The Economic Roller Coaster of the Pacific Northwest: Boom and Bust Cycles Unit Plan
- Unit Overview:
The overarching goal of this assignment is for students to understand how boom and bust cycles have effected different area’s around Tacoma. The learning objectives would be for students to analyze primary and secondary resources and create a timeline in order to understand how individuals have influenced themes, developments, economy, and spatial patterns of Tacoma and the greater Washington. In this assignment students would put into multiple ability groups and then given a choice in what building they want to research. The teacher would have already created files with a brief description of the importance of the building in relation to the time period and link to where students would be able to find more information using their computers or books. Ideally, this would work best if a web quest was designed to lead students through the process step by step. Along with directions in each groups building folders there would be series of graphic organizers to help them identify important information in their research. They would keep research notes and their organizers in their research log notebooks. Every student would be required to keep a notebook. Groups would also either go as a group or elect group members to travel to the spots where their historical buildings are and take pictures of them, so that can be uploaded onto their “Time Toast “timeline. Student groups will compile research in order to answer the question who, what, when, where, why, and how their building fits into the theme of boom and bust economies in Washington. Students will then use Time Toast program to upload their synthesized information, photo’s, and links to where a person could find more information about that topic. Lastly, groups will present their finding to the class using the Time Toast software. Then the whole class will have a Socratic seminar to debrief about patterns we see in boom and bust cycles of Washington. This will be used a Segway to looking at Washington and the United States boom and bust cycles and how they connected locally to the boom and bust cycles in Tacoma.
Boom and Bust Cycles of Tacoma Unit Plan
Established Goals:
- 7th grade Common Core Writing Standard 9: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
- CCSS 7:8: Research to Build and Present Knowledge: Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.
- GLE 3.1.1 Analyzes maps and charts from a specific time period to analyze an issue or event.
- GLE 3.1.2 Understands how human spatial patterns have emerged from natural processes and human activities in the past or present.
- GLE 4.1.1 Analyzes a major historical event and how it is represented on timelines from different cultural perspectives.
- GLE 4.1.2 Understands how themes and developments have defined eras in Washington State and world history by:
- GLE 4.2.1 Understands and analyzes how individuals and movements have shaped Washington State or world history.
Understandings (including Propositions ++):
Students will understand that…
- Boom and Bust economic cycle usher in period of mass building in towns.
- There is a connection between history and modern events
- There are universal themes of humanity, boom and bust economic cycles (content)
- They can make critical observations for fact and opinion (cognitive)
- They can make historical meanings from facts and primary sources (content); integrate sources
- That buildings have historical significance.
- Timelines can allow historical observers to see patterns in history.
Unit/Essential Questions:
- How have themes and developments defined Washington State history ?
- How can understanding analyzing human spatial patterns in Washington give historians insights to human activities of the past?
- How can timelines show is patterns in the developments of cities?
- How have certain individuals shaped Tacoma’s history?
Learning Targets:
Knowledge (Refer to Cappuis & Stiggins pp. 44-47)
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Reasoning (Refer to Cappuis and Stiggins pp. 47 – 53)
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Skills (Refer to Cappuis and Stiggins pp. 54-55)
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Products
(Refer to Cappuis and Stiggins pp. 55-57)
- Students will construct a report based on the building they chose to research. The report will include who, what , where, when, why, how, and why is it connected to the unit theme of boom and bust cyles. .
- Students will create a time line entry on Timetoast website. They will include pictures of their building and any additionally pictures found related to it and a synthesis of their who, what, when, when, why, and how historical reports. a
Assessment:
Knowledge:
- Students will keep a research log in the form of a journal.
- Students will complete graphic organizers that help them cite sources
- Students will use note taking graphic organizers to help them delineate what information is pertinent to their historical phenomenon.
Reasoning:
- Students will keep research logs where they summarize information they have uncovered by searching through historical databases
- Students will complete graphic organizers that help them cite sources
- Students will use note taking graphic organizers to help them delineate what information is pertinent to their historical phenomenon
Skills:
- 10 min oral presentation to the class in which a chosen group member or members explains the 5 W’s of the building they have chosen and why it connects to the theme of Boom and Bust cycles.
Product:
- Students historical report that explores the who, what, when, where, why, and how of their person, place, or event. This will be graded using a rubric that assesses mechanics, content, organization, and grammar.
- Groups will create a timeline entry on Time Toast about their historical person, place, or event that includes present day pictures, archived pictures, and information that explains the who, what, when, where, why, and how of the person, place, or event.
- Students will also cite where they found their information about their historical building
- Students presentations will be evaluated by their classmates on if they displayed understanding of the who, what, when, where, why, and how of their person, place, or event.
Activity Types for the technology that will be used:
| Technology | Activity type | What to anticipate to use effictively ? | How does it support learning? |
| Digitial archives, websites, electronic books | Read text/research | Model the process show groups how to format research queries.Create student activity they help them practice researching on the unit by answering specific questions about a random subject.Give students resources with database cites they can use.Give students website resources | Teaches analytical skills.Teaches research skills.Teaches critical thinking skills. |
| digital camera | View images | Go over ethics of taking pictures in public placesModel how to upload picturesCreate tutorial resources sheet on how to upload photos to flickr citeArrange groups so that there is a technology strong student in each group if possible. | It teaches students to play the role of a reporter and investigator, which are crucial roles to every historian. |
| Word/ Google docs | Generate an Historical narrative, Do a Presentation, Historical Weaving | What functions on Wiki are essential to teach?-How does webpage presentation best serve this project?-Is there value in having student work on an online database? | Organizes Information for students-Helps students showcase their research-Allows for easy student collaboration |
| Iphoto/flicker | View images | What functions on iPhoto and Flickr are essential to teach?-How does taking pictures best serve this project?What if students are unable to use travel to take photographs? | Helps students get see their community through an artistic lens.Helps students display knowledge of their subject by providing visual aids. |
| Timetoast interactive timeline creator | Creating a timeline of the boom and bust building period of Tacoma. | Accessibility of the programs in accordance to students experience with computers. How will all students use program to create timeline? What type of information needs to be included in the timeline? | It supports learning because it gets students to see overall patterns in Tacoma’s boom and bust cycles. By seeing when building increased and when building decreased they can come to better understand the cause and effect of different historical features of Tacoma’s economy. This will help them also understand the movement of people to Tacoma and migration away from Tacoma during various years. |
Reference list of online tools for teachers revolving around this project:
http://www.tacomahistory.org/Society/Links.html
This site has archival information about various building around Tacoma and accessible information about historical periods of Tacoma.
http://www.tacomapubliclibrary.org/Page.aspx?nid=7
Another archival site with information and pictures of various historical Tacoma buildings
http://ealverson.wordpress.com/2011/04/20/using-timetoast-to-create-interactive-timelines/
This offers a step-by-step process of how to create a timeline and integrate it into classroom lessons.
http://www.washingtonhistory.org/
This site serves as a larger historical database for students to use to research their buildings or people and events associated with their buildings.
Explanation of technology use:
It supports learning because it gets students to see overall patterns in Tacoma’s boom and bust cycles. By seeing when building increased and when building decreased, in addition to why certain building were built, students can come to better understand the cause and effect of different historical features of Tacoma’s economy. This will help them also understand the movement of people to Tacoma and migration away from Tacoma during various years. Also, being able to create a class timeline online gives students ability to look at their timelines as a reference point at anytime during their learning Washington history. By comparing timelines created around different events we can begin to see bigger patterns between boom and bust cycles at the national and world level. Furthermore, by being able to include links, pictures, and text the time line becomes multidimensional rather then being a simple series of dates written on paper. Some things that I will need to anticipate regarding structure and accessibility to the program are; accessibility of the programs in accordance to students experience with computers. How will all students work collaboratively to create a timeline? What type of information needs to be included in the timeline? How will the Time Lines to help students see patterns in Boom and Bust Cycles? Lastly, students will need to know how to research and how to pull out important information and be able to synthesize it in a concise manner.
Self-Assessment of Ability to use Time Toast in the Classroom:
I feel that I am fully capable of teaching this technology to students. It is online and free to use so I would not even have to seek funding to implement it in my classroom. If students are familiar with Facebook and YouTube they should not have any problem following the prompts to create one. I have already started to create a timeline, so I know what the challenges might be already. The only real challenges I could see is first off knowing what information to include and exclude, how to upload photos, and how to embed a link, but with that being said if students are familiar with Facebook this shouldn’t be a problem. One thing I need to consider though is how all students would be able to add to the timeline. When you create a timeline you have to create an account and I’m not sure if two people can access the same account at the same time.
Future Professional Development:
In order to further develop my skills in this area I can seek out professional development workshops that show how to use interactive software like Time Toast. to make historical lessons less one-dimensional. Additionally, I can review websites where teachers have used Time Toast to help students organize history. I can also look at educational websites to see if there are any other interactive timeline sites that might be better for the students I’m working with in social studies. For example, websites like EDCompass blog or Read, Think, Write have information about how teachers are using interactive timelines to improve classroom learning.
I can also use educational databases to review articles and research about the use of interactive timelines in social studies classes. Lastly, the Time Toast website offers a plethora of examples of different created timelines that can give educators some good ideas about how this technology can be used not only in social studies but other subject areas as well. Lastly, there are also You Tube how to videos to show educators and students the process of using Time Toast to create a timeline.
