Unit of Study
Ballad – The Ballad of Davy Crockett
Materials Needed:
· CD – The Ballad of Davy Crockett (Johnny Horton)
· Lyrics to the ballad
· Supplemental text from The History Channel’s website to accompany its program Live from Austin: The Story of Davy Crockett.
o http://www.historychannel.com/classroom/davycrockett/index.html
· Supplemental text from http://www.paulbunyantrail.com/talltale.html and http://www.americanfolklore.net/folktales/wv2.html
· Supplemental text about Indian Resettlement Act of 1830, your choice. Print-friendly documents used here: www.classbrain.com/artteenst/publish/printer_52.shtml and www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2082/is_1_63/ai68952034/print
· Thick Paper (cardstock or light cardboard)
· Pen or pencil for each student
· Tri-Fold Board
· Markers, colored pencils, or crayons
· Scissors
· Ruler
· Popsicle sticks or similar objects (to be used as handles for puppets)
· Tape
PA Content Standards:
1.1.5
A. Establish the purpose for reading a type of text before reading
C. Use knowledge of phonics, syllabication, prefixes, suffixes, the dictinoary or context clues to decode and understand new words during reading. Use these words accurately in writing and speaking.
D. Identify the basic ideas and facts in text using strategies and information from other sources tomake predictions about text.
E. Acquire a reading vocabulary by correctly identifying and using words.
1.4.5
A. Write poems, plays and multi-paragraph stories.
1.5.5
C. Write with controlled and/or subtle organization.
1.6.5
A. Contribute to discussions.
E. Participate in small and large group discussions and presentations.
F. Use media for learning purposes.
1.8.5
A. Select and refine a topic for research.
B. Locate information using appropriate sources and strategies.
C. Organize and present the main ideas from research.
8.1.6
A. Understand chronological thinking and distinguish between past, present, and future time.
D. Describe and explain historical research.
9.1.5
C. Know and use fundamental vocabulary within each of the art forms.
E. Know and demonstrate how arts can communicate experiences, stories or emotinos through the production of works in the arts.
G. Identify the function and benefits of rehearsal and practice sessions.
H. Use and maintain materials, equipment and tools safely at work and performance spaces.
K. Apply traditional & contemporary technology in furthering knowledge and understanding in the humanities.
Methods of Assessment:
· Teacher Observation
· Play Presentation graded by rubric
· Research
Lesson One: The Song
Procedure
1. Explore the Music
a. Students will listen to the Ballad of Davy Crockett, keeping ears open for grammatical errors/colloquialisms and apparent falsehoods.
i. What falshehoods did you hear? What weird words or wrong words did you hear?
b. Students will listen to The Ballad of Davy Crockett while tapping the beat. It is a simple 2/4 beat.
i. What about this song will make it easy to sing? –It is a story that follows a logical story procession and has few verses. The song features a simple beat and only vocals and guitar. The guitar keeps the beat, so the students can listen to the guitar while learning the beat.
c. Students will perform simple dance to the tune.
i. During verse: alternate to the beat between knees bent, shoulders down and legs straight, shoulders up.
ii. During chorus: Legs straight, swing arms left and right while turning in a circle.
Lesson Two: Tall Tales (Language Arts)
Procedure:
1. Part One: Truth and exaggeration
a. Students will learn the meaning of the word “exaggeration.”
b. Students will point out the things in the story which sound like exaggerations.
i. Raised in the woods so he knew “every tree.”
ii. Fought single-handed through the injun war
iii.
Took over
iv. Patched up the crack in the liberty bell
c. Explore truths in each verse of the song.
i. Students will break into four groups and read from the Live From Austin website material to research the true story of Davy Crockett.
ii. Students will write out the facts about each of the two stanzas in their verse.
2. Part Two: Connection to Tall Tales
a. Students will read the stories of Paul Bunyan and John Henry. What parts are obvious exaggerations? How are these tall tales similar to the Davy Crockett song?
b. What times did these stories take place?
c. What elements are similar in all tall tales?
d. Do the characters in tall tales have to be fictional or can they be based on real people?
Lesson Three: Social Studies
a. Explore historical relationship between Native Americans and European Americans.
b. Explore Indian Resettlement Act of 1830. Andrew Jackson, Crockett, Trail of Tears.
c. Define and explore “the frontier.”
d. Use of the words, “injun,” “Indian,” “Native American.” Why has it changed?
e. Explore
representation to
f. Read from supplemental text about Davy Crockett’s life.
a. Connect Crockett’s role in the Indian wars of the early 19th century.
b. Connect Crockett to Andrew Jackson Presidency and his senatorial years.
c. Explore
Crockett’s departure to
1) Divide into groups again.
2) Each group will do a puppet show based on their verse and the supplemental info from their research. Elements of a play should be on the tri-fold board and covered by the instructor in class briefly.
a) Build Puppets (put instructions on tri-fold board)
b) Write script, including music/sound effects, dialog, story.
c) Perform puppet show (5 minutes)
For the purposes of the in-class demonstration, the story will be pre-written and the characters decided. “Students” will make the puppets using materials provided and perform the short puppet show.
LEARNING CENTER CONTENTS
What follows are the instructions on making a play in print format, ready to be applied to a tri-fold board. The board is to be used as the stage for the puppets.
You’re going to make a play,
using puppets, about Davy Crockett’s life.
It should be based on the
stanza of the song that you researched in Language Arts.
What’s in a play?
A play has a setting: where and when it takes place.
A play has a plot: a brief description of what
happens.
A play has a story. A story has a beginning, a
middle, and an end.
·
In the beginning,
introduce your characters and make sure we know where the story is taking place
(the setting).
·
In the middle,
the characters speak to each other (dialog), and have adventures.
·
In the end, their
adventures get wrapped up.
A play has characters. (You’ll be making puppets
for your characters. Make sure there’s one character for everyone in your
group.)
A play has dialog; characters speaking to each
other.
A play has sound effects and sometimes music and singing.
A play has blocking, or where the characters are
on the stage and how they move.
A play has a set, which is all of the things (like
backgrounds and props) you need on stage to make it look like your setting.
Your play will also have puppets representing the characters. In
a play on a stage, people will play the characters, and they would need wardrobe (the clothes they wear) and makeup (to make them look like the
characters they are playing.)
Your play will be somewhere
between three and five minutes long.
Here’s how your group will create your own puppet play!
1.
Decide what your play is about. Your play must be about the stanza of the song that
you researched in Language Arts. So if you have the first stanza, you could do
a play about what Davy Crockett might have been like as a kid, or when Davy
Crockett met his wife, or you can even do a play about how he “killed a b’ar
when he was only three.” Your story can be historical (based entirely on facts)
or fictional, like a tall tale (based on Davy Crockett’s life, but doing things
he didn’t actually do).
2.
Decide on the setting – the time and place of the story. You might need to
go back to your research to refresh your memory.
3.
Decide how the story goes. Remember that a story has a beginning, middle, and
end?
4.
Decide what characters you’ll need.
5.
Write dialog for the characters. If you need to, one of your characters can be the
Narrator, but it’s best if you can tell the story entirely with the characters
whose puppets you see! Make sure everyone in your group gets to speak the lines
for a character.
6.
Turn your dialog into a script by adding blocking notes and music and sound notes.
Anything that you need to do when you do the puppet show should be written down
in the script; when characters come on stage, when they leave, how and where
they move, when to make sounds – everything!
7.
You won’t need to
make a set, but you will need to make puppets
for each character. Look below for instructions on making your puppet.
8.
Rehearse the
play with your group.
9.
Perform your
play for the class.
You will be graded on each of these
things:
1. If there is a puppet for each member of your group.
2. How creatively and carefully the puppets were made.
3. If everyone in your group gets to do a voice.
4. If your play is three to five minutes long. If it’s
too long or too short, you won’t get full credit.
5. Whether you based your play on what we learned in
Language Arts about the legend of Davy Crockett.
6. Whether your play introduces us to the characters (so
that the audience knows who they are).
7. Whether your play tells us where and when it takes
place.
It’s a good rule to tell the
audience things like the setting and characters inside the dialog instead of
using a narrator; it makes the play come to life!
Example:
Davy
Crockett is talking to Andrew Jackson.
Davy:
“Mr. Jackson, since we came to
Andrew
Jackson: “Mr. Crockett, I’m the President and you’re just a Senator. You may
have been a war hero long ago, but you’re in
These
two lines of dialog tell us when and where this scene is taking place; the
setting.
How do I make a puppet?
1.Get
a piece of cardstock.
2.Draw
an outline of your character, like the example to the right. An average puppet
should be about 5 inches tall.
3.Color
your character.
4.Use
scissors to cut out the character.
5.Draw
a face and clothes on the character.
6.Tape
a popsicle stick to the character to use as a handle. Voila! You have a puppet!
ELU 366 Notes:
You will be doing an
abbreviated version of this lesson plan. All you will have to do is make a
puppet (follow the directions for “how to make a puppet) and perform the puppet
show. Feel free to customize it with your group, but please do not make notes
on the script; it’s the only copy and the next group will need to use it as
well.
The puppet is yours to keep:
think of all the things you can do with a tiny Andrew Jackson puppet!
If there is any element of
the presentation or the play that you would like to refer to later, I haven’t
brought extra copies, but I have posted it at the following location:
http://www.beyerweckerle.com/davycrockett.html
A handout with that web
address has been provided at this station; take one if you want it.
PLAY: Davy Crockett in Congress
This example is written out to follow the yellow sheet about how to write a play. It illustrates how students would go through the process and should be given out as an example.
What’s the play about?
Davy Crockett was the only person in Congress to vote against the Indian Resettlement Act of 1830. This play is about him arguing with everyone about what he thinks is right.
What’s the setting: 1830, Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Jackson has delivered his speech to the nation about Indian Removal and is gathering support for the Indian Resettlement Act.
How does the story go?
Davy Crockett is in Congress, talking with Andrew Jackson and senator John Forsyth. He argues why it’s wrong with them, they laugh at him and tell him he’s the only one who’ll vote that way. Crockett leaves, telling them they’ll feel bad about it later and leaves. As he leaves he sees a Cherokee Indian, who tells him thank you for speaking out for his people.
What characters do we need?
1. Andrew Jackson
2. John Forsyth
3. Davy Crockett
4. John Arch, A Cherokee Indian from Tennesse.
Dialog and script (dialog was written first, then other notes added in next step)
Andrew Jackson and
John Forsyth are standing in Congress on the right side of the stage.
ANDREW JACKSON
Well, Senator Forsyth, it looks like it’s unanimous. Everyone in Congress thinks the Indian Resettlement Act is going to become law! 1830 will always be known as the year President Andrew Jackson moved the Indians.
JOHN FORSYTH
That’s good news, President Jackson. My people back in
Davy Crockett comes in
on the left side of the stage.
DAVY CROCKETT
You hold it right there, Mr. President. It’s not unanimous. I won’t vote for your bill.
Andrew Jackson moves a
little closer to Davy Crockett.
ANDREW JACKSON
What? Mr. Crockett, you’re a fool. Your people in
DAVY CROCKETT
Well, did anyone ask the Indians? It’s their land, Mr. President, and we have a treaty with them. We don’t have the right to tell them to move, and they don’t want to move.
JOHN FORSYTH
The Indians? Davy, they’re not even farming there! It’s our job to make the most of all of the land here, and they’re not doing it! We have a responsibility to make that land useful!
DAVY CROCKETT
It’s plenty useful for them, John. They hunt for food and
they let their animals graze. Just because they don’t tear all the trees down
and plant corn or cotton doesn’t mean they should have to move to
ANDREW JACKSON
Davy, what happened to the guy who fought so bravely in the Creek Indian Wars?
DAVY CROCKETT
The times are different now. They were attacking us when that war started. This time they’re not bothering anyone. It’s not right, taking their land.
Andrew Jackson starts
hopping up and down angrily.
ANDREW JACKSON
I can’t believe what I’m hearing. Didn’t Indians kill your parents?
DAVY CROCKETT
Not those Indians, Mr. President.
John Forsyth gets in
Davy’s face, and Andrew Jackson moves back behind him.
JOHN FORSYTH
Now you listen up and listen good, Davy Crockett. We need that land. We’ve got a lot of people in Georgia who need some place to farm. They’re going to starve if we don’t take it. It’s what’s good for the country! That’s what our people want and that’s what’s going to happen!
DAVY CROCKETT
Maybe so, but I know what’s right and I know what’s wrong, and this is wrong, Mr. President. I don’t care if everyone in the country disagrees with me, that Indian land belongs to them and we shouldn’t take it away from them! You’re a couple of greedy fools and I’m not going to support you!
ANDREW JACKSON
Get out of here, Davy Crockett!
Crockett leaves. Sound
of a slamming door.
ANDREW JACKSON
Davy’s a good man, but sometimes he gets too caught up in doing the right thing. Who cares anyway, we have enough votes.
Jackson and Forsyth
leave.
Change scene to the
steps of the Capitol building (no sets, so nothing really happens). A Cherokee
Indian is standing alone. Davy Crockett enters from the left.
JOHN ARCH
Davy Crockett!
DAVY CROCKETT
Well, if it ain’t John Arch! What are you doing so far from
JOHN ARCH
I heard they were going to move our people west. I wanted to talk to Congress about it.
Davy Crockett looks
down like he’s sad.
DAVY CROCKETT
I’m sorry to tell you that you’re right. And it looks like I’m the only one who’s going to vote against it.
JOHN ARCH
You’re voting against it? Why would you do that?
DAVY CROCKETT
It’s not right, John. Your Cherokee people had that land long before we came here and we signed a treaty saying it. It’s yours. Maybe I’m the only American Citizen to think so, but that’s the way I feel.
JOHN ARCH
Greed makes people do bad things. I think a lot of them think it’s wrong, too, but they’re too greedy to vote that way. Thanks anyway, for being a voice for my people. Even if you’re the only person to say so now, maybe in the future people will start to see things your way.
DAVY CROCKETT
Thank you, John. I hope you’re right.
The End!
Now make your puppets and perform the play!