VIEW
EDIT
Lesson Plan Guidelines and Design 2011
CI513 Instruction and Technology Lesson Planning Guide
Name(s): Laura Freeman
Age/Grade Level: 7th or 8th Grade
Subject Area(s): Social Studies
Unit: The Middle Ages: A Young Adult Perspective
Topic: The Middle Ages
Time Allotted: One ninety minute class period
Preparation:
Purpose/rationale for the lesson: Why are you teaching this lesson?
This lesson will introduce students to the Middle Ages through exploration of medieval vocabulary. Students will
be given a chance to research vocabulary as a group and then present their findings to the class through a visual
representation. This lesson is important, because it allows students to begin thinking about what life was like
during the Middle Ages. The vocabulary has been taken from the text for this unit, Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!,
so students will encounter it multiple times throughout the course of the unit. Also, because much of the
vocabulary concerns the types of jobs people had in the Middle Ages, it will provide a base understanding for
when students are asked to pick out what character they would like to study for the remainder of the unit.
What curriculum framing question or essential question is addressed in this lesson?
How does society shape the individual?
What district, state or national curriculum standard(s) will you target in this lesson?
SS.08.HS.05.05 Understand the major developments and societal impact of feudalism, the
church, and the rise of cities in the European Middle Ages.
Prior Knowledge/Background Information: What concepts and/or skills do students
need to have in order to be successful in this lesson
Students need to:

Have experience using tableau.

Know how to work cooperatively in groups.

Comprehend the previous unit: The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire

Understand how to use a text in order to locate a specific definition of a word.
Learning Objectives for the lesson: What do you expect learners to know and/or
accomplish as a result of participating in this lesson? How are you incorporating
higher order thinking?
Students will be able to:

Define given medieval vocabulary.

Provide a visual explanation of vocabulary using tableau.

Begin thinking about what life was like in the Middle Ages for certain characters.

Understand the importance of careers in the Middle Ages, and the importance of how
occupation defines the individual at this point in history.
Key Concept(s): What concepts (related to content and/or process) will students
encounter as a result of this lesson?

The importance of occupation in the Middle Ages.

The various terms and words used to define people and things in the Middle Ages.

How to successfully work in a group to convey a message.
Key Question(s): What questions/prompts will you build into your lesson plan to
foster student engagement and higher order thinking?

What job would you want to have in the Middle Ages? Why?

What types of facial expressions would someone have in the Middle Ages if they were a
villien, lord, or falconer?

What was someone your age doing in the Middle Ages?

Does your job define who you are as a person?
Materials/Resources Needed:

Word search handout (one for each student, 25)

Vocabulary handout (one for each student, 25)

Vocabulary answer key (one for the teacher)

Tableau instructional handout (one for each group, 5)

Resource books on the Middle Ages (approximately 15)

The book Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! by Laura Schlitz (one for each student and one
for instructor. 26)

Computer

Projector

PowerPoint slides
Procedures:Overview of the lesson and time estimate for each component.
Include expanded descriptions of what the teacher and students are
doing.
Hook or Anticipatory Set: Introduction - how will you ‘grab’ students’ attention and get them ‘set’ for
learning?
As a hook, I have decided to use a word search of the vocabulary they will be encountering. This is a great
introduction, because it is a low pressure activity. Also, the fact that students are not working together for the
portion of the lesson allows students to calm down and focus on the task at hand.
Body of the lesson: Major items or activities in the order they will occur.
Intro/Look Back:
1. (5 minutes). T: Welcome good masters and sweet ladies! Last week we saw the fall of
the mighty Roman Empire, and now we will be moving on to Europe’s Middle Ages.
Specifically, we are going to examine what daily life was like in a medieval village. Our
studies will center around Laura Amy Schlitz’s book “Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!,” but
before you are given the text, and learn a little more about it, we are going to start
with an activity.
Through
2. (10 Minutes). Pass out word search. Allow ten minutes for students to find the
vocabulary. At the end of ten minutes tell students it is alright if they have not found
all the words, and they can always continue searching if they have any free time later.
If time, teacher can ask student how many of them managed to find more than five,
ten, fifteen, etc., by a show of hands.
3. (5 Minutes). Divide the class into five groups; each group will have five members. This
will be done by going around the classroom and numbering students one through five.
4. (5 Minutes). Divide the vocabulary from the word search among the groups. One group
will only be responsible for three words. Pass out pile of books to students each group
will have three or four sources to use for finding answers.
Teacher will have already
gone through books and make sure words can be found in books. The words they
research depend on what stack of books they receive.
a. T: As a group, I want you to come up with definitions for the each of the
words you are responsible for finding. Write the words along with the
definitions down on a piece of paper. This paper will be handed to the
instructor, so make sure it is legible. Once you have found all the
definitions please raise your hand and I will come and collect the group
paper. We will then be shifting into one of the class’s favorite activities—
tableau.
5. (35 Minutes). Allows students to research. Teacher will walk around the room to make
sure that students are staying on track. Teacher will also make sure to answer any
questions and provide guidance and hints if needed.
a. Possible leading questions:
i. Have you already checked the index?
ii. Some books have a glossary?
iii. What can the chapter titles tell you?
iv. Browse through the pictures, do any of them seem to be related to
the word you are trying to find?
When each group finishes, instructor will take definitions and give tableau handout. Students
will be asked to think about what word they would like to represent through a tableau.
6. (5 minutes). Teacher gets the attention of the entire class. T: It appears that everyone
has finished with their research. Great job and thank you for staying on task. Your
group is now in charge of using one vocabulary word to create a tableau. We all have
done tableaus in the past, but I have handed out a reminder of key points to consider
while composing your tableau. You have five minutes to work before sharing with the
class.
7. (15 minutes). Students are asked to share their tableau with the rest of the class. Each
group has told the instructor the word they will be using, and the instructor puts the
definition and the word on a PowerPoint slide while the students are preparing to share
their tableau. During each tableau the instructor asks the viewing students:
a.
What is going on in the scene?
b. Are different levels being used?
c.
What is the focal point?
d. Are the students displaying strong emotions?
e. Is there any tension between tableau characters?
f.
What do you think the word might be?
At the end of each tableau the instructor will display the word and definition on the projector
using the PowerPoint slides.
Beyond
8. (10 minutes). Hand out texts. T: Thank you for sharing your creative and entertaining
tableaus. The vocabulary you have been using was not randomly selected, but was
taken from your text for this unit. We will be using Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! by
Laura Amy Schlitz. Ms. Schlitz is a librarian, playwright , and storyteller who created
this book of medieval monologues for her school when she saw that there was nothing
like it available. I am now going to read you a list of the characters and a short
description of each, and your exit slip today will be the top three stories you are
interested in working with for this unit. At the start of the next class I will also hand
you a paper with all of the definitions next class and we will have a short review.
a. Short descriptions found on the back of Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!
Extensions/Differentiations: How will you adapt this lesson for students with cultural, linguistic, and
cognitive differences?
The books the students will be using to conduct research all include a number of pictures along with the
vocabulary. I have used Eyewitness books and others like it for this portion of the project. Also, because the
students are working in groups, they can help each other by explaining the vocabulary to those who are having
difficulty comprehending. The tableau aspect of the lesson plan is helpful as well, because it encourages students
to provide a visual representation for their classmates to analyze, question, and comprehend.
Attention to Literacy: How is literacy addressed in this lesson?
Literacy is addressed in this unit through the use of Eyewitness style books. The vocabulary is heavily supported
with imagery.
Assessment:

Evaluation of student learning: How will you determine what progress the students have made
toward accomplishing the learning objective(s)? How will higher order thinking be
incorporated into your assessment of student learning? What criteria will you use?
a.
Students will be evaluated through the activity of tableau. I have found a tableau rubric, and it
will be given to the students.
b.
Students will be evaluated by teacher throughout the entire process. While the students are
researching, the teacher will visit each group a number of times to ensure that they are staying
on task.
c.
Students will be evaluated with through the group paper that is turned in with vocabulary
definitions. It must be:

i.
Legible
ii.
Thoughtfully written
iii.
Show students conducted thorough research
Reflecting on the teaching process: (To be completed after the lesson is developed
and/or taught)
1. What worked well? What would you do differently to improve the lesson?
Since I have not yet taught this lesson, I only can reflect on the lesson plan I have
created. I am most concerned about timing. I hope that the lesson is not rushed for the
students. Also, I want to tweak the lesson in order to fit the students, I have not yet met the
class I will work with, but I will always keep in mind that no lesson is perfect and can be
adjusted.
2. What went through your mind as you planned this lesson? What questions do
you still have about the lesson?
As I wrote the lesson, I continually asked myself if the students would be engaged. I
want to make the subject as interesting and fun as possible, while still making sure the
students are learning and interacting with the material provided.
8/2/2010
Portland State University Graduate School of Education 2
Sample Handouts:
Middle Ages Vocabulary
G
N
I
B
M
A
L
N
C
L
F
P
D
P
M
R
W
Y
I
A
APPRENTICE
CRUSADE
FALCONER
FALLOW
FEUDAL
FISHMONGER
LAMBING
MANOR
MAYLING
MILLER
PILGRIM
PLOWBOY
POTTAGE
RELIC
SARACENS
SNIGGLER
TANNER
VARLET
VILLEIN
M
P
N
O
Q
L
I
Z
M
Z
E
L
S
L
J
D
E
W
J
Y
A
Y
V
P
Z
E
N
J
N
Q
X
N
L
O
K
X
X
W
K
B
R
P
V
N
L
N
I
M
V
K
E
X
T
W
T
Q
N
J
H
T
E
K
P
L
P
P
J
J
D
C
A
C
R
B
Y
Z
Z
R
K
Q
N
W
I
R
S
A
C
F
A
W
H
I
C
O
P
E
X
O
L
F
O
V
Z
C
E
R
M
R
F
M
L
I
C
Y
D
C
Q
E
L
G
C
N
C
Z
U
N
A
W
O
L
L
A
F
M
A
N
O
R
Q
L
L
M
I
S
N
S
T
M
B
E
F
I
S
H
M
O
N
G
E
R
A
Z
A
H
Z
S
K
I
R
D
Y
C
G
B
K
E
U
Q
D
B
F
D
P
V
V
R
E
W
C
N
T
U
T
Q
V
G
G
O
M
S
E
Z
X
F
Q
W
R
G
K
E
L
A
Q
D
P
A
F
G
D
O
J
E
X
S
G
J
T
E
I
E
N
A
D
D
H
T
T
O
M
K
V
P
I
L
G
R
I
M
L
N
M
G
D
I
W
T
S
G
I
R
O
A
T
G
P
I
B
Q
E
G
S
A
I
U
U
O
V
R
L
L
U
Y
R
T
Q
B
X
R
G
A
G
V
Y
A
E
P
R
F
L
T
H
T
H
L
E
G
D
J
F
J
J
I
Q
L
X
F
C
W
E
X
E
K
I
G
E
U
O
C
N
L
P
A
N
N
I
I
K
Y
R
C
L
R
H
L
T
T
S
E
H
S
O
V
C
S
C
N
V
Z
L
T
H
C
R
T
Y
M
V
D
M
P
E
M
A
Y
J
F
G
O
J
Q
Created through:
http://www.discoveryeducation.com
Solution Middle Ages Vocabulary
G
N
I
B
M
A
L
N
+
+
+
+
+
P
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
I
+
+
+
+
+
S
L
+
+
+
+
+
+
A
+
+
+
+
E
+
+
+
+
+
N
+
O
+
+
+
+
+
+
R
P
+
+
L
+
+
+
+
+
E
+
+
W
+
+
+
+
+
+
E
+
P
L
+
+
+
+
+
C
+
+
+
B
+
+
+
+
+
+
N
+
I
R
+
+
C
+
A
+
+
+
C
O
+
+
+
+
+
+
O
V
+
+
E
R
+
R
+
+
+
I
+
Y
+
+
+
+
+
+
C
+
+
+
U
N
A
W
O
L
L
A
F
M
A
N
O
R
+
+
L
+
+
S
+
S
T
+
+
E
F
I
S
H
M
O
N
G
E
R
A
+
A
+
+
+
+
I
R
+
+
+
+
+
+
E
+
+
+
+
F
D
+
+
+
+
+
+
C
+
+
+
T
+
+
G
+
+
+
+
E
+
+
+
+
+
R
+
+
E
L
A
+
+
+
A
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
E
+
+
N
A
+
+
+
T
+
+
M
+
V
P
I
L
G
R
I
M
L
N
M
+
D
+
+
T
+
+
I
+
+
A
+
+
+
+
+
+
E
G
+
A
+
U
+
O
+
+
L
+
+
+
R
+
+
+
+
R
+
+
G
+
Y
+
E
P
+
+
L
+
(Over,Down,Direction)
APPRENTICE(3,1,SE)
CRUSADE(6,7,NE)
FALCONER(11,1,W)
FALLOW(8,13,N)
FEUDAL(17,16,NW)
FISHMONGER(9,11,S)
LAMBING(1,7,N)
MANOR(8,14,S)
MAYLING(14,11,SE)
MILLER(13,19,E)
PILGRIM(14,2,S)
PLOWBOY(1,14,E)
POTTAGE(16,16,W)
RELIC(10,9,SW)
SARACENS(9,6,SW)
SNIGGLER(19,14,NW)
TANNER(11,13,NE)
VARLET(14,1,SE)
VILLEIN(7,2,SW)
+
+
+
L
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
I
+
L
+
F
+
+
E
+
+
+
+
+
E
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
N
+
I
+
+
+
R
+
+
+
+
+
+
T
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
S
+
N
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
G
+
+
+
Medieval Vocabulary Reference Sheet
These definitions can be altered depending on what the students find in their research.
APPRENTICE: Someone who works for a skilled or qualified person in order to learn a
trade or profession, esp for a recognized period
CRUSADE: Any of the military expeditions undertaken by the Christians of Europe in the
11th, 12th, and 13th centuries for the recovery of the Holy Land from the Muslims.
FALCONER: A person who engages in the art of keeping falcons and training them to
return from flight to a lure or to hunt quarry
FALLOW: Plowed and left unseeded for a season or more; uncultivated.
FEUDAL: The feudal system is the political, military, and social system in the Middle
Ages, based on the holding of lands in fief or fee and on the resulting relations between lord
and vassal.
FISHMONGER: A retailer of fish
LAMBING: The shepherd's work of tending the ewes and newborn lambs at this time
MANOR: A landed estate or territorial unit, originally of the nature of a feudal lordship,
consisting of a lord's demesne and of lands within which he has the right to exercise certain
privileges, exact certain fees, etc.
MAYLING: A tract of land rented by a mailer; a rented farm or smallholding
MILLER: A person whose trade is the grinding of corn in a mill; the proprietor or tenant
of a corn-mill. Also, a person in a mill who has charge of the actual grinding.
PILGRIM: A person who makes a journey (usually of a long distance) to a sacred place as
an act of religious devotion.
PLOWBOY: A boy who leads the animal or animals drawing a plough, a boy who drives a
plough; (hence more generally) a boy from a rural labouring class, a country boy.
POTTAGE: A thick soup or stew, typically made from vegetables, pulses, meat, etc., boiled
in water until soft, and usually seasoned.
RELIC: In the Christian Church, esp. the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches: the
physical remains (as the body or a part of it) of a saint, martyr, or other deceased holy
person, or a thing believed to be sanctified by contact with him or her (such as a personal
possession or piece of clothing), preserved as an object of veneration and often enshrined in
some ornate receptacle.
SARACENS: Among the later Greeks and Romans, a name for the nomadic peoples of the
Syro-Arabian desert which harassed the Syrian confines of the Empire; hence, an Arab; by
extension, a Muslim, esp. with reference to the Crusades.
SNIGGLER:A sniggler is a person who is engaged in sniggling. Sniggling is the action or
practice of fishing for eels by means of a baited hook or needle thrust into their holes or
haunts.
TANNER: One whose occupation is to tan hides or to convert them into leather by tanning.
VARLET: A man who looks after the animals; usually for the lord of the manor.
VILLEIN: A peasant who is not free. Can be bought and sold like a slave. House, family,
and labor all belong to the lord of the manor.
Tableau: Key Points to Remember
Tableau: a silent, motionless depiction of a scene. A convention in which members of a group
use their bodies to make an image or picture capturing an idea, theme, or moment in time, also
called a group sculpture, freeze frame, still image, or picture window.
Tableau criteria-students should:
1. Display a character's sense of excitement, anticipation, suspense, and other emotions with
exaggerated facial expressions, gesture, and body position.
2. Have a shared focal point within the group.
3. Use a variety of levels when expressing their physicalizations.
4. Create some level of physical tension between characters.
5. Use all available clues provided by the author of the text. Colorful character descriptions,
mood indicators, and action verbs are most helpful.
Tableaus should answer the following questions (the 5 Ws): Who are the characters? Where are
the characters? Why did they come together? When did the characters come together? What is
happening to these characters and what will happen to these characters next?