Jim Crow Laws

Grade: 10

Student Learning Objective: Students will understand how African American people were influenced
by the end of the Civil War. Students will read excerpts from the Jim Crow laws, as well as listen to
primary accounts of African American peoples alive during that time. Students will ultimately be able to
describe the Jim Crow Laws, and how they influenced the lives of African Americans by constructing a
four paragraph essay. The essay will utilize information from the text; students must reference the reading
materials.

Materials:

Reading materials:
o Examples of Jim Crow Laws. The Jackson Sun. The Jackson Sun, 2001. Web. 17
October 2015.
o Pilgrim, David. What was Jim Crow. Ferris State University: Imagine More. Jim Crow
Museum, 2012. Web. 17 October 2015.

Videos: (The videos are located towards the right hand portion of the website, within the yellow
column.)
o http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/freedomriders/issues/jim-crow-laws/

Song:
o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHAXKdlPrOk
o Song lyrics:
o http://genius.com/Lead-belly-jim-crow-blues-annotated

Graphic organizer/outline for the essay

o http://thedissertationwritingservicebro.com/images/lymurone.jpg

Separate sheet of paper for the essay itself

Separate sheets of paper for two column graphic organizer

Pencil

Projector

Board

PowerPoint

Preparation for the Activities: The teacher will begin by presenting the hook. During the day of the
lesson the teacher will present a PowerPoint defining the term Jim Crow Laws. The teacher will then
present two brief videos of two African American people recanting their experiences with Jim Crow
Laws. The students will then be presented with the reading materials.

Text Information:
1.

Examples of Jim Crow Laws. The Jackson Sun. The Jackson Sun, 2001. Web. 17 October 2015.

2.

Pilgrim, David. What was Jim Crow. Ferris State University: Imagine More. Jim Crow Museum,
2012. Web. 17 October 2015.

Link to Text:
1.

http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/what.htm

2.

http://www.ferris.edu/news/jimcrow/links/misclink/examples/homepage.htm

Flesh-Kincaid Readability Level:

1.

10.8

2.

10.4

Order of the Lesson:

1.

Introduction: The teacher will play Lead Bellys Jim Crow Blues with lyrics on the screen. The
teacher will then ask the students, based off of the song, what they suspect Jim Crow was. The teacher
will also provide a list of vocabulary words, with their respective definitions (for example, the terms
racial segregation, racism, inferior, oppression, etc.)The teacher will present the definition of Jim
Crow Laws using PowerPoint. The teacher will then show two videos dealing with the accounts of
African Americans who have had first-hand experience with Jim Crow Laws. The teacher will then
ask the students if they have any comments or questions about the presented materials. After the
students ask their questions, or relay their comments, they will be split into group of three of four. The
students will then conduct silent reading.

2.

Before Reading Strategy: Building Background Information After the teacher presents the song
written and performed by Lead Belly, the students will engage in class dissection. The students will
then see a list of key vocabulary they will be introduced to during their reading, and the watch two
filmed accounts of African American experiences during Jim Crow. The students will then be able to
pose questions and comments about the video or vocabulary. The students will then be divided into
their groups, and engage in reading the provided materials.

3.

During Reading Strategy: A Combination of Note Taking While reading, students will
implement note taking/highlighting skills. Students will highlight key terms, as well as interesting or

significant ideas. Perhaps they will highlight information they wish to include within the text. The
students will take a sheet of paper, and draw two columns. The first column will contain information
from their reading assignments, while the second column will contain questions, or comments about
the readings. The students will then share that information with students from their group.
4.

After Reading Strategy: Team Review After students create their two column graphic organizer,
they will share information within the graphic organizer with other students.

Introduction: The teacher will provide activating materials. The materials will either spark student
interest, or student knowledge. The teacher will use music, as well as video in order to introduce students
to the concept of Jim Crow. The teacher will then lead a class discussion that will allow for students to
ask questions, or share comments. Before the students read the assigned text, the teacher will model use
for a two column graphic organizer. The students will read the assigned text, and fill out the two column
graphic organizer using the help of scaffolding questions. The students will then collaborate and discus
the text using the two column graphic organizer. Finally, the students will fill out an essay outline, and
complete a four paragph assignment.

CONTENT AREA STANDARD:

Discipline:
9 12 SS.912.A.2.5
(Social Studies: American History)

Understand the causes, course, and consequences of the Civil

War and Reconstruction and its effects on the American
people. (Assess how Jim Crow Laws influenced life for
African Americans and other racial/ethnic minority groups.)
Link:
http://www.cpalms.org/Public/PreviewStandard/Preview/3343

ANCHOR STANDARDS FOR READING, WRITING, LISTENING, and SPEAKING:

CCSS
Anchor
Standard
Addressed:
K-12 CCSS
Anchor
Standards
with Link
and
Standard
Written
Out:

Reading
CCSS.ELALITERACY.RI.9-10.1

Writing
CCSS.ELALITERACY.W.9-10.2

Listening and Speaking

CCSS.ELALITERACY.SL.9-10.4

Cite strong and thorough

textual evidence to support
analysis of what the text
says explicitly as well as
inferences drawn from the
text.

Write
informative/explanatory
texts to examine and
convey complex ideas,
concepts, and information
clearly and accurately
through the effective
selection, organization, and
analysis of content.

Present information,
findings, and supporting
evidence clearly, concisely,
and logically such that
listeners can follow the line
of reasoning and the
organization, development,
substance, and style are
appropriate to purpose,

http://www.corestandards.o
rg/ELA-Literacy/RL/9-

10/1/

audience, and task.

http://www.corestandards.o
rg/ELA-Literacy/W/9-10/2/

Correspon
ding
Before,
During and
After
Strategies

Before: Students will listen

to a song about the Jim
Crow South, see a list of
key terms pulled from their
readings (along with
definitions), and then ask
the teacher questions based
off of the presented
information. The students
will then watch a video of
firsthand accounts of those
who grew up within a Jim
Crow America. The
students will then address
questions or comments to
the teacher. The teacher
will then provide the
assigned text, and model
how to design the twocolumn graphic organizer.
During: During reading,
students will practice
comprehension skills. The
teacher will display some
scaffolding questions in
order to assist students with
comprehension. The
questions may include:
What is Jim Crow? Who
did these laws affect? What
are some examples of Jim
Crow Laws? How did these
influence how African
Americans lived, and how
African Americans were
viewed? While the
students read, they will
create a two column
graphic organizer. The first
column will contain

Before: Before the

students write their four
paragraph essay, the
students will organize
information using a graphic
organizer. The only portion
of information missing
within the provided graphic
organizer is the hook, and
the thesis statement. It
would also be helpful for
students to understand how
many sentences each
paragraph should contain
(although this is considered
rudimentary assistance, it
may be necessary if
students do not possess
much writing experience).
The teacher will then
explain the components of
an essay to the students
During: Students will use
information from their two
column graphic organizer,
and group discussions to
fill out their essay outline.
One they fill out their essay
outline, they will begin
constructing their essay.
Their essay will have a
strict, preplanned format,
so the essay should not be
too challenging. If the
students have issues
starting their essay, they
can collaborate within their
groups, or direct questions
to the teacher.

http://www.corestandards.o
rg/ELA-Literacy/SL/910/4/
Before: During class
discussions, the students
will be able to pose
questions and hypothesis
about the Jim Crow Laws.
This information will be
based on the teachers
introduction to the
assignment.
During: During group
discussions, the students
will base information on
the text. They will express
their ideas using their two
column graphic organizer.
They will be able to share
ideas, as well as absorb the
ideas of their classmates.

information from the text,

while the second will
contain the students
original question and
comments.
Evaluation
Using
Formative
Assessment

After: After the students

read the text, and fill out
their two column
worksheet, the students will
then share their questions,
comments, and pulled
materials with the group.
(The column worksheet
will be collected, and used
as a separate grade.)

After: The teacher will

then collect the essays and
check for an introduction,
two body paragraphs, and a
conclusion. The essay
should use information
from within the text to
explain ideas of the Jim
Crow era.

After: The teacher will

listen to the conversation
happening within each
group. The student will
make sure the students are
on task, and discussing
relevant information from
the presentation and
assigned readings. The
group discussion will assist
the students in filling out
their essay outline.

Estimated Time: 90 minutes (two class periods)

English Learner Strategies:

If possible group the EL student with a bilingual student.

Highlight important text/key terms ahead of time.

Provide a graphic organizer/outline for essay for student, if possible partially filled out.

Provide a bilingual dictionary

(If beginner or intermediate, use sentence frames)

Allow incomplete sentences/grammatical errors, forgive some coherency issues.

Hess' Level of Cognitive Rigor Matrix: Understand: Students will paraphrase, translate, give examples,
summarize, generalize, explain, compare and contrast (by inference).
Rigor Explained to Show Meeting this High Level of Cognitive Rigor: Students will define Jim Crow
Laws by including support from the assigned text. They will summarize, use examples, and quote
materials from the text. They will comprehend multiple perspectives during different time periods within
America. They will understand the significance of the vocabulary, and incorporate key vocabulary into (at
least) their essay. (This will draw upon elements within Webbs DOK levels one through four.)

Reference Information for Hess' Level of Cognitive Rigor Matrix:

http://static.pdesas.org/content/documents/M1-Slide_22_DOK_Hess_Cognitive_Rigor.pdf
2009 Karin K. Hess: Hess Cognitive Rigor Matrix, khess@nciea.org

The Gradual Release Model: The gradual release model dictates how students and teachers should come
to explain and understand information. The I do it portion focuses on the teachers ability to relay
information using direct instruction. The we do aspect incorporates guided instruction, within this
lesson plan; the we do will be supported by the teacher as well as classmates. Finally, the you do it
independently will primarily focus on the constructed of an essay that will be constructed independently.
The you do it together aspect will be incorporated if one allows for students to confide in one another in
hopes of clarifying any confusion.

About the scaffolding technique called the Gradual Release Model (I do it, We do it, You do it):
I do it: explicit teaching (explaining what they need to do)
We do it: guided practice (where you provide support by doing the activity with them)
You do it: independent practice (when the students practice the skills they learned on their own)

Gradual Release Model for the Strategies in this Lesson

Before Reading:
I do it: Before the students
read the assigned text, and
participate in note taking, the
teacher will instruct students
on how to use the two column
graphic organizer. The teacher
will explain that as the
students read, they must keep
three questions in mind:
What is Jim Crow? Who did
these laws affect? What are
some examples of Jim Crow
Laws? How did these
influence how African
Americans lived, and how
African Americans were
viewed? These questions will
be written on the board. The
teacher will then pull out a
piece of paper, and model the
construction of the two
column note taking
assignment. The teacher will

During Reading:
I do it: The teacher will
explain summarizing and
quoting. The teacher will
model highlighting important
text.
We do it: The students will be
able to call for the teachers
attention, or ask students
within their group for
assistance. The teacher will
provide a list of some key
terms, and their definitions at
the front of the classroom. The
students will be able to call
upon assistance from the
teacher or their group
members if they are stuck.
You do it: the students will
independently read the
assigned text. They will
highlight important

After Reading:
I do: Before the teacher
assigns the next activity (the
essay) the students should
check for understanding. This
would be an ideal two day
lesson for this reason. The
teacher can collect the
students two column
assignments, and look over
them that night. The teacher
will then gauge what the
students have concluded
independently or within group
interaction.
Ultimately, the teacher will
assign the next graphic
organizer: an essay outline.
The teacher will explain the
hook, and how to formulate a
thesis statement. The teacher
will fill out a graphic
organizer at the form of the

provide an example of
information that will be
provided in the left-hand
column (as in quotes, and
summaries). The teacher will
also explain the information
that will go into the right-hand
side of the column, such as
questions, and comments. The
teacher will remind students
that they will use this two
column graphic organizer to
discuss the text with their
groups.

information (concepts and key

terms). They will create their
own questions and comments
to be included within the right
hand side of the two column
graphic organizer.

We do it: Before students read

through the assigned text, they
will create their two column
graphic organizer. The teacher
can pull up the assigned
readings, and discuss the title,
the pictures, or perhaps the
first paragraphs of the
assigned text. The students
can begin their graphic
organizer by using that
information.
You do it: The students will
then prepare to read the text.
They will independently
evaluate what is within the
text. They can discuss this
within their groups.

classroom. The teacher can

use a projector, or the board.
The teacher can define the
hook as an attention grabbing
sentence, it can be a quote, or
a creative question. The thesis
is the main point of the essay,
and will include main ideas
contained within the
paragraph. The two boy
paragraphs should contain at
least four to five sentences
explain what the Jim Crow
Laws were, and how they
influenced the live of African
Americans. The teacher will
explain that they can use
quotes, and summaries. They
can use their two column
assignment to fill out their
graphic organizer outline.
Finally, the teacher will
explain what a conclusion is
(the wrap up, the final
paragraph that will solidify
ideas.)
We do it: Students can break
into their original groups, and
discuss their graphic
organizing outlines. They will
use the text to copy the model
the teacher presented.
You do it: The final essay
should be an independent
project, but one should not
discourage the exclusion of
peer input or peer review. The
students will use graphic
organizers to construct their
final, four paragraph essay.

Strategies and Links:

Before Reading:

Building Background Information

o Link:
http://www.scps.k12.fl.us/curriculum/AcademicCore/LanguageArtsandReading/Secondar
yReading/BeforeReading.aspx

Videos: (The videos are located towards the right hand portion of the website, within the yellow
column.)

Song:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/freedomriders/issues/jim-crow-laws/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHAXKdlPrOk
Song lyrics:
http://genius.com/Lead-belly-jim-crow-blues-annotated

During Reading:

A Combination of Note Taking

o Link:
http://www.scps.k12.fl.us/curriculum/AcademicCore/LanguageArtsandReading/Secondar
yReading/DuringReading.aspx

Reading materials:
o Examples of Jim Crow Laws. The Jackson Sun. The Jackson Sun, 2001. Web. 17
October 2015.
o Pilgrim, David. What was Jim Crow. Ferris State University: Imagine More. Jim Crow
Museum, 2012. Web. 17 October 2015.
o http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/what.htm
o http://www.ferris.edu/news/jimcrow/links/misclink/examples/homepage.htm

After Reading:

Team Review
Link:
http://www.scps.k12.fl.us/curriculum/AcademicCore/LanguageArtsandReading/SecondaryReading/A
fterReading.aspx
Final evaluation:
o Graphic organizer/outline for the essay:
http://thedissertationwritingservicebro.com/images/lymurone.jpg

Reflection: The students will utilize multiple reading strategies in order to comprehend the assigned text.
The building background strategy will allow students to understand the context of the assigned
readings. It would be unfair to expect students to comprehend the text, if this lesson were the first to
introduce them to Jim Crow. The students interest will be ignited by the technology integrated within the
lesson, as well as the vocabulary words provided by the teacher. The note taking strategy will allow for
students to keep track of important information located within the text. The students can directly quote
and summarize information, while clarify that information in the right hand column of this two column
graphic organizer. The students will also be able to write questions within the right hand column; these
questions will inspire the student to better understand the concepts of the text. The team review will allow
for students to collaborate ideas derived from the assigned text. The students will be able to pose
questions to one another, as well as explain ideas. The students ability to communicate will be tested, and
ultimately this will allow them to create more clearly written essays. Essays are a mode of
communication, and academic discussions allow for students to experiment with using academic language
as well as complicated topics.
Objectives Connection: The readings, two column graphic organizers, as well as essay outline will allow
for students to deeply explore Americas treatment of African Americans after, and well after the end f the
Civil War. The students will be able to analyze text that directly explain Jim Crow Laws, and how those
laws define American views towards African Americans during a time period. The students will use their
ability to write in order to define the Jim Crow Laws, and support that definition using text from the
assigned readings.