Grade Level:

4th grade

Timing during the Year:

4th Quarter

Year Long Essential Question:

How has the past influenced the present?

Unit Question

How might my life have been different if the Civil Rights Movement never
happened?

Sub Unit Essential Questions:

Do I have a right?
How did Jim Crow laws impact Whites, African Americans, and American
Indians in Virginia?
What were the political social and/or economic contributions made by Virginians
who fought for equality? (ex. Maggie L. Walker, Arthur R. Ashe Jr., etc.)
How did the Civil Rights Movement affect Virginia? What changes occurred as a
result of it?
How can I have a voice in the battle with discrimination our world still faces
today? (Connecting the past with the present)

Key SOLs
Virginia Studies
VS.1 The student will demonstrate skills for historical and geographical analysis and
responsible citizenship, including the ability to
a) Identify and interpret artifacts and primary and secondary source documents to
understand events in history;
b) Determine cause-and-effect relationships;
c) Compare and contrast historical events;
d) Draw conclusions and make generalizations;
e) Make connections between past and present;
f) Sequence events in Virginia history;
g) Interpret ideas and events from different historical perspectives;
h) Evaluate and discuss issues orally and in writing;
i) Analyze and interpret maps to explain relationships among landforms, water
features, climatic characteristics, and historical events.

VS.8 The student will demonstrate knowledge of the reconstruction of Virginia following
the Civil War by
a) Identifying the effects of Reconstruction on life in Virginia;
b) Identifying the effects of segregation and Jim Crow on life in Virginia for
whites, African Americans, and American Indians;
c) Describing the importance of railroads, new industries, and the growth of cities to
Virginias economic development.
VS.9 The student will demonstrate knowledge of twentieth- and twenty-first-century
Virginia by
a) Describing the economic and social transition from a rural, agricultural society to
a more urban, industrialized society, including the reasons people came to
Virginia from other states and countries;
b) Identifying the impact of Virginians, such as Woodrow Wilson and George C.
Marshall, on international events;
c) Identifying the social and political events in Virginia linked to desegregation and
Massive Resistance and their relationship to national history;
d) Identifying the political, social, and/or economic contributions made by Maggie
L. Walker; Harry F. Byrd, Sr.; Oliver W. Hill; Arthur R. Ashe, Jr.; A. Linwood
Holton, Jr.; and L. Douglas Wilder.
VS.10 The student will demonstrate knowledge of government, geography, and
economics by
a) Identifying the three branches of Virginia government and the function of each;
b) Describing the major products and industries of Virginias five geographic
regions;
c) Explaining how advances in transportation, communications, and technology have
contributed to Virginias prosperity and role in the global economy.
Communication
4.1 The student will use effective oral communication skills in a variety of settings.
a) Present accurate directions to individuals and small groups.
b) Contribute to group discussions across content areas.
c) Seek ideas and opinions of others.
d) Use evidence to support opinions.
e) Use grammatically correct language and specific vocabulary to communicate
ideas.
f) Communicate new ideas to others.
g) Demonstrate the ability to collaborate with diverse teams.
h) Demonstrate the ability to work independently.
4.2 The student will make and listen to oral presentations and reports.
a) Use subject-related information and vocabulary.
b) Listen to and record information.

c) Organize information for clarity.

d) Use language and style appropriate to the audience, topic, and purpose.
4.3 The student will learn how media messages are constructed and for what purposes.
a) Differentiate between auditory, visual, and written media messages.
b) Identify the characteristics of various media messages.
Reading
4.4 The student will expand vocabulary when reading.
a) Use context to clarify meanings of unfamiliar words.
b) Use knowledge of roots, affixes, synonyms, antonyms, and homophones.
c) Use word-reference materials, including the glossary, dictionary, and thesaurus.
d) Develop vocabulary by listening to and reading a variety of texts.
e) Use vocabulary from other content areas.
4.5 The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts, narrative
nonfiction texts, and poetry.
a) Explain the authors purpose.
b) Describe how the choice of language, setting, characters, and information
contributes to the authors purpose.
c) Identify the main idea.
d) Summarize supporting details.
e) Identify the problem and solution.
f) Describe the relationship between text and previously read materials.
g) Identify sensory words.
h) Draw conclusions/make inferences about text.
i) Make, confirm, or revise predictions.
j) Identify cause and effect relationships.
k) Use reading strategies throughout the reading process to monitor
comprehension.
l) Read with fluency and accuracy.
4.6 The student will read and demonstrate comprehension of nonfiction texts.
a) Use text structures, such as type, headings, and graphics, to predict and
categorize information in both print and digital texts.
b) Formulate questions that might be answered in the selection.
c) Explain the authors purpose.
d) Identify the main idea.
e) Summarize supporting details.
f) Draw conclusions and make simple inferences using textual information as
support.
g) Distinguish between cause and effect.
h) Distinguish between fact and opinion.
i) Use prior knowledge and build additional background knowledge as context for
new learning.
j) Identify new information gained from reading.

k) Use reading strategies throughout the reading process to monitor

comprehension.
l) Read with fluency and accuracy.
Writing
4.7 The student will write cohesively for a variety of purposes.
a) Identify intended audience.
b) Focus on one aspect of a topic.
c) Use a variety of pre-writing strategies.
d) Organize writing to convey a central idea.
e) Recognize different modes of writing have different patterns of organization.
f) Write a clear topic sentence focusing on the main idea.
g) Write two or more related paragraphs on the same topic.
h) Use transition words for sentence variety.
i) Utilize elements of style, including word choice and sentence variation.
j) Revise writing for clarity of content using specific vocabulary and information.
k) Include supporting details that elaborate the main idea.
Math
4.14 The student will collect, organize, display, and interpret data from a variety of
graphs.
Science
4.1 The student will demonstrate an understanding of scientific reasoning, logic, and the
nature of science by planning and conducting investigations in which
a) distinctions are made among observations, conclusions, inferences, and
predictions;
b) objects or events are classified and arranged according to characteristics or
properties;
c) appropriate instruments are selected and used to measure length, mass, volume,
and temperature in metric units;
d) appropriate instruments are selected and used to measure elapsed time;
e) predictions and inferences are made, and conclusions are drawn based on data
from a variety of sources;
f) independent and dependent variables are identified;
g) constants in an experimental situation are identified;
h) hypotheses are developed as cause and effect relationships;
i) data are collected, recorded, analyzed, and displayed using bar and basic line
graphs;
j) numerical data that are contradictory or unusual in experimental results are
recognized;
k) data are communicated with simple graphs, pictures, written statements, and
numbers;
l) models are constructed to clarify explanations, demonstrate relationships, and
solve needs; and
m) current applications are used to reinforce science concepts.

Fine Arts
Grade K-4 Music Standard 4

Students create and arrange music to accompany readings or dramatizations

Students create and arrange short songs and instrumental pieces within specified
guidelines (e.g., a particular style, form, instrumentation, compositional technique)

Students use a variety of sound sources when composing

Grade K-4 Music Standard 9

Students identify by genre or style aural examples of music from various

historical periods and cultures

Students describe in simple terms how elements of music are used in music
examples from various cultures of the world

Students identify various uses of music in their daily experiences and describe
characteristics that make certain music suitable for each use

Students identify and describe roles of musicians (e.g., orchestra conductor,

folksinger, church organist) in various music settings and cultures

Students demonstrate audience behavior appropriate for the context and style of
music performed
Grade K-4 Visual Arts Standard 1

Students know the differences between materials, techniques, and processes

Students describe how different materials, techniques, and processes cause

different responses

Students use different media, techniques, and processes to communicate ideas,

experiences, and stories

Students use art materials and tools in a safe and responsible manner
Grade K-4 Visual Arts Standard 2

Students know the differences among visual characteristics and purposes of art in
order to convey ideas

Students describe how different expressive features and organizational principles

cause different responses

Students use visual structures and functions of art to communicate ideas

Grade K-4 Visual Arts Standard 4

Students know that the visual arts have both a history and specific relationships to
various cultures

Students identify specific works of art as belonging to particular cultures, times,

and places

Students demonstrate how history, culture, and the visual arts can influence each
other in making and studying works of art
Grade K-4 Visual Arts Standard 5

Students understand there are various purposes for creating works of visual art

Students describe how people's experiences influence the development of specific

artworks
Students understand there are different responses to specific artworks

Objectives

Purpose:
o To educate and inform 4th graders on the rise of discrimination and racism
in America and how we fought that battle with tolerance and respect.

Students will learn

o Facts
What a right is and different examples of it in America
Jim Crow Laws and its impact
Massive Resistance and its impact
Famous Virginians during the Civil Rights Era (Maggie Walker,
Oliver Hill, Arthur Ashe, Linwood Holton, Douglas Wilder, Harry
Byrd)
Solutions on how to spread equality throughout their school
community
o Organizing concepts
Identify and interpret primary and secondary source documents to
understand events in history
Draw conclusions and make generalizations
Make connections between past and present
Sequence events in Virginia history
Compare and contrast historical events
Interpret ideas and events form different historical perspectives
Determine cause and effect relationships
o Guiding principles
The role of government has a profound impact on our society.
Different cultures were affected by various decisions the
government and society has made throughout history.
America had to go through a time of segregation, desegregation
and integration.
There were movements and court cases that challenged
discrimination in Virginia.
Different individuals used their talents and voices to fight for
equality.
There are beliefs and biases.

o Attitudes
Why do we have to learn about this?
It doesnt affect me, why do I have to care?
Our past affects our future.
I have opportunities to voice my opinion.
I have the power to change my school and community.
Organizational Sequence for Unit

Assessment Considerations

Lesson 1: Do I have rights?

As a class brainstorm what the
word rights means
Identify several rights they believe
everyone should have

Pre-assessments:
Giving students worksheets to fill out on
their background knowledge
Examine different photographs during
the time period
Discussions
Activities and games

Lesson 2: The Impact of Jim Crow Laws

Use a variety of books on Civil
rights to help students further
explore the impact of Jim Crow
Laws
Lesson 3: Massive Resistance
Students will explore this concept
through political cartoons that were
distributed during the Civil Rights
Era in Richmond, VA
Lesson 4: Famous Virginians during the
Civil Rights Movement
Students will create presentations
on their chosen Virginian and their
contributions
Maggie Walker, Harry Byrd, Oliver
Hill, Arthur Ashe, Linwood Holton,
Douglas Wilder
Lesson 5: The Civil Rights Movement and
Today
Students will go through stations to
explore current issues through
different modes of media
(newspapers, videos, graphs, etc.)
Lesson 6: Field Trip to DC to visit major
civil rights sites

Formative Assessments:
Observations
Anecdotal notes
Multiple levels of Questions (Blooms
Taxonomy)
Surveys
Various Activities
Worksheets
Exit Tickets
Booklets
Journal Entries
Listening to conversations
Summative Assessment
Final Project: Using their field trip for
inspiration, create a monument of
courageous individuals or events that the
students learned throughout the unit that
symbolizes peace against racism.
o Along with their monument, the
students must create an
explanation to exhibit their
thinking behind their sculpture.
o Their class will turn into a
museum where their sculptures
will be put on display
o Parents and other faculty

Suggested sites (will edit)

o Lincoln Memorial
o Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
o Fredrick Douglass National
Historic Site
o Supreme Court
o African American Civil War
Memorial

Lesson 7: What can We do?

Students will create their own

monument on an event or
individual or this era that they have
learned throughout the unit with
their group.
Each group will have an
explanation to their creation told
through any form they want. (song,
video, essay, etc.)
The class will turn into a museum
to display their sculptures (parents
and other teachers are invited to
come visit).

members will be able to tour the

museum and listen to the
students and their explanations.