Spain Conquers MexicoThis lesson will focus on Spanish conquerors and how they were able to defeat the Aztec using horses and guns. We will look at how the lives of Native Americans changed due to the invasion of Europeans.
|
Goals & Objectives |
Goals
Objectives
|
California State Content Standards |
|
Common Core Literacy Standards |
|
Driving Historical Question
|
|
Lesson Introduction (Anticipatory Set/Hook/Accessing Prior Knowledge) ‖ Time: 10 minutes
First Day
I ask the class to explain what they know about the arrival of Europeans to the Americas. I will ask students to discuss their ideas with a partner. Pairing students during class discussions encourages verbal communication, which is a good tool for helping English Learners (EL) with language acquisition by practicing speaking and hearing how mainstream students speak. Also, students—not just ELs—benefit greatly when they are engaged by discussing ideas. When students are given the opportunity to discuss their own ideas they also clarify misconceptions that they may have. Starting this lesson with questions will help activate student’s prior knowledge about the Europeans’ first time in the Americas. My job will be to ask questions that will require the student to think more in depth. The other students also learn from the discussion between me and a student. Additionally, by having a class discussion, I will be able to assess student’s entry level knowledge and clarify misconception and/or add to what they already know. After the class discussion, I will show two pictures side to side in an overhead projector depicting Native Americans in their environment before and after Europeans. I will ask students to examine the pictures without writing or speaking. The students will be asked to examine and gather their thoughts about the picture quietly for about 30 seconds. This will allow the students to focus on thinking and analyzing the pictures without any interruption. After the 30 seconds, I will let the students know that they can start writing, brainstorming, or even drawing their thoughts. The goal of this exercise is to have students express their ideas and thoughts about the pictures however they prefer right away. The driving question will be: based on the pictures, how do you think life changed for Native Americans after the arrival of Europeans? How do these pictures help change your perception or ideas about what you already knew? I let the students know to be prepared to share their answers with the class.
Second Day
First, I will restate the learning objectives so students know what they will learn. Then, I will review key concepts and ideas discussed the day before in an attempt to get students thinking about what they learned yesterday. I will also talk about the worksheet and their questions. And finally, before I start with my presentation, I will briefly review the vocabulary so students remember it before my presentation.
I ask the class to explain what they know about the arrival of Europeans to the Americas. I will ask students to discuss their ideas with a partner. Pairing students during class discussions encourages verbal communication, which is a good tool for helping English Learners (EL) with language acquisition by practicing speaking and hearing how mainstream students speak. Also, students—not just ELs—benefit greatly when they are engaged by discussing ideas. When students are given the opportunity to discuss their own ideas they also clarify misconceptions that they may have. Starting this lesson with questions will help activate student’s prior knowledge about the Europeans’ first time in the Americas. My job will be to ask questions that will require the student to think more in depth. The other students also learn from the discussion between me and a student. Additionally, by having a class discussion, I will be able to assess student’s entry level knowledge and clarify misconception and/or add to what they already know. After the class discussion, I will show two pictures side to side in an overhead projector depicting Native Americans in their environment before and after Europeans. I will ask students to examine the pictures without writing or speaking. The students will be asked to examine and gather their thoughts about the picture quietly for about 30 seconds. This will allow the students to focus on thinking and analyzing the pictures without any interruption. After the 30 seconds, I will let the students know that they can start writing, brainstorming, or even drawing their thoughts. The goal of this exercise is to have students express their ideas and thoughts about the pictures however they prefer right away. The driving question will be: based on the pictures, how do you think life changed for Native Americans after the arrival of Europeans? How do these pictures help change your perception or ideas about what you already knew? I let the students know to be prepared to share their answers with the class.
Second Day
First, I will restate the learning objectives so students know what they will learn. Then, I will review key concepts and ideas discussed the day before in an attempt to get students thinking about what they learned yesterday. I will also talk about the worksheet and their questions. And finally, before I start with my presentation, I will briefly review the vocabulary so students remember it before my presentation.
Vocabulary (Content Language Development) ‖ Time: 5 minutes (only the first day)
The vocabulary will be assigned as a homework the day before the lesson. Students will look for each word in their textbook’s glossary. Then, they have to write each word’s definition, copy a sentence from the book so they see the word in context, and finally, students write in their own words what each word means to them and write a sentence using the word. With the help of an overhead projector, I will briefly discuss each vocabulary word with related images to help ELs and Students with Special Needs (SSN). I will ask for volunteers to read sentences using the words. Also, I will provide a copy of the vocabulary and related images to SSN and ELs just to make sure that they have the vocabulary.
Content Delivery (Method of Instruction) ‖ Time: 25 (the first day)
For this lesson, students will read two sections of the textbook. The first section is about the arrival of Columbus in America, which will give students a brief background knowledge about the arrival of Europeans to the Americas (pages 471–72), and the second section is about Hernan Cortes and how he invaded Mexico (pages 472-74).
First Day First, I will have the students review the section by looking at the headings, subheadings, and images. This helps give the students an idea about the content before they start reading. Then, I will provide a “Reading Your Textbook” worksheet that will help students focus on the reading and comprehend the content better. By using the reading your textbook worksheet, the students read the textbook, they work on a core activity where they select important people and events, generate questions about and reactions to the excerpt, and analyze images in the text. They use questions from the reading your textbook sheet to guide their responses. To formative assess students’ progress toward the learning goals, I walk around the room assessing students understanding of the task and overall performance during the activity by listening to student’s discussion and clarifying misconceptions, if any. I collect and read student responses of the activity. I will use student work to create a presentation for the next day. The presentation will consist mainly on terms the students thought were important; questions they had; and examples of different images of the conquest of Mexico. Second Day Teacher’s input (20 minutes): the presentation will be short and to the point, with very limited text—which will be based on concepts and ideas aimed to explain terms and questions the students thought were important. My goal is to establish a class discussion where students ask and answer each other questions, and not a lecture where students will just sit and listen to me the whole time. The presentation will be more of a supplemental tool. I will focus on points that caught students’ attention and key concepts that will help develop historical understanding necessary to reach the learning goals. In addition, I will handout prompts discussion created from student responses from the worksheet. |
Reading Your Textbook Worksheet
|
Student Engagement (Critical Thinking & Student Activities) ‖ Time: the activities are incorporated throughout the two-day lesson.
Students will participate in class discussions during both days of the lesson. The discussions will be prompted by critical thinking questions that students will discuss in pairs first to then share with the class. Students will share sentences that they create using vocabulary words. Also, students will analyze two Different Pictures showing Native Americans before and after Europeans. Students will make inferences about how life changed for Native Americans after the arrival of Europeans in America, which they will share in a class discussion. Additionally, students will learn to view the textbook as a “point-of-departure” for historical inquiry by reading the text without having to answer any questions from the teacher or the textbook. During the reading, students will generate their own questions guided by a Reading Your Textbook Worksheet. And lastly, as a summative assessment, students will create a Cause and Effect Diagram to show the reasons Cortes was able to conquer the Aztec.
Cause and Effect Diagram
Lesson Closure ‖ Time: 5 minutes
First Day
Journal Entry – students will write two things they learned in the today’s reading (about 1 minute). Then, I will collect the "Reading Your Textbook" worksheet. I will review key points discussed in class discussions and vocabulary. And finally, I will preview tomorrow’s lesson and what the students can expect to see in tomorrow’s presentation, such as vocabulary words and questions that I will get from their Worksheet (about 4 minutes).
Second Day
Fishbowl – students will write one question they have about how Spain conquered Mexico or the life of Native Americans after the arrival of Europeans. I will encourage them to ask something they think they know the answer, or for which they want an answer. Students will share question with the person in front of them to see if they know the answer, then, they will switch who is asking question. If there is enough time, the student will rotate to a new partner.
Journal Entry – students will write two things they learned in the today’s reading (about 1 minute). Then, I will collect the "Reading Your Textbook" worksheet. I will review key points discussed in class discussions and vocabulary. And finally, I will preview tomorrow’s lesson and what the students can expect to see in tomorrow’s presentation, such as vocabulary words and questions that I will get from their Worksheet (about 4 minutes).
Second Day
Fishbowl – students will write one question they have about how Spain conquered Mexico or the life of Native Americans after the arrival of Europeans. I will encourage them to ask something they think they know the answer, or for which they want an answer. Students will share question with the person in front of them to see if they know the answer, then, they will switch who is asking question. If there is enough time, the student will rotate to a new partner.
Assessments (Formative & Summative)
Formative Assessment (during the class introduction – first day) - in a class discussion, students will share their inferences about comparing and contrasting Two Pictures of Native Americans in their environment before and after the arrival of Europeans in America. Students will demonstrate what they know about the drastic change in the lives of Native Americans by discussing reliable evidence that support their argument. The discussion will allow for misconceptions to be shared and clarified by the teacher. This will allow the teacher to help students reach the learning goal – students will be able to compose an argument about how they think the Native Americans’ status changed. Also, I will check for student’s understanding and progress toward the learning goals throughout the two-day lesson by having students participating in the class discussions that explained above.
Summative Assessment (10 minutes – after teacher’s input) – individually, students will create a Cause and Effect Diagram to show the reasons Cortes was able to conquer the Aztec. By working individually, students will demonstrate whether they really achieved the learning goal or not – students will be able to explain how Cortes defeated the Aztec. The teacher will collect the diagrams and grade them, which will enable him to know if students reached the learning goal. Teacher will provide feedback the next day.
Summative Assessment (10 minutes – after teacher’s input) – individually, students will create a Cause and Effect Diagram to show the reasons Cortes was able to conquer the Aztec. By working individually, students will demonstrate whether they really achieved the learning goal or not – students will be able to explain how Cortes defeated the Aztec. The teacher will collect the diagrams and grade them, which will enable him to know if students reached the learning goal. Teacher will provide feedback the next day.
Accommodations for English Learners, Striving Readers and Students with Special Needs
I will provide handouts of The Vocabulary with related images to ELs and SSN after I explain it and demonstrate it on the overhead projector. The vocabulary handout will provide these students with the definition, a sentence from the book, and a related image for each word, just in case they did not finish the vocabulary because they did not understand the task or because it was too hard for them. I will also provide a handout with bullet points of the presentation to ELs, SSN, and Striving Readers. Also, students work in pairs in all class activities, except for the summative assessment. ELs are either paired with a mainstream student or with a student who speaks his or her native language. And finally, I think that the Reading Your Textbook worksheet is a great tool to help ALL students learn with textbooks – ELs, SSN, Striving Readers and mainstream students.