ECE/Eled Required Lesson Plan Format

Intern: Adrienne Anderson

Date: 3-3-16
Lesson/Activity Title: Newspapers and Westward Expansion
Standards Addressed: 5.4.2.a: Identify political principles of American democracy and
how the Constitution and Bill of Rights reflect and preserve these principles.
3.1.2.a: Compare past and present situations and events.
________________________________________________________________________
Purpose:
To understand the role of newspapers in advancing Westward expansion and connect
westward expansion to present day migration trends.
Learning Objective(s):
Students can make connections between newspapers role in the Revolutionary War and
its role in the Westward Expansion.
Students will understand the difference between hard news, sensational news, advocacy
news and advertorial news.
Students can make connections between Westward Expansion and displacement to
present-day gentrification.
Your Goals for Learners:
Students will draw upon last years study of Colorado and last units study of the
Revolutionary War to understand ideas presented today. Through inquiry-based
discussion and hands-on application, students will understand the power of newspapers in
history and current affairs.
Your Learning Principles:
Time Travel and World Exploration carries more significant weight when connected to
the lives of students, the present day and background knowledge.
Teacher Quality Standards for this Lesson:
Quality Standards 1 & 3.
Setting:
Whole group setting in the beginning and break-out choice activities for the second half.
Materials and preparation:
A brief video history of newspapers. Blank 11 x 17 paper for front page creation, Prezi to
guide discussion, Denver Post article on Denver #1 place to live, and a Westword article
on gentrification.

Introduction: Q&A discussion bringing in their background knowledge of newspapers

and the revolutionary war. A quick KWL chart re: newspapers role in democracy. 10
minutes.
Activity Procedure:
After the introduction, I will do a brief stretch and breath break. We will watch a video
introducing the history of newspapers. Ill Introduce Westward Expansion with the
discussion around the famous quote penned by a journalist: Go West, young man! Ill
introduce the concept of manifest destiny, a term also introduced by a journalist. The
discussion will be guided by a series of newspaper clips promoting the expansion west
highlighting the difference between stories that promote, exaggerate, tell a story and relay
facts. Introduce the telegraph. We will then dissect together two stories today about
Denver and its growth. Students will then make their own front page, either encouraging
or discouraging migration to Denver using their choice of styles: hard news, sensational
news, advocacy news, or advertorial.
Differentiation:
Most of my curriculum unit is designed for 5th grade students. Since this will be a whole
group lesson, Ill scaffold some of the concepts by defining terms, and where applicable,
encouraging 3rd and 4th graders to drive the discussion. I will also create groups with
equal distribution of grades.
Assessment (Evidence of students meeting the Learning Objective):
Observation of discussion and final front pages created from the activity.
Extensions:
Ive included two other lesson plans for my newspaper curriculum as part of a
comprehensive 10-lesson unit. For TTWE, the expansions are endless. Newspapers could
easily thread through the whole year for this particular topic. The next lesson would
naturally be a continuation of Yellow Journalism and its role in the Spanish/American
War.