Lesson Plan
Teacher:
Jackie Bohnenblust
McPherson Middle School
7th grade World Geography/Kansas History
8th grade U.S. and Pre-AP U.S. History
Lesson Title:
Perspectives in U.S. History
Grade Level:
8th grade regular and Pre-AP History
Lesson Time Length:
Lesson Plan begins on fifth day of school and continues through day eight.
Big Idea:
The student will be introduced to the class course as a chronological “tour” of the United
States. Students will begin to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities and
broaden their perspective of their community, country and world.
Theme for the Year: “Our Journey Runs Through It.”
Lesson Abstract:
This lesson is designed to introduce to the student a way of studying U.S. History by using
Five Main Perspectives. The Five Perspectives include:
1) Environmental/Geographical
2) Economic
3) Political
4) Social
5) History
The lesson was expanded and developed during the ESSDACK Teaching American History
Century of Progress grant using a prior lesson plan, but incorporating primary documents
and updated information into the learning process.
Lesson Background and Context:
We explore our world and the events of our ancestors through our perspective. To explore
our country’s history and government, we view the past from our eyes discovering what
A Century of Progress Lesson Plan Template 2011
Page 1
happened and why we are the way we are. If we can learn to see the past through different
perspectives we can begin the process of becoming responsible citizens when we know the
efforts of our ancestors to design an effective government. By using the book: A River Wild
by Lynne Cherry the students will be able to identify the five perspectives of history and
begin to understand how we as Americans have discovered, viewed, used, abused, and
remade this land.
Standards Alignment:







Civics-Government: Benchmark 4: The student identifies and examines the rights,
privileges and responsibilities in becoming an active civic participant.
Economics: Benchmark 1: The student understands how scarcity of resources
requires choices. Indicator 3: The student explains that the choices people make have
both present and future consequences.
Geography: Benchmark 1: The student uses maps, graphic representations, tools,
and technologies to locate, use, and present information about people, places, and
environments.
Geography: Benchmark 3: The student understands Earth’s physical systems and
how physical processes shape Earth’s surface.
Indicator 5: The student explains the challenges faced by ecosystems (ex: effects of
shifting cultivation, contamination of coastal waters, rain forest destruction,
desertification, deforestation, over-population, natural disaster).
Geography: Benchmark 4: The student understands how economic, political, cultural,
and social processes interact to shape patterns of human populations, interdependence,
cooperation, and conflict.
Indicator 5: The student describes the consequences of industrialization and
urbanization patterns.
Indicator 6: The student explains how cooperation and conflict among peoples
contribute to political, economic, and social division of Earth’s surface.
Geography: Benchmark 5: The student understands the effect of interactions between
human and physical systems.
History: Benchmark 3: The student engages in historical thinking skills.
Objectives:





The student will begin to understand how individuals and societies see themselves and
nature and how those ideas led to environmental change over time. (Man vs. Nature)
The student will know the definition of perspective and begin to examine the five
historical perspectives/categories and themes embedded within those perspectives.
The student will evaluate harmful and beneficial effects within the framework of using
different perspectives as it relates to a specific location.
The student will engage in cooperative learning.
The student will use primary source documents to determine changes over time and the
interconnectedness or mutual dependence between individuals or groups and nature.
A Century of Progress Lesson Plan Template 2011
Page 2
Teaching Materials:














Holt’s Textbook: Call to Freedom pgs. xxx-xxxiii
The book: A River Ran Wild by Lynne Cherry. (5 copies)
The book: River Roads West, America’s First Highways by Peter and Connie Roop for
visual effect.
Wordle instructions for opening getting acquainted activity (Used in opening days 1-4)
Perspective and Theme Handout to be the first handout in their class folder and
notebook.
Music and short segment from the movie: A River Runs Through It. (Used in opening
days 1-4)
Document camera and projector for the viewing and projection of the reading aloud of
the book: A River Ran Wild.
Google Earth: Nashua River Watershed and Fitchburg, Massachusetts.
Photos of past and present Nashua River Watershed locations.
Photos and primary sources regarding Marion Stoddart, first successful citizen who
coordinated a successful citizen campaign that led to the passage of the Massachusetts
Clean Water Act of 1966.
Primary documents regarding the first Clean Water Act passed by Congress in 1965.
YouTube clip: Introduction to History of the World in 7 minutes by World History for Us
All.
Posters of Perspectives (Ex: Old lady vs. beautiful lady).
Perspectives in Social Studies Quiz
Vocabulary:
Perspective
Environmental/Geographic
Economic
Political
Civics
Government
Citizenship Constitutional Heritage
Social
Sociology
Anthropology
Culture
Global Relations
History
Lesson Implementation and Procedures:
1st day of school:
 (Based on reading scores from previous year have the seating chart and assign students
in each class into cooperative groups of 6 immediately).
 Welcome – Roll – Read the quote on the board by Eugene Peterson:
A Century of Progress Lesson Plan Template 2011
Page 3
“We live in narrative, we live in story. Existence has a story shape to it. We have a
beginning and an end, we have a plot, we have characters.”
Explain to the class this quote is HISTORY! History is his stories and her stories! On the
overhead projector flash this quote:
“Our ancestors lived in ____(the past)
We live in ___(the present)___, and we
will live on
(in the future) . _ __(Our life) has a beginning and an end. ____(Our
life)
has a plot, and ___(our life) has characters.”
If time let them come up with the blanks on their own.

Introduce myself by modeling the first history assignment using Glenn Wiebe’s “Wordle”
idea he posted on his History Tech Blog. “Use Wordle to have students generate their
own personal word clouds. Have them enter words that describe their physical traits,
personality, hobbies, interests, books, video games… really anything that would help
someone else get a clear picture of who they are. (Prior years – this activity has been:
Personal Flags, Name Tags, Design your life story as a timeline, a geographical feature
etc.). Included in their Wordle they also need to address the questions on their Wordle
handout assignment: What’s your story? What historical person would you like to meet
from the past if you could travel back in time? And what would you ask and why?
What historical event will you always remember? What is one question you would like
to ask your teacher that has to do with this class in the future?

Pass out “Brainstorming Wordle” assignments for them to complete as homework.
Tomorrow in class we will have the computers for them to design their Wordles. These
will be presented on Friday.

If time pass out syllabus and class procedures and stress MUST HAVE A NOTEBOOK by
tomorrow.
2nd day of school



Pass out syllabus and class procedures. Go over it. Share web design. Be ready for a
short quiz on Friday, the third day of school. Bring back signed forms tomorrow; no
later than Monday.
Go over “Top 10 Ways to Survive U.S. History and Mrs. Bohnenblust this Year” (from
Mrs. Bohnenblust’s perspective). Share next the “Top 10 Ways to Survive U.S. History
from past 8th graders letters!!
Work on computers to complete their Wordles.
3rd day of school

Introduce and set up notebook: Begin by having them turn to page 4 and listen
carefully to their classmates. Share what they remember about my Wordle from the first
day of school for the first note-taking experience. Then take down 2-3 items that you can
remember about each classmate’s Wordle.
A Century of Progress Lesson Plan Template 2011
Page 4


Share Wordles.
Quiz over syllabus and informational forms.
4th day of school




Continue Wordles and pass back quizzes and go over.
Share the clips from the movie: A River Runs Through it and explain that this is the
inspiration for our theme for the year.
If time this would also be a time to share the “Lessons We Can Learn from Geese” and
why I have the GOOSE in the classroom.
Answer questions from their Wordles.
5th day of school



Share the posters of the Old Lady or the Beautiful Lady. Ask them what do they see?
After the discussion ask: “Did everyone view the pictures the same?” Share other
poster if time. Introduce the lesson by saying: “This year in History we will be hopefully
be viewing historical events through a lot of different viewpoints. We call this
PERSPECTIVE.”
Read the book: A River Wild by Lynne Cherry by using the document camera and the
projector.
Pass out the Perspective notes and give the cooperative group assignment. Pass out the
individual books to each group. Read the Perspective notes by introducing the “Teacher
Invite Read” way. (Learned from Tim Bailey, Century of Progress workshop).
6th day of school



Share primary documents.
Assign history books to each student.
Let groups work on assignments.
7th day of school


Let groups finish work for presentations.
Begin presentations.
8th day of school



Finish presentations.
Quiz over Perspectives and A River Wild activity.
For Pre-AP classes they will be required to have a longer reflection (2-5 paragraphs) that
they will need to turn in Monday if they do not complete in class as a part of their quiz.
9th day of school

Share YouTube video: Introduction to History of World in 7 Minutes. Introduce the first
notebook assignment: Think and Write your reactions, thoughts, and questions over the
UTube video.
A Century of Progress Lesson Plan Template 2011
Page 5


Share my Think and Write after giving them all an appropriate time to write.
Lesson: Why History Matters? (in textbook: pages xxxviii) Share my dialogue and then
end with Top 10 Reasons Why History Matters.
Technology Integration:
 Document camera and projector
 Wordle site, Google Earth site, and using computers to find other primary sources
regarding Nashua River, Clean Water Act of 1965, etc.

Evaluation and Assessment:
The evidence will be:
 Their level of discussion & critical thinking.
 Perspective assignments handed in and worked on in cooperative groups
 Quiz over Perspectives on the 8th day
 Continued usage of the perspectives to look at different periods in history


Extension and Enrichment:



Newspaper enrichment or Internet News relating to each History Perspective.
Refer to the book again when we do Westward Expansion /Industrial Revolution or
anytime we have to remind the students of what the different historical perspectives are.
After completing the unit on the Industrial Revolution ask the Pre-AP students to choose
a position and write a 5 paragraph essay explaining whether or not the development of
technology which led to the Industrial Revolution was worth the effects on society and
the environment. Give at least two of the categories to explain why each of your reasons
are good ones.
Resources:
A River Runs Through It.
Columbia Pictures, 2002. VHS.
Cherry, Lynne, A River Ran Wild: An Environmental History.
San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1992. Print.
“Click.” Click.
http://www.wordle.com.
“Google Earth.”
http://google.com/earth.
Marion Stoddart: Work of 1000.
Documentary Educational Resources. 2010. DVD
A Century of Progress Lesson Plan Template 2011
Page 6
Roop, Peter, and Connie Roop. Rivers Roads West: America’s First Highways.
Honesdale, Pa.: Calkins Creek, 2007. Print.
Stuckey, Sterling, and Linda Kerrigan Salvucci. Call to Freedom: Beginnings to 1914.
Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2003. Print.
http://www.nashuariverwatershed.org/history.html
http://www.workof1000.com/timeline.html
Introduction to History in Seven Minutes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pnmZalx9YY
A Century of Progress Lesson Plan Template 2011
Page 7