I. Lesson Planning with ProCon.org
| A. Lesson Plan Ideas Using ProCon.org |
- Engage Peers Outside the Classroom - Have students research issues and share what they learned with other students inside the school. Examples of ways to engage peers include: writing pro and con articles to be published side-by-side for the school newspaper, preparing public address announcements, creating pamphlets for on-campus distribution, or preparing a presentation for a school assembly.
Standards Met: NCTE 4, NCTE 5, NCTE 7, NCTE 12
- Essay Writing - Have students write essays advocating a pro or con position on an important social issue.
Standards Met: NCTE 4, NCTE 5, NCTE 7, NCTE 12
- Extemporaneous Speech - Have students give speeches espousing either a pro or con position on an important social issue. Students should have minutes to prepare.
Standards Met: NL-ENG.K-12.3, NL-ENG.K-12.4, NL-ENG.K-12.8, NL-ENG.K-12.11, NL-ENG.K-12.12
- Group Discussion Web - Have students form small groups to decide their cumulative pro or con perspective on an issue. Then have a small group merge with another small group to form a larger group and cumulatively select their group's pro or con position. Repeat the process until the entire classroom has a single pro or con position.
Standards Met: NL-ENG.K-12.3, NL-ENG.K-12.4, NL-ENG.K-12.5, NL-ENG.K-12.6, NL-ENG.K-12.12
- Informal Debate with "Devil's Advocate" - Have an informal debate with students on an issue. The instructor will play "devil's advocate" by shifting from one side of the argument to the other. This may be an especially useful exercise if a significant majority of students share the same views on an issue, or if one side appears weaker. The instructor can serve as a model for good debate tactics.
Standards Met: NL-ENG.K-12.3, NL-ENG.K-12.4, NL-ENG.K-12.6, NL-ENG.K-12.8, NL-ENG.K-12.12
- Lincoln-Douglas Debate - Have student groups formulate pro or con arguments on an important issue using ProCon.org. They would then present a written summary of their arguments and identify areas where the opposing group may find weaknesses in their arguments. Have students perform the debate.
Standards Met: NL-ENG.K-12.1, NL-ENG.K-12.3, NL-ENG.K-12.4, NL-ENG.K-12.6, NL-ENG.K-12.8, NL-ENG.K-12.11, NL-ENG.K-12.12, NSS-C.9-12.5
- Online Discussion - Have students discuss an issue in an online message board. Encourage students to directly respond to each other's statements. The instructor should moderate the online discussion and help move along the debate.
Standards Met: NCTE 4, NCTE 5, NCTE 7, NCTE 12
- Rehearsed Speech - Have students given speech advocating a pro or con position on an important social issue. Students should have days to prepare.
Standards Met: NL-ENG.K-12.3, NL-ENG.K-12.4, NL-ENG.K-12.8, NL-ENG.K-12.11, NL-ENG.K-12.12
- Role-Play Debate - Have students role play pro or con figures in important social issues and then debate classmates on those issues.
Standards Met: NL-ENG.K-12.3, NL-ENG.K-12.4, NL-ENG.K-12.5, NL-ENG.K-12.6, NL-ENG.K-12.12, NSS-C.9-12.2, NSS-C.9-12.5, NA-T.9-12.2
- Role Reversal and Compromise - After students have researched a topic, place them in teams to debate a topic. Half way through the debate, reverse the teams' roles and have them present the arguments they just debated against. Then have the teams abandon advocacy and write a compromise report to synthesize both pro and con arguments.
Standards Met: NL-ENG.K-12.3, NL-ENG.K-12.4, NL-ENG.K-12.6, NL-ENG.K-12.8, NL-ENG.K-12.12
- Writing a Letter to a Political Figure - Have students research both the pros and cons of an issue. Once they choose a position, have them write a persuasive letter to their elected representatives or a government official.
Standards Met: NCTE 4, NCTE 5, NCTE 7, NCTE 12
For more ideas on lesson plan development, here are some full lesson plans (mostly from our “How Schools Are Using ProCon.org” web page): Making Choices: An Exploration of Political Preferences (7th grade), Conflict in Palestine: A Research Guide (high school level), The Technology of Voting (high school level), Dying to Be a Martyr (no grade level specified), The Write Stuff (college level), and Activities Based on Dr. Caroline Hatton's Book The Night Olympic Team (high school).
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B. 15 National Teaching Standards Used by Incorporating ProCon.org Content into Lesson Plans
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- NA-T.9-12.2 ACTING BY DEVELOPING, COMMUNICATING AND SUSTAINING CHARACTERS IN IMPROVISATIONS AND FORMAL OR INFORMAL PRODUCTIONS
Achievement Standard:
- Students analyze the physical, emotional, and social dimensions of characters found in dramatic texts from various genres and media.
- Students compare and demonstrate various classical and contemporary acting techniques and methods.
- Students in an ensemble, create and sustain characters that communicate with audiences.
Achievement Standard, Advanced:
- Students demonstrate artistic discipline to achieve an ensemble in rehearsal and performance.
- Students create consistent characters from classical, contemporary, realistic, and nonrealistic dramatic texts in informal and formal theater, film, television, or electronic media productions.
- NCTE 4
Students adjust their use of spoken, written and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes.
- NCTE 5
Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
- NCTE 7
Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and nonprint texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience.
- NCTE 12
Students use spoken, written and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion and the exchange of information).
- NL-ENG.K-12.1 READING FOR PERSPECTIVE
Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works.
- NL-ENG.K-12.3 EVALUATION STRATEGIES
Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).
- NL-ENG.K-12.4 COMMUNICATION SKILLS
Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes.
- NL-ENG.K-12.5 COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES
Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.
- NL-ENG.K-12.6 APPLYING KNOWLEDGE
Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and nonprint texts.
- NL-ENG.K-12.8 DEVELOPING RESEARCH SKILLS
Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.
- NL-ENG.K-12.11 PARTICIPATING IN SOCIETY
Students participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities.
- NL-ENG.K-12.12 APPLYING LANGUAGE SKILLS
Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information). communities.
- NSS-C.9-12.2 FOUNDATIONS OF THE POLITICAL SYSTEM
What are the Foundations of the American Political System?
- What is the American idea of constitutional government?
- What are the distinctive characteristics of American society?
- What is American political culture?
- What values and principles are basic to American constitutional democracy?
- NSS-C.9-12.5 ROLES OF THE CITIZEN
What are the Roles of the Citizen in American Democracy?
- What is citizenship?
- What are the rights of citizens?
- What are the responsibilities of citizens?
- What civic dispositions or traits of private and public character are important to the preservation and improvement of American constitutional democracy?
- How can citizens take part in civic life?
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Last updated on: 10/5/2009 9:01 AM PST
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