| Grade Level 5 |
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| Curriculum Focus: American History, Colonies, Puritanism | |
| Pennsylvania State Standards: 1.1 – Learning to Read Independently 1.2 – Reading Critically in All Content Areas 5.1 – Principles and Documents of Government 5.2 – Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship 5.3 – How Government Works 7.1 – Basic Geographic Literacy 7.3 – The Human Characteristics of Places and Regions 7.4 – The Interaction Between People and Places 8.1 – Historical Analysis and Skills Development 8.3 – United States History |
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| Project Overview | |
| In 1692, twenty-four innocent victims lost their lives
in the Salem witchcraft hysteria. Two young Puritan girls, Elizabeth and
Abigail, began acting strangely. A colonial doctor decided that
Elizabeth and Abigail were victims of witchcraft. Historians are unsure
why the people of Salem became so hysterical. During this time period,
Salem Village faced a difficult and confusing period. Students find the witch trials fascinating, but it may be difficult for them to understand how a community of people could turn against one another. This project was designed to show the events and the people of Salem. Students will explore what life was like in Salem, the people, and how the events unfolded. |
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| Using the project in your classroom | |
| Introduce the project by discussing student's background
knowledge of the witch trials. Brainstorm what students already know and
what they want to know. Ask the students the following questions:
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When did the witch trials occur? When students have completed the project, go back to these questions, and discuss the effect the project had on their original ideas for the trials. What were they most surprised to learn? Discuss what it must have been like during the trials. Unlike today's courts, those accused had to defend themselves. They were considered guilty and had to prove their innocence. There was not clear evidence but the trials accepted "spectral evidence." That evidence was the claims from the girls that they were being hurt by spirits of the accused witches. No one could prove that to be true. |
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| Student Activity 1 - Web Research | |
| Students will gather information about life in Salem in 1692. Completing the Overview, Life in Salem, Economic and Social Divisions, Puritan Children will help students understand the setting and the historical background. | |
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| Student Activity 2 - News Article | |
| Students will research a person from Salem. They will write a persuasive article regarding the innocence or guilt of their person. If the person they selected was not one of the accused, they will write a descriptive essay about that person. They must explain why that person was important to the time. | |
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| Student Activity 3 - News Articles and creation of a newspaper | |
Students will explore the biographies of the people
involved in the witch trials. Some students will look at the
accused while others may research the accusers, judge, governor, and
others involved. Those who research the accused will write a persuasive
essay to convince the Judges of their innocence or guilt. For the
accusers, students should include what they believed motivated their
actions.
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| Student Activity 4 - Panel of Judges | |
| The Panel of Judges will review the news articles. Based on the information provided in the article, they will decide he fate of the accused. | |
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| Judges | |
| The judges will determine the guilt or innocence of
those accused based on the persuasive news article. Once the judges have
made their decisions, they will present their findings to the class and
determine the punishment. They will defend their decisions to the class.
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| 20th Century Witch Hunts | |
| Come up with a definition for witch hunt. Do witch hunts occur today? Can students relate other times in history where a group of people persecutes another group unfairly, usually blaming that group for larger problems? | |
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| For the Gifted Student | |
| More self guided | |
| Culminating activity - create an actual mock trial for a
few of the accused where the students would present the trial to the
class. Activities and requirements
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| For the Special Needs Student | |
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Provide additional time for task |
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© 2005 All rights reserved.
Last updated 04/11/2005
