Yeah!!!!!!!!!! I can finally start my unit! I had to wait until my student teacher was finished. I feel sooo behind. I started this past Monday by introducing my Treasure Box. It was a great way to peek my students interest. We sat in a circle around the Treasure Box. We had a great conversation on the items inside. I was so surprised at how many children were amazed at the buttons! The tea brick created some funny remarks as well.
I included all the items from the conference as well as additional ones. I have a copy of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Declaration of Independence. One student asked if it was the real one! I told him I would be in big trouble if it was! I also added photographs of the founders and signers from the Library of Congress. From previously teaching Pennsylvania history, I had lots of books to include to the box. My fourth graders liked to read the "Who Was..." books. So I added Benjamin Franklin to the list. My students love to read so they were very excited about the books! I have a map of the original 13 colonies and a current map of the U.S. for the students to compare as an activity in their notebooks. I have a file on bibliographies which include George Washington, Ben Franklin, John Hancock, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Roger Sherman.
In a future lesson I have planned, I will be reading from Signing their Rights Away to demonstrate that this process wasn't an easy decision for these men. That even though they wanted freedom that they knew it could come at a price. I want to include factual information for my left-brain students and allow my right-brain students to create a picture of these events for a particular signer.
"Pause and Ponder"....I like being able to connect my Treasure Box with my curriculum. We do cover these topics in First Grade but very briefly. I could tell from looking at my students faces that they will really enjoy this so much more than sitting in front of their text books alone.
Like you observed, I too cou;d see that my students were really enjoying the "Treasure Boxes" and were truly engaged. How fun it was to teach with these boxes!
ReplyDeleteI was excited to learn about the "Who Was..." books. I am not familiar with them and am anxious to read some and have them available for my 4th graders.
I also like your idea of starting a "Founding Fathers" file.
While you surprised your students with the items in the Treasure Box, it sounds like they surprised you with their curiosity and questions. It sounds like you have developed a real ‘working’ Treasure Box which will be an ongoing source of discoveries for your students. You have really thought of creative ways to integrate Treasure Boxes into your daily instruction. You are providing your students with many new dimensions of learning through your centers and work with primary source documents.
ReplyDeleteI also like to use maps with my students. They are always amazed to see how the original 13 colonies morphed into the 50 states we know today. I like to impress upon my students how we 'acquired' the land from the native peoples. Maps are a great teaching tool. I was able to get some free PA maps from my local state representative and my students but them apart and glued them on their interactive notebooks. They look really neat with 'chunks' of Pennsylvania on them!
ReplyDeleteYour students seemed to have the same reaction as we did when we went through our boxes with explanations be Cherie Trimble! How interesting it was to examine each piece and determine how it fit into the colonial period. You picked a great way to begin a unit. Think about how much more curious your students will be to delve into your topic now that you have whet their appetites with items from your treasure box.
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