ww2 Lesson
ww2 Lesson
ww2 Lesson
Student /Classroom Demographics: Many different cultures and races present in the class. Majority of the class is boys. This
class contains a high percentage of students with behavioral and learning disabilities. Wide range of lexile levels.
War is a result of prior events. How did World War 2 change America?
Skills: What students should be able to do….(2-3) Students will fill in a timeline with the main events of WW2.
The events will be listed by letter and the student needs to fill
Discuss the causation of events during WW2 with in the blank in the correct order. Students will need to think
classmates in a small group of the cause and effect of each event to complete this activity.
discussion. Summative, Performance
Organize important facts, thoughts and emotions After the lesson the students will fill in a web diagram of the
most important events and the players. (Allied and Axis
from each major event during
powers, D-Day, Holocaust, Pearl Harbor). They should
WW2 into a web diagram. include facts that were important to them as well as emotions
or thoughts they had about the topic.- Formative
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STAGE THREE: Learning for Understanding/ Instructional Activities
Learning Activities and Strategies:
Instructional activities should lead to meeting the Objectives above.
Pre-Requisites: What is the prior knowledge students have to have before starting this lesson?
It will help students to know the events leading up to WW2 (WW1 and the Great Depression). Students need to know the
idea of cause and effect. They need to know how to fill out a timeline (direction, dates). Students should also be familiar
with a web diagram.
Overview/Introduction/Hook (Make a connection with students’ backgrounds using an authentic situation to start them
thinking about the objectives and the essential question the lesson addresses.)
I will start the lesson by gauging what students already know about World War 2 through a guessing game. I will have a
sheet of paper with facts about WW2. Students need to guess what the event is by understanding the facts. The facts will
go from hardest to easiest in relating them to WW2. This will also be the hook because the facts are intended to get
students interested in what the event was and what happened.
Closure: Bring it all together with the focus of the lesson and the Objective. Tie the closure for each lesson in with the
Hook, the Objective, and the Essential Question.
To close the lesson, students will take out their social studies journals to make a web diagram of what they
consider the major events of World War 2. Under the major events, the students should include important facts,
thoughts and emotions they relate to the event.
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Reflection
Instructions: Respond to the following questions:
~How did the lesson go?
The lesson went extremely well. The kids were engaged, they enjoyed asking questions, and almost everyone participated
in the activities. I enjoyed teaching the lesson and I was impressed with how the students’ work turned out.
~Were there any unexpected events? How effectively did you respond?
On this day I had planned to teach them a science lesson in the morning and a social studies lesson in the afternoon. Upon
starting the science lesson, the internet would not cooperate. With quick action I switched the lessons and started my
social studies lesson. I was happy with how well it turned out despite the quick unplanned start.
~Comment on one student who did particularly well and one who did not meet your
expectations.
The web diagrams were not collected because they were written in their social studies journals. However I did spend my
time walking around the room and glancing at their work. Most students had a really good start filling out the diagram.
The difficult part was associating a feeling with an event or power so only a few kids were able to connect an emotion to
an event. Of the few I captured in picture, I was really happy with Merita. All of her facts are correct and she is able to
associate a feeling with the events and powers.
Another student, Connor, is difficult to get engaged in lessons and even more difficult to have him complete written work.
I was happily surprised that he engaged in discussions during the lesson. However, at the end he chose not to make a web
diagram in his journal. I asked him some basic questions about the lesson and he was able to answer them. While he did
not show his learning with written work, I was satisfied that he learned the necessary information.
~Why did this happen? What can you do to follow up with the student who did not do well.
In Connor’s situation I could have asked that he complete one or two events. Connor does not do work when he feels
overwhelmed by the amount of work. I should have went over to Connor once students started working and ask him if he
could attempt one or two of the events for me.
~Are there any changes you would make in this lesson if you could do it again? Why?
The only change that my host teacher suggested was that I call on the students who don’t participate in the discussion.
Many high performing students know the answers but choose not to participate.
The historical documents and the original format for the thesis worksheet came from:
Garcia, J., & Harley, S. (1995). One nation many people. Paramus, NJ: Globe Fearon.
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Student Examples