Download Benjamin Franklin Timeline DDIH

Jill Flynn
DDIH- Spring 2009
(Used With Permission From LessonPlansPage.com)
Lesson Plan Title: Benjamin Franklin: A Man of Many Accomplishments
Concept / Topic To Teach: Students will identify Benjamin Franklin and understand
how his contributions have influenced the history of the United States.
Standards Addressed:
Social Studies Standard 1: History of the United States and New York
Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their understanding of
major ideas, eras, themes, developments, and turning points in the history of the United
States and New York.
General Goal(s): Students will be able to understand the contributions of individuals
from various backgrounds who have influenced the history of the United States.
Specific Objectives: Students will create a timeline about Benjamin Franklin by
exploring a Google map.
Required Materials:
1. Google maps: Benjamin Franklin
2. Index cards
3. Sentence strips
Anticipatory Set (Lead-In):
1. Write the name Benjamin Franklin on chart paper. Ask students what they
know about this person and record their responses.
Step-By-Step Procedures:
1. Teacher will read aloud, What’s the Big Idea, Ben Franklin? by Jean Fritz.
Teacher should stop and discuss important ideas.
2. Teacher will display a Google map about Benjamin Franklin on the Smart
Board and explain that students will work in pairs to explore the Google map
and create a timeline about the life of Benjamin Franklin and his contributions
to the history of the United States.
Plan For Independent Practice:
3. Students will explore the Google map and focus on the following key events:
 Franklin’s success as a printer and author (Poor Richard’s Almanac)
 His success as a public servant (started a fire department and a public
library, reorganized the mail service, raised money to build a hospital,
founded a school which later became a university)
 His role as an inventor and scientist (experiments with electricity, his
invention of the lightning rod)
 His role in politics (diplomat, coauthor of the Declaration of
Independence, revolutionary).
4. On each index card, students will write a paragraph and illustrate different key
events in Benjamin Franklin’s life.
5. Students will place events in order and glue index cards on a sentence strip.
Closure (Reflect Anticipatory Set):
1. Students will share timelines and discuss how Benjamin Franklin has influenced
the history of the United States.
2. Students will add facts to the chart about Benjamin Franklin
Assessment Based On Objectives:
Discussion Questions: Informal Observation
1.
Benjamin Franklin is famous for inventing great things like the lightning
rod and the fire department. How have his inventions improved our
country? What recent inventions have improved your way of life?
2. Benjamin Franklin did so many different jobs during his lifetime. He was
a writer, a politician, and an inventor, among other things. Can you think
of people alive today who do more than one job? Who are they? What
would make it hard to be good at so many different things?
Adaptations (For Students With Learning Disabilities):
Teacher will give students index cards already labeled with key events. Students will add
details about each key event.
Extensions (For Gifted Students):
Students can create a PowerPoint presentation of timeline instead of using index cards.
Possible Connections To Other Subjects: