The students will analyze, discuss, critique, compare, contrast, and summarize salient aspects of the fall of the Berlin Wall (and its symbolic ending of the Cold War), the subsequent re-unification of Germany and the global ramifications of these events. The students will utilize various electronic (e.g., internet, cd/ipod, projector) and conventional methods (e.g., textbooks, reference books, periodicals, primary source artifacts) to study and research this topic. In addition to various formative assessments conducted throughout the module the students will also be required to create an item at the end of the lesson module showcasing their understanding of the material (performance assessment).
Sunshine State Standards:
SS.A.1.3.1-3 (The student understands historical chronology and the historical perspective; understands how patterns, chronology, sequencing (including cause and effect), and the identification of historical periods are influenced by frames of reference; knows the relative value of primary and secondary sources and uses this information to draw conclusions from historical sources such as data in charts, tables, graphs; knows how to impose temporal structure on historical narratives.);
SS.A.5.3.2 (The student understands U.S. history from 1880 to the present day; understands ways that significant individuals and events influenced economic, social, and political systems in the United States after 1880.)
SS.B.1.3.1-7 (The student understands the world in spatial terms; uses various map forms (including thematic maps) and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report geographic information including patterns of land use, connections between places, and patterns and processes of migration and diffusion; uses mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments; knows the social, political, and economic divisions on Earth’s surface; understands how factors such as culture and technology influence the perception of places and regions; knows ways in which the spatial organization of a society changes over time; understands ways in which regional systems are interconnected; and understands the spatial aspects of communication and transportation systems.)
SS.B.2.3.2, 3, 5, 7-9 (The student understands the interactions of people and the physical environment; knows the human and physical characteristics of different places in the world and how these characteristics change over time; understands how cultures differ in their use of similar environments and resources; understands the geographical factors that affect the cohesiveness and integration of countries; knows how various human systems throughout the world have developed in response to conditions in the physical environment; knows world patterns of resource distribution and utilization; and understands how the interaction between physical and human systems affects current conditions on Earth)
SS.D.2.3.1-3 (The student understands the characteristics of different economic systems and institutions; understands how production and distribution decisions are determined in the United States economy and how these decisions compare to those made in market, tradition-based, command, and mixed economic systems; understands that relative prices and how they affect people’s decisions are the means by which a market system provides answers to the three basic economic questions: What goods and services will be produced? How will they be produced? Who will buy them? ; knows the various kinds of specialized institutions that exist in market economies (e.g., corporations, labor unions, banks, and the stock market)
NCSS Standards:
I. Culture - This lesson answers the questions: How do belief systems, such as religion or political ideals, influence other parts of the culture? How does the culture change to accommodate different ideas and beliefs?
V. Individuals, groups, and institutions - Institutions such as schools, churches, families, government agencies, and the courts play an integral role in people’s lives. It is important that students learn how institutions are formed, what controls and influences them, how they influence individuals and culture, and how they are maintained or changed.