CORE QUESTION: What are ideal rights and roles for children
in a society?
OVERVIEW: In small groups of three or four, students will examine
case studies of children’s lives in different societies
around the world. They will look at specifically what the
roles and rights are of the children in the different societies.
The societies they look at will vary in economic, cultural,
and political situations. The students will then be asked
to use the information they have gathered to fill out a
chart outlining what the roles and rights of children are
in their designated society. They will also outline questions
they have about roles and rights of children that they discover
in their given society, as well as concerns or suggestions
they have. They will then take their suggestions and create
an “ideal” society for children’s roles and rights. The
groups will fill out another chart for their “ideal” society,
with the exception of the “questions” column. The “ideal”
society charts will then be passed around to each group
for them to examine, and put questions they have in the
questions column of the chart. Groups will be given a chance
to look over the questions about their created society posed
by their peers. To conclude the lesson, the students and
teacher will engage in a discussion about what they feel
makes a society ideal for children’s roles rights, and is
it really possible to have an ideal society after all.
TIME REQUIRED: 40 minutes
SUGGESTED GRADE LEVELS:Grades 8, 9
INTERDISCIPLINARY APPLICATIONS: Social Studies, Reading, Composition,
NEW JERSEY
CORE CONTENT STANDARDS: 6.2, 6.4, 6.6, and 6.8
INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES:
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Students will evaluate the experiences of children in
other countries.
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Students will compare the conditions of children in other
countries.
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Students will identify the roles and rights of children.
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Students will evaluate the difficulties in trying to change
or improve the conditions of children around the world.
STRATEGIES:
The teacher will introduce the lesson by asking the students
what elements they think define the roles and rights of
children in a society. The teacher should remind the students
that children’s rights are not necessarily what the children
“want”, but rather what they “need”. Each group will then
be assigned a specific society around the world, and given
a resource packet with information about children in their
given society. Using information gathered from their packet,
groups will fill out a chart that outlines the roles and
rights of children in their given society. In the questions
column, they should list any questions, or suggestions that
they have for the existing roles and rights of children
in their given society.
Categories |
Roles
& Responsibilities |
Benefits |
Costs |
Questions
and Suggestions |
WORK |
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PLAY |
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SCHOOL |
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HOME |
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COMMUNITY |
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Once
the groups have finished the chart for their assigned society,
they will take the questions or suggestions that they had
to help them try and design an outline of a society with
“ideal” rights and roles for children. They will again
fill out a chart, this time leaving the questions/suggestions
column blank.
Once
all of the groups have completed their “ideal” society charts,
the charts will be passed around the room for all of the
other groups to look at. The other groups will review their
peers’ ideas for an “ideal” society for children, and list
any questions or suggestions that they have for the group’s
proposed society in the questions/suggestions column of
their chart. Groups will then get back their proposed society
charts, with their peer’s questions and suggestions to review
and discuss as a group.
The
activity will conclude with a class discussion about what
were the difficulties that they had in trying to create
a realistic society that was “ideal” for children’s roles
and rights, and why they think that those difficulties existed.
The teacher should use the discussion to show the students
perhaps why problems with children’s roles and rights in
society exist, that there is no simple solution. A class
discussion may be included before and after activity.
MATERIALS:
Resource packets for the different countries (one for each
group of 3 or 4 students), “Children’s Roles in Society”
charts on large sheets of paper (11x14) or printed on overhead
sheets, overhead markers (if necessary), large sheets of
white paper (36’’x 24’’), markers or crayons.
REFERENCES:
Resource packets (prepared by teacher)
Books:
Colon,
A. R. and P. A. Colon, A History of Children: A
Socio-Cultural Survey
Across Millennia, Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing
Group, 2001.
Hawes,
Joseph. and N. Roy Hines, American Childhood: A
Research Guide and Historical Handbook, Westport, CT:
Greenwood Publishing Group, 1985.
ASSESSMENT:
Presentation of charts and visual “models”, measured by
a rubric.
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