William Henry Harrison Makes the Front Page!
Intermediate
One to two class periods
Program Segments
1819 - 1811 Calls for War (7 1/2 minutes)
Autumn 1812 Campaigns in the West (6 minutes)
Spring 1812 The British Invade (7 minutes)
NCSS Themes
I: Culture and Cultural Diversity
III: People, Places, and Environments
V: Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
X: Civic Ideals and Practices
Canadian (Ontario) Concepts
Systems and Structures
Interactions and Interdependence
Environment
Culture
Canadian (Ontario) Specific Expectations – Seventh Grade
Describe the major causes and personalities of the War of 1812
Describe the different groups of people
Objectives
Students will be able to:
·demonstrate an understanding of William Henry Harrison’s role in the war and the effect he had on the people around him through their writing
Focus Questions
1. Who was William Henry Harrison?
2. What effects did William Henry Harrison have on people, culture, and land during the War of 1812?
Key Concepts
Expansionism, Stalemate, Cession, Confederacy, Subordinates, Treaty, Metaphor
Instructional Resources
The War of 1812 DVD
crayons, markers, and colored pencils
pencils
textbooks, websites, and various print resources for additional information
Guidelines and sample article (81.5 KB)
Procedures
1. The teacher will instruct students to write the heading "Who was William Henry Harrison?" on a sheet of paper.
2. The teacher will introduce Harrison by telling students he was a determined and ruthless general in the War of 1812.
3. While watching the segment of The War of 1812, the students should be writing down facts about Harrison.
4. The teacher will write Harrison’s quote, “I believe that all the measures of the Government are directed to the purpose of making the rich richer and the poor poorer” on the board.
5. The teacher will then ask the students what they think this quote by Harrison means. What do they believe this quote says about Harrison's personality?
6. The teacher will lead a class discussion based on what they uncovered while watching the Harrison segment of The War of 1812.
7. The teacher will distribute guidelines and clearly read and explain them to the students.
8. The teacher will show a sample newspaper article and answer questions.
9. The teacher will instruct students to begin to create their own newspaper articles using the facts from the program along with additional resources (i.e. websites and print materials).
10. Upon completion, the students will turn their newspaper articles in for assessment.
Assessment Task
The completed newspaper article
Related PBS Resources
Conflicting Newspaper AccountsIn this lesson students write Civil War newspapers about the Battle of Antietam from the opposing perspectives of North and South.www.pbs.org/civilwar/classroom/lesson_accounts.html Finding the Right WordsExplore how hard it can be to capture the essence of a scene using only words. Examine the challenges war correspondents must face while trying to capture a scene they are witnessing and convey that scene to the public with the right words.www.pbs.org/weta/reportingamericaatwar/teachers/rightwords.html The War through the Eyes of Al McIntoshInvestigate newspaper editors and correspondents who reported the local impact of war events on communities and towns at home. Review local newspaper stories and editorials from World War II and then write a mock story about the war for the folks back home.www.pbs.org/thewar/downloads/al_mcintosh.pdf
Download
William Henry Harrison Makes the Front Page! (349.5 KB)
Lesson (PDF)
