Sister Teresa Maria Leis, EDU 320

History AYA, November 21, 2016

1. Objective: The students will be able to explain how a presidential candidate is elected. The
students will discuss why some states and regions are red or blue. Students will discuss
characteristics of responsible citizenship.
2. Content Standards: Nebraska
SS 12.1.1.g Analyze and evaluate the roles that political parties have played in the United States.
SS 12.1.2.a Evaluate how individuals and groups can effectively use the structure and functions
of various levels of government to shape policy.
SS 12.1.2.b Analyze the significance and benefits of patriotic symbols, songs, holidays, and
activities.
SS 12.1.2.e Describe the roles and influences of individuals, groups, and the media as checks on
governmental practices.
SS 12.3.4.a Distinguish population characteristics by world regions, country, and regions within
countries.
3. Motivation: During an election season students are very aware of who is running and local
popular opinion. Open the lesson with how the nation anticipated the election to play out. Was it
expected to be close? Students can become very emotionally involved in the campaign. Discuss
how it feels to care deeply about something, but are not old enough to vote and actively be
involved.
4. Instructional materials: Big Book, individual maps of the Electoral College, colored pencils,
writing utensils. Blue and red colored pencils will be separated before class and there will be
enough maps for all of the students.
5. Procedures: Cite at least one teaching strategy from the text or class here. (Bullet this)
Open class with questions about the election and how the students thought it would end.
Review terms: direct democracy, Electoral College, Swing State, Democrat, Republican,

liberal, conservative.
Identify which candidate fit which term.
On Big Book go through the selected states, their electoral vote totals, discuss the process

of how a state receives number of votes.

Highlight some consistent voting results and surprise results from 2016.
In partners fill out the Think, Pair, Share about the Electoral College election process.
Discuss symbolism of presidential seal.
In small groups discuss various ways to Make America Great Again and what it means
to be a responsible citizen.

Wrap up with instructions on mature and respectful arguments and what loyalty to a

politician you may not necessary like should look.

6. Classroom Discussion: As a class we will discuss why certain states are strong in either color.
Regional and cultural values of various areas of the country will be highlighted. Ask students why
this election had more states with an unknown color or why some states changed.
7. Academic vocabulary: Liberal, Conservative, Swing State, Electoral College, Direct
Democracy, Argument, Debate, Concession. As each term comes up during instruction I will stop
and ask the students to give me a definition, an example, and a real life application if applicable.
More time in discussion is given to the difference between fighting and a mature political
argument.
8. Assessment and Evaluation: Assessment of their understanding of the results of the election can
be evaluated through their individual maps. In partners the students are to discuss distinct
platform differences between the conservative and liberal parties. Using their maps, the students
look for red/blue areas and discuss why that may be based on cultural knowledge.
Value Added:
1. Resources
Enclosed is a copy of a Think Pair Share that students will complete when this

lesson is used.
An article discussing the importance of proper in class discussion is also at the end of

this lesson plan.

2. Universal Design for Learning
The print outs of the Electoral College map could be modified to have the number of
votes already printed for students with exceptionalities. This way they can have a
little visual assistance during the discussion about why some states receive more

campaign attention. For example: Why is California more significant than Alaska?
The front page of the Big Book had interactive elements. The amount of votes for
each state are hidden beneath a flip up piece of paper. This will be beneficial for

students who are more tactile learners or need to move around.

For students who may have difficulties with fine motor skills, they can simply put a
colored dot in each state, or some other symbol representing which candidate won

that state.
For gifted students, the homework assignment would be more involved, or this could
be a differentiated group discussion in class. They would be provided with a speech,
or some form of text, of a politician. They would identify a problem they speak about
and how they propose to solve it.

Rethinking Whole Class Discussion By Todd Finley, on Edutopia

Whole class discussions are, after lecture, the second most frequently used teaching strategy, one mandated by the
Common Core State Standards because of its many rewards: increased perspective-taking, understanding, empathy,
and higher-order thinking, among others. These benefits, however, do not manifest without a skillful and
knowledgeable facilitator.
Unfortunately, a preponderance of evidence demonstrates that many teachers mistakenly conflate discussion
with recitation. "Typical teacher-student discourse resembles a quiz show, with teachers asking a question, the
student replying, and the teacher evaluating the student's response. This is called initiation-response-evaluation, 'I-RE,' or recitation."1In contrast to recitation, quality discussion, according to the University of Washington's Center for
Instructional Development and Research, involves purposeful questions prepared in advance, assessment, and
starting points for further conversations. Teachers are also advised to:

Distribute opportunities to talk

Allow discussants to physically see each other

Ask questions that "may or may not have a known or even a single correct answer"2

Foster learners talking to peers3

Encourage students to justify their responses

Vary the types of questions

The Problem with Question Taxonomies

Many instructors reference question taxonomies while planning, such as Barbara Gross Davis' inventory,
the Socratic Questions, or the question set recommended by Stephen Brookfield:

Epistemological: Why does the author believe that ___?

Experiential: What have you encountered that makes you think that ___?

Communicative: How does the author rhetorically convey her theme?

Political: What groups would take issue with the implicit message that ___?
Developing questions that align with the ubiquitously misused New Bloom's Taxonomy -- starting a discussion with
recall questions and stair-stepping through the rest until higher order prompts are dispatched -- has been sold as a
pathway to cognitive vigor. Observe how many classrooms have Bloom's Taxonomy posted on the back wall for the
teacher to reference. Over-reliance on question hierarchies can result in conversations that are irrelevant to the
content and context of the learning environment, and invite answers that nobody cares about.
Claims by commercial texts often employ jargon to defend discussion routines that are unsupported by research,
with the exception of studies commissioned by companies selling curriculum materials and tests. Covering all of the
question types at the end of a basal reading does not ensure cognitive gains. Also in dispute is the entrenched belief
that asking higher-order questions leads to higher levels of thinking (see reviews of meta-studies here and here).With
well over 30 question classification systems, how do you choose those that hold the most promise? According to
sociolinguists, the answer depends on the context in which they are used.4 Rather than habitually adhering to any of
the hierarchical question sets during class dialogues (a non-hierarchical approach, Christenbury and
Kelly's Questioning Circles offer strategies for crafting "dense" prompts that integrate the subject,
world and reader), I suggest that instructors direct their attention to modeling inquiry, emphasizing divergent over
convergent questions, organizing students' approach to question-asking and -answering, listening, and providing
authentic follow-up questions. Because of the complexity of these practices, robots will not replace teachers anytime
soon.