People Who Make a Difference
Who are some people who made a difference in our history and why are those people still important today?
Summary
This project was designed for and implemented in a fifth and sixth grade split class.  My school is a Title I school and many of my students are English learners.  Modifications were made for students with special needs.  Students write about a person who has made a difference in society, explain why that person is important, and connect that person to our present-day society.

Hamsa Lila is a fantastic band that gave our class permission to put their music on our site and videos.  Music used in these projects is from their Gathering One album and we appreciate their sharing.  It was beneficial for the students being exposed to diverse music.  Thank you to the band!

Rationale
This thematic unit addresses multiple content standards and connects history to real-world situations.  Many students have heroes and have learned about important people in history.  However, they do not always consider why that person is important and how that person affected society.  These students perform their research about the individual, but also address why these people are important. 

Our district follows the Open Court curriculum and for their Inquiry Projects students research themes of their language arts units and people who have demonstrated those themes.  Fifth and sixth grade themes include:  Perseverance, Taking a Stand, and Cooperation and Competition.  In a split class it can be difficult to incorporate projects that apply to both grade levels.  Because these themes connect well with one another, I chose to have groups of both fifth and sixth grade students working together. 

See our web pages for student projects:

https://my-ecoach.com/project.php?id=12058

https://salvador1234.googlepages.com/ewylproject

Student Created Website:
https://mrssalvadorclass.googlepages.com/project

Original Project Website:
https://my-ecoach.com/online/teacherguide.php?projectid=10621


Topic:
Social Studies: People Make a Difference
Themes:
Action
Activism
Character
Cooperation and Competition
Heroes
Important People and Discoveries
Influence
Perseverance
Taking a Stand
Focus Content Area:
English/Language Arts

Secondary Content Area:
Technology
Reading
History/Social Science
English/Language Arts
Grade Level:
All