AHI Curriculum Units | Assessing the Unit | Resources

AHI Curriculum Units

The American History Idol (AHI) Curriculum Units were designed for students in Grade 4 and Grade 5 to support the development of the following skills: gathering, organizing, and presenting information. With a focus on building these skills for expository texts, AHI relies on biographies of historical figures. For Grade 4 the biographies are about Sequoyah, Johnny Appleseed, and Jane Addams. For Grade 5, the biographies are about Lewis and Clark, Thomas Jefferson, and Jane Addams.

Inspired by the TV show American Idol, the curriculum unit motivates students to consider which figure had the greatest historical impact and to cast a vote to decide the newest “American History Idol.”

The American History Curriculum Unit was originally designed to integrate the software program Draft:Builder , published by Don Johnston, Inc. Available as a stand-alone or part of the SOLO software package, Draft:Builder is a tool that provides a structured framework for students in grades 3 through 12 to strategically plan and organize ideas for writing. For more information on the software and purchasing information visit: www.donjohnston.com/products/draft_builder/

We are making available as pdf files the following four versions of the American History Idol Curriculum Unit.

• Grade 4, Using Draft:Builder (PDF)
• Grade 4, Using Worksheets (PDF)
• Grade 5, Using Draft:Builder (PDF)
• Grade 5, Using Worksheets (PDF)

Each American History Idol Curriculum Unit includes the following:

• An introductory activity that provides an overview of the unit and presents the three finalists for the American History Idol title
  
• Three mini-units in which students read a brief biography, engage in activity to gather and organize important information, and write a persuasive paragraph. Each mini-unit, comprised of three sessions, requires approximately 120-150 minutes of class time
  
• A culminating activity, which allows students to cast their votes and celebrate the new American History Idol

The curriculum unit may span a couple of weeks, or teachers may wish to work on it over a longer period of time and incorporate other related curriculum.

Teachers planning to have their students use Draft:Builder software with the AHI Curriculum Unit should first consult the training guide included in the Draft:Builder version of the curriculum. Training may be completed in one whole-class session of approximately 45-60 minutes, or it may be extended based on student needs, interest, and number of computers available.