Commemorations Across the Disciplines
By Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, August 30, 2006
Grade Level
- High School
Category
- Architecture
Subject Area
- Arts
- Language Arts
- Social Studies
Lesson Time
Introduction
National Standards
Common Core Standards
Anchors for Reading:
Key Ideas and Details:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.1 Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.2 Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.3 Analyze how and why individuals, events, or ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.7 Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.9 Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.
Range of Reading and Level of Text Complexity:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.R.10 Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.
Anchor standards for Speaking and Listening:
Comprehension and Collaboration:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.2 Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.3 Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric.
Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.4 Present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.5 Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to express information and enhance understanding of presentations.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.SL.6 Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and communicative tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
Anchor standards for Language:
Conventions of Standard English:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.L.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
Objectives
- brainstorm ideas
- conduct Internet research
- work in collaborative groups
- collect and analyze information from multiple sources
- participate in small and large group discussion
- evaluate group work
- create a design plan
- create a group presentation
Resources
- "Design a Commemoration" handout
- Internet websites
Materials
- computer with Internet access
Procedures
Building Background The Power of Expression
The purpose of this activity is to provide students with an example of how art is used to express one's emotions and one's reactions to an event. 1. Share with your students the following story, which describes how cellist Vedran Smailovic reacted to the tragedy of the Sarajevo Breadline Massacre in 1992 by playing his violin for twenty-two consecutive days to commemorate his friends and neighbors who were killed.On May 27, 1992, a group of civilians were standing in a breadline waiting for food. Their country was in a state of conflict, and a mortar shell killed twenty-two innocent people who were simply waiting for food. The very next day, Vendran Smailovic, who was a cello player in the Sarajevo Opera Orchestra, went to the crater left by the blast and began to play his instrument. He was surrounded by sniper gunfire as he played. He played for twenty-two consecutive days, one for each person who was killed.
In 1997, a boy living in the United States named Jason Crowe read this story. He decided that Vendran Smailovic was a hero. He said, "I realized all of a sudden that the only reasonable answer to war is harmony."
Jason commissioned a sculptor to create a statue to honor Vendran Smailovic's bravery and spirit. The statue is called the Children's International Peace and Harmony Statue.
This story can be found at: https://myhero.com/myhero/heroprint.asp?hero=vedrans Ask the students to share their responses to the story. You may wish to use the following questions to guide the discussion:- What was Vedran Smailovic trying to commemorate?
- Why do you think Vedran Smailovic decided to do what he did?
- What do you think of what he did?
- Why do you think Jason Crowe reacted in the way that he did?
Steps for Learning Commemorations Across the Disciplines
The purpose of this activity is to help students explore the ways that society commemorates people and events. 1. Divide the class into small groups and tell the students that they are going to conduct Internet research on the ways society commemorates people and events. Have each group investigate the resources listed below. Group One: Events- Peace Crane Project https://peacecraneproject.org
- UN World Environment Day https://www.unep.org/wed/
- The Vietnam Women's Memorial https://www.vietnamwomensmemorial.org/history.php
- Vietnam Veteran's Memorial: The Wall https://thewall-usa.com, https://www.vvmf.org/vietnam-memorial-wall-design
- Museum of Tolerance https://www.museumoftolerance.com/site/c.tmL6KfNVLtH/b.9052747/k.2DD0/HomeMOTNew.htm
- Simon Wiesenthal Center https://www.wiesenthal.com/site/pp.asp?c=lsKWLbPJLnF&b=6212365#.VJS5RBsAA
- The Apartheid Museum https://www.apartheidmuseum.org
- Color Me Egypt https://www.touregypt.net/kids/monuments.htm
- Great Wall of China https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/438
- SPARC: Social & Public Resource Center https://sparcinla.org
Assessment
Enrichment Extension Activities
- Afghanistan: The photograph of Sharbat Gula
- The Vietnam Women's Memorial https://www.vietnamwomensmemorial.org/history.php
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