2015 Accelerated Mao’s Communist China Lesson Plan
Dates:
Day One:
1. Quiet Question: Type Two Prompt: You and your partner will be working with three primary
sources and use your Road to Communism Graphic Organizer Notes to analyze and explain TWO
different reasons as to why the Chinese peasants embraced Communism.
Reasons the Peasant Embraced Communism
Historical Evidence
1)
2)
Primary Source One: An excerpt written by Mao in a 1927 report to the Central Committee of China’s
Communist Party (CCP) about the peasant movement in the central province of Hunan. Mao notes the
tremendous potential power of the peasants to make revolution.
“ The present upsurge of the peasant movement is a colossal event. In a very short time, in China’s
central, southern, and northern provinces, several hundred million peasants will rise like a mighty storm,
like a hurricane, a force so swift and violent that no power, however great, will be able to hold it back.
They will smash all the shackles that bind them and rush forward along the road to liberation. They will
sweep all the imperialists, warlords, corrupt officials, local tyrants, and evil gentry into their graves.”
“The main targets of attack by the peasants are the local tyrants, the evil gentry, and the lawless
landlords, but in passing they also hit out against patriarchal ideas and institutions, against corrupt
officials in the cities and against bad practices and customs in the rural areas.”
Primary Source Two: The following is a fable told by Mao in 1945.
“There is an ancient Chinese fable called ‘The Foolish Old Man Who Removed the Mountains.’ It tells of
an old man who lived in northern China long, long ago and was known as the Foolish Old Man of North
Mountain. His house faced south, and beyond his doorway stood the two great mountain peaks,
blocking the way. He called his sons, and hoe in had they began to dig up these mountains. Another
person from the village, known as Wise Old Man, saw them and said, ‘How silly of you to do this! It is
quite impossible for you to dig up these two huge mountains. ‘ The Foolish Old Man replied, ‘When I
die, my sons will carry on, when they die, there will be my grandsons, and then their sons and
grandsons, and so on to infinity. High as they are, the mountains cannot grow any higher and with
every bit we dig, they will be that much lower, why can’t we clear them away?’ Having proved the Wise
Old Man’s view wrong, he went on digging every day, unshaken in his belief. God was moved by this,
and he sent down two angels, who carried the mountains away on their backs. Today, two big
mountains lie like a dead weight on the Chinese people. One is imperialism, the other is feudalism. The
Chinese Communist Party has long made up its mind to dig them up. We must work unceasingly, and
we, too, will touch God’s heart. Our God is none other than the masses of the Chinese people. If they
stand up and dig together with us, why can’t these two mountains be cleared away?”
Primary Source Three: Rules for Red Army---The Communist Party’s military forces were known as the
Red Army. Communist leaders enforced very strict discipline in their army. Here are some of the rules
for the Red Army soldiers:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
Replace all doors when you leave a house.
Be courteous and polite to the people and help them when you can.
Return all borrowed articles.
Replaced all damaged articles.
Be honest in all transactions with the peasants.
Be sanitary, and, especially, establish latrines a safe distance from people’s houses.
2.
Class: Have pairs share their thoughts. Use to introduce Mao. Mao is quite a controversial
figure in Chinese and World History. What does this quote about Mao tell us about him?

Lin Linguo, son of Lin Biao, Mao’s Defense Minister and one time ally said of Mao: “Today he
uses sweet words and honeyed talk to those whom he entices; tomorrow he puts them to death
for fabricated crimes.”
3. Class: The teacher is going to begin the Introduction to Mao PowerPoint Lecture. We will be
doing the Interactive Notebook Method with this lesson.
Interactive Notes Method:



You must highlight, star, and add information to the Right Side throughout the notes.
You must complete the Lecture Activities within the PowerPoint on the Left Side throughout
the notes.
In addition, your homework supplemental readings on apartheid contain different primary
sources and questions in relation to them. YOU MUST SELECT TWO DIFFERENT PRIMARY
SOURCES FROM EACH CHAPTER AND DO THE CORRESPONDING ACTIVITY TO THEM ON THE
LEFT SIDE WHERE THE INFORMATION MATCHES UP.
Left Side of the Notebook:
*Paraphrase or clarify items
*Enter a drawing, photo, sketch, or magazine picture that
illustrates the concept, ideas, or facts
Right Side of the Notebook
Teacher directed:
*Pose questions about the information
*Form and express an opinion
*Predict outcomes or next steps
*Create a metaphor that captures the essence of the
information/issue
*Formulate and record a contradictory perspective
*Write a reflection on the information or experience
*Find a quote that connects to the concept; record it and
explain your rationale
*Make connections between the information/text and
your own life, another text, and/or the world
*Create a mind map that captures the main topic and key
concepts and supportive detail
*Create an acronym that will help you to remember the
information covered
*Make connections to the content/processes of other
courses
*Sketch a political cartoon expressing a historical
viewpoint or your views on the historical concepts.
*Record important primary source quotes that capture the
essence of the historical idea.
*Do the activities Ms. Barben has built into her
powerpoints.
*Write out questions that the content has raised for you to
ask Ms. Barben
*Brainstorms
*Venn Diagrams
*Flowcharts
*Metaphors or analogies
*Top ten lists
*SOAL---sum of all learned at the end
*notes on a mini-lesson
* notes on a lecture
*notes on a hands on learning lab
*notes on an assigned reading
*notes/story map on a video
*notes/story map on a read aloud
*notes from a small group or large group
discussion
*collaborative group process
*a copied excerpt of a text
*notes and assignments from an Internet
Web Quest
*notes on an historical reenactment
*notes from a fieldtrip
*Worksheet/or textbook assignment
copied or glued into the notebook
*You highlight key terms, dates, events.
*Add historical information to provided
teacher notes.
*Use underlining and stars.
4. Homework: You are going to read and take additional notes from the photocopied
supplemental reading entitled “Supplemental Two: Part 2 China under the Communists 19491965.” You will be adding the notes to the provided Teacher Notes in EITHER RED, ORANGE,
PINK, OR PURPLE.
Chunking:
Night One:

Read and take notes from pages 1-8.
Night Two:

Read and take notes from pages 9-18.
Day Two:
5.
Class: The teacher is going to finish the Introduction to Mao PowerPoint, as you do the
Interactive Notes.
6. Pairs/Triads: Formative Assessment---Using the Jigsaw Method, you and your partner will be
assigned one aspect of Mao’s Regime to create a 1-Slider on. A One Slider is a digital collage on
an assigned topic. There are two examples below.





Requirements:
You must have a MINIMUM of FIVE DIFFERENT VISUAL PRIMARY SOURCES on your assigned
topic. They can be propaganda posters, historical maps, political cartoons, charts or graphs, and
photographs.
You must have a MINIMUM of TWO DIFFERENT WRITTEN PRIMARY SOURCE EXCERPTS on your
assigned topic. They can be from laws, newspaper articles, propaganda pamphlets, speeches,
trial testimonies, diaries, etc....
You must have a THESIS STATEMENT taking a position on the assigned topic and that is fully
supported by the chosen primary sources. See the examples.
You must then have in BULLET FORMAT a typed explanation identifying each primary source,
what is represents, and explain how it supports your thesis statement.
Example Thesis Statement: Mao’s “Breed for the Motherland” Campaign in the 1950s failed to
achieve the economic goals he had set and instead created an overpopulation situation that
resulted in the unfair one-child policy.
2015 Formative Assessment Mao One Slider Grade Sheet
Due:
Students’ Names:
Period:
Topic:
1.__________It was turned in on time. For each day late, it is 10% off the value.
2.__________The students wrote a strong, argumentative thesis statement on their assigned topic.
(Worth 10 Points)
3.__________The students had a MINIMUM OF FIVE DIFFERENT VISUAL PRIMARY SOURCES on their
assigned topic that supported the thesis statement. (Worth 50 Points)
4.__________The students had a MINIMUM OF TWO DIFFERENT WRITTEN PRIMARY SOURCES on their
assigned topic that supported the thesis statement. (Worth 20 Points)
5.__________The students in BULLET FORMAT wrote a typed explanation identifying each primary
source, what is represents, and explained how each supported the thesis statement. (Worth 20 Points)
Total:
/100 Points
Aspects of Mao’s Regime:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Thought Reform and The Hundred Flowers Campaign
Agricultural Policies and Land Reform
The Five Year Plan
The Great Leap Forward
The Cultural Revolution
Socialist Education Program, Sent-Down Youths, and Education Policies





Resources:
Your photocopied supplemental reading
The different Mao PowerPoints uploaded on the teacher page
The other supplemental readings uploaded on the teacher page
Internet
PowerPoint Program
7. Homework: Finish the reading and note-taking.
Day Three:
8. Class: Today we are going to watch from You Tube: “Chairman Mao Declassified” History
Channel. You are to add to your notes.
9.
Homework: You and your partner are to go to the different PowerPoints and supplemental
readings on Mao uploaded on the teacher page and cut and paste VISUAL and WRITTEN Primary
Sources to use for your One Slider. Email this to yourself and your partners.
Day Four:
10. Pairs/Triads: You have the class period to work on your 1-Slider.
11. Homework: You are to work on your 1-Slider.
Day Five:
12. Pairs/Triads: Finish your 1-Slider. It is due at the end of the class period.
13. Homework: Work on the East Asia Unit Study Guide for the Final Exam.