Handing out Resource
Winner? Losers? worksheets
Time est:
10-15 min How can contact Working
transfer ideas?
Any questions?
Hand back Resource
Worksheet

Assessment: Formative/Summative
Observation and conversation
Volunteers to answer questions
Collection of worksheet

Reflection (Any accommodations/Modifications?)

Grade 8: Social Studies Lesson Plan #4

Activity: Asses and Evaluate Artifacts

Goals/Key questions
To what extent did the geographical features influence the establishment of Egypt and its
growth into a civilization?
This lesson will meet the overall goal by:
Recapping what we learned about the proposed theories for the first civilization and how
it spread and the Cradle of Civilization and the Fertile Crescent, Mesopotamia, and
Egypt
Showing the students how Egypt began and rose in power and why its surroundings were
so important to its survival and growth
Showing students the conflicting theories about Egypts history from most probable to
alien intervention
Asking them to discover the most valid theory by conducting their own research
Objective (connected to PofS): To create informed citizens that are equipped with the abilities
and skills need to produce their own valid conclusions and opinions.
Prescribe Learning Outcomes:
Gather and organize a body of information from primary and secondary print and non-
print sources, including electronic sources
Interpret and evaluate a variety of primary and secondary sources
Assess a variety of positions on controversial issues
Identify factors that influence the development and decline of world civilizations
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Pre lesson Considerations
Materials needed/preset up required/logistical considerations needed (seating
arrangement):
SMARTBoard
PowerPoint on Ancient Egypt
Source Examples (Books, Magazines, Websites, Journals, Images, etc.)
Egyptian Theories Worksheet

Content:
What is the teacher doing? What are the students doing?

Recap what we learned Volunteering to answer questions

Lesson Part 1 about critical thinking Listening
and the first
civilization(s)Does
Time estimation: anybody know where
20-25 min the first civilization
was?
Begin PowerPoint
presentation on
Ancient Egypt
Tell them about the
theories of the rise of
civilization and culture
around Egypt
Describe the resources
that made it possible to
sustain a population in
the middle of a desert
How is it possible for a
deserted culture to
become a civilization?
Contact or coincidence
Outside influence or
Alien intervention?
Explain how the Asking questions
Transition activity works, fill in Getting ready to work
considerations primary/ secondary
resource, potential
Time est: 5-8 mins cautions, perspectives
it has/ could create,
theory or fact, support
or hinder
Hand out Artifact
Assessment sheet
Circulate and help Working
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Activity where needed
Get to know students
Time est:
15-20 min

Ask students what Answering questions

Conclusion contribute to Egypt be Submitting Artifact Assessment
founded where it was?
Time est: Why did it grow into
3-5 min an advanced
civilization?

Assessment: Formative/Summative
Observation and conversation
Volunteers to answer questions
Collection of worksheet

Reflection (Any accommodations/Modifications?)