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Defining US: The American Experience
FCPS Teaching American History Grant
Subject: Expansion and Reform
Grade: 11th Grade
Prepared by: Richard Zimermann
School: Herndon High School
Title or Topic: Expansion and Reform: Applying the Declaration of Independence
Instructional Time: One to two 90-Minute Class Periods
PART I:
1. Essential Learning:
Students should conduct inquiries and research—acquiring,
organizing, analyzing, interpreting, evaluating, and communicating
facts, themes, and general principles operating in American history.
a. Using the Declaration of Independence, students will formulate the historical
question:
What should I expect to see in a constitutional government according to
the standards set forth in the US Declaration of Independence.
b. Students will later defend their findings based on inquiry and interpretation of
three topics taken from the early 19th Century:
a. Common Man/universal manhood suffrage versus Seneca Falls/Abolition
b. Bleeding Kansas / Le Compton Constitution versus Cherokee Republic /
Trail of Tears
c. Texas Revolution versus Zacatecas Uprising
2. National History Standard (NHS):
a. NHS.Historical Thinking for Grades 5-12.
b. NHS.Era 3. Revolution and the New Nation (1754-1820s)
Declaration of Independence
Standard 1:
The causes of the American Revolution, the ideas and interests involved in
forging the revolutionary movement, and the reasons for the American victory
Standard 2:
The impact of the American Revolution on politics, economy, and society
Standard 3:
The institutions and practices of government created during the Revolution and
how they were revised between 1787 and 1815 to create the foundation of the
American political system based on the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights
c. NHS.Era 4. Expansion and Reform (1801-1861)
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Standard 1:
United States territorial expansion between 1801 and 1861, and how it affected
relations with external powers and Native Americans
Standard 3:
The extension, restriction, and reorganization of political democracy after 1800
Standard 4:
The sources and character of cultural, religious, and social reform movements in
the antebellum period
3. Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL):
a. VUS.1 STANDARD 1: The student will demonstrate skills for historical and
geographical analysis…
b. VUS.4 Revolutionary Period
STANDARD 4: The student will demonstrate knowledge of events and issues of
the Revolutionary Period by
.a. Analyzing how the political ideas of John Locke and those expressed in
Common Sense helped shape the Declaration of Independence;
c. VUS.6 Expansion and Reform
STANDARD 6. the student will demonstrate knowledge of the major events
during the first half of the nineteenth century by
4. Fairfax County Program of Studies (POS):
a. Benchmark 1.1: The student will gather and organize various data and
information.
b. Benchmark 4.1: The student explains the … ideas, …involved in forging the
Revolutionary movement, ….
c. Benchmark 6.3, 6.4
Benchmark 6.3: The student analyzes political institutions and practices during
the early Republican era.
A. Explain why the election of Andrew Jackson was considered a victory of the
“common man” with reference to an increased voting population and the
spoils system.
B. Analyze the political consequences of territorial growth (sectionalism, Native
Americans-Indian Removal Act/Trail of Tears, admission of new states—
Florida, Missouri Compromise, states’ rights, and the new political parties).
Benchmark 6.4: The student analyzes the impact of growing nationalism on
social, political economic and cultural developments of the era.
C. Explain the economic, political, racial and religious roots of Manifest
Destiny and analyze how the concept influenced the westward expansion of
the nation.
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5. Learning Strategy(s) Objectives:
Students will be able to apply the standards that they take from their study of the
US Declaration of Independence, and evaluate attempts in the early 19th Century
to bring about new republican forms of government.
PART II.
Assessments:
In this first element of the unit, students will complete the requirements to
scaffold up to complete a five paragraph essay on the meaning of the Declaration
of Independence.
1. Instructional Strategies:
1. Review from earlier in the year. This activity will be used to recall know
information.
Show video clip of Schlessinger US History volume 4, “The American Revolution”.
Five minutes: Queue to 3:15 for “the American People end 5:35. Queue to 13:25 for
“Declaration”, end 16:15. On blackboard, teacher prompts students to supply what the
Declaration was about.
Seven minutes: Queue to 17:50 to “Power to the People?” end at 21:15. Queue to 29:25
to “Winners and Losers”, end at 35:10. On blackboard, teacher prompts students to
supply what the Declaration was NOT about for the newly independent United States.
2. Categorize the Declaration. This activity will be used to generate specific
supportive detail in the essay.
Divide the class into study groups of 3-4. Pass out (1) copies of the Declaration of
Independence (2) three column form with headings, “self-determination”, “liberty”, and
“safety”. Jigsaw groups, each group goes through the declaration looking for 10-12
passages that apply to their subject heading. Groups rank their items, then write them on
2-foot x 3-foot paper. Groups report their items and ranks to the class. Other groups
have five minutes to challenge categories or priorities. With each presentation, students
in other groups take notes for 3-4 items they will use in the two categories their group did
not jigsaw. These are the specific supportive detail in the essay paragraphs.
3. Values from the Declaration. This activity will be used to get students to make
choices for a point of view for the essay, either for the conclusion of a descriptive essay,
or for the argument in an persuasive essay.
To each student in the study groups, pass out the “Declaration of Independence Values”
handout. Teacher discusses what the cells mean and how they were derived from the
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Declaration, emphasizing that there is no “wrong answer”, and the students are expected
to change their choices with different historical situations as the course progresses.
Students choose their two “high priority” values from the four cell matrix.
4. Teacher Presentation. This activity alerts the students that the essay will be
used as criteria to judge early 19th Century attempts to bring about republican forms of
government. The teacher can present the pairs of the unit study as winners and losers.
During the discussion, the teacher illustrates the different circumstances on a grid on the
board as a graphic organizer to aid memory.
The Common Man expansion of the franchise towards the ideal of universal manhood
suffrage (or universal free man suffrage, or universal free white man suffrage). The
Seneca Falls movement to enfranchise women involved political organization county by
county which included reading and discussion groups of issues such as abolition.
The ruffian pro-slavery advocates in Bleeding Kansas used terrorism to intimidate a
majority of the settlers, but their victory, endorsed by the President, was rejected by
Congress. The farming Cherokees with elective representative government were
assaulted by vigilantes and claim jumpers after a gold strike on their Georgian lands.
They were removed in the Trail of Tears.
Following the Mexican Revolution, constitutional government was difficult to establish;
Santa Ana was invited into and expelled from government numerous times.
Constitutionalistas in Texas and Zacatecas revolted against his rule, those in Zacatecas
were put down with large scale civilian atrocities; those in Texas achieved independence.
4. Outline or Idea Map the Essay. This activity will be used to structure a
coherent essay which addresses four elements of the lesson goal: three curriculum content
items and historical thought goals.
Groups make up an outline or idea map for a five paragraph essay (1) introduction, (2)
self-determination, (3) liberty, (4) safety and (5) conclusion. The supportive detail for
(2), (3),and (4) are three points from the categorization activity, #2 above. The
conclusion, paragraph (5), is each student’s phrasing of their choices in activity #3 above.
5. Write the first draft of the essay. This activity is essentially an individual
exercise. Depending on time available, it may be completed for homework, with the
editing to follow in the next class. Students may use a floppy disk for use in lab/library.
6. Peer review of the first draft. This activity is to provide editing and
consultation on spelling, grammar, punctuation, and style. Class moves to the computer
lab or media center to complete the assignment.
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2. Materials/Resources to be used:
Handouts:
Declaration of Independence text.
Declaration category columns.
Declaration Values
Video: Schlessinger United States History volume 4, “The American Revolution”.
Poster Papers and markers: 10 each sheets of 2-feet by 3-feet
Computers in media center or student lab.
Posters:
Declaration of Independence facsimile
19th Century Expansion and Reform:
A. Jackson, H.B. Stowe, H. Clay, E.C. Stanton,
Map: Compromise of 1850, Book: Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
3. Differentiation:
a) For students who need additional scaffolding, there can be (1) vocabulary lists
provided, and (2) blocks with lines spaced out with indented first paragraph lines in the
five paragraph format. An edited slide show handout from the Revolution PowerPoint,
“Declaration only” could be used as prompts and organizers.
b) For students who need a shorter writing assignment, they could construct a
“Time’s Man of the Year” edition. This would feature Thomas Jefferson’s portrait, with
at least one illustration from the Revolution for self-determination, safety and liberty.
The student need only describe the primary reason for his nomination in a 100-200 word
description, and a 50 word advertisement. The topic could be the content area that the
student’s study group categorized in activity #2.
c) For students with advanced writing skills, the essay could be re-assigned as
Compare and contrast (1) Jefferson and (2) Locke or Paine in their treatment of a) selfdetermination, b) safety and c) liberty.
d) For students with an interest in Mexico and Spanish, the essay could be reassigned as “Compare and Contrast” Jefferson’s Declaration and the 1841 Spanish
translation (or English re-translation).
e) For students wanting extra credit, an “interactive notebook” page of four panels
displaying four category prompts for illustration: one people; liberty; safety; consent of
the governed.
f) For students wanting extra credit, the regular “Time’s Man of the Year”
assignment could be completed, with the advertisement about a book by Locke or Paine,
due the first class after the weekend.
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4. Attachments:
Posters and teacher guides
TAH.Declaration.image; TAH.Declaration.portraits (quiz); TAH. Classroom Poster
TAH.SVP.video.Worksheet.Ans; Writing: TAH.Declaration.Writing Rubric;
Differentiated instruction: TAH.Declaration.only.powerpoint
Alternative assignment:
Declaration.Categories.TimeMagazineProject;
Declaration.TimeMagazineProject.directions;
Declaration.TimeMagazineproject.rubric
Primary Documents:
Declaration.NARA; Declaration.Spanish; Declaration Retranslation Sp
Paine, T. Common Sense: chapter: On Government;
Locke, John. Second Treatise on Government (use edit.find. “rebellion”, etc.)
http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/academic/digitexts/locke/second/locke2nd.txt
Primary documents links:
Declaration. National Archives: NARA.
http://www.archives.gov/national_archives_experience/charters/print_friendly.html?page
=declaration_transcript_content.html&title=NARA%20%7C%20The%20Declaration%2
0of%20Independence%3A%20A%20Transcription
Declaration in Spanish (1821) , Declaration retranslation from Spanish (1821)
http://chnm.gmu.edu/declaration/
Declaration scholarly article on Mexican Declaration of Independence
http://chnm.gmu.edu/declaration/
Thomas Paine
Biography http://www.ushistory.org/paine/
Common Sense (contents) http://www.ushistory.org/paine/commonsense/index.htm
John Locke
Texts on the web. http://weber.ucsd.edu/~dmckiern/locke.htm
Second Treatise on Government (use edit.find. “rebellion”, etc.)
http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/academic/digitexts/locke/second/locke2nd.txt
19th Century prints landscapes, city scapes
http://www.nypl.org/research/chss/spe/art/print/collections/stokes/stoketab.htm
http://www.nypl.org/digital/digitalcoll_exhibition.htm
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