Forced to Flee: Famine and Plague: Teacher’s Guide
Grade Level: 6-8
Curriculum Focus: World History
Lesson Duration: Three class periods
Program Description
Throughout history, natural disasters have been a force of change in many civilizations. While
devastating to millions of people, these disasters led to developments that benefited future
generations. This program includes one feature segment and three short segments.
Onscreen Questions
•
What are some ways that famine can affect a community?
•
How does a disaster affect people’s movement from one place to another?
•
How do diseases spread?
•
How has medical treatment of diseases changed over time?
Lesson Plan
Student Objectives
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Review important facts about the Irish Potato Famine.
•
Explore primary resources related to the famine.
•
Create a classroom mural about the experience of the famine.
Materials
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Forced to Flee: Famine and Plague video and VCR, or DVD and DVD player
•
Computer with Internet access
•
Print and online resources
•
Color printer
•
Scissors
•
Paper, pencils, markers
Forced to Flee: Famine and Plague: Teacher’s Guide
2
Procedures
1. After watching the program, review facts about the Irish Potato Famine. Ask students: Where
did it occur? (Ireland) When did it occur? (1845-1850) What happened to the potato crops? (A
fungus from Mexico infected them.) Why was this so devastating? (Potatoes were Ireland’s
main crop and food source.) How did most landlords respond to tenants who couldn’t pay their
rent? (They evicted tenants from their homes, which were often torn down.) What happened to
the people? (More than a million died; some were sent to crowded, disease-ridden workhouses;
more than a million emigrated to America in dirty, overcrowded coffin ships.) For more
information, the following site provides a brief overview.
•
The Irish Potato Famine
http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/historyonline/irish_potato_famine.cfm
2. Ask students to describe how they think the Irish felt during the famine. (Answers may include
angry, helpless, sad, hungry, tired, and hopeless.)
3. Tell students that they will explore primary sources that describe life in Ireland during the
famine. These sources include personal accounts, newspaper articles, photographs, drawings,
songs, and poems. Working with partners, students will select at least three sources from which
to create a collage. If they highlight a newspaper article, personal account, or long poem, have
them select one descriptive or powerful excerpt. Students should then print or copy the items
and create a collage to present to the class.
4. Allow students to use print and online resources in their research. The following Web sites
provide a wealth of images and text.
•
Interpreting the Irish Famine (see Photographs and Drawings)
http:/www.people.virginia.edu/~eas5e/Irish/Famine.html
•
Views of the Famine (see “Master Picture List”)
http://departments.vassar.edu/~sttaylor/FAMINE/index.html
•
Journey of an Irish Coffin Ship (personal account)
http://www.people.virginia.edu/~eas5e/Irish/RWhyte.html
•
Immigrants and Exiles: Irish in Ireland (newspaper article, personal account, cartoon,
songs, pictures, official documents)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/education/int/hist/immigrants/irish_in_ireland/index_irish_ireland.shtml
•
Famine Poetry
http://www.nde.state.ne.us/SS/irish/unit_7.html
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Irish Famine: “The Horror” (see Activity 3: Famine Scenes for personal quotes)
http://www.nde.state.ne.us/SS/irish/unit_4.html
•
Songs About Famine
http://history.wisc.edu/archdeacon/famine/songs.html
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Forced to Flee: Famine and Plague: Teacher’s Guide
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5. Give students one class period to research and collect their sources about the famine. Then,
have them create a small collage on a plain white piece of paper, clearly labeling each item.
6. In their presentations, students should explain what each item reveals about the famine
experience. Pin each collage on a classroom bulletin board to create a mural. As a class, discuss
what students have learned. What were some of the most powerful images or words? Which
personal stories, images, or documents do they think they’ll remember?
Assessment
Use the following three-point rubric to evaluate students’ work during this lesson.
•
3 points: Students showed a strong understanding of the Irish Potato Famine; gathered at
least five appropriate sources for their collage; developed a creative and comprehensive
collage; clearly presented their collage to the class; participated actively in class discussions.
•
2 points: Students showed a satisfactory understanding of the Irish Potato Famine; gathered
four or five appropriate sources for their collage; developed a competent collage; presented
their collage to the class with adequate explanation; participated somewhat in class
discussions.
•
1 point: Students showed a satisfactory understanding of the Irish Potato Famine; gathered
three or fewer appropriate sources for their collage; developed an unsatisfactory collage;
presented no explanations about the collage; did not participate in class discussions.
Vocabulary
blight
Definition: A plant disease, caused by bacteria, fungi, or viruses, that destroys the plant
Context: A fungus that had been brought to Ireland from Mexico caused the potato blight in
1845.
famine
Definition: An acute shortage of food leading to widespread hunger and starvation
Context: Almost one million people died during the Irish Potato Famine.
landlord
Definition: Someone who owns property that is rented to tenants
Context: Many landlords evicted Irish farmers who could not pay their rent.
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/.
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Forced to Flee: Famine and Plague: Teacher’s Guide
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This lesson plan addresses the following national standards:
•
Geography— Human Systems: Understands the patterns and networks of economic
interdependence on Earth’s surface, Understands the forces of cooperation and conflict that
shape the divisions of Earth’s surface
•
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
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:
•
People, Places, and Environments
•
Production, Distribution, and Consumption
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.
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.
Forced to Flee: Famine and Plague: Teacher’s Guide
5
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.
Video Index
I. The Potato Famine Begins (10 min.)
The Irish were already fighting for their lives when the great potato famine hit. Explore the potato
blight’s beginnings, and learn about life in Ireland before independence.
II. Ending the Great Silence (16 min.)
One of the darkest periods in Irish history, the potato famine provoked a mass emigration to
America. See a descendant of Irish immigrants trace his roots.
III. The Black Death (29 min.)
First spotted in China, the Black Death swept across Western Europe in the mid-1300s, killing onethird of the population. Discover this deadly epidemic’s causes and consequences.
IV. Studying the Plague (5 min.)
Many scientists believe the bubonic plague is still a threat. Watch as scientists and archeologists
study clues from the past to help protect our future.
Curriculum Units
1. Irish Ancestors
Pre-viewing question
Q: When did your family immigrate to the United States?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What relics have been found in and around your town?
A: Answers will vary.
2. A Manmade Crop
Pre-viewing question
Q: Why is it dangerous for a farm to rely too much on one crop?
A: Answers will vary.
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Forced to Flee: Famine and Plague: Teacher’s Guide
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Post-viewing question
Q: Before the potato famine, why did some Irish leave for America?
A: Like most emigrants throughout the ages, the people who left Ireland before the potato famine
were seeking a better life. The Irish were controlled by the British crown and had to pay heavy
taxes. There was little opportunity in Ireland. America held the promise of opportunity, riches, and
advancement.
3. Black 47
Pre-viewing question
Q: What do you think it is like to live through a famine?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What fatal mistake did many farmers make at the beginning of the blight?
A: When the blight first hit Ireland, farmers tried to save as many potatoes as they could. This
simple action proved a fatal mistake. Too many spotted potatoes were mixed up with the good
potatoes, smiting them and causing most of the potatoes to go bad.
4. Labor for Rations
Pre-viewing question
Q: If you were starving, what would you be willing to exchange for food?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What were some of the problems with the workhouses?
A: Cramped and infested with rats and lice, workhouses were perfect breeding grounds for disease.
Also, to go to a workhouse, you had to surrender your holdings and land.
5. Evicting the Irish
Pre-viewing question
Q: Do blights and famines still occur in modern times?
A: Yes. We’ve seen drought-induced famine in Ethiopia and across many African countries. A
recent grape blight affected U.S. growers and wine producers, mainly in California.
Post-viewing question
Q: If you were alive during the potato famine, would you have stayed in Ireland or emigrated?
A: Answers will vary.
6. Irish Immigration
Pre-viewing question
Q: Should the United States ever close its borders to immigrants?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: How does your family remember its ancestors?
A: Answers will vary.
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Forced to Flee: Famine and Plague: Teacher’s Guide
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7. Early Biological Warfare
Pre-viewing question
Q: In our daily lives, how do we protect against illness?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: How did the Black Death first spread?
A: In the 1330s, Chinese traders on the Silk Road unknowingly spread the plague throughout China
and the Middle East. When the Mongols began to suffer from the plague during a battle with Italian
crusaders in the Middle East, they flung the infected bodies across the battle lines in an effort to
destroy their enemies. This act increased the rate of infection among themselves, as well.
8. Spreading the Plague
Pre-viewing question
Q: What would you do if the Black Death was spotted in your area?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: How was the plague carried to Europe?
A: During a lull in battle, a group of Italian soldiers escaped and sailed back to Europe. Some of
them already had the plague; others got it from infected rats (via fleas) that were also on the boat.
This group of soldiers first brought the plague to European shores. Soon, other ships from plagueinfested areas spread the plague to Mediterranean ports.
9. The Price of Business
Pre-viewing question
Q: How do social conditions affect a population’s health?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What could have been done in Western Europe to control the Black Death’s spread?
A: Answers will vary.
10. Plague in England
Pre-viewing question
Q: How would you act around plague survivors who might be infected?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: How did England’s winter climate help the Black Death spread?
A: Cold temperatures and wet conditions drove people and rats indoors, essentially creating a
Black Death mega-bomb. By spring, tens of thousands of people were dead or infected.
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Forced to Flee: Famine and Plague: Teacher’s Guide
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11. Burying London’s Dead
Pre-viewing question
Q: Would you be scared to uncover a Black Death cemetery?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: Why did the Black Death spread so rapidly through London?
A: London was a city of crowded beds and open sewers. Its high population density and unsanitary
conditions were a perfect setting for rats and the spreading of disease.
12. An Epidemic Ends
Pre-viewing question
Q: Is the bubonic plague still a threat today?
A: Yes. Scientists and archeologists believe that the plague has not died off, but that it is just
stagnant. Most recently, the plague surfaced in India in 1994.
Post-viewing question
Q: What were some positive results from the Black Death epidemic?
A: When the plague ended, there was an abundance of work and a shortage of workers, so wages
were increased. Some people inherited riches from family members who’d died from the plague.
Many peasants were now able to buy their own land. Plague survivors also began questioning the
church’s power, and the seeds of a scientific revolution were sown.
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.