Lesson 1: A Jigsaw Activity on the History and Politics of the Dominican Republic
Essential Questions:
Topical: What caused changes to occur to the Dominican Republic’s government throughout history?
Overarching: Do you think it takes personal sacrifice to improve the government/country?
Enduring Understandings:
● personal sacrifice and disobedience is required at times to cause change
● a dictatorship is when one individual is in total control of the country’s and people’s everyday decisions
● a democratic government is not created in one day
Objectives:
Students will be able to...
● analyze secondary sources
● summarize why governments change
● consider and argue whether or not it takes personal sacrifice to improve a government
● produce an original artifact to teach other students about their time period of Dominican Republic history
Materials: Jigsaw documents, artifact copies, crayons, colored pencils, wall space for timeline, chart handouts for
notes, notebook paper, post-its
Procedures: To use all documents, students need to be organized into 4 groups of 6 as they arrive.
1) Hook/ Opening: Option 1: Journal Writing OR Individual Whiteboard Responses: Have you ever been in a
position in which you had to stand up for something you believed in at the risk of getting yourself in trouble? Explain.
Option 2: You can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs. “In order to achieve something, it is inevitable and
necessary that something should be destroyed or sacrificed.”
→ Questions: What needs to happen to the egg in order to create the omlette?
What might be needed to create something new? What are some examples of this?
Hold an egg and ask the class to read the saying “You can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs.” What does
that mean? What needs to happen to the egg in order to create the omlette? Take the egg and break it into the
garbage/ pan. Then show them “In order to achieve something, it is inevitable and necessary that something should
be destroyed or sacrificed.” Ask: What are some examples of this?
As a large class discuss the questions above OR have students discuss the questions above in small groups.
Today we will look at the progression of government in the Dominican Republic. Our question to think about
as you meet and discuss with your classmates is: What caused changes to occur to the Dominican
Republic’s government throughout history? Do you think it took individual sacrifice to improve the
government/ country?
2) Jigsaw- *You might have to play around with the numbers for your class. Groups of 6 preferable. Distribute one of
each document to home groups. Then have students move into expert groups (6 groups of 4). Once in expert
groups, provide each student with an artifact handout.
Documents:
● Document A: The Landing of Christopher Columbus (1400-1600s)
● Document B: Spanish Empire begins Slave Importation (1600s- 1800)
● Document C: Dominican Republic Declares Independence from the Haitians (1800- 1865)
● Document D: United States Involvement in a free Dominican Republic (1865- 1924)
● Document E: General Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina Establishes Dictatorship (1930- 1961)
● Document F: Dominican Republic’s Rise to a Democracy 1962- Today
Guided Reading questions:
What caused changes to occur to the Dominican Republic’s government in your time period? What type of ruling
body was in charge of the country?
3) Artifact- a) In your artifact answer: What does this artifact teach us about government in the Dominican Republic
for your time period? Then have students decorate their artifact as if it was part of Dominican Republic history.
Homework for Day 1: Finish answering your artifact question and decoration of that artifact.
Day 2
4) Students return to their home groups to teach them about the type of government they were exposed to for their
assigned time period. As a student presents, have other group members complete the note taking chart found on the
last page.
5) Home Groups- Students should use their answers to the guided reading questions as well as their artifact to
present their home members with an explanation of the time period. The focus of the guided question responses and
student explanations are on the type of government/ ruling body in the Dominican Republic for that time period.
6) Annotated and Picture Timeline- For the annotation of the timeline, students post their created artifact
underneath their time period.
7) Closure/ Assessment (optional): A) Post- It: Explain to Mr. Kneller and Mrs. Rebimbas (Mr. Holloway, Mr.
Gerace) what the timeline of the Dominican Republic government shows you about the process of becoming a
democracy.
B) Next day entry ticket: What does the timeline of the Dominican Republic government show you about the process
of becoming a democracy?
C) One Minute Paper- Provide each student with half a piece of notebook paper: What is the most important point
you learned today about becoming a democracy?
Homework Day 2: None
Document A: The Landing of Christopher Columbus (1400-1800) (Artifact 1)
The precontact Taíno culture occupying the island of Haiti (also indigenously referred to as Quisqueya or Bohio) was
a well-organized communal society divided among five caciquats or “kingdoms.” In Taíno, Haiti means “high ground”
or “mountainous land.” However, the Taíno population (Taíno meaning “good” or “noble”) was primarily concentrated
on the island’s coastal plains and valleys. Each caciquat was governed by a cacique (chief). Christopher Columbus
renamed the island Española (Hispaniola) meaning “little Spain.” On December 5, 1492, Columbus anchored off the
northern shoreline of Haiti, near modern Cap-Haïtien. On Christmas Eve 1492, the Santa Maria (Columbus’ flagship)
sank just off of an inlet Columbus would later name La Nativida. The Taíno cacique, Guacanagarí, allowed
Columbus to leave 39 men behind at the settlement of Nativida. On his return in 1493, Columbus moved his coastal
base of operations 70 miles east to what is now the Dominican Republic and established the settlement of La
Isabela, the first permanent Spanish settlement in the Americas.
It is uncertain how many Taíno were living in Hispaniola at first contact. Estimates of the population range from
several hundred thousand to over a million. (1) Soon after Columbus’ return, more Spanish settlers arrived; and by
1504 the last major Taíno cacique was deposed during the War of Higüey. Over the subsequent ten years, living
conditions for the Taíno declined steadily. The Spaniards exploited the island’s gold mines and reduced the Taíno to
slavery. Within twenty-five years of Columbus’ arrival in Haiti, most of the Taíno had died from enslavement,
massacre, or disease. By 1514, only 32,000 Taíno survived in Hispaniola.
What caused changes to occur to the Dominican
Republic’s government in your time period? What
type of ruling body was in charge of the country?
by Russell Schimmer, GSP, Yale University
Sources:
http://www.yale.edu/gsp/colonial/hispaniola/index.
html
[1] Keegan, William F., "Destruction of the Taino" in Archaeology. January/February 1992, pp. 51-56.
Document B: Spanish Empire begins Slave Importation (1600s- 1800) (Artifact 2)
Since the time of Columbus’s landing, the island has suffered from tumultuous periods of political instability and
corrupt regimes. The indigenous people, the Taino, were eradicated by brutal treatment from the Spanish settlers
and diseases from Europe. Colonizers then and those that followed stole, attacked, and abused those that lived
there. A labor system was established to regulate the work of the Native population. It is estimated that the
population of the Taino was reduced from 60,000 in 1507 and 600 by 1531. As the Taino perished, the Spanish
began bringing enslaved Africans to the islands to serve as laborers. Some historians theorize that as African slaves
were moved into the island, the Tainos might have transferred some of their culture and practices to the people
arriving from Africa. Aside from that though, most of the original inhabitants vanished without a trace.
Sources:
- http://www.countrywatch.com/
- “Dominican Republic.” Global Issues in Context Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2013. Global Issues in Context.
Web. 29 Jan. 2013.
What caused changes to occur to the Dominican Republic’s government in your time period? What type of
ruling body was in charge of the country?
Document C: Dominican Republic Declares Independence from the Haitians (1800- 1865) (Artifact 3)
From 1808- 1821 Spain ruled present day Dominican Republic
From 1821- 1844 Haiti ruled present day Dominican Republic
La Trinitaria was a secret society that led the struggle to establish the Dominican Republic as a free, sovereign, and
independent nation. Juan Pablo Duarte who helped set-up the foundation of La Trinitaria, by expressing:
“In the name of the Holy, August and Indivisible Trinity of Omnipotent God: I swear and promise, by my honor and
my conscience, in the hands of our President, Juan Pablo Duarte, to cooperate with my person, life and goods in the
definitive separation from the Haitian government and to plant a free, sovereign and independent republic,
free from all foreign domination, that will be called the Dominican Republic, and which will have its tri-colored
flag in crimson and blue quarters traversed by a white cross.”
The Trinitarians proclaimed the independence of the Dominican Republic on February 27, 1844, with a shot fired by
Ramón Matías Mella in the Puerta de la Misericordia in the city of Santo Domingo. Boyer overthrown; Santo
Domingo declared its independence and becomes the Dominican Republic. Immediately afterward, they went to the
Puerta del Conde, where Francisco del Rosario Sánchez lifted the national flag and where the Constitutive Act of the
Dominican State was read and sworn.
Source:
http://www.dominicanaonline.org/portal/english/cpo_independencia.asp
What caused changes to occur to the Dominican Republic’s government in your time period? What type of
ruling body was in charge of the country?
Document D: United States Involvement in Dominican Republic (1865- 1929) (Artifact 1)
It became a country in 1844 when it broke from Haiti, splitting the island of Hispaniola roughly in half. Since
independence, the Dominican Republic had seen over 50 presidents and nineteen different constitutions. Of those
presidents, only three peacefully completed their designated terms in office. Revolutions and rebellions were
common and the national debt kept piling up. By 1916 the debt had swollen to well over $30 million, which the poor
island nation could never hope to pay.
In 1916, the US government occupied the Dominican Republic, mostly because a chaotic and unstable political
situation there was preventing the Dominican Republic from paying back debts owed to the USA and other foreign
countries. The US military easily subdued any Dominican resistance and occupied the nation for eight years. The
occupation was unpopular both with the Dominicans and Americans in the USA who felt it was a waste of money.
With the occupation very unpopular both in the Dominican Republic and at home in the USA, President Warren
Harding decided to get the troops out. The USA and the Dominican Republic agreed on a plan for an orderly
withdrawal which guaranteed that customs duties would still be used to pay off long-standing debts. Starting in 1922,
the US military began gradually moving out of the Dominican Republic. Elections were held and in July of 1924 a
new government took over the country. The last US marines left the Dominican Republic on September 18, 1924.
Scheina, Robert L. Latin America's Wars: the Age of the Professional Soldier, 1900-2001. Washington D.C.: Brassey,
Inc., 2003.
What caused changes to occur to the Dominican Republic’s government in your time period? What type of
ruling body was in charge of the country?
Document E: General Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina Establishes Dictatorship (1930- 1961) (Artifact 2)
A dictator is a ruler with total power over a country, typically one who has obtained power by force. He/ she tells
people what to do or determines behavior of the people in that country. General Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina
controlled the entire government and the army either directly or through a series of hand- picked supporters. Trujillo
dominated every aspect of the country including the economy. Any individual that criticized his leadership and
government were subjected to torture, loss of property, and harsh prison sentences. Trujillo, during his reign, ordered
the massacre of thousands living in the Dominican Republic based on race. Trujillo ruled the country for over 30
years until 1961.
Following 1961, the country struggled to reform its governmental system and eliminate all corruption following the
Trujillo regime. They were successful in establishing the foundation for a democratic government. Heading into the
1960s the country’s future looked bright. After enduring the regime of the brutal dictator, Rafael Leonidas Trujillo
Molina, the citizens of the Dominican Republic began moving forward.
Source: http://www.colonialzone-dr.com/people_history-Trujillo.html
What caused changes to occur to the Dominican Republic’s government in your time period? What type of
ruling body was in charge of the country?
Document F: Dominican Republic’s Rise to a Democracy 1962- Today (Artifact 3)
The United States established diplomatic relations with the Dominican Republic in 1884 following its independence
from Spain. Post-independence, the country saw a mix of coups, U.S. military intervention and occupations, military
government, and democratic government. The Dominican Republic's first peaceful transfer of power from one
freely elected president to another was in 1978.
U.S. relations with the Dominican Republic are excellent. The country is an important partner in hemispheric affairs
due to its standing in the Caribbean as the largest economy and second-largest country in terms of population and
land mass, its large bilateral trade with the United States, and its proximity to the United States and other smaller
Caribbean nations. The Dominican Government has been supportive of many U.S. initiatives in the United Nations
and related agencies. The two governments cooperate in the fight against trafficking in illegal substances.
The United States has a strong interest in a democratic, stable, and economically healthy Dominican Republic and
supports its democratic and economic development. Obstacles to sustainable development include the poor quality
of the country's education system, the inability of the health system to adequately respond to the population's needs,
weak economic competitiveness, and severe inefficiencies in the energy sector. Violence has increased in the
Dominican Republic in recent years. While there have been coordinated efforts to address corruption, improving
transparency is a priority in order to consolidate the country's democratic gains.
Source:
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/35639.htm
What caused changes to occur to the Dominican Republic’s government in your time period? What type of
ruling body was in charge of the country?
Artifact 1
Question to answer within your artifact: What does this artifact teach us about government in the Dominican
Republic for your time period?
Artifact 2
Question to answer within your artifact: What does this artifact teach us about government in the Dominican
Republic for your time period?
Artifact 3
Question to answer within your artifact: What does this artifact teach us about government in the Dominican
Republic for your time period?
Home Group Note Taking Sheet
Time Period
The Landing of Christopher Columbus (1400-1600s)
Spanish Empire begins Slave Importation (1600s1800)
Dominican Republic Declares Independence from
the Haitians (1800- 1865)
United States Involvement in a free Dominican
Republic (1865- 1924)
General Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina Establishes
Dictatorship (1930- 1961)
Dominican Republic’s Rise to a Democracy 1962Today
Government in the Dominican Republic