Teachers from different subject areas planned a cross-curricular unit where students were placed into groups to complete research assignments on events from the Civil Rights Movement at different work stations, using technology tools to construct knowledge, collaborate, and create original work products to demonstrate understanding of the time period and incorporate 21st century skills. Students worked through 10 assignments related to important Civil Rights events, conducting research and creating deliverables such as timelines, infographics, blogs, and newscasts to showcase what they learned about each topic. A variety of digital tools were utilized throughout the project to support collaboration between students and teachers from different classes.

1. Misti Holloway and Katherine Jones
Digital Technologies in Education
ITC 5220-375
Spring 2012
 

2. Cross-Curricular Project:
The Help novel, the Civil Rights Movement & 21st Century Skills
Junior Honors Classes
 
2012-2013

3. • Teachers from different curricular areas plan a unit implementing
English, History, and Technology into a research project.
• The students are placed in groups of three to four students to complete work
assignments for ten different work stations.
• Each assignment topic is related to an important event that took place during
the Civil Rights movement.
• For each station, students read background information, research, and
produce a product.
• All ten products will be put together into one presentation incorporating
technology, collaboration, and creative thinking.
• Knowledge Construction Tools, Social Mediating, Dynamic Modeling
Tools, and Semantic Tools are used throughout the process.

4. • Students will construct knowledge about the Civil Rights Movement while
locating, organizing, analyzing, evaluating, and synthesizing information
from a variety of sources during research.
• Students will demonstrate creative thinking while developing innovative
products using technology.
• Students will interact, collaborate, and publish with peers employing a
variety of digital environments and media.
• Students will create original works as means of personal expression.
• Students will demonstrate a positive attitude toward using technology that
supports collaboration, learning, and productivity.

5. Class Websites for Social Mediating
SOCIAL MEDIATING IN EDUCATION used with the class website

6. • Assignment One: Harlem Renaissance
• (Design a timeline using Microsoft word )
• Assignment Two: Segregation
• (Create an infomercial using Flip Video.)
• Assignment Three: School Desegregation
• (Design graph using Excel.)
• Assignment Four: The Montgomery Bus Boycott
• (Compose a news article and illustrate with clip art or graphics.)
• Assignment Five: Sit-Ins
• (Create “blogs” for famous people involved in sit-ins. What would
they put on their blog if they had one?)

7. • Assignment Six: Freedom Riders
• (Recreate a newscast to explain detail of events. Use Flip Video
to film and save.)
• Assignment Seven: Desegregating Southern
Universities
• Assignment Eight: The March on Washington
• (Each student collect highlights of event from The Library of
Congress American Memory website. Explain why you selected
that article.
• Assignment Nine: Voter Registration
• Assignment Ten: The End of the Movement

8.  Groups will participating in group work stations.
 There are ten stations in all each focused on an
important event that took place during the Civil Rights
Movement.
 Teacher teams will set up work stations in their classes
and allow time for groups to work on research and
product production.

9. Group Work
Stations 1-3
in English
Class
Group Work
Stations 7-10 Group Work
in technology Stations
or 4-6 in Social
exploratory Studies
wheel

10. Open The Help
forum. Go to
Start at Civil Rights Research
Review topic and
assigned Movement link.
Find the rubric for collaborate
group work PowerPoint for the group with group to
station your station. complete
work station.
number. Read assigned task.
background
information .

11. Knowledge Dynamic Semantic
Social
Construction Modeling Tools
Mediating
Tools Tools
Hyperlinks in Discussion
PowerPoint used using blog on
to build teacher’s
background website. Create a timeline
Design flow
information. using Microsoft map for of
Word 2010 major events
Collaboration
Video linked into
PowerPoint for
using Wiki
building page.
background
information. Students will share Use Microsoft
personal forms of drawing tools to
Design
expression such create a timeline . circle maps
Additional research Insert into
to topic by
as poetry,, art, and
presentation
for research.
music on blog
students using post.
assigned links.
Click link below to open PowerPoint for Assignment One.

12. • Students will comprehend the Civil Rights Movement and The
Help novel while analyzing, evaluating, and synthesizing the
plot and historical events in the book.
• Students will interact, collaborate, and publish with peers
through answering blog questions on the English teacher’s
webpage.
• Students will create blog posts, a character analysis thinking
map, and a plot diagram timeline as means of personal
expression and novel comprehension.
• Students will demonstrate increased reading comprehension
and plot analysis through using technology that supports
collaboration, learning, and productivity.

13.  Students will consider and answer weekly blog questions located on the
English teacher’s website.
 Blogging about the novel encourages students to collaborate with
classmates while increasing comprehension of the book.

14. • Students will create a character analysis thinking map on
a character from the novel to demonstrate
comprehension.

15. • Students will create a timeline of important events from
the novel using the ReadWriteThink online interactive
resource.

16.  http://www.classroomtech.org/integration/50ways.htm
50 Ways to Use Technology
 http://www.microsoft.com/education/en-us/teachers/how-
to/Pages/creating-timeline.aspx
 http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-
resources/student-interactives/
 http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-
resources/student-interactives/