Six Degrees of the Gilded Age in South Carolina
This activity is based loosely on the game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. The teacher can choose to place students into five different groups, giving each group a challenge question, or can make this an individual project, assigning or having students pick a point to prove. The goal is to prove the assertion, using a multimedia program that projects student work in slides or frames, in six slides or less. The teacher can determine which program will be used, and what multimedia combinations (pictures, text, sound, video, etc…) can be used. Slides should not project opinion, but as with any good debate, use fact to prove the assertion.
Lesson Created By: Lisa Ray
Essential Question
Can you prove one of the challenge questions about South Carolina in the Gilded Age in six slides or less?
Points to Prove
- How did the “New South” grow from the poverty of the Reconstruction Era?
- How are sharecropping and tenant farming similar to working in the textile mill?
- Should Wade Hampton be remembered as a moderate Democrat?
- Should Wade Hampton be remembered as a leader who worked hard to strip Freedmen of their rights?
- How are textile mills, the phosphate industry, and the lumber industry connected to the growth of South Carolina’s industry in the 21st century?
Grade(s):
- 8
Subject(s):
Recommended Technology:
Computers/tablets with internet access
Prior to beginning the project the teacher should decide the multimedia program students will use. View the Teacher Notes for the various options.
More resources can be found: Technology Resources Vetted by ETV Education
Other Instructional Materials or Notes:
Lesson Progression
Step 1:
Assign either individual students or groups their “Point's to Prove”.
Step 2:
Review with students the difference between fact and opinion. Explain to students that their goal is to prove their given assertion in six slides or less. Discuss the technology students will be using to complete their project and the time restraints of 3 to 4 class periods for completion.
Resources to use for explaining the difference between FACT and OPINION
Step 3:
Help students identify key terms for each assertion. This may help students focus on facts first, so that they may give an opinion they can prove and defend.
Step 4:
Provide the rubric so that students will know how their slides will be graded.
Teacher Notes
Prior to beginning the project the teacher should decide:
- The multimedia program students will use. There are many excellent choices for slide type presentations. Some include
- PowerPoint
- Vizlingo (www.vizlingo.com)
- Slidestory (www.slidestory.com)
- Tagxedo (www.tagxedo.com)
- Thinglink (https://www.thinglink.com/edu)
- Piktochart (www.piktochart.com)
- Canva (www.canva.com)
- What type of project, individual or group?
- What “points to prove” will be assigned? (Choices provided are under Points to Prove and Alternative Assertions)
Fact or Opinion for Kids (from Teaching Without Frills)
Teaches children the difference between fact and opinion.
View ResourceBrain Pop: Fact and Opinion
How can we separate what’s true from what someone thinks is true? How do you know whether someone is giving you solid information, or whether they’re trying to persuade
View ResourceKnowitall.org - Tenant Farmers | Pee Dee Explorer
Learn the history of African American tenant farmers during the era of reconstruction.
View ResourceKnowitall.org - Wade Hampton | SC Hall of Fame
A short biography of the life of Civil War leader and Governor, General Wade Hampton.
View ResourceStandards
- 8.4.P Summarize the economic changes that emerged in South Carolina and the U.S.
- 8.4.CX Evaluate South Carolinians’ struggle to create an understanding of their post-Civil War position within the state, the country, and the world.
- This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into how the former planter class, African Americans, women, and others adjusted to, gained, lost, and/or regained position and status during Reconstruction. This indicator was also written to foster inquiry into how South Carolina worked with a stronger federal government and expanding international markets.
- 8.4.CE Explain the causes and effects of World War I on South Carolina and the United States.
- This indicator was developed to encourage inquiry into the significant causes of World War I and the factors leading to U.S. involvement. This indicator was also developed to promote inquiry into the effects of the war, to include its impact on the homefront, migration patterns, and continued foreign policy debates.
- I Inquiry-Based Literacy Standards
- I.1 Formulate relevant, self-generated questions based on interests and/or needs that can be investigated.
- I.3 Construct knowledge, applying disciplinary concepts and tools, to build deeper understanding of the world through exploration, collaboration, and analysis.
- I.3.1 Develop a plan of action by using appropriate discipline-specific strategies.
- I.3.2 Examine historical, social, cultural, or political context to broaden inquiry.
- I.3.3 Gather information from a variety of primary and secondary sources and evaluate sources for perspective, validity, and bias.
- I.3.4 Organize and categorize important information, revise ideas, and report relevant findings.
- I.4 Synthesize integrated information to share learning and/or take action.
- I.5 Reflect throughout the inquiry process to assess metacognition, broaden understanding, and guide actions, both individually and collaboratively.
Assessments
Presentation Rubric Link for Six Degrees of the Gilded Age:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1oKLC8eAYqON4__oip2cDfSntB4qrwWXLMfVh...