Lesson Plan on Margaret Tobin Brown
Teacher: Kari Saultz Subject: Social Studies Grade Level: 4 Date: June 6, 2001 Strand: Time, Continuity, and Change [History]
Standard 1: The student understands historical chronology and the historical perspective.
I. Content: Concept- I want my students to be aware of the impact that Margaret Tobin Brown had on many of the lives of Titanic survivors.
II. Prerequisites: The student must already have general knowledge of the Titanic including the facts that the ship struck an iceberg, it then sank, and some passengers died while some were taken to safety in lifeboats.
III. Instructional Objective: Upon request, the student will describe at least two of the ways that Margaret Tobin Brown assisted Titanic survivors.
IV. Instructional Procedures:Lesson-initiating activity: The lesson begins with the teacher reviewing the sinking of the Titanic with the students. The teacher will start by asking the students what they remember about the unsinkable ship called Titanic. Using the students' answers the teacher will put a timeline of events on the board in the following order: the Titanic hitting an iceberg, the ship then sinking, the panicking of the people, the boarding onto lifeboats or death, the boat ride to survival, and ending with the survivors leaving the ship Carpathia. If any information is given by the students that is not included in the list above the teacher may add that event if desired. If the students leave out any of the main events included in the list the teacher will fill in the blanks.
Core Activities: Next, the teacher will ask the class if anyone knows how or when a woman named Margaret Tobin Brown fits into any of these events on the timeline of events. The teacher will lead the class through an intriguing discussion by pointing out important facts that link Mrs. Brown with the Titanic. These facts will include the following:* Margaret Tobin Brown was also known as the " Unsinkable Molly Brown"
* she was a first class passenger aboard the Titanic * During the sinking of the Titanic she helped everyone she could until being forced onto a lifeboat due to her social status
* She helped keep spirits up on the lifeboat and tried to dispel the gloom that was broadcast by the emotional and unstable crew member named Robert Hitchens
* She did not leave the ship Carpathia, which was the first ship to answer the Titanic's desperate call for help, until all survivors had found family or friends.During this discussion visuals will be used. After the discussion the students will watch a thirty minute excerpt from the movie, "Molly Brown: An American Legend". This excerpt of the movie focuses on her involvement with
the Titanic.
Closing activity: The teacher will instruct the students to write a short story about what they learned about Margaret Tobin Brown. The teacher will tell the students that their story must start with the line, "Margaret Tobin Brown showed compassion that day by....." After the students finish writing their story they will be given a large heart made out of construction paper and they will glue their story to the heart. The student will then be instructed to take a push pin and hang their heart on the bulletin board. The bulletin board will be made by the
teacher in preparation for the lesson. The bulletin board must include a 4' X 8' ship cut out from bulletin board paper, a few waves made from blue construction paper or markers to glue under the ship, the label "Titanic" to glue on to the ship, and the title, "How Margaret Tobin Brown Showed Compassion That Day." An example of the bulletin board is included with this lesson.
ESOL Considerations: The timeline of events will be written on the board instead of being said verbally which will help ESOL students because they will be able to see the words instead of hearing them. During the core activity visuals will be used once again so that the ESOL students can visualize what is taking place during the tragedy rather than just hearing it. In the closing activity when the students are writing their story, the teacher will circulate the room helping the ESOL students who may have trouble writing their story. For each activity there will be oral and written directions and the teacher will modify their speech and avoid using slangs.
V. Materials: The materials for this lesson plan include visuals from the Titanic tragedy, pictures of Margaret Tobin Brown, the movie titled, "Molly Brown: An American Legend", glue, push pins, notebook paper, cut-out hearts, and a pre-made ship and waves made from bulletin board paper.
VI. Assessment: The teacher will give the class a written test in which the student is given directions to describe two of the ways that Margaret Tobin Brown assisted Titanic survivors during the tragedy. The story that the students write in the closing activity can also be used as an additional form of assessment.
VII. Follow-up Activities: Students will be asked to research the Titanic on their own time over a given (2 week) period of time. They are to write down two facts that they found on their own about the sinking of the Titanic that the class did not cover in the lesson. These facts could include anything about the tragedy. They do not have to be about Margaret Tobin Brown. The students will also study more in depth about Margaret Tobin Brown and her involvement in the women's suffrage movement. They will be required, as a project, to get into groups of four and present the information they found on Margaret Tobin Brown's involvement in the women's suffrage movement. They will be required to turn in a two page paper on their research.
VII. Self Assessment: The teacher will review the stories that were written in the closing activity and see if any students had trouble gathering information to write about. From the discussion in the core activity the students should have had enough information to write their story. The teacher will also check the written test to see how the class did as an average.Reply to Author
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