Famous U.S. Symbols

1
Famous U.S. Symbols

• Robin Zelinski
• Jennifer Morrow
• EDE 417

2
Table of Contents

• Pg. 3 Introduction to slides
• Pg. 4-7 History, Activities, Websites
• Pg. 8-11 People in Societies, Activities,
  Websites
• Pg. 12-15 Geography, Activities, Websites

• Pg. 16-20 Economics, Activities, Websites
• Pg. 21- 24 Government, Activities, Websites
• Pg. 25- 28 Citizenship, Activities, Websites
• Pg. 29- 32 S.S. Skills, Activities, Websites

3
Famous U.S. Symbols

• 2nd Grade
• The students will learn about the
• Liberty Bell
• Great Seal
• American Flag
• Mount Rushmore
• Pledge of Allegiance

4
History

• The students will learn about the following
  areas
• Chronology
• Daily Life
• Heritage

5
Flag Facts

• 13 stripes
• 50 stars
• Redvalor and bravery
• Bluevigilance, perseverance, and justice
• White purity and innocence

• Stars are considered a symbol of the heavens and
  the stripes symbolize a ray of light from the sun
• First official flag came about in 1777
• Has gone through many changes since then

6
History Activities

• Students will document on a timeline each year a
  change was made to the U.S. Flag. We will talk
  about what adding a star to the flag meant
• Students will do a webquest on the making of the
  flag. They will write in their journal about how
  the flag was made in 1777, versus how it would be
  made today.
• Students will create a flag and document facts
  they learn about the flag during the lesson

7
History Activities (continued)

• Students will examine pictures of the different
  US flags and note their similarities and
  differences
• Students will create a flag and put into words
  in their journals what the colors of the flag
  means to them.
• Students will learn how to properly fold the flag

8
History Websites

• Bens Guide to U.S. Government
• http//bensguide.gpo.gov/3-5/symbols/flag.html
• Betsy Rosss Homepage
• http//www.ushistory.org/betsy/
• Fact Monster for Kids
• http//www.factmonster.com/spot/flagday.html
• History of the U.S. Flag
• http//www.usflag.org/
• Flag Rules and Regulations
• http//www.ushistory.org/betsy/flagetiq.html

9
People in Societies

• The students will learn about
• Cultures
• Diffusion

10
People in Society Activities

• The students will take a poll of teachers in the
  school to see whether or not they think Betsy
  Ross sewed the first flag
• The students will research, using books and
  computers, the myth surrounding Betsy Ross.

11
People in Society

• Students will dress in period costume and tell
  the story of the making of the flag (Teacher will
  have costumes available)
• On a five sided star the students will create an
  acrostic poem using the flag
• Discussion on what it was like to live 225 years
  ago. Make a Venn diagram comparing how it was
  alike and different from today

12
Websites

• Education World Lesson Plans
• http//www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson267.
  shtml
• Bens Guide to U.S. Government-Flag
• http//bensguide.gpo.gov/3-5/symbols/flag.html
• History of the American Flag
• http//www.usa-flag-site.org/history.shtml
• PBS for Educators of the Flag
• http//www.pbs.org/americaresponds/theamericanflag
  .html
• VA Kids
• http//www.va.gov/kids/k-5/multicontent.asp?intPag
  eId8

13
Geography

• The students will learn about
• Location
• Places and Regions
• Human Environmental Interaction

14
Mount Rushmore Facts

• Location Black Hills, South Dakota
• Created by Gutzon Borglum
• Faces are between 50-70 feet high
• 4 presidents Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt,
  Lincoln

• Began drilling in 1927
• Took 14 years to complete by Gutzons son
• 800 million pounds of stone were removed
• Workers had to climb 506 steps each day to the
  top

15
Geography Activities

• Students will look at a map, and map the distance
  from their home to the Black Hills in South
  Dakota
• Students will create a diagram that compares the
  similarities and differences between South Dakota
  and the state they live in.

16
Geography Activities

• Students will go outside and try to measure out
  50-70 feet, using whatever measures necessary
  (This was the height of the faces)
• We will discuss as a class, why John Borglum was
  not able to carve from the head to the waist
  (CLUE this was due to the granite being to
  crumble) Brainstorm as a class and make a bar
  graph of the different ideas

17
Websites for Mount Rushmore

• South Dakota Tourism
• http//travelsd.com/placestogo/rushmore/
• Bens Guide to Mount Rushmore
• http//bensguide.gpo.gov/3-5/symbols/mountrushmore
  .html
• National Park Service
• http//www.nps.gov/moru/
• American Park Network
• http//www.americanparknetwork.com/parkinfo/ru/
• Enchanted Learning
• http//www.enchantedlearning.com/history/us/symbol
  s/index.shtml

18
Economics

• The students will learn about
• Scarcity and Resource Allocation
• Production, Distribution, and Consumption
• Markets

19
Liberty Bell Facts

• Bell was ordered from London, England
• Had a crack in the bell from shipping
• Weighs 2000 pounds
• 70 copper 30 tin

• Liberty Bell was recast several times in order to
  make the ring sound right
• Liberty Bell was removed from Independence Hall
  in 1777 for safe keeping during the war
• Liberty Bell is gently rung on July 4th each year

20
Economics Activities

• We will discuss the differences in price between
  1751 and present day
• Foundry workers created the Liberty bell. There
  will be a discussion about the role of machinery
  today versus hand-made

21
Economics Activities

• The U.S. bought the Liberty Bell from London. We
  will examine different types of money i.e.
  American, English and other types (have real
  examples if possible)
• The class will make a chart of services that you
  normally pay for and those that are free

22
Economic Activities

• The Liberty Bell was melted down several times,
  using different metals. The students can
  determine if this made the price of the bell go
  up or down. (opinion-based, depending on the age
  of the children)

23
Economic Websites

• The Liberty Bell
• http//bensguide.gpo.gov/3-5/symbols/libertybell.h
  tml
• Liberty Bell Museum
• http//www.libertybellmuseum.com/activities.htm
• Liberty Bell-Enchanted Learning
• http//www.enchantedlearning.com/history/us/monume
  nts/libertybell/
• U.S. History
• http//www.ushistory.org/libertybell/
• Liberty Bell Facts
• http//home.att.net/honorAmerica/libertybell/hist
  ory/bellfacts.htm

24
Government

• The students will learn about
• The role of government
• Rules and laws of government

25
Government Activities

• We will read So you want to be President?
• As a class, we will discuss the role of the
  President and the rules they have to enforce and
  follow. Make a chart of rules these particular
  presidents may have had to follow and how the
  rules are different from today.

26
Government Activities

• The students will elect a President for the day,
  this student will make speeches, enforce rules,
  get along with people and shake hands with those
  in the hall.
• Each student will do a webquest on a different
  president. They will find out their home state
  and what number president they were. Once
  information is gathered each student will place
  their president on a map in the classroom.
• Explain that presidents wear many hats. Each time
  a student learns an new fact about the presidents
  job, they will write it on the Presidents Hat

27
Websites

• Scholastic
• http//teacher.scholastic.com/researchtools/articl
  earchives/civics/index.htm
• 2nd Grade Teaching Site
• http//www.orange.k12.nc.us/he/pages/teaching20in
  ternet/2nd20grade.htmlGovernment
• White House
• http//www.whitehouse.gov/
• PBS
• http//pbskids.org/democracy/presforaday/
• Education World
• http//www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson223.
  shtml

28
Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities

• The students will learn about
• Participation
• Rights and Responsibilities

29
Pledge of Allegiance

• First published in 1892
• Published in the Youths Companion magazine
• First published in public schools to celebrate
  Columbus Day on Oct. 12, 1892

• Received recognition by Congress as an act on
  June 22, 1942
• The phrase under God was added on June 14, 1954

30
Citizenship Activities

• Read America A Patriotic Primer by Lynne Cheney
• The students will learn how to display and take
  care of the U.S. Flag
• Students will look closely at the Pledge of
  Allegiance and break it down line by line into
  words that we think it means

31
Citizenship Activities

• Have students vote which book they would like to
  listen to today. Explain the concept of voting in
  a democracy
• The teacher will explain what citizenship is,
  and the students will participate in Citizenship
  Day! Students will take notice when they see
  others showing good citizenship in school.

32
Citizenship Websites

• Memorial Day Activities
• http//www.eduplace.com/monthlytheme/may/memorial_
  activities.html
• The Flag of the United States
• http//www.usflag.org/
• Betsy Ross Homepage
• http//www.ushistory.org/betsy/
• Education World Citizenship activities
• http//www.education-world.com/a_curr/curr008.shtm
  l
• Bens Guide to U.S. Government-Flag
• http//bensguide.gpo.gov/3-5/symbols/flag.html

33
S.S. Skills and Methods

• The students will learn about
• Obtaining Information
• Thinking and organizing
• Communicating information
• Problem-solving

34
Great Seal Facts

• Created by Ben Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas
  Jefferson
• Approved on June 20, 1782
• Center of SealEagle (National bird)
• Beak holds a scroll that says E pluribus unum
  which means out of many, one one nation created
  from 13 colonies

• One claw holds an olive branch and the other claw
  holds a bundle of 13 arrows these symbolize
  power and peace
• Shield with 13 red and white stripes covers the
  eagles breast
• Cloud above the eagles head contains 13 stars
  which form a constellation
• There is a pattern of 13 on the seal representing
  the 13 states

35
Social Studies Skills

• Students will work together in pairs to do a
  webquest on a symbol of their choice, they will
  report interesting facts they have found to the
  entire class
• Students will read about the myth surrounding who
  actually made the first flag. Was it Betsy Ross
  or not? They will hold a debate in class,
  presenting both sides

36
Social Studies Skills

• As a class, we will determine if George
  Washington actually cut down the cherry tree
• Students will brainstorm in groups, to determine
  all of the sources that are available for finding
  information on a topic, come together as a large
  group to identify all of their sources
• Students will participate in a quiz bowl, which
  will be a review of all of the facts they have
  learned

37
Websites

• Education World
• http//www.education-world.com/awards/past/topics/
  soc_sci.shtml
• PBS- Liberty
• http//www.pbs.org/ktca/liberty/
• Symbols of the U.S.
• http//www.evergreen.edu/library/GovDocs/symbols.h
  tml
• Info USA
• http//usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/facts/symbols.
  htm
• AtoZ Kids Stuff
• http//www.atozkidsstuff.com/symbols.html