Curriculum  /  ELA  /  8th Grade  /  Unit 8: Making Change: Speeches, Essays, and Articles (2020)  /  Lesson 5

Making Change: Speeches, Essays, and Articles (2020)

Lesson 5
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ELA

Unit 8

8th Grade

Lesson 5 of 11

Objective

Clearly present information to classmates and work collaboratively to draw conclusions based on research.

Readings and Materials

  • Article: “Five Teens Who Changed the World” by Harvey Day 

  • Article: “TIME's 25 Most Influential Teens of 2018” by TIME Staff 

  • Article: “7 Female Activists Under 23 Who Are Changing the World” by Courtney Connley 

  • Article: “The Youth Activists Who Proved Critics Wrong in 2018” by Victoria Rodriguez 

  • Article: “These Teenage Activists are Shaping Our Future” 

  • Article: “Seven Young Activists to Watch Ahead of the 2020 Elections” by Rachel Janfaza 

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Target Task

Writing Prompt

Introduce an activist to your class. Include the following information:

  • Name
  • Age
  • Location
  • Focus of activism
  • Actions they have taken
  • Impact of their actions
  • What their “ideal” future would look like

Lesson Guidance

Notes

  • In today’s class, students will read about and then provide a brief presentation introducing a specific teenage activist.  Each student should be assigned a different activist to read and present about. If you only have a short amount of time, provide students with information about their activist (see suggested resources) or have them do quick online research.
  • First, have students introduce the class to their activist.
  • Next, have students walk around the room “meeting” other activists. In each meeting, students should try to determine how their activists might learn from one another or even work together. What commonalities do they have? Do the issues they are standing up for intersect in any way? What can they learn from the actions the other activist has taken? 
  • Remind students that in every social movement we have studied, we have seen that movements are successful only when many people join together. 
  • Some connections will be clearer than others, and obviously not all social movements overlap in meaningful ways. Still, by the end of the class, students should write down at least two “partnerships” they think would benefit their activist and why that partnership would be beneficial to both. 
  • If time allows, have several pairs of students come up and present to the class about why they think their activists’ work overlaps and why they could benefit from working together. 

Common Core Standards

  • SL.8.4 — Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with relevant evidence, sound valid reasoning, and well-chosen details; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

Next

Research a topic of choice and gather appropriate evidence from reputable sources. 

Lesson 6
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