Jennifer Thomas

10/21/13
Stage 2 Determine Acceptable Evidence
What evidence will show that students understand?
Performance tasks:
Interpretation: What was the biggest contributing factor of the Civil War? You
have just been informed that your local museum wants to open an exhibit that
describes and depicts the biggest contributing factor of the Civil War. Historians
dont always agree on specific causes and decisive events that cause things like
big wars. Likewise, not all historians agree on which factor was the biggest
contributor of the Civil War. It is your job to decide which event was the biggest
contributor to the Civil War and why. You must convince the museum board why
your choice is the biggest contributing factor so that they will choose your display
as the one for the exhibit. You must create a PowerPoint describing the
contributing factors of the Civil War. At the end of the PowerPoint, you must
make your argument for which of the factors was the biggest cause of the Civil
War. Plan to present your PowerPoint to JMU history students who will serve as
the museum board. After determining which factor was the biggest, make a 3-D
model depicting the factor you picked. This model will serve as the design
template for the exhibit. Your final product will be both the PowerPoint and the 3-
D model.
Perspective: What are the different points of view causing the Civil War? Before
and during the Civil War, there were many different points of view leading up to
and causing the Civil War. Your job is to put yourself into the shoes of a political
leader during the Civil War. You are to represent white plantation owners,
southern slaves, abolitionists, northern business owners, and U.S. citizens who
moved west. Your job is to convince Abraham Lincoln why he should agree and
side with the group of people you are representing. You must write a short
persuasive speech for each point of view as if you were a politician advocating
for that group of people. You will be presenting your speech to a panel of JMU
history students. When you present, provide a brief summary of each point of
view so that they have an understanding for each one of your
arguments/perspectives. Make sure that each speech is polished with your best
writing because you want to be as convincing as possible.
Empathy: What did it feel like to be a U.S. citizen during the Civil War? You are
an author specializing in historical biographies. You find a journal of a U.S.
citizen who lived during the Civil War Era while you were helping to excavate a
new Civil War site in Richmond. You read the journal and created a biography of
this persons life with excerpts from the journal. You must convince the publishing
company that they should print this book because it adds to the historical insight
about life during the Civil War. Create a book jacket for your biography that
includes a title, cover picture, and a brief synopsis for the back cover. Lastly, you
must re-create a journal entry for the eve of the Civil War. Also, you must provide
thoughtful and sympathetic insight about this persons feelings. You may choose
to write about any type of U.S. citizen during this time. When you are finished,
you will be presenting your book jacket and journal entries to the librarians from
the local library who will serve as the critics from the publishing company.
Jennifer Thomas
10/21/13
What other evidence will be collected in light of Stage 1 Desired Results?


Other evidence (tests, quizzes, prompts, work samples, observations):

Work Samples:
1. Students will analyze many primary and secondary source letters and documents
coming from the Valley of the Shadows project and the Library of Congress
website of slave narratives and pictures. Also, students will be provided
information from the Library of Congress pages The South During the Civil War
and The North During the Civil War. Students will use a graphic organizer that
will help them compile the information. Students will also take many notes along
with using the graphic organizer.
2. Students will create a timeline of decisive events that led to the Civil War. They
will draw pictures and/or print pictures to depict the events on the timeline. The
PBS website will help guide the specific events I want to teach and will be looking
for on the students timelines.
3. Students will create a poster that asks them to describe and depict economic,
cultural, and political differences. Students will use information from notes and
information that was gathered during the primary source analysis.
4. Students will create 3 different active learning tools:
a. The first learning tool will be for overarching themes that caused tensions
leading to the Civil War (Westward expansion, slavery, economical
differences, and election of Abraham Lincoln).
b. The second learning tool will be describing and explaining the different
viewpoints of the Civil War (such as white southern plantation owners,
northern business owners, slaves, abolitionists, and western citizens).
c. The last learning tool will be used to describe all of the different
compromises and acts that also created tension between the North and
the South.
5. Journals/Essay prompts: Students will respond to journal prompts throughout the
unit that puts themselves in the shoes of a slave in the south, abolitionist in the
north, a southern plantation owner, and a U.S. citizen living in Kansas.

Quizzes: Throughout the unit, students will take a variety of quizzes.
1. The different reasons/causes of the Civil War (short answer).
2. The different vocabulary terms throughout the unit (2 multiple choice quizzes: the
1
st
given 1/3
rd
of the way through the unit and the 2
nd
given 2/3
rd
s of the way
through the unit).
3. The different compromises and acts that contributed to the rising tensions
between the north and the south (multiple choice quiz with a short answer
describing why there was debate and tensions over adding western states as
either a free state or a slave state?.
Homework: Homework and class work will be given and collected throughout the unit.


Jennifer Thomas
10/21/13
Students Self-Assessment and Reflection:


How will you have students think about the content throughout the unit? (self-reflection)

Reflection: Exit cards will be given to the students every 2-3 days. Students will be
asked to reflect on:
1. What is something you understand well from today/so far?
2. What are you still confused about from todays lesson/so far?
3. What have you found interesting so far?
4. What is one thing you could explain to a friend?
After each PBE, students will reflect on their work:
1. What is something you wish you understood better while completing your PBE?
2. Was there something you were confused about during your PBE?
3. What is something you really liked about your PBE?
4. What are you confident you understand after completing your PBE?
Self-Assessment: Students will also be given self-assessment exit cards to think about:
1. What did you do today to help yourself stay focused?
2. How do you think you did today? Did you do your best? Why or why not?
3. What could you do to help yourself stay more focused during class?
4. What activities from the lesson are the most fun for you and help you stay focused as a
learner.
After each PBE, students will self-assess their work:
1. Did you give your best effort?
2. Did you feel well prepared to complete you PBE?
3. Did you complete everything that was asked of you?
4. Were you focused and on task throughout the completion of your PBE?
Jennifer Thomas
10/21/13
Stage 2 Evidence Collection Rubric

Directions: As you develop your stage, read over the checklist and rubric to see the criteria
that will be used to evaluate your work.

Checklist: This is your foot in the door. These must be completed by you before I
will apply the rubric to your work.
You designed one performance-based task (PBE) for each essential question on Stage 1.
_x__Yes ___No
You included in each PBE a goal, role, audience, situation, and product.
__x_Yes ___No
You or a friend proof-read your work so it is free from errors associated with Standard English.
__x_Yes ___No
You attached this rubric to your work, complete with name and date.
_x_Yes ___No



Rubric: Descriptors of quality used to assess your work.

Dimension Mastery (Closer to Mastery) Not Yet (Closer to
Unacceptable)
Not acceptable
PBEs You developed
performance tasks
that aligned directly
to the essential
questions, richly
embodying many of
the learnings you
desired students to
achieve. You
created tasks that
were authentic and
exist in the real
world. You
designed as much as
possible a real
audience for the
students. From what
students were asked
to demonstrate, you
ensured that they
cannot be successful
without fully
understanding the
learnings.
You created
performance
tasks that
addressed the
essential
questions, but
you structured
them so that they
seemed to just
miss being
engaging and
challenging. You
structured the
tasks so they
seemed contrived
and just fall short
of being real life.
You created an
audience that
seemed to be a
handy/easy
audience rather
than exploring a
more authentic
audience. You
You designed
performance
tasks that
seemed to
resemble typical
school activities
that involve the
essential
questions, but
are a stretch to
be considered
real life. You
envisioned the
tasks being
applied to the
real world, but in
actuality, the
students would
have you as the
audience or it
was difficult to
determine who
the audience will
be.

You designed
performance tasks
that engaged the
students in
activities that have
little or no bearing
on what you
wanted students to
understand. You
were the sole
audience for your
tasks. You
structured the tasks
such that students
could perform well
while having no
true understanding
of your learnings.

Jennifer Thomas
10/21/13
made your tasks
such that true
understanding
must be held by
the students to
complete the
task.

Other
Evidence
You created multiple
opportunities for
students to show the
knowledge and skills
essential to your
unit. You tapped a
variety of ways to
uncover what
students know
through more
traditional means.
You designed this
other evidence so
that, along with your
PBE data, you can
support your
conclusion that
students know,
understand, and can
do all that was
included in your
unit.

You developed
other evidence
that tapped the
knowledge and
skills students
must possess, but
you collected
limited evidence
that students
were prepared for
the pbes. From
your design of
this evidence,
you can say that
students will
know and be able
to do much that
was required in
your unit.

You indicated
other ways in
which you will
collect evidence,
but tapped only
the big and
obvious
knowledge
and/or skills in
your unit.

You developed
other evidence
that shows no
connection to the
learnings in your
unit and/or rely on
an end-of-unit test.

Self-
Assessment
and
Reflection
You provided varied
opportunities for
students to self-
assess and reflect on
their learning
throughout your unit,
incorporating end of
lesson metacognition
and metacognition
after big ah-ha
moments.
You provided
opportunities for
the students to
reflect and self-
assess after either
the big ah-ah
moments or at
the end of
lessons, but not
both.
You provided
opportunities for
the students to
either reflect or
self-assess after
either the big
ah-ah
moments or at
the end of
lessons, but not
both.
You made no
attempt to have
students reflect and
self-assess at any
time during the
unit.