Power Builders: Leaders and Cities: Teacher’s Guide
Grade Level: 9-12
Curriculum Focus: World History
Lesson Duration: One to two class periods
Program Description
Trace the development of the world’s great cities. Students consider the many factors that
influence the rise of cities and civilizations around the world. Segments cover centuries of
European and American history and ingenuity. This program includes one feature segment and
three short segments.
Onscreen Questions
•
What were the benefits and disadvantages of feudalism for western European peasants?
•
How did Peter the Great demonstrate his power by building St. Petersburg?
•
What hardships did American factory workers face in the early 1900s?
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How does New York City reflect the history of the people who built it?
Lesson Plan
Student Objectives
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Discuss why cities are important.
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Plan an imaginary city based on their research.
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Share their plans with the class.
Materials
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Power Builders: Leaders and Cities video and VCR, or DVD and DVD player
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Paper and pencils
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Newsprint and markers
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Computer with Internet access
Power Builders: Leaders and Cities: Teacher’s Guide
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Procedures
1. Begin by asking students to consider why cities are built. Ask: What needs do cities meet for
their residents? Write students’ ideas on the board or a large sheet of newsprint.
2. Show students “The Building of New York City” segment of the program.
3. Revisit the discussion in Step #1, asking students to add to their list of reasons. Students will
likely offer the following reasons from the program:
•
Cities provide homes.
•
Cities are the economic heart of a community, where businesses, entertainment, and
services such as markets, physicians, and retail shops are located.
•
Transportation systems, such as buses, trains, and subways, often originate in cities.
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Police, fire departments, and hospitals are ready for emergencies.
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City governments manage the roads.
•
Water, sewage, and waste disposal are managed by cities.
4. Divide students into groups of two or three, and have them plan imaginary cities. Each group
should draw a map of its city and write a short essay describing how the city meets the needs of
its residents. Students should include the following information about their cities:
•
Number of residents
•
Kinds of homes (apartments, condominiums, single-family homes, townhouses)
•
Locations of businesses
•
Locations of recreational areas
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Locations of city government buildings (city hall, police and fire stations, libraries)
Students may find the following Web sites helpful:
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http://www.ci.la.ca.us/PLN/
•
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/dwnbklyn2/downbklynfull.pdf
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http://www.ruaf.org/no4/9_10.html
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http://www.iwf.de/iwfeng/3medien/33db/333/c1988.html
5. During the next class period, have the groups present their city plans. Students should explain
how the city meets its residents’ needs and how it is organized, highlighting the locations of
homes, businesses, and other services.
6. Conclude by discussing the city plans. Based on this activity, can students draw conclusions
about what makes a city work effectively? Did they become aware of pitfalls that people may
encounter when planning a city?
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Power Builders: Leaders and Cities: Teacher’s Guide
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Assessment
Use the following three-point rubric to evaluate students’ work during this lesson.
•
3 points: Students participated actively in class discussions; worked closely with their group
to develop an effective plan for their city; documented their ideas with evidence from Web
sites and the program.
•
2 points: Students participated in class discussions; worked somewhat closely with their
group to develop an effective plan for their city; documented some of their ideas with
evidence from Web sites and the program.
•
1 point: Students participated minimally in class discussions; did not work well with their
group to develop an effective plan for their city; could not document their ideas with
evidence from Web sites or the program.
Vocabulary
castle
Definition: A large, fortified structure that serves as a fortress against enemies
Context: During the Middle Ages, a lord built a castle to protect himself and his subjects from
enemies.
city
Definition: A concentrated area where people live, work, and gather for pooled services and
protection
Context: In the 19th century, the city of New York underwent tremendous growth, becoming
one of the most highly populated places in the world.
city plan
Definition: A long-term approach to organizing a city as a way of thinking about future growth
in a methodical way
Context: New York’s city plan called for an area of green in the middle of the city; this concept
eventually took shape as Central Park.
Academic Standards
Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL)
McREL’s Content Knowledge: A Compendium of Standards and Benchmarks for K-12 Education
addresses 14 content areas. To view the standards and benchmarks, visit http://www.mcrel.org/.
This lesson plan addresses the following national standards:
•
Language Arts—Viewing: Uses viewing skills and strategies to understand and interpret
visual media; Reading: Uses reading skills and strategies to understand and interpret a
variety of informational texts
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Power Builders: Leaders and Cities: Teacher’s Guide
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The National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)
NCSS has developed national guidelines for teaching social studies. To become a member of NCSS,
or to view the standards online, go to http://www.socialstudies.org
This lesson plan addresses the following thematic standards:
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People, Places, and Environments
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Individuals, Groups, and Institutions
Support Materials
Develop custom worksheets, educational puzzles, online quizzes, and more with the free teaching tools
offered on the Discoveryschool.com Web site. Create and print support materials, or save them to a
Custom Classroom account for future use. To learn more, visit
•
http://school.discovery.com/teachingtools/teachingtools.html
DVD Content
This program is available in an interactive DVD format. The following information and activities are
specific to the DVD version.
How To Use the DVD
The DVD starting screen has the following options:
Play Video—This plays the video from start to finish. There are no programmed stops, except by
using a remote control. With a computer, depending on the particular software player, a pause
button is included with the other video controls.
Video Index—Here the video is divided into four parts (see below), indicated by video thumbnail
icons. Watching all parts in sequence is similar to watching the video from start to finish. Brief
descriptions and total running times are noted for each part. To play a particular segment, press
Enter on the remote for TV playback; on a computer, click once to highlight a thumbnail and read
the accompanying text description and click again to start the video.
Curriculum Units—These are specially edited video segments pulled from different sections of the
video (see below). These nonlinear segments align with key ideas in the unit of instruction. They
include onscreen pre- and post-viewing questions, reproduced below in this Teacher’s Guide. Total
running times for these segments are noted. To play a particular segment, press Enter on the TV
remote or click once on the Curriculum Unit title on a computer.
Standards Link—Selecting this option displays a single screen that lists the national academic
standards the video addresses.
Teacher Resources—This screen gives the technical support number and Web site address.
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.
Power Builders: Leaders and Cities: Teacher’s Guide
Video Index
I. The Rise of Feudalism (5 min.)
A lord and his castle offered the only real means of protection from turmoil during the Middle
Ages. Explore the laws and relationships governing feudal society.
II. Renewing Russia (5 min.)
Learn about the many changes Peter the Great brought about, from building St. Petersburg to
westernizing Russian society.
III. Early Industrial America (6 min.)
Concerned with the plight of American factory workers, Upton Sinclair wrote a story about the
meatpacking industry. See how one book changed a nation.
IV. The Building of New York City (32 min.)
New York City is known for its high energy and high-rise buildings. Watch as this incredible city
transforms from a swampy island to the bustling metropolis it is today.
Curriculum Units
1. Feudal Contracts
Pre-viewing question
Q: What is feudalism?
A: Feudalism was a social system by which nobles were given estates in exchange for the promise
of loyalty and military service to an overlord.
Post-viewing question
Q: How did a noble become a vassal?
A: A noble became a vassal by pledging sworn loyalty to a higher lord or monarch and vowing to
supply the monarch with armed warriors or other services.
2. Monarchs, Lords, and Vassals
Pre-viewing question
Q: What is an example of social order in today’s society?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What was life like for peasants in a feudal society?
A: Peasants were on the lowest rung of the social order. Poor and uneducated, they were
considered part of the land they lived on and not allowed to leave their lord’s fief without
permission.
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Power Builders: Leaders and Cities: Teacher’s Guide
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3. Borrowing from the West
Pre-viewing question
Q: Why did Peter the Great order men to shave their beards?
A: Shaving was a symbolic act, breaking Russia’s ties with the past.
Post-viewing question
Q: What did Peter the Great do for Russia?
A: He built St. Petersburg, reformed the Russian language, increased the size of Russia, opened the
country to greater trade and Western ideas, and made sure Russia had a place among the great
powers of Europe.
4. Life in the Factories
Pre-viewing question
Q: How are modern factories different from factories in the early 1900s?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What problems did early factory workers face?
A: They had few rights. Wages were low, hours were long, and workers often worked in unsanitary
or hazardous conditions.
5. The Jungle
Pre-viewing question
Q: What works of literature have helped bring about societal changes?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: How did Sinclair’s The Jungle help change the meat industry?
A: Americans, outraged by the horrors they learned about from The Jungle, urged Congress to pass
the first meat inspection act. More laws followed, and inspectors were put in every meat plant.
6. New Amsterdam to New York
Pre-viewing question
Q: How has the heritage of your hometown been preserved?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: Where did Wall Street get its name?
A: Its location; it’s where an old defensive wall was built to protect New Amsterdam in the late
1600s.
7. Planning a City
Pre-viewing question
Q: What is the physical layout of your hometown?
A: Answers will vary.
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Power Builders: Leaders and Cities: Teacher’s Guide
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Post-viewing question
Q: Do you think New York’s grid should have been drawn differently?
A: Answers will vary.
8. Farm Maps and Parks
Pre-viewing question
Q: What comes to mind when you think of the landscape of New York?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: How does the landscape of modern New York differ from its landscape 200 years ago?
A: Where New York’s buildings and streets are today, there were once wetlands, streams, and
inlets. Central Park was originally a scrubby, marshy area; it was transformed into a “wild” park to
compensate for the lack of adequate public park space in the city’s grid system.
9. Central Park’s Swampy Nature
Pre-viewing question
Q: What are some manmade “natural” features in your hometown?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What would New York City be like without Central Park?
A: Answers will vary.
10. The Brooklyn Bridge
Pre-viewing question
Q: Why was the Brooklyn Bridge built?
A: By the 1870s, ferry companies could not handle the large number of people commuting daily
across the East River from Brooklyn to Manhattan. The bridge offered another option.
Post-viewing question
Q: Do you think the sacrifices made to build the Brooklyn Bridge were worth it?
A: Answers will vary.
11. Bright Lights, Big Buildings
Pre-viewing question
Q: What would life in a big city be like without electricity?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: Why are skyscrapers not built with bricks?
A: A brick building needs to be able to carry its own weight. For a really tall building to be built of
brick, its walls would have to be impossibly thick.
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Power Builders: Leaders and Cities: Teacher’s Guide
12. Racing for the Sky
Pre-viewing question
Q: Why is the Empire State Building so famous?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What do you think should have replaced the World Trade Center in the New York skyline?
A: Answers will vary.
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