Americans and Memorials

Teachers may begin this activity by asking students to recall United States memorials they know of. Create a chart mirroring the graphic organizer students will use later with the model students come up with. Be sure to not use one of the memorials already in the source set. In the mirrored organizer, include the following details on the chart: name of the memorial, where it is located, what year it was created, who it is dedicated to, and why it was dedicated to them. Ask students to come up with one question about the memorial that can be researched later. Students record their questions on a sticky-note and add it to the chart. Display 4 blank charts in the room with just a heading (1 for the Lincoln Memorial, 1 for the Jefferson Memorial, 1 for the Mount Rushmore National Memorial, and 1 for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial).

Next, explain to students that today they will work to answer the question “Why are some Americans given a memorial?” Students focus on popular United States memorials in order to identify historical figures who have impacted our nation. Introduce the source set that students will use for this activity. Review details from each source, on each slide. 

In groups of 4, students will analyze the four sources and complete a Graphic Organizer for each memorial.  Each student in the group completes one graphic organizer. Students may use trade books or other teacher approved websites to research each memorial. Upon completion of the graphic organizers, each member of the group shares their completed graphic organizer with their group. 

As a whole class, students share the questions and answers they came up with from the graphic organizer and add them to the 4 charts. As a class, discuss why some Americans are given a memorial.