Lesson Title: Trail of Tears Grade: 8th Length of lesson: 60 minutes Objectives: Students will be able to identify the

effects of the Trail of Tears on the people associated with it. 5.11 Understand the place of historical events in the context of past, present and future. Materials: Twenty dollar bill or photo of one Class Removal Act Printout of Letter from Chief Ross found at http://www.cherokee.org/AboutTheNation/History/TrailofTears.aspx Printout of John Burnetts Story of the Trail of Tears found at http://www.cherokee.org/AboutTheNation/History/TrailofTears.aspx Procedures: The class will begin with a discussion on Andrew Jackson. The teacher will show the classroom a twenty dollar bill, or a picture of one, and question them about the person on the bill. Class discussion should follow; be sure to include some things that Jackson is noted for along with his role in the Trail of Tears. Once discussion peaks, the teacher will interrupt the discussion with a letter. The letter will be given to a student of choice to be read aloud to the class. The letter will be a Class Removal Act. The letter will order the class to relocate to another location in the building (this could be the cafeteria, break area, or somewhere outside). The class will line up and follow the teachers instructions to go toward the new location. While walking to the new place, the teacher will give basics on the Trail of Tears. The teacher will go into detail about the journey, time taken, weather, sickness, hunger, death, etc. Once the class has reached the new destination, the teacher will hand out a printed copy of Letter from Chief Ross and John Burnetts Story of the Trail of Tears. The students will read over the selected materials and write a brief reflection about what it would have felt like if they had walked the Trail of Tears. After about ten minutes of reflection and writing, the class will walk back to the classroom. Differentiation The teacher can take a small group to the side and read the selected printouts aloud for them. Assessment Students will be assessed on their reflection at the end of the lesson. Their reflection should give some input on how they would feel given they were in the Native Americans shoes.