For Educators - Unit 2.6 - Railroads Link Montana to the Nation

Lesson Theme:

A Century of Transformation

Topic, Grades, & Time:

Topic: Unit 2.6: Railroads Link Montana to the Nation - 1881 to 1915
Grades: 7th and 8th
Time: 5 to 7 classroom days (depends on school activities.)

Materials and Sources:

Sources: Holmes, K., Dailey, S. C., & Walter, D. (2008). Montana: Stories of the Land. Helena, MT: Montana Historical Society Press.
Materials (practitioner): (1a) text (print); (1b) text (digital); (2) desktop/laptop/tablet; (3) access to internet; (4) assignments; & (5) coffee/tea (optional)
Materials (student): (1a) text (print); (1b) text (digital); if 1b (2) laptop/tablet; (3) access to internet; (4) assignments; & (5) note-taking gear

Covered Standards:

National Standards Common Core: (1) RH.6-8.1; (2) RH.6-8.2; (3) RH.6-8.4; (4) RH.6-8.6; (5) RH.6-8.7; (6) RH.6-8.8 (7) RH.6-8.9; (8) RH.6-8.10; (9) RI.7.1; (10) RI.7.3; (11) RI.7.6; (12) RI.7.9; (13) W.7.1; (14) W.7.2; (15) W .7.3; (16) W.7.4; (17) W .7.7; (18) W .7.8; (19) W.7.9; (20) W .7.10; (21) SL .7.1; (22) SL.7.2; (23) SL .7.4; (24) SL .7.5; & (25) SL.7.6
Montana State Standards: (1) 2; (2) 3; (3) 4; & (4) 5
Indian Education For All: N/A
College, Career, and Readiness: T.B.D.

Rationale:

Railroads has had a profound influence in the region's history. The introduction of the railroad had an enormous impact on Montana's land, animal population, economy, First Nations, and increased the population of Montana.

Measurable Outcomes:

Students will, through literacy, be able to understand key ideas and details.
Students will, through literacy, be able to understand craft and structure.
Students will, through literacy, be able to understand the integration of knowledge and ideas.
Students will, through literacy, comprehend a range of reading and level of text complexity.
Students will, through literacy, understanding key ideas and details.
Students will, through literacy, integrate knowledge and ideas.
Students will, through literacy, understand text types and purposes.
Students will, through literacy, demonstrate research to build and present knowledge.
Students will, through literacy, demonstrate her/his range of writing.
Students will, through literacy, demonstrate comprehension and collaboration.
Students will, through literacy, demonstrate a presentation of knowledge and ideas.

Sequence:

0-5 mins - Administration (i.e. attendance, announcements, etc.)
5 - 25 mins (practitioner) - Check on student progress (time may vary, due to class size and time spent on each student).
5 - 45 mins (students) - Work on the required assignments. Please refer to Unit 2.6.
45 - 50 mins - Exit question (check on progress of each student, time varies).

Behavioral Expectations:

Universal design for learning will curb any behavior issues regarding student choice of sequence.
Student's will be engaged 80-90% of the class time.
Students' will be engaged due to the collaboration component of the lesson.

Assessment(s):

Formative:

Questions throughout the lesson will check for comprehension and pre-assessment.

Summative:

Worksheets
Project
Exam, if needed

Differentiation:

Multiple Levels of Questions: Primary use: readiness & learning profiles. All questions presented will advance problem-solving skills and responses. This strategy will ensure that all students will be accountable for information and thinking at a high level and that all students will be challenged. In addition, all text will have the ability to utilize text-to-speech technology.
Activity: Assignments