Lesson Plan: Reconstruction Amendments

February 15, 2015

Teacher name
Subject
Grade Level
Time duration
Materials needed

Lacey Morgan
United States History
5
Two 50 minute class periods
This lesson builds on information they have learned in
the classroom, but the project will need to be in a
computer lab where each child has their own computer
with internet capability. I will also need a computer with
a projector in order to model the assignment for the

Lesson Objective

Purpose of the
lesson

students.
VA-SOL.SS.US1.10.A
> identifying the provisions of the 13th, 14th, and
15th Amendments to the Constitution of the United
States and their impact on the expansion of freedom
in America
The purpose of the project is to combine knowledge of
post-Civil War actions that helped shape the future of the
United States, specifically the 13th, 14th, and
15th Amendments to the Constitution.
In this lesson, students will explore the three
Reconstruction Amendments to the United States
Constitution (13th, 14th, and 15th) and then engage in a
project where they will create their own website in a
group to explain and elaborate on these amendments,
and then finally, evaluate the affect they had on
freedom in the United States of America. My
instructional goal is for students to know and
understand what the three amendments are, and then
be able to explain and use that information to form
their own thoughts on how America was impacted from

Activity

them.
I will first explain the details of the lesson. The
technology will then be introduced to the lesson by
walking the students through the first steps of the
project on my own computer, with them following along
so they have the ability to ask questions.
For this assignment, students will be put into groups of
three. They will use their previous knowledge from
class lecture to create a website using Weebly. Each
student will be assigned one of the three amendments
and create a page explaining in detail what is about,
when it was ratified, and any key people related to the
amendment. They will then work together to come up
with an introduction to the Reconstruction Amendments
and a conclusion. The conclusion will briefly explain the
amendments and then explain how they impacted the
future of the United States as related to individual
freedoms.
This lesson builds on information they have learned in
the classroom, so there will not be a discussion during
this activity. Students will be working in groups and
have the time to work together and ask any questions
that arise.

Assessment

I will create a rubric for the students to follow during this

project. They will be graded accordingly based on the
following areas:

Did the students meet criteria for website

appearance (use of pictures, colors, etc.)?

Did students apply class lecture material to explain

each of the three amendments correctly?

Did students form an educated idea as to how the
amendments affected future freedoms in the United
States?

Did students proofread work to create work with

little to no errors?