American Leaders on Social Media

8/18/2019 American Leaders on Social Media

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American Leaders on Social Media

Marie PaulHigh School/American History

Common Core Standards:

Students apply skills by utilizing a variety of resources to construct theses and support or refute contentions

made by others. Alternative explanations of historical events are analyzed and questions of historical

inevitability are explored.

3. Historians develop theses and use evidence to support or refute positions.

4. Historians analyze cause, effect, sequence and correlation in historical events, including multiple causationand long- and short-term causal relations.

The isolationist approach to foreign policy meant U.S. leadership in world affairs diminished after World War

I. Overseas, certain nations saw the growth of tyrannical governments which reasserted their power through

aggression and created conditions leading to the Second World War. After Pearl Harbor, the United States

entered World War II, which changed the country’s focus from isolationism to international involvement.

CONTENT STATEMENTS:

21. During the 1930s, the U.S. government attempted to distance the country from earlier interventionist

policies in the Western Hemisphere as well as retain an isolationist approach to events in Europe and Asia

until the beginning of WWII.22. The United States mobilization of its economic and military resources during World War II brought

significant changes to American society.

Lesson Summary:

Students will be making fake Facebook and Twitter accounts for the world’s leaders during World War II. Each

student will pick a leader who was critical during this time and set up a social media account for that leader.Students will then create posts that reflect their leader, and form an online persona in a way that reflects the

character of their subect. The purpose of this lesson is for students to put themsel!es into the li!es of the

world leaders during that time. The goal is for the students to better understand the character of their subectand ha!e insight on why they beha!ed the way they did.

Estimated Duration:

This lesson will take appro"imately three hours. It will last three class periods, about #$ minutes per period.


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Commentary:

It will not take !ery much effort to get the students interested in this lesson. Social media is something most ofthem use e!eryday. For those who may not ha!e social media, they are at least familiar with it. The idea of

being able to get on social media during school %which they are not allowed to do& will be a source of

e"citement for the students. I predict a challenge will be making sure the student follow the guidelines of thelesson. Students may want to act goofy with the accounts, and not put critical thought into what they post.

'lso, they may want to browse their own social media accounts, instead of focusing on the assignment.

Instructional Procedures:

(ay )*

First )$ minutes* Introduction+ I will e"plain the guidelines of the assignment.

) minutes* I will pro!ide a set of world leaders the students may choose to focus their assignment around.

Students will be able to choose their own if they wish. (uring this time, students decide on whom they want

their social media account to be about and what type of social media they will be using.

-$ minutes* Students will then research the subect they ha!e chosen on the internet. They should already

know general information about the subect through past lectures and readings in the te"tbook. This time is for

learning more personal and in+depth information about the subect from credible online sources.

) minutes* Students will begin to create the social media accounts online. This will be ust the basic set+up.

utting it basic information. For e"ample* usernames, passwords, age, location, etc.

(ay -*

Entire class* (uring the entire class period, students will begin to fill in the spots of their social media account

online. They may use other sites or their te"tbook to inspire their posts. Students will post pictures, !ideos,

status updates, tweets, etc. from the !iewpoint of their world leader. Their leaders may /friend0 other leadersand interact with one another.

(ay 1*

First 2 minutes* The students will be able to share their profiles with the rest of the class. The class will beopen to discussion. Students will e"plain their decisions on their posts, and fellow students may ask 3uestionsand4or pro!ide constructi!e commentary.

) minutes* I will wrap up the lesson. I will pro!ide feedback on how well the students did with the

assignment, as well as further de!elop their thoughts on how they think their world leader would interact onsocial media. I will make a point to show how readily a!ailable information is in modern times, and how in th

past, it was not as easy to understand a person’s moti!e or thoughts.


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Pre-Assessment:

In order to pre+assess how in+depth the students’ knowledge is in the material, I will use pre!ious 3ui54test

scores. This lesson will be towards the end of the WWII unit, and the students will ha!e already taken 3ui55es

and tests o!er the subect material.

Scoring Guidelines:

The 3ui55es and test will be scored how they are traditionally. If some students struggled greatly in

them, I will suggest to those students that they choose the subect they know the most about and do

additional research at home. 'lthough, I do not think this will be greatly necessary because studentswill ha!e an allotted time to research their subect in+class, and they are able to use their te"tbooks.

Post-Assessment:

Student will submit a written response e"plaining what they learned about their subect and4or anotherstudent’s subect. (o they understand their leader more6 7ow6 7ow can the lag in the spread of information

during that time cause certain e!ents to happen6 With the age of social media, how could ha!e these e!ents

been pre!ented or accelerated6

Scoring Guidelines:

This will be a pass4fail assignment. The student ha!e already learned the unit, taken 3ui55es and tests,and completed a large web assignment. (epending on the thought put into the post+assessment, I will

be able to see whether or not the student grasps the concepts or has attempted to understand them, sinc

they ha!e been e"posed to so much of it thus far.

Differentiated Instructional Support

(escribe how instruction can be differentiated %changed or altered& to meet the needs of gifted or accelerated

students*

The challenge will be to create a timeline of e!ents on their social media site to coincide with a significant

e!ent that occurred during WWII that directly affected their leader. The posts to their profile should be detaile

and show causality or reaction.

(iscuss additional acti!ities you could do to meet the needs of students who might be struggling with thematerial*

Instead of creating a Facebook or Twitter, which may be e"tensi!e. Students will create an Instagram account.

I will gi!e them specific e!ents they need to find photos for, and they will search for and post those photos on

the account. 'long with posting the photos, they should create appropriate captions to go along with them.


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Extension

http*44www.warhistoryonline.com

War 7istory 8nline is a website that pro!ides rare and fascinating information, !ideos, and pictures about

anything pertaining to war history. Students will be able to find great !ideos and photos they can share on their

accounts. 'lso, it will gi!e them information they can use to help them create uni3ue posts.

Homework Options and Home onnections

Students should create connections with other world leaders at home. They will be re3uired to post to otherworld leader’s accounts %created by their classmates&, tag them in photos, and4or befriend them. Students

should do this from their personal computers, online.

Interdisciplinar! onnections

The lesson can integrate sciences like chemistry If a student chooses 8ppenheimer as their leader, they can

ha!e a great focus on the atomic bomb. The student will be able to elaborate on the structure of the bomb andthe chemical compounds. hilosophy can be integrated. Students may comment on how their leader feels abou

communism, socialism, and capitalism.

"aterials and #esources:

For teachers 8!erhead proector, computer, internet, white board

For students 9omputers, internet, te"tbooks, notebooks, pencils

$e! %oca&ular!

Facebook, Twitter, :ySpace, Instagram, post, status, tweet, profile picture, share, /friend0, emoi

Additional 'otes

http://www.warhistoryonline.com/http://www.warhistoryonline.com/


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Students should try not to use modern slang in their posts. 'lthough this assignment is merging the old with

the new, we do not want to take away personality traits frrom the subect and create them into someone else.With that being said, students are not e"pected to post in early -$th century argon.

Documents

American Leaders on Social Media