Lesson Three
Loyalty
Focus: The focus of this lesson is to provide students with
background knowledge of the loyalty oath the Japanese-Americans were asked to
sign and with the 442nd
Regimental Combat Team.
Time to complete: 2 fifty minute class periods
Grade Level: 7
Objectives:
·
Student will demonstrate the ability to make
connections between a text read independently and his or her prior knowledge,
other texts, and the world.
·
Student will demonstrate the ability to summarize,
paraphrase, analyze, and evaluate what he or she reads.
·
Student will demonstrate the ability to identify the
details that support the thesis of a particular text.
·
Student will demonstrate the ability to draw
conclusions and make inferences.
·
Student will demonstrate the ability to use graphic
organizers as information sources and as a means of organizing information and
events logically.
·
Student will demonstrate the ability to use a variety
of resources, including technology to access information.
·
Student will continue using note-taking strategies to
record facts and opinions from sources.
·
Student will demonstrate the ability to generate
drafts that use a logical progression of ideas to develop a topic for a
specific audience and/or purpose.
Lesson Procedure:
After reading chapters 7-11 of Farewell to Manzanar, students will consider the concept of
loyalty. While being held in the internment camps, Japanese-Americans were
asked to sign an oath of loyalty to the United States. Question 27 asked, “Are
you willing to serve in the armed forces of the United States on combat duty,
wherever ordered?” Question 28 asked, “Will you swear unqualified allegiance to
the United States of America and faithfully defend the United States from any
or all attack by foreign or domestic forces, and forswear any form of
allegiance or obedience to the Japanese emperor, or any other foreign
government, power, or organization?”
Have students look up the definition of loyalty (feelings of devoted attachment
and affection) in the dictionary.
Discuss this meaning and how it relates to the text.
Next, direct students to several good websites from
which to gather information about the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
Here are some good choices:
http://www.scu.edu/SCU/Programs/Diversity/442nd.html
http://www.homeofheroes.com/moh/nisei/index3_442nd.html
http://www.asian-nation.org/442.shtml
http://starbulletin.com/1999/10/21/news/story13.html
http://www.marauder.org/nisei02.htm
Students should choose a graphic organizer that best
organizes their information. A good website for this is http://www.graphic.org/goindex.html or http://www.writedesignonline.com/organizers/
Remind students that with the information they gather
and organize, they should be focusing on how the actions of the 442nd
exemplify Japanese-American loyalty to the United States.
Independent Writing Assignment:
Student should imagine he/she is a reporter for an
American newspaper during WWII. The
reporter has been given an assignment to write an article designed to inspire
the American citizens with stories of bravery, loyalty, and ultimate sacrifices
of soldiers for their country. After doing his/her research, the reporter
realizes that the 442nd Regimental Combat Team best illustrates
these characteristics. The editor is hesitant to allow the reporter to write
about the Japanese-Americans. Write a letter to your editor persuading him/her
to let you write your article. Support your arguments with examples from your
research.
Assessment: Writing Rubric