Goals & Objectives
Students will learn about the Tiananmen Square Massacre through primary sources. Students will investigate the reasons for the protest, the extent and justification for citizen suppression, and reactions to the massacre itself.
· Students will describe the events in Tiananmen Square, exploring the reasons for the protest and the CCP’s response.
· Students will analyze reactions to the massacre, as well as the social, political, and economic connections between the parties involved.
· Students will describe the events in Tiananmen Square, exploring the reasons for the protest and the CCP’s response.
· Students will analyze reactions to the massacre, as well as the social, political, and economic connections between the parties involved.
California State Content Standards
10.9.4: Analyze the Chinese Civil War, the rise of Mao Tse-tung, and the subsequent political and economic upheavals in China (e.g., the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, and the Tiananmen Square uprising).
10.10.2: Describe the recent history of the regions, including political divisions and systems, key leaders, religious issues, natural features, resources, and population patterns.
10.10.3: Discuss important trends in the regions today and whether they appear to serve the cause of individual freedom and democracy.
10.10.2: Describe the recent history of the regions, including political divisions and systems, key leaders, religious issues, natural features, resources, and population patterns.
10.10.3: Discuss important trends in the regions today and whether they appear to serve the cause of individual freedom and democracy.
Common Core Literacy Standards
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.6 Compare the point of view of two or more authors for how they treat the same or similar topics, including which details they include and emphasize in their respective accounts.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.9-10.6 Compare the point of view of two or more authors for how they treat the same or similar topics, including which details they include and emphasize in their respective accounts.
Driving Historical Question
Why do we fight for democracy? What were the reasons for the Tiananmen Square protests, and what were its consequences?
Lesson Introduction (Accessing Prior Knowledge)
The teacher will review unit material, including Mao Tse-tung’s and Deng Xiaoping’s economic and social policies. The teacher will then initiate a short T-P-S to have students discuss what issues under Mao or Deng’s China they would protest, why they would protest them, and how they might go about demonstrating their opinions. The class will reconvene with a class discussion for students to share their thoughts more publicly.
Vocabulary (Content Language Development)
Vocabulary will be introduced before the lesson begins, and will be used throughout the lesson to develop context.
· Primary Source
· Secondary Source
· Sanctions
· Suppression
· Primary Source
· Secondary Source
· Sanctions
· Suppression
Content Delivery (Inquiry)
Content will be delivered through primary sources pertaining to the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre. The teacher will model how to Source, Close Read, Contextualize, and Corroborate the first paragraph of the first primary source. The teacher will the model how to graphically organize the main ideas by citing the text specifically, not just paraphrasing.
Students will then be tasked to analyze each of the primary sources while being guided by the question, “What happened in Tiananmen Square, and what were the consequences?”
Students will then be tasked to analyze each of the primary sources while being guided by the question, “What happened in Tiananmen Square, and what were the consequences?”
Student Engagement (Critical Thinking & Student Activities)
Students will analyze several primary sources in small groups:
1. The May 13th Hunger Strike Declaration
2. Interview with Chai Ling
3. Clips from Tiananmen Square Massacre from The 20th Century
4. Clips from Tiananmen Square Protests documentary (Chinese)
5. Bush resisting pressure for sanctions against China (Eugene Register-Guard: The Baltimore Sun, pg. 3)
Video clips will be discussed after time has been given for the first 2 primary sources. Students will analyze the documents by using SCCC and by mapping the main ideas for each source on a mind map. Main ideas can only be used with specific text or video citations.
After information has been compiled, students will be tasked with making connections between the sources that involve sociopolitics and economics. Connections must be supported with appropriate evidence.
1. The May 13th Hunger Strike Declaration
2. Interview with Chai Ling
3. Clips from Tiananmen Square Massacre from The 20th Century
4. Clips from Tiananmen Square Protests documentary (Chinese)
5. Bush resisting pressure for sanctions against China (Eugene Register-Guard: The Baltimore Sun, pg. 3)
Video clips will be discussed after time has been given for the first 2 primary sources. Students will analyze the documents by using SCCC and by mapping the main ideas for each source on a mind map. Main ideas can only be used with specific text or video citations.
After information has been compiled, students will be tasked with making connections between the sources that involve sociopolitics and economics. Connections must be supported with appropriate evidence.
Lesson Closure
Students will discuss (T-P-S) their findings and also discuss the effectiveness that each party (the protestors, the Chinese government, other democratic nations) took surrounding the massacre.
Assessments (Formative)
Formative – Student discussions will be monitored to check for understanding of the documents. The making connections portion of the analysis will be checked to assess whether analysis of the documents was applied effectively and appropriately.
Accommodations for English Learners, Striving Readers and Students with Special Needs
Tiananmen Square video, vocabulary building, and cooperative learning. Small groups facilitate communication and comprehension for ELL and special needs students. Mindmaps allow visual organization of information for better comprehension and recall.