Middle Childhood Education

Seminar 2

Middle Childhood Education Lesson Plan Template v. 2

Teacher Candidate Name: Bekah Bline
Lesson Title/#: The Columbian Exchange Day 3
Grade Level: 7
Essential Question: How do we decide what is right and wrong in history?

Lesson Foundations
Content Standards
*Science and SS should also
include common core for
reading/writing

Learning Objective(s)
Students will

Prior Academic
Knowledge and Skills
What have you or your
mentor taught previously that
will inform what students are
learning today?

Standard 7.11
The Columbian Exchange (e.g., the exchange of fauna, flora, and pathogens) between
previously unconnected parts of the world reshaped societies in ways still evident today.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.9
Analyze the relationship between a primary and secondary source on the same topic.
1. Students will be able to investigate the pros and cons of the
Columbian Exchange using information collected from the previous 2
days of learning and guided inquiry. (Analyze)
2. Students will be able to defend a position on the merit of the
Columbian Exchange, using the essential question as a guide.
(Evaluate)

Students will have had 2 days of instruction on the Columbian Exchange

Students will be familiar with the essential question

Students will have knowledge about specific details of the Columbian Exchange

Students will have already read the textbook page in question

Materials & Resources Textbook: History of the World page 487

Pros and Cons T-Chart

Middle Childhood Education

Seminar 2

Powerpoint presentation-Day 3
Colored Note Cards
DBQ packet
Online Timer

Assessments

Describe the assessments that will be used in this lesson to monitor students mastery of the lesson objective(s). List assessments in order in which they
appear in the lesson.

Name and
number of
Assessment
A1: Pros & Cons TChart

A2 Class
Discussion

Description of assessment

Evaluation Criteria - What is the evidence (the answers) of student

learning? Specifically list evidence of learning and learning objectives.

LO1
Students will be given a
t-chart to create a list of
pros and cons. They will
be discussing with group
members if the
Columbian Exchange was
positive or negative.

LO1
Pros: Many people got new food from the CE. For example, Europeans
got potatoes and corn that helped with population growth and
became a staple for survival. Native Americans got grains and
sugarcane which became essential to the economy and also became
a staple food. In addition, there was a lot of essential livestock that
was traded. Horses, cattle, and swine became essential to Native
American and European American life in the new world.

Cons: The CE caused a lot of issues for Native Americans, especially in

relation to disease and population devastation. Also, like Alfred
Crosby said having contact from the old world to the new changed the
biological makeup of the world. Humans changed a lot about the
environment really quickly and there is no way to know what effect
that will have or has had in the long run of history and biology.
LO1
LO1
Throughout the opening, I What can you conclude about why there is a mixed answer when we
will be asking questions to ask if the Columbian Exchange was positive or negative?
check for understanding
(Understand)
and preview for the pros
there are two sides to every story, people have different opinions
and cons at the end of the about right and wrong, or what is good for one person might be bad
day without students
for another person.

Middle Childhood Education

A3: DBQ Stations

and Check Point

knowing it. The questions

are all designed to get
students thinking critically
about the essential
question, How do we
decide what is right and
wrong in history?
L02
Students will travel with 1.
groups to stations. Each
station will have a
primary or secondary
source with document
based questions attached.
Students will interpret the
source to answer the
questions.

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If some parts of the Columbian Exchange are deemed negative, and

some are deemed positive, how is it decided whether the event
should be considered good or bad (Apply)?
Whoever is writing the source or narrative in history will probably
write it from their perspective even if they dont mean to.

LO2
Station 1: Secondary source. Alfred Crosby on the CE. The New
Worlds great contribution to the Old is in crop plants. Maize, white
potatoes, sweet potatoes, various squashes, chiles, and manioc have
become essentials in the diets of hundreds of millions of Europeans,
Africans, and Asians. Their influence on Old World peoples, like that of
wheat and rice on New World peoples, goes far to explain the global
population explosion of the past three centuries. The Columbian
Exchange has been an indispensable factor in that demographic
explosion.
1. What does Crosby mean by demographic explosion?
a. A significant population increase because of more nutritious and
manageable plants and animals
b. Areas of the world blowing up because of new plants and animals being
introduced
c. Demographic changes due to immigration
2. An increase in conflict between the inhabitants of the old and
new worlds
2. Name at least (2) staple foods introduced in the Columbian
exchange that are still used today
Potatoes and Corn
2. Station 2: Primary source. Christopher Columbus.
Some of them were covered with blossoms, some with fruit, and

Middle Childhood Education

Seminar 2

some in other conditions, according to their kind. The nightingale and

other small birds of a thousand kinds were singing in the month of
November when I was there. There were palm trees of six or eight
varieties, the graceful peculiarities of each one of them being worthy
of admiration as are the other trees, fruits and grasses. There are
wonderful pine woods, and very extensive ranges of meadow land.
There is honey, and there are many kinds of birds, and a great variety
of fruits. Inland there are numerous mines of metals and innumerable
people.
-Christopher Columbus, in a letter to Luis de Sant Angel
1. What ADJECTIVES does Columbus use to describe the resources found in
the new world?
Graceful, wonderful, extensive, great
2. The Jewish-American Hall of Fame says, Santangel's influence with King
Ferdinand and Queen Isabella was decisive in gaining their acceptance of
Columbus' proposals. In recognition of his assistance, Santangel was the
first to hear of the historic discoveries directly in a personal letter from
Columbus. Why do you think Columbus would choose to tell Sant Angel
FIRST about his discoveries, instead of the King and Queen?
He might have felt like he owed something to him
3. Station 3: Secondary source image
1. This image shows the transfer of good from the new world back to
Europeans (old world). What does the body language and placement of the
Europeans in this photo suggest is being traded back to the Native
Americans?
Oppression and Control- the body language is controlling and the
Europeans are placed physically higher in the image than the Native
Americans
2. Infer: Who do you think is standing on the ship wearing red? Why do you
think this? Use evidence from the painting to support your answer.

Middle Childhood Education

A4: DBQ Essay

(Closing)

LO2
After viewing all
documents, students will
write a brief essay
applying the concepts of
the Columbian Exchange
to the essential question,
How do we decide what is
right and wrong in
history? In the exercise,
they will be the ones
deciding how an event is
represented in history

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Columbus because he is the focus of the image and he is the catalyst for the
CE and the main figure people remember when they think about the event
Station 4: Secondary source image.
1. What facet of the Columbian Exchange do these images represent?
The trade of disease and pathogens from the old world to the new, and the
devastation of the Native American peoples because of it
2. Which group of people (those from the new world or those from the old
world) is represented here? Why did the spread of feverish and infectious
disease disproportionately affect this group of people over the other? List 2
possible reasons.
Native Americans
They did not have immunities built up that Europeans had from living in
densely populated areas
They had no exposure to the animals like chickens that carried diseases in
the old world either
The information in the previous primary and secondary sources presents us
with different interpretations of the Columbian Exchange. Some are
obviously positive, some obviously negative. However some are either
neutral, or leave the meaning of the message entirely up to the reader.
You are now the historian in charge of creating a new exhibit on the
Columbian Exchange. You must decide what resources you want in the
exhibit, what artifacts to include, and a special team is going to create a
documentary on the Columbian Exchange to be shown in a special viewing
room at the museum. The staff is waiting on you to instruct them on what
materials to find and what information to include in the video. You must
decide on the stance your exhibit will take. Will it present the Columbian
Exchange as a positive or negative event in history?
First you must decide what criteria you are going to use to decide how the

Middle Childhood Education

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Columbian Exchange will be presented.

1. How many people were negatively affected by this event?
2. How many people were positively affected by this event?
3. Are people still affected by this event today?
4. What group might I unintentionally be representing in my thoughts?
Now, make your decision. Will it be positive, negative, or neutral? Why did
you make this choice?
Positive: We would not have the world we know today without the CE. None
of the food we eat would be the same, and we might not be here. I made
this choice because I think the CE overall did a lot of positive things for
human development and the development of the United States as a whole.
Negative: People too often forget the human devastation that happened as
a result of the CE. Poor historical record on the CE and its processes means
we dont even know how many Native Americans were killed by the
pathogens brought over by Europeans. IN addition, we have no idea what
the affect of bringing plants and animals from geographically unconnected
places will do to the ecosystem and biosphere in the long run. I want my
exhibit to represent those often forgotten ideas about the CE.
Reflect: How did it feel to be the one to make a decision about how a major
event in history is represented? Did anything outside the criteria affect your
decision? Who might be affected by your decision and how might they feel?
This one is student emotion.

Instructional Procedures/Steps

Each portion of this section should be aligned with learning objectives. Note when you are addressing a learning objective and when enacting an assessment.

Middle Childhood Education

Opening
_____35_____
Minutes
Hook?
Activate prior
knowledge?
Communicate LOs?

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Teacher will

Student will

Include instructional practices, questions you will ask, checks

for understanding, differentiation, evidence of culturally
responsive teaching practices.

What will students be doing?

What evidence of learning will students demonstrate?
Student-centered learning/opportunities for practice and
application.

1. Before students come into the room, I will

1.
have the desks moved so that they are in 4
distinct groups. When we do the DBQ in the
second half of the period, the groups will
each serve as a different station. Each
grouping will have a color.
2. When students enter the room, I will give
2.
them a colored note card. That notecard will
serve to group them and then be what I use
for the exit ticket at the end of the day.
3. As students enter, I will have the essential 3.
question on the board: How do we decide
what is right and wrong in history? They will
have been presented with this question
throughout this lesson sequence. Directions
under this question will say to discuss what
this question means as a small group.
4. After all students have entered the room, I 4.
will ask students to pause their conversations
Next, I will ask all students to stand up. I will
say, think about the item you were assigned
for the project yesterday and the day before.
In your opinion, did your item have a positive
or negative affect on Europeans? If you think
it is positive, move to the left side of the
room. If you think it is negative, move to the
left side of the room. If you feel neutral,
please stand in the middle of the room.
Please do not speak at this time. Simply take

N/A

Students will receive a notecard and proceed to

the assigned table group upon entering the room.
Students will discuss the essential question in
small groups. At this point, evidence I am look for
may include We look at if people got hurt or not,
or we look at if the event made life better or
worse. Answers may be vague at this point, and
that is okay. I just want them to get started
thinking about the question.
Students will stand and move from one side of the
room to the other when the questions are asked. I
am expecting each question to elicit mixed
responses. Neither question should have all
students to one side or the other. The European
question may place more students in the neutral
or positive spot, and the Native American question
may place more students in the negative spot.

Middle Childhood Education

notice of how many people are standing on

each side of the room. Now think about if
your item had a positive or negative affect on
Native Americans. If you think it is positive,
move to the left side of the room. If you
think it is negative, move to the left side of
the room. If you feel neutral, please stand in
the middle of the room. Please do not speak
at this time. Simply take notice of how many
people are standing on each side of the
room.
5.
5. After the moving activity is over, I will ask
students to return to their seats. Was every
person in agreement about whether all items
were positive and negative? Turn to an elbow
partner and discuss why some items were
positive and some were negative. What can
you conclude about why there is a mixed
answer when we ask if the Columbian
Exchange was positive or negative?
(Understand)
6.
6. Discuss the pros and cons of the Columbian
Exchange (Analyze). I will give the students
a t-chart (A1) for them to come up with pros
and cons of the Columbian exchange.
Students will be working in the larger (6-7)
group for this exercise.

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Students should answer the somewhat rhetorical

question about if all students agreed with a no.
This is mostly just to bring up the fact that for both
sides, the answer was not really clear if it was
good or bad. When they are talking with their
elbow partner about why there are mixed ideas
about if the CE was positive or negative, I am
looking for answers like there are two sides to
every story, people have different opinions
about right and wrong, or what is good for one
person might be bad for another person.
Possible student answers may include:
Pros: Many people got new food from the CE. For
example, Europeans got potatoes and corn that
helped with population growth and became a
staple for survival. Native Americans got grains
and sugarcane which became essential to the
economy and also became a staple food. In
addition, there was a lot of essential livestock that
was traded. Horses, cattle, and swine became
essential to Native American and European
American life in the new world.
Cons: The CE caused a lot of issues for Native
Americans, especially in relation to disease and

Middle Childhood Education

Seminar 2

population devastation. Also, like Alfred Crosby

said having contact from the old world to the new
changed the biological makeup of the world.
Humans changed a lot about the environment
really quickly and there is no way to know what
effect that will have or has had in the long run of
history and biology.
7. At this point, I am asking students to start
7. If some parts of the Columbian Exchange are answering more critically. An acceptable answer
deemed negative, and some are deemed
could be, Whoever is writing the source or
positive, how is it decided whether the
narrative in history will probably write it from their
event should be considered good or bad
perspective even if they dont mean to.
(Apply)?
8. This decision wont take long. Most students will
likely say positive, however it would be
8. Turn back to page 487 of the textbook.
acceptable for a few students to say neutral,
Refresh your memory of the excerpt we read
since the textbook does mention the spread of
2 days ago. Make a decision about which
disease.
stance (positive or negative) the textbook
took. Share your answer first with your
partner. When you two have decided on
what you think your answer is, put your hand
in the air.
Instruction
1. I will pull up the slide that has the 1. Students will work in collaborative groups.
____40______
directions for the stations activity
Minutes
today. There will be four stations
around the room, each with one of the
Procedures and steps
primary or secondary sources to be
to the lesson.
used for document based questions.
Strategies?
Assessments?
Students will be permitted to work with
Q & A?
collaborative group members. I will
Evidence of learning?
group the students randomly in groups
CRP?
Planned supports?
of 6 or 7 depending on attendance that
day. I will use colored note cards to
Transitions: Identify
groups the students. *Students will stay

Middle Childhood Education

when you are
transitioning and how
you will make that a
smooth transition?

Seminar 2

in the same groups that I put them in

2. N/A- Teacher Explanation
when they entered the room.
2. Each station will be one of the 4 questions
from the document based question packet.
Students will receive the entire packet at the
beginning of the activity, minus the essay. I
dont want the essay question to lead their
interpretation of the sources during this part
of the activity. Each station will also have QR
codes to the place where I located each
source, as well as further information that
may be helpful should students finish the
provided questions before it is time to change
stations. This is a part of the guided inquiry
process, as students can take their
3.
understanding a step further should they
choose to.
3. Station 1: Secondary source. Alfred Crosby on
the CE. The New Worlds great contribution
to the Old is in crop plants. Maize, white
potatoes, sweet potatoes, various squashes,
chiles, and manioc have become essentials in
the diets of hundreds of millions of
Europeans, Africans, and Asians. Their
influence on Old World peoples, like that of
wheat and rice on New World peoples, goes
far to explain the global population explosion
of the past three centuries. The Columbian
1. A significant population increase because of
Exchange has been an indispensable factor in
more nutritious and manageable plants and
that demographic explosion.
animals
1. What does Crosby mean by demographic
explosion?
a. A significant population increase because of

Middle Childhood Education

Seminar 2

more nutritious and manageable plants and

animals
b. Areas of the world blowing up because of new
plants and animals being introduced
c. Demographic changes due to immigration
3. An increase in conflict between the
inhabitants of the old and new worlds
2. Name at least (2) staple foods

2. Potatoes and Corn

4.

introduced in the Columbian exchange

that are still used today
4. Station 2: Primary source. Christopher
Columbus.
Some of them were covered with blossoms,
some with fruit, and some in other conditions,
according to their kind. The nightingale and
other small birds of a thousand kinds were
singing in the month of November when I was
there. There were palm trees of six or eight
varieties, the graceful peculiarities of each
one of them being worthy of admiration as
are the other trees, fruits and grasses. There
are wonderful pine woods, and very
extensive ranges of meadow land. There is
honey, and there are many kinds of birds,
and a great variety of fruits. Inland there are
numerous mines of metals and innumerable
people.
-Christopher Columbus, in a letter to Luis de
Sant Angel
1. What ADJECTIVES does Columbus use to

1. Graceful, wonderful, extensive, great

Middle Childhood Education

describe the resources found in the new world?

2. The Jewish-American Hall of Fame says,
Santangel's influence with King Ferdinand and
Queen Isabella was decisive in gaining their
acceptance of Columbus' proposals. In
recognition of his assistance, Santangel was the
first to hear of the historic discoveries directly in
a personal letter from Columbus. Why do you
think Columbus would choose to tell Sant Angel
FIRST about his discoveries, instead of the King
and Queen?
5. Station 3: Secondary source image
1. This image shows the transfer of good from
the new world back to Europeans (old world).
What does the body language and placement of
the Europeans in this photo suggest is being
traded back to the Native Americans?
2. Infer: Who do you think is standing on the ship
wearing red? Why do you think this? Use
evidence from the painting to support your
answer.
6. Station 4: Secondary source image.
1. What facet of the Columbian Exchange do
these images represent?
2. Which group of people (those from the new
world or those from the old world) is represented
here? Why did the spread of feverish and
infectious disease disproportionately affect this
group of people over the other? List 2 possible

Seminar 2

2. He might have felt like he owed something to him

5.
1. Oppression and Control- the body language is
controlling and the Europeans are placed physically
higher in the image than the Native Americans

2. Columbus because he is the focus of the image

and he is the catalyst for the CE and the main figure
people remember when they think about the event
6.
1. The trade of disease and pathogens from the old
world to the new, and the devastation of the Native
American peoples because of it
2. Native Americans
They did not have immunities built up that
Europeans had from living in densely populated
areas
They had no exposure to the animals like chickens

Middle Childhood Education

reasons.

Closure
___15_______
Minutes
Assess?
Wrap up?
Set-up?

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that carried diseases in the old world either

7. While students are working, I will be

7.
circulating the room listening to student
conversations to notice trends that I am
hearing. I will edit the following question
based on the trends I am hearing.
After the first 2 stations have been completed
(20 Minutes), I will do a whole class check in.
I will ask, Those of you that have completed
station 4: can you help me answer this
question? If you have not done station 4 this
is a good preview to help you when its your
turn. What do you think the story is that
It looks like maybe a whole family or potentially
these images are trying to express?
tribe of Native Americans are dying because of
a disease. I think the images are trying to tell a
story about how big of a devastation the
introduction of these diseases were for Native
American families.
Transition: I will play the happy working song
cleanup transition. This gives students a
time frame to get materials gathered and be
back in their seats in a timely fashion.
1. What relationship exists between the
sources we looked at in the DBQ packet
today, the video we watched 2 days ago,
or the textbook excerpt we read?
(Analyze)
2. How did the creator of the source
influence the content of the source?
(Analyze)

1. Student answers may vary in complexity from

some were primary sources, some were
secondary sources to it seemed like the
secondary sources we used were more critical
than the textbook source was
2. Student answers showing critical thought and
connections might include, Christopher
Columbus was the most positive, and John
Green was the most negative. Maybe the time
in between has an effect on how the event is

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interpreted by someone who wasnt there.

3. I will now give students the essay on the

DBQ and the Columbian Exchange. I will
also pull up the prompt on the smart
board. I will go over the scenario with
students and tell them what format I want
answers in for students who benefit from
having directions read outloud. The
question is: The information in the previous
primary and secondary sources presents us
with different interpretations of the
Columbian Exchange. Some are obviously
positive, some obviously negative. However
some are either neutral, or leave the meaning
of the message entirely up to the reader.
You are now the historian in charge of
creating a new exhibit on the Columbian
Exchange. You must decide what resources
you want in the exhibit, what artifacts to
include, and a special team is going to create
a documentary on the Columbian Exchange to
be shown in a special viewing room at the
museum. The staff is waiting on you to
instruct them on what materials to find and
what information to include in the video. You
must decide on the stance your exhibit will

3. Students will complete essay portion on their

own. Ideally, they will work for the remainder of
the period on this, around 10 minutes so I get
thoughtful and critical answers. Students will be
instructed to silent read if they finish early, per
class policy.

How many people were negatively affected by this

event?
How many people were positively affected by this
event?
Are people still affected by this event today?

Middle Childhood Education

take. Will it present the Columbian Exchange

as a positive or negative event in history?
First you must decide what criteria you are
going to use to decide how the Columbian
Exchange will be presented. (Create 3)

Now, make your decision. Will it be positive,

negative, or neutral? Why did you make this
choice?

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What group might I unintentionally be representing

in my thoughts?

Positive: We would not have the world we know today

without the CE. None of the food we eat would be the
same, and we might not be here. I made this choice
because I think the CE overall did a lot of positive
things for human development and the development
of the United States as a whole.
Negative: People too often forget the human
devastation that happened as a result of the CE. Poor
historical record on the CE and its processes means we
dont even know how many Native Americans were
killed by the pathogens brought over by Europeans. IN
addition, we have no idea what the affect of bringing
plants and animals from geographically unconnected
places will do to the ecosystem and biosphere in the
long run. I want my exhibit to represent those often
forgotten ideas about the CE.

Middle Childhood Education

Modifications/Acc
ommodations/Enri
chment
Differentiation: How
will you provide
students with specific
learning needs
instructional support?
How will you provide
students access to
learning?

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Reflect: How did it feel to be the one to make

a decision about how a major event in history
is represented? Did anything outside the
criteria affect your decision? Who might be
affected by your decision and how might they
feel?
IEP Students: Student that has IEP for selective mutism have a place to write down his answers
during group work so he is not excluded from the learning. The other student with an IEP has
ADHD and his action plan is to get verbal redirection. I will be sure to make multiple check ins
with this student to make sure he is using his time correctly.
504 Plans: N/A
ELL Students: Version of the DBQ packet with condensed text, important words and phrases
bolded, and answer frames to help determine appropriate format and length.
Gifted/Talented: N/A
Struggling Students: For students that are struggling readers and writers, I can give them the
same condensed text, important words and phrases bolded, and answer frames to help determine
appropriate format and length that I gave ELL students.

Academic
Language
What language function
do you want students to

Identify
Language Function: Investigate

Planned Supports
Language Function: General: class discussion,
small group discussion Trageted: pros and cons tchart and the guided questions on the DBQ packet

Middle Childhood Education

develop in this lesson?
What vocabulary do
students need to
support learning of the
learning objective for
this lesson?
What supports do you
have in place to assist
students with AL?

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Vocabulary:
Defend, pros, cons, take a stance

Vocabulary: Powerpoint, Bolded terms,

presentations on some terms

Syntax or Discourse?

Syntax or Discourse? Class discussion,

collaborative groups, partner discussions, essay
writing defending answer