Unit Outline Theme: The Underground Railroad
All lesson plans, materials, pre- and post-online activities and bibliography are provided for all classes participating in the unit. The unit is designed to address needs across the curriculum for multi-age K-6 students.
I. Lesson One The focus will be the history of Salem, Ohio, the Underground Railroad, and the recognition of Harriet Tubman as a historically significant participant in the Underground Railroad. A. Background information developed on the Underground Railroad in general through use of non-fiction literature B. Specific information regarding Salem, Ohio‟s significant role on the Underground Railroad C. Specific information on conductor Harriet Tubman‟s major role in the Underground Railroad through fiction and non-fiction books D. Follow-up activity is the construction of non-fiction train books to be read by students E. Follow-up Activities: 1. Construction of train books to tell the story of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad 2. Written responses to literature a. Biographies of Harriet Tubman b. Stories of how it would feel to be a slave 3. A city tour of homes in Salem on the Underground Railroad 4. Creation and travel on a school Underground Railroad with a celebration when Canada is reached II. Lesson Two The focus will be the significance of the quilts as a safe symbol and map for the Underground Railroad. A. Background information about quilts developed through information sharing, charts, pictures, and resource books B. Specific information relating to the meaning of square symbols as messages for escape through use of pictures, charts, and resource books C. Specific information relating to quilts as safe symbols on the escape routes through use of fiction and non-fiction literature D. Specific information to develop an understanding of a character‟s feelings through use of a fictional account of an African slave child and her quilt as a tool for the Underground Railroad E. Follow-up Activities: 1. Development of a chart about what freedom means to each child 2. Design of a freedom square on paper 3. Transfer of the design to fabric 4. Construction of a class freedom quilt
III. Lesson Three The focus will be an introduction to another conductor on the Underground Railroad through fictional literature. An investigation of other escape routes and safe signals will be discovered. A. Background information about the Ohio River and the Underground Railroad through map reading B. Identification of „north‟ through map reading C. Specific information on conductor Peg Leg Joe through fictional literature D. Identification of the Big Dipper, Little Dipper, and the North Star through use of charts E. Follow-up Activities: 1. Written response to literature 2. Paper-tearing artwork with gold foil stars 3. A visit to a local planetarium 4. Reading non-fiction literature to better understand “The Drinking Gourd” 5. Learning and performing “Follow the Drinking Gourd” and old African slave song relaying directions for an escape route
Literature Books on Slavery and the Underground Railroad (These will be used during all three lessons.) 1. Aunt Harriet’s Underground Railroad in the Sky by Faith Ringgold 2. Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson 3. Barefoot – Escape on the Underground Railroad by Pamela Duncan Edwards 4. Follow the Drinking Gourd by Jeanette Winter 5. Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold 6. Jumping the Broom by Courtni C. Wright 7. Harriet Tubman – Easy Theme Readers by Teacher Created Materials 8. A Picture Book of Harriet Tubman by David A. Adler 9. The Drinking Gourd, An I Can Read Book, Level 3 by F.N. Monjo 10. Frederick Douglass: Portrait of a Freedom Fighter by Sheila Keenan 11. If You Traveled on the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine 12. Hidden in Plain View: A Secret Story of Quilts and the Underground Railroad by Jacqueline L. Tobin and Raymond G. Dobard P.H.D (This is an adult level reference book.)
Civil Rights 1. If You Lived in the Time of Martin Luther King Jr. by Ellen Levine 2. Martin Luther King Jr. by Easy Theme Reader by Teacher Created Materials 3. Building A Dream – Mary Bethune’s School by Richard Kelso 4. Young Martin’s Promise by Walker Dean Myers 5. Picture Book of Martin Luther King Jr. by David A. Adler 6. Happy Birthday Martin Luther King Jr. by Jean Marzollo 7. If a Bus Could Talk – The Story of Rosa Parks by Faith Ringgold 8. Martin Luther King Day by Linda Lowery 9. A Picture Book of Abraham Lincoln by David A. Adler 10. A Picture Book of John F. Kennedy by David A. Adler 11. Celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day – Dreaming of Change by Joel Kupperstein 12. My Dream of Martin Luther King by Faith Ringgold
Quilts 1. The Patchwork Quilt by Valerie Flournoy 2. The Josefina Story Quilt by Eleanor Coerr 3. Reuben and the Quilt by Merle Good 4. The Keeping Quilt by Patricia Polacco 5. The Rag Coat by Lauren Mills 6. Eight Hand Round by Ann Whitford Paal 7. The Quilt Story by Tony Johnston 8. Patchwork Tales by Susan Roth
African American Literature 1. ABIYOYO by Pete Seeger 2. Aunt Flossie’s Hats (& Crab Cakes Later) by Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard 3. At the Crossroads by Rachel Isadora 4. Uncle Jed’s Barbershop by Margaree King Mitchell 5. Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman 6. Flossie and the Fox by Patricia C. McKissack 7. Working Cotton by Sherley Anne Williams 8. More Than Anything Else by Marie Braddy 9. Nettie Jo’s Friends by Patricia C. McKissack 10. Mirandy and Brother Wind by Patricia C. McKissack 11. Over the Green Hills by Rachel Isadora 12. Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain by Verna Aardema 13. A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams 14. Music Music for Everyone by Vera B. Williams 15. Ben’s Trumpet by Rachel Isadora 16. Cherries and Cherry Pits by Vera B. Williams 17. Back Home by Gloria Jean Pinkney 18. Tanya’s Reunion by Valerie Flournoy 19. The Patchwork Quilt by Valerie Flournoy 20. Bein’ With You This Way by W. Nikola-Lisa 21. What Kind of Babysitter is This? by Dolores Johnson 22. In For Winter, Out For Spring by Arnold Adoff and Jerry Pinkney 23. All the Colors of the Earth by Sheila Hamanaka 24. Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears by Verna Aardema 25. Mrs. Katz and Tush by Patricia Polacco 26. Chicken Sunday by Patricia Polacco 27. John Henry: An American Legend by Ezra Jack Keats 28. Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco
The Road to Freedom: Traveling the Underground Railroad Unit Objectives/Proficiency Outcomes I. To construct meaning through non-fiction A. To read for information B. To use organizational tools to aid comprehension C. To recognize historically significant characters D. To recall facts E. To sequence historical events on timelines F. To dramatize actual events through use of a diorama II. To construct meaning through fiction A. To identify main idea B. To identify story elements: setting, characters, problem and solution C. To sequence events to retell the story D. To use a venn diagram to compare various forms of literature E. To create a mock Underground Railroad III. To write in response to literature A. To describe feelings in written expression B. To write in response to being a “slave” on the mock Underground Railroad C. To write a biography of historical figures D. To create a new verse for the song “The Drinking Gourd” IV. To identify people, places, and events in history A. To create a timeline of historical events B. To use multiple means of research on historical characters and events C. To identify North and South on a map D. To identify Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Canada on a map E. To identify the Ohio river and the Great Lakes on a map F. To read a city map to locate houses on the Underground Railroad in Salem, Ohio G. To recognize and respect difference in others V. To identify the North Star A. To explore constellations at a local planetarium B. To locate the North Star using the Big and Little Dippers C. To develop an understanding of how cotton grows D. To identify the parts of a cotton plant E. To explore the use of cotton VI. To develop math concepts through quilting A. To identify a pattern B. To create patterns C. To measure lines D. To design and sew individual quilt square for classroom Freedom Quilt VII. To explore creative responses through artistic expression A. To illustrate written responses using many mediums: paint, crayons, markers B. To use non-traditional paper-tearing technique to illustrate the Underground Railroad
VIII. To explore African – American music A. To listen to slave lullabies in dialect B. To sing a freedom signal song, “Follow the Drinking Gourd” C. To play hand-made rhythm instruments