Choice Menus in High School: Reconstruction

By Nina Kendall                      
                   Choice  boards a strategy employed well at the elementary school level. They are used with less frequency or success in high schools. Below is one example of how this strategy can be used at the high school level if you are interested in incorporating more student choice and voice in class.

The plan for students to learn about Reconstruction is detailed below based on US History Georgia Performance Standard 10. In this standard students are to identify legal, political, and social dimensions of Reconstruction. Each section of the work is based on a stand in the standard. This was designed for students to build on their learning style and provide them with choices to encourage engagement. The rubric is simple and focuses on the depth of knowledge demonstrated in the work. As this would not be the first unit, students would have already had practice with analyzing documents and using subject area vocabulary as part of the coursework.

Reconstruction: Creating a New America Student Sheet

Standard: SSUSH10- The student will identify legal, political, and social dimensions of Reconstruction.

Directions: Complete at least one activity from each of the rows. You should do at least one activity that reflects your dominant intelligence. Activities in row 2 and 3 can be done individually or with a partner.

1	Analyze 1 cartoon about presidential reconstruction using the requirements provided.
	Use a Venn Diagram to Compare and contrast Presidential Reconstruction with Radical Republican Reconstruction and write a summary paragraph.
	Create a chart that lists the major components of each of the plans for Reconstruction.
2	Go To: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml/exhibit/aopart5b.html What did former slaves work and hope for in this period?
	How did the Freedman’s Bureau both help and hurt the efforts to Reconstruct the South? Express using I-statements.
	Investigate the growth of African American music of this period. How does it represent both progress and challenges in this period?
	Go To: http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/historyonline/us21.cfm Explain the ups and downs African Americans experienced based on the primary sources and data provided. What other data would help you illustrate progress?
3	Analyze the History Tunes Reconstruction Song. Create annotations that show the economic, economic, and legal domains of Reconstruction.
	Go To: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aaohtml/exhibit/aopart5.html Create 3 faces that express reaction to these amendments. Use speech bubbles to explain what each amendment allows and the person’s reaction. Label the person as representative of a major group in this period.
	GO TO: http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0078777186/student_view0/unit1/chapter3/student_web_activities.html Complete the activity and explain how the acts described are representative of one of the Civil War Amendments.
4	Analyze cartoon 4 with at least 5 annotations. What does this cartoon suggest about America’s commitment to its founding ideals in this period?
	Go To: http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/historyonline/us22.cfm What laws helped and hurt the various groups in the South? Discuss with your partner.
5	What did Thaddeus Stevens and Andrew Johnson argue about? What does this show about support for reconstruction in the North?
	Who would “wave the bloody shirt?” How did this impact the progress of Reconstruction? Write your response as a short stump speech and deliver it as closing for class one day.
6	Go To: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aap/timeline.html Use this information to explain how politics ends reconstruction. Your explanation can be: ·         written as a paragraph ·         completed as a cause and effect diagram ·         expressed on a winners/losers score report.

The rubric below will be used to assess all 6 rows. Students must earn at least a 12 to proceed to the final activity.

Rubric
Does the work demonstrate knowledge?	1	2	3	4
Does the work illustrate the student’s internalized understanding?	1	2	3	4
Are multiple perspectives reflected in the body of the work?	1	2	3	4
Is the work historically accurate?	1	2	3	4

Recommendations for Improvement

	Follow standard English language and grammar conventions.		Make original choices to express yourself.
	Organize your thoughts before writing.		Complete all parts of the assignment.
	Use care when completing your work.		Proofread your work.

Final Activity (with a partner):

You will read Eric Foner’s discussion of Reconstruction. Was this truly America’s Second Revolution? Were the founding ideals forwarded?  Prepare for a debate regarding Foner’s work. Create position statements for both sides of the debate.  Use your work to support your position. Annotate your statements with what you have learned. Put the number of each row as the annotation. The rubric above will be used for your position statements that you will turn in after the debate.

You will be assigned a position the day of the debate and take directions from your position leader.

 The grade will be the result of individual notes and participation on the team.

Choice Boards: Personalized Learning in the Elementary Classroom

 2nd Grade Choice Board     

By Lisa Henriquez

We all know the importance of differentiating assignments for students of different ability levels, but differentiation goes beyond taking off a few questions for less able learners or giving the gifted students an extra project to complete. Differentiated Instruction should reaching different levels but it should also meet specific needs and be student centered. All students learn differently so they should be given different ways to show mastery. One way to address this need is the use of choice boards. They offer students a way to make decisions about what they will do in order to meet class requirements. A choice board could be for a single lesson, a week-long lesson, or even a month-long period of study.

According to Fair Isn't Always Equal: Assessing and Grading in the Differentiated Classroom by Rick Wormeli in order to create a choice board:



O     Identify the most important elements of a lesson or unit.

O     Create a required assignment or project that reflects the minimum understanding you expect all students to achieve.

O     Create negotiables which expand upon the minimum understands. These negotiables often require students to go beyond the basic levels of Bloom's Taxonomy.

O     Create a final section that offers students the opportunity for enrichment.

I use choice boards in all grade levels. The younger students need more detailed instructions and resources in class. I will work on the research and back ground information during class and send the student’s research pages home for parents to help pull everything together in the project. My 1^st and 2^nd grade classes have approximately 25 students. The individual, creative activities can be difficult to accomplish in class. I feel that it is more important for me to spend class time, helping them get the information. I can assess their understanding of the different assignments and topics and research skills in class.  Older students are given the choice board and class time and resources, but can work at their own pace to complete the activities. They have the freedom to work at home if needed or bring in the needed project supplies if they aren’t in the classroom.

I also use the same choice board for all students in class, special education – gifted.  All students are working on the activities they feel comfortable completing.  I conference with students to help pick activities to make sure all are working at their ability level and pushing themselves to try different types of activities.  I also offer a Pick your Product opportunity for older students. They are much more creative than I am so they come up with some great ideas!          
       

3rd Grade Choice Board