Legend of Sleeping Hollow
Need some help with your American History lessons? Take a peek at my lesson plans and ideas.
My first year teaching I was dying to see other teachers’ plan books, but most of them were either blank or didn’t seem suitable for our students (“high-risk” with poor reading skills). After teaching American history to 8th graders for a few years, I’ve developed this webpage in the hopes that it can help first year teachers get an idea of what to do, or help out some experienced teachers freshen up some lessons. Just to let you know, my “at-risk” students have the same passing rate on the history portion of the state standardized exam as the “advanced” students.
Included below is my lesson for Week 17: American Literature. This is the lesson I used the week before Winter Break. Please see my other lenses to see my complete lesson plan book. You can visit my Procedures and General Ideas for 8th Grade American History to see my classroom set up, procedures, grading, use of textbook, exam ideas, etc.
Emily Dickinson
Week 17: Day 1 (Week Before Winter Break): American Literature
What have American authors written about?
HISTORY QUESTION OF THE WEEK: Who was the first President to have a Christmas tree in the White House? (find the answer at http://www.ipl.org/) [Answer: Franklin Pierce]
Objective: What have American authors written about?
Homework: Bring snacks to share
- If you were living in America during the time of George Washington and the creation of our new government, what are 5+ things you might write about if you were an author?
- Review exam
- Literature notes: students highlight information pages 210-211 from Adventure Tales of America: An Illustrated History of the United States, 1492-1877 (Signal Media Corporation). (I tell them what to highlight.)
- Summarize and show pictures from Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle, Evangeline, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and poems from Emily Dickinson. I used “Poetry for Young People: Emily Dickinson” by Frances Schoonmaker Bolin and Chi Chung and “Washington Irving’s Rip Van Winkle” by Ashley Foehner.
- Literature crossword puzzle
Last of the Mohicans movie
Week 17: Day 2 (Day Before Winter Break): Last of the Mohicans
What was it life like living on the frontier?
Objective: What was it life like living on the frontier?
Watch “Last of the Mohicans” movie. Students take 5 notes, and can take more for extra credit. (Fast forward through first 15 minutes of movie.) I do allow for students to bring in food to share with the class and eat during the movie.
Watch the trailer for “The Last of the Mohicans”
Previous Unit: Weeks 13-16: Our Constitution
- Weeks 13-16: Our Constitution
Constitution Lesson Plans for 8th Grade American History
Next Unit: Weeks 18-19: Our New Nation
- Weeks 18-19: Our New Nation
Our New Nation Lesson Plans for 8th Grade American History
Table of Contents for My Lesson Plan Book
Would you like to see the rest of my lessons?
Weeks 1-2: First Week of School & Geography Lesson Plans for 8th Grade American History
Weeks 3-8: Thirteen Colonies Lesson Plans
Weeks 8-13: American Revolution Lesson Plans
Weeks 13-16: Constitution Lesson Plans
Week 17: American Literature Lesson Plans (this set of lessons)
Weeks 18-19: Our New Nation Lesson Plans
Weeks 20-22: Industrial Revolution Lesson Plans
Weeks 23-26: Westward Expansion & Roads to Freedom Lesson Plans
Weeks 26-30: Civil War Lesson Plans
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