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Summary and Objective
The students will understand that there is a relation between the past and the present in the continually evolving society. The students will realize that analyzing and interpreting primary sources leads to better understanding of life in the United States. They will understand that science and technology change the lives of people. This lesson is designed for students with special needs. It may require 2-3 class periods to complete.
Teaching Plan
Step 1.
Review with students how life in the past was different from life today (no electricity, plumbing, etc.) Ask them what they know of how daily used items (kitchen pots, kitchen appliances) might have looked in the past.
Step 2.
Explain that to get a better understanding of life in the past, we will use American Centuries web site and examine the four artifacts listed in the activity.
Step 3.
Divide students into groups or pairs. Have students become familiar with each artifact. Ask them to discuss and answer the guiding questions that will help them in their examination and drawing conclusions about the changing times.
GUIDING QUESTIONS
1. What is it?
2. What was its purpose?
3. Where was it used (kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living
room)?
4. What was it made of?
Step 4.
Have students look at the artifacts as a whole and decide which items are related based on their function. This should lead them to discover that iron hanging kettle used for cooking in the fireplace and earthenware bean pot were both utilized in the kitchen. Similarly, chamber pot and potty chairs served the same purpose.
Step 5.
Ask students what we use today in place of the four artifacts (bake kettles then, aluminum pots now; chamber pots and potty chairs then, bathrooms now).
Step 6.
Pose a discussion question: What reasons can you think of to explain why the types of household items have changed? Encourage them to think of different technological advances and inventions.
Step 7.
Have them present their comparison findings (That Was Then... This Is Now) in any form they wish - charts, pictures, drawings, descriptions.
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