Work with your local historical society to learn about your town’s involvement in WWI.
Overview
- Essential Question: Why is it important to study local history and what tools do we use to answer historical questions?
- Areas of study: Social Studies
- Type and amount of credit earned: 2 credits (equivalent to a trimester course). Could be a group ELO.
- Community partner: Tuck Museum (Hampton Historical Society), Town Library
Competencies
Content-Specific Competencies
- Source Evaluation – understand that it is important to evaluate and critique varied sources of information.
- WWI – describe Hampton’s involvement in WWI.
Social Studies Department Competencies
- Research – use a variety of reliable sources to understand how individuals, groups and societies interact.
- Literacy – demonstrate the ability to comprehend, analyze, and critique a variety of increasingly complex print and non-print sources.
- Communication – demonstrate the ability to listen and view critically.
- Citizenship – use critical thinking skills to analyze the role of citizens as responsible members of political and global communities.
Schoolwide Learning Expectations
- Communication – use various media to interpret, question, and express knowledge, information, ideas, feelings, and reasoning to create mutual understanding.
- Creativity – use original and flexible thinking to communicate ideas or construct a unique product or solution.
- Collaboration – work in diverse groups to achieve a common goal.
- Self-Direction – initiate and manage personal learning and demonstrate a growth mindset.
See the detailed ELO description for the full text of these competencies.
Student activities
- Work with the historical society to develop an artifact for the WWI exhibit and celebration. This student made bookmarks that depicted authentic pictures of Hampton WWI soldiers along with facts.
- Keep a journal to relate the skills and historical knowledge you acquire as well as record the work being completed.
- Create an annotated resource list of your research of local history and your town’s involvement in WWI.
- Design a resource your peers can use to help analyze a primary source document.
- Present your products and entire ELO experience to the Social Studies Department.
Assessment
Students met regularly with their mentor teacher and completed journals and a final reflection paper. They worked with the Lane Library and the Tuck Museum to find resources needed to complete their products, and completed an annotated resource list that included source documents and also conversations with relatives of individuals who served in WWI.
The final products were bookmarks that depicted authentic pictures of Hampton WWI soldiers along with facts related to the war and a document to help their peers evaluate primary source documents. The students presented their products and experience to the Social Studies Department.
More information
This ELO was done in connection with the 100th anniversary of the United States entering WWI. It was an interesting way to get our US History students interested in how their hometown contributed to major historical events. My advice to anyone looking to do a similar ELO is to spend time reviewing how to analyze source documents with the student before they are asked to produce a document to help their peers to do the same. This skill is often a part of the AP US History curriculum, but other students will need a crash course. This ELO is also easily duplicated with other aspects of local history and how they relate to what students have learned in the classroom.
This ELO was submitted by Donna Couture, ELO Coordinator at Winnacunnet High School. Email for more information
