10th Grade Semester One
Unit 5: Global Conquest
Stage 1: Desired Outcomes
Topic / Unit Title: Roots of Global Conquest
* What were the roots of the new European imperialism?
NYS Content Standards
Common Core Skills
 Key Idea 2: Establishing timeframes, exploring different
periodizations, examining themes across time and within cultures,
and focusing on important turning points in world history help
organize the study of world cultures and civilizations.
 Key Idea 3: Study of the major social, political, cultural, and
religious developments in world history involves learning about the
important roles and contributions of individuals and groups.
 Key Idea 4: The skills of historical analysis include the ability to
investigate differing and competing interpretations of the theories of
history, hypothesize about why interpretations change over time,
explain the importance of historical evidence, and understand the
concepts of change and continuity over time.
Understandings:
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Reading-Social Studies (RH)
1. 1. Use relevant information and ideas from documents to support analysis
2. Determine the main idea of a document
8. Identify and analyze evidence
9. Compare and contrast primary and secondary source information
Writing (W)
1. Write an argument to support claims
4. Produce writing appropriate to task, purpose and audience
9. Draw evidence from informational text\
Speaking and Listening (SL)
1. Initiate and participate in collaborative discussion
2. Accurately use multiple sources of information
4. Clearly present appropriate information and evidence
6. Demonstrate command of formal English
Essential Questions:
 Economic, political, social, religious, military motives for
imperialism.
 Effects of industrialization on the desire for new markets and
access to natural resources.
 How social Darwinism contributed to the racist attitudes of the
European imperialists.
 The social and religious justifications made by Europeans
concerning imperialism.
 The role of nationalism in the spread of imperialism throughout
Europe.
 British motives for control of India and causes of the Sepoy
Rebellion.
 Key Terms/Vocabulary: imperialism, nationalism, social Darwinism,
economic, political, social, sepoy, Sepoy Rebellion, British East
India Company, “White Man’s Burden”, The Origin of Species,
Charles Darwin, natural selection, “survival of the fittest”
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Was imperialism a blessing or a curse?
Who benefitted and who was disadvantaged by imperialism?
What role did racism play in European imperialism?
How did people resist European conquest?
How did imperialism affect Indian culture?
What role did social Darwinism play in motivating and justifying imperialism?
Stage 2: Assessments and Tasks
Common Core Literacy Task
 Create a two-page dialogue based on the benefits & harms
between a captain in the British East India Company and a
person native to India.
 Write a 2-page diary entry from the perspective of a Sepoy
leader explaining reasons for the rebellion and difficulties in
achieving their goals.
 Write a 3-5 paragraph essay that answers the overarching unit
question using evidence how revolutions can change the world.
 RAFT Activity
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Role – African Slave or Native American in colonial Latin
America
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Audience – Peninsulares or “ruling class” of colonial Latin
America.
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Format – poem or song lyrics
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Topic – treatment of lower classes in Latin America, possibility
and growing sentiments of revolt, unfairness of colonial Latin
American social structure, appreciation of colonial Mother
Country.
Performance Task(s) – Other Evidence
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Write an essay which discusses how revolutionary concepts apply to modern
society.
Create posters, speeches, & obituaries which explain key concepts of the Latin
American independence movement.
Jig-saw/Expert activity wherein students individually learn about a particular
Latin American revolutionary leader and are then tasked with sharing their
expertise to the whole class (in speech or written form).
Story Chain, including vocabulary word maps and answers to various AIM
questions.
GISTing activity – students will read a topical article, answer the W’s (who, what,
when, etc.), and write a limited-word response in paragraph form to demonstrate
comprehension (for example, the paragraph can be no longer than 20 words
total).
How will students reflect upon and self-assess their learning?
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Students will be asked to write a reflection based on what they learned and how effectively they worked.
Reading feedback on essays and other written work.
Student will peer- and self-edit essay for proper structure and mechanics, and students will evaluate essay content.
Students will revise first drafts of their essays.
Student will self-assess learning by attempting another combination in the RAFT.
Student will assess their key-term knowledge by attempting to recreate parts of their vocabulary word maps without looking through their
notes.
Students will compare their GIST paragraphs with their peers in order to determine the validity of their responses and whether they have
answered the W’s.
Stage 3: Learning Plan
Instructional Activities and Materials (W.H.E.R.E.T.O.)
Aim: Was nationalism or industrialism the major cause of European imperialism?
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Identify/define: imperialism, nationalism, “white man’s burden”.
Discuss the economic interests that motivated the new European imperialism from 1870 – 1914 including the need for resources, markets and
materials resulting from the Industrial Revolution.
Explain the political and military interest Europeans sought to fulfill through imperialism.
Discuss the humanitarian and religious goals of European imperialism.
Assess the extent of the relationship between nationalism, industrialization, and imperialism.
Evaluate whether nationalism or industrialism was the major cause of European imperialism.
Suggested Documents: Rudyard Kipling, The White Man’s Burden: writings of people and groups illustrating conflicting viewpoints regarding
imperialism.
Aim: Has the theory of evolution positively or negatively impacted society?
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Identify/define: racism, Social Darwinism, survival of the fittest, natural selection
Discuss the main scientific and biological ideas of Charles Darwin.
Analyze how Europeans used Social Darwinism to justify empire building.
Evaluate the impact of Darwinism and Darwin’s ideas on Western civilization
Evaluate the extent to which scientific ideas can be used to justify ideas of racial, ethnic, or national superiority.
Evaluate whether the Theory of Evolution has positively or negatively impacted society.
Suggested Documents: C. Darwin, The Origins of Species: Cecil Rhodes, Confession of Faith 1877.
Aim: Did Britain pave the way for the triumph of European imperialism? OR Were economic interests the primary cause of
the new European imperialism?
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Identify/define: imperialism, Opium Wars, spheres of influence, Unequal Treaties (Treaty of Nanjing), extraterritoriality, British East India Company,
Sepoy Rebellion.
Explain how a private group of businessmen (British East India Company) led to the British government’s takeover of India.
Assess the impact of the Sepoy rebellion on the British government’s takeover of India.
Explain why the Opium Wars with the British caused further European imperialism in China by way of Unequal Treaties with many nations.
Explain how the Unequal Treaties led to European spheres of influence and extraterritoriality.
Assess the extent to which the private economic interests of businessmen led to European imperials in India and China.
Evaluate whether Britain paved the way for the triumph of European imperialism.
Teacher Reflection for Future Planning
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Evaluate exit tickets and response to questions during discussion.
Explore test results and essay writing skills on class exam to shape future writing lessons/assignments.
Determine how well RAFT work (did it stay afloat…?) and make necessary patches for future excursions.
Determine how accurately students were able to respond to the GIST activity (answering the W’s) and responding correctly to the limitedword-use paragraph format.