The Walking Classroom

Walk, Listen, and Learn

A program of Alliance for a Healthier Generation
  • Sample educational podcasts!
  • Teacher Resources
  • Buy
  • Apply
  • Our
    Program
    • Program Overview
    • Implementation
    • Why It Works
    • ESSER Alignment
    • Research Studies
    • Videos
    • Our Mobile App
    • Sample Podcasts!
    • Testimonials
    • Our Ambassadors
    • Science Career Podcast Series
  • What’s
    Happening
    • Latest News
    • Resources
    • Stories from educators
    • Posts about our app
    • For families and homeschool
  • FAQs
  • About
    Us
    • About The Walking Classroom
    • Awards
    • The Walking Classroom Press Kit
    • Contact Us
  • Informational Webinars

Blog

Walk this Way: The Fight (and Flight) for Freedom

02.28.20
posted by Caitlin Watson

Part of this year’s Walk This Way series, sharing The Walking Classroom experiences of teachers and students across the United States, this post provides a glimpse into Caitlin Watson’s class.

Click here to read all of Caitlin’s articles.

When February rolled around, I could not wait! For the first time in a long time, I knew exactly what we would do for Black History Month. Instead of doing surface projects on a bunch of different important black figures in our history, we would dive deep into one incredible human, Harriet Tubman and her fight (and flight) for freedom.

Fighting for Freedom

We were about to launch into our American Revolution unit, and I really wanted my students to understand the lengths people would go to achieve freedom. I wanted them to realize that freedom is not given. It is earned by blood, sweat, tears, sacrifice, and even human lives.

Every year, students struggle to understand why the colonists would go through so much to be free of Great Britain. I knew that if I could draw a correlation between Harriet Tubman’s fight for freedom and the struggle of the patriots, that they would be able to understand the ins and outs of the Revolutionary War much better.

Plus, my kids have been through a lot. They have faced struggles I couldn’t imagine, so I knew they would feel inspired by the trials and tribulations Harriet faced and how she overcame them to achieve something great.

Introducing . . . Harriet Tubman!

First, we read a Reading A-Z book on Harriet Tubman, identifying the key details and the main idea of the book. The next day we hit the trail to walk, listen, and learn about her and her fight for freedom (5-#50, Complete-#79). Before we went out, I told my students that after our walk we would compare and contrast the details in the podcast to the book using a Venn diagram.

We went out and listened to the podcast, and the kids loved it! It was the first time I had heard my students audibly gasp during a walk. They were so shocked by her life and all she accomplished.

Sharing the Learning

When they came back, my students couldn’t stop talking about the podcast. They filled their Venn diagrams to the brim, and they quickly jumped on their computers to find even more information about Harriet Tubman.

To wrap the unit up, I had them all write newspaper summaries about what they had learned about Harriet Tubman. Then, we put them (proudly!) on our bulletin board.

Demonstrating Understanding

Not only did the podcast engage my students, it deepened their understanding of main idea, details, summarizing, and provided them with an opportunity to compare and contrast. They made deep connections that have shown up in other areas of their work in the classroom.

For example, they just had a writing test about women in the American Revolution (a very hard topic they didn’t know a lot about). Almost every single one of them talked about Harriet and the things they learned about in the podcast. They connected her experience with the Revolutionary experience. When I graded their essays, I saw that, as a class, these earned the highest class average we had so far!

There are so many other podcasts that support Black History Month, so go check them out. Happy Trails!

Caitlin Watson
Fourth Grade Teacher
Diamond View Elementary

Follow Mrs. Watson and her fourth grade students as they walk, listen, and learn through the school year. Look for her posts the first Friday of every month!

And, be sure to check out how the program is being implemented by other teachers on subsequent Fridays!

Share This!
previous
next

Comments

  1. chelsealindeman says

    March 4, 2020 at 2:07 pm

    I love this as well! I love ideas on how to demonstate students understanding through writing. I also always try to use a text to introduce the topic for walking classroom, great ideas! Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
  2. Jessica Gruber says

    March 2, 2020 at 1:30 pm

    Love this & your connection to the Revolution. Never thought to provide that perspective for my students during our unit but your lesson has given me inspiration!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related

Timely Topics: Podcasts for Black History Month, II
February 20, 2023
Tags: Black History month, Crispus Attucks, Harriet Tubman, Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks
Teacher Tools: Using Graphic Organizers
September 6, 2022
Tags: biographies, graphic organizers, science, venn diagram
A Gift to Combination Class
July 7, 2022
Tags: Harriet Tubman, research, Slave Life and Rebellions, Underground Railroad

Blog Topics

  • Blog
  • Family Resources
  • News
  • Resources
  • The Walking Classroom App
  • Your Stories

GET OUR BLOG POSTS IN YOUR EMAIL

Share Your Story

share-your-storyAre you a Walking Classroom adopter? We want to hear your story and share it with others in our community.

Share your Walking Classroom story!

Videos

video-iconSee The Walking Classroom in action and hear from some of the teachers using it.

Watch our videos!

Join Our Newsletter

Site Map

A program of    Alliance for a Healthier Generation

Follow us!

Alliance for a Healthier Generation
dba/The Walking Classroom
1028 SE Water Ave, Suite 215
Portland, OR 97214
(919) 240-7877
info@thewalkingclassroom.org

Privacy Policy (Web)

Privacy Policy (Mobile App)

© Copyright 2023, Alliance for a Healthier Generation dba The Walking Classroom. All rights reserved.