Technology

Integration Activity
Nicholas Erber
CAT 531

Activity Title: Civil Rights and The Watsons Go to Birmingham1963

Grade Level Range: 6th-8th grade

Purpose/Objectives:

Students will:
Use research skills to peruse the Internet for information about the Civil Rights
movement in the American South and correlate that information to the events
and character experiences in a piece of historical ction (The Watsons Go to
Birmingham)
Identify key parts of the story (plot, setting, characters) and demonstrate how
those elements of the story relate to the racial atmosphere of Birmingham AL in
1963
Use Prezi to create an engaging presentation about the correlations between
the real 1963 and the one portrayed in the book
Use presentation software to prepare a Prezi slideshow and present it to the
class.
The activity engages the following standards from the Alabama Course of Study (6th
grade):
1.) Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as
well as inferences drawn from the text. [RL.6.1]
11.) Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as
well as inferences drawn from the text. [RI.6.1]
12.) Determine a central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through
particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions
or judgments. [RI.6.2]
15.) Analyze how a particular sentence, paragraph, chapter, or section ts into
the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the ideas.
[RI.6.5]
19.) Compare and contrast one author's presentation of events with that of
another (e.g., a memoir written by and a biography on the same person). [RI.
6.9]
24.) Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development,
organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-
specic expectations for writing types are dened in standards 21-23 above.)
[W.6.4]
29.) Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis,
reection, and research. [W.6.9]
39.) Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking,
reading, or listening. [L.6.3]
The activity also engages the following standards from the National Educational
Technology Standards for Students (NETS) 2007:
1. Creativity and Innovation
a. Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or
processes
b. Create original works as a means of personal or group expression
2. Communication and collaboration
a. Interact, collaborate and publish with peers, experts, or others
employing a variety of digital environments and media
b. Communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple
audiences using a variety of media and formats
d. Contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve
problems
3. Research and information uency
b. Locate, organize, analyze evaluate, synthesize, and ethically
use information from a variety of sources and media
c. Evaluate and select information sources and digital tools based
on the appropriateness to specic tasks
4. Critical thinking, problem solving and decision making
b. Plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a
project
5. Digital citizenship
a. Advocate and practice safe, legal and responsible use of
information and technology
6. Technology operations and concepts
a. Understand and use technology systems
d. Transfer current knowledge to learning of new technologies
Description: The students will have had to have read The Watsons Go To
Birmingham 1963 before engaging in this activity. Students will be assigned a
chapter of the novel and then will be required to research the real situations of
Flint, MI and Birmingham, AL and compare them with the portrayal of black and
minority life as portrayed in the novel. They will work in groups. This research will
then be used to prepare a narrative presentation using Prezi that also engages
with their own situations in South Dallas. Prezis will be presented to the entire
class on the nal day of the project.

Activity Preparation:
Students will read the novel
Teacher will set up Moodle login and each days lesson for students. As the
course progresses, students will be assigned and assignments will open up
for each separate day.
The following online resources will be integrated into the Moodle daily lesson
plan:
http://www.brainpop.com/partners/macmillanmh/brownvsboe.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Watsons_Go_to_Birmingham_
%E2%80%93_1963
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4Yf5yhWN2g
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0lD37bq8YI
http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Article.jsp?id=h-1358
http://www.slideshare.net/emfear/the-watsons-go-to-
birmingham-1963-13817995

Activity Procedure:

Day 1: Research
Students will use a variety of resources posted on Moodle (Google,
Wikipedia (with disclaimers), and the BrainPop site) to compare a list (posted on
Moodle) of predetermined portrayals from the book to real life events they
research.
Day 2: Research 2
Students will continue research and then begin to formulate a list of
comparisons on Google Docs (accesible through Moodle) with a template attached
Day 3: Prezi
Students will select a Prezi to compile their information from compare and
contrast templates provided by teacher. Students will also plan their presentations
by assigning groups with speaking roles

Interim: Students will continue to plan and arrange their presentations and include
other A/V elements

Day 4-6: Presentations
Students will present their compare and contrast presentations in an
organized format during class. Non-presenting students will ll out a student rubric
to evaluate each other students presentations.

Tools and Hardware:

Projector
Internet connected Laptop computer lab
Thumb drives
Moodle
Search engines and databases

Assessment:

Did students include interesting, relevant content that compared and contrasted
the world of the novel and the real world of 1963?
Did the students use the presentation tool Prezi and demonstrate a concise
knowledge of its limits and appropriate applications?
Did the students collaborate and did everyone in the group contribute?
Did the students submit their peer evaluation forms and pay attention to other
participants presentations?

Comments:

The teacher should model every step in this process to the class before they engage in
them. It is extremely important that students are kept away from computers until they are
ready to engage in working on them and that computer use is closely monitored. Also, the
time frame on this lesson plan is quite optimistic. Other needs and ideas may occur to
you. Use them as necessary.
Rubric:
RubiStar

Rubric Made Using:
RubiStar ( http://rubistar.4teachers.org )
Oral Presentation Rubric : The Watsons Go to the *Real* Birmingham
Teacher Name: Mr. Erber
Student Name: ________________________________________
CATEGORY 4 3 2 1
Content
Shows a full
understanding of the
topic.
Shows a good
understanding of the
topic.
Shows a good
understanding of
parts of the topic.
Does not seem to
understand the topic
very well.
Prezi
Uses Prezi above
and beyond
expected
effectiveness
Uses Prezi very well Uses Prezi to
display related
topics
Does not use Prezi,
uses another
organizational tool
Collaboration
with Peers
Almost always
listens to, shares
with, and supports
the efforts of others
in the group. Tries to
keep people
working well
together.
Usually listens to,
shares with, and
supports the efforts
of others in the
group. Does not
cause \"waves\" in
the group.
Often listens to,
shares with, and
supports the efforts
of others in the
group but
sometimes is not a
good team member.
Rarely listens to,
shares with, and
supports the efforts
of others in the
group. Often is not a
good team member.
Evaluates Peers
Fills out peer
evaluation
completely and
always gives scores
based on the
presentation rather
than other factors
(e.g., person is a
close friend).
Fills out almost all of
the peer evaluation
and always gives
scores based on the
presentation rather
than other factors
(e.g., person is a
close friend).
Fills out most of the
peer evaluation and
always gives scores
based on the
presentation rather
than other factors
(e.g., person is a
close friend).
Fills out most of the
peer evaluation but
scoring appears to
be biased.
Listens to Other
Presentations
Listens intently.
Does not make
distracting noises or
movements.
Listens intently but
has one distracting
noise or movement.
Sometimes does not
appear to be
listening but is not
distracting.
Sometimes does not
appear to be
listening and has
distracting noises or
movements.
Date Created: Jul 03, 2014 10:41 pm (CDT)
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