-- Real world actions for
students after completion of the lesson
 |
|
 Steps
Introductory Activity:
(one class period)
|
|
Start the lesson with a class brainstorming session.
Write this phrase on the board: “A hero is…”. Ask students
to complete the sentence out loud and write their responses on the
board. They can give words or phrases — any type of description.
Do this for a few minutes until you have a good-size list on the board.
|
|
Next, hold up pictures of people or characters that
the students would recognize. They could be famous figures, people
in your community, in your school, etc. Have students raise their
hands if they think that this person is a hero and have them explain
why. For students who disagree, have them explain why not. Refer to
the list on the board during the discussions. If new ideas or descriptions
come up while showing the pictures, write these down on the board
as well. Have students start making a list of criteria for what attributes
they think makes a hero. For example, does a hero have to be a human
being? Give students some time to make their own list of criteria
in their notebooks.
|
|
Now have students write a short description of what
they think a hero is based on the class discussions and their own
thoughts. Have students work in pairs and read their descriptions
to one another. How are their descriptions similar? How are they different?
Why? Have a general discussion about the descriptions students wrote.
|
Learning Activities:
|
Activity One:
(two class periods)
Part 1
|
|
Divide students into five groups and assign
each group one decade (the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s) to research.
Each group should look at the history of their assigned time period
and take notes on important events that happened at the time. How
would they describe this time period? Have each group complete the
student organizer Historical Events.
|
|
Next, have students select a hero from
their time period to research individually. Individuals in each group
should select a different person. Hand out the organizer Hero
Information. All students should read about their chosen individuals
and complete this organizer.
|
|
Have students get back into their groups
and share the information that they researched on their heroes. Have
them review their organizer Historical
Events. Why do you think these people were regarded as heroes?
How did the historical events of the time period influence the individuals
who were regarded as heroes? What factors about this time period made
these people heroes?
|
|
Have the students take out their notebooks
and look back over their definition and list of criteria for a hero.
Divide students into groups of four or five and have them compare
what a hero is today with what a hero was in other time periods. Have
them look over their list of criteria. Do the heroes of other time
periods meet these criteria? Bring the class together and take a poll.
Are heroes today different from heroes of the past? How?
|
Part 2
|
|
Have students think about how a society's
definition of heroism reflects its beliefs and values at any given
time. Who would be the heroes for the time we live in now? Why? What
important events of our time have influenced our image of a hero?
Does the media influence our perception of heroes? How?
|
|
Have students name some heroes of our
time and list them on the board. Ask them, what have been some of
the most significant historical events of the time we live in that
have influenced whom we consider heroes. Who decides if someone is
or is not a hero? Watch “Living with Change” from the special
three-episode series, IN THE MIX: THE NEW NORMAL (find out from your
local PBS station when the show will be airing). Ask students if they
consider any of these teens to be heroes. Why? Can anyone be a hero?
Why or why not? Do you have to do something extraordinary to be a
hero?.
|
|
For homework, have students write about
a time in their life when they have done something heroic. What happened?
Why do they think this was a heroic action?
|
Activity Two:
(two class periods)
|
|
Have students go to the HEROES OF GROUND ZERO Web site at: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/heroes/.
Direct students to the page “In Their Words,” which has
transcripts and videos of interviews with five New York City firemen.
Have students read or watch the interviews. They should takes notes
thinking about what qualities or specific deeds make these men heroes.
Why do Americans regard these firemen as heroes? Have students think
about historical context and the events of September 11. (If no
Internet access is available, find out from your local PBS station
when the show will be airing and watch clips from the show with
the class.)
|
|
When students have finished taking notes, have a class
discussion about these firefighters. Why do students think they are
heroes? Were firefighters always regarded as such esteemed heroes?
Did the events of September 11 change the way we think about firefighters?
Does anyone not believe they are heroes? Why?
|
|
Put these two statements on the blackboard and have
students copy them down:
- A hero is made by the internal qualities and character he or
she possesses.
- A hero is made by the circumstances and
events that surround him or her.
Have students discuss these two statements. How many agree with the
first statement? Why? How many agree with the second statement? Why?
Does a person have to be a part of an historical event to be a hero?
Can someone learn to be a hero?
|
Activity Three:
(one class period)
|
|
Go through the list of famous quotes about what a hero
is in class and read aloud. Discuss each one and ask students if they
agree or disagree and have them explain their reasons. You can either
write them on the board beforehand or create a handout for students.
Here are some suggestions from the Web site
http://www.quotelady.com/subjects/heroes.html:
“A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is braver five
minutes longer.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
“I believe it is the nature of people to be heroes, given the
chance.”
— James A. Autry
“Nurture your minds with great thoughts. To believe in the heroic
makes heroes.”
— Benjamin Disraeli
“We are the hero of our own story.”
— Mary McCarthy
“When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked,
"What is a hero?" …My answer was that a hero is someone
who commits a courageous action without considering the consequences…
Now my definition is completely different. I think a hero is an ordinary
individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of
overwhelming obstacles.”
— Christopher Reeve
“A hero is simply someone who rises above his own human weaknesses,
for an hour, a day, a year, to do something stirring.”
— Betty Deramus
|
|
Have students come up with their own quotes and write
them down. Collect and read the quotes out loud to the class. Discuss
them with the class and have students vote on their favorite quotes.
Have students come up with a graphic for their quote (students may
use the image/graphic and favorite quote for the culminating activity).
|
Culminating Activity/Assessment:
(two to three class periods)
|
|
Tell students that now that they have explored what
makes a hero and how heroes are made, for their final project they
will be researching a hero of their choice and creating a trophy for
the hero. Before students choose a hero, have them spend some time
reading about other students’ heroes on this Web site: http://www.myhero.com/home.asp.
(If all students do not have access to the Web for this activity period,
print out some of the pages from the Web site and pass them out).
|
|
Once students have chosen a hero for their project,
they should start gathering information about the person’s life,
important achievements, and why he or she is a hero. When students
have finished researching their hero, they should write notes on index
cards to use during their presentation.
|
|
Give students time in class to sketch their trophies
for their heroes. They can draw their trophies on paper, or create
one using paper or cardboard. When students are finished, have them
present their heroes and trophies to the class.
|
|
Extensions
Cross-Curricular Extension:
- Compare real life heroes with fictional heroes, such as superheroes
or heroes from the movies.
- Have students write a poem in honor of their heroes.
Community Connections:
- Students may want to invite their heroes to class as guest speakers.
Have students prepare questions beforehand to ask the guest speakers.
Use this opportunity to work on students’ interviewing and
communication skills.
- Have parents or grandparents come to class and talk about their
heroes. How are their heroes different from the heroes that the
students admire and respect?
|
