Remember
September 11 
Middle School (6-8)
Lesson Plans
NEA
Guidance for Teachers and Education Support Professionals
Lesson
Plans and materials are divided into five sections.
Click on the link below to go directly to to the
desired section or scroll down through the entire
list.
Facing
Personal Feelings
Facts
About Terrorism and War
Do
Something!
In
Addition..
Suggested
Reading and Music Lists
Facing
Personal Feelings
To
obtain the desired Lesson Plan, click on the title.
(*
indicates a Lesson Plan that is located on another
site such as the American Red Cross. You may be
asked for your name, email address and other information
to obtain access to these plans. All materials
listed are available for free.)
Kindness
Towers Here (n50)
To
reinforce the concepts that each of us has an
impact upon one another and that each of us can
make a difference….To remind all members of
the learning community that each person has a
story to share…To practice all components of
the writing process.
Using
Poetry to Commemorate September 11 (n46)
This
lesson is designed to use poetry as a vehicle
for discussing and recording student reactions
to the events of September 11. As part of
this lesson students will read and respond to
poetry written by students following 9/11 and
discuss their own reactions both at the time of
the tragedy and one year later. Students
will also write and revise their own poems, using
peer conferencing and response techniques.
Facing
Personal Feelings (rm01)
To
help students understand their personal feelings
following a tragic event and to see that a wide
range of feelings is normal.
Stress
and Relating to Others (rm02)
*
To
help students understand others’ reactions to
a tragic event, express ways to support each other
and deal with their own feelings.
APA
& Discovery Health Forum: Alliance to Renew
American’s Sense of Hope (n10)
To
provide teaches, students, parents and all other
Americans with the tools needed to regain a new
sense of hope via a co-produced one-hour documentary
“Aftermath: The Road to Resilience”
and accompanying information kits.
Smithsonian
Commemorates American Experiences on Sept. 11
(n11)
To
permanently archive everyone’s experience on September
11 in the September 11 Digital Archive, available
online on the anniversary of the tragedy in conjunction
with the exhibit, September 11: Bearing Witness
to History.
Media
Literacy (rm03) *
To
help students process what they saw on television,
heard on the radio, or read in the newspapers
or other media sources about the tragic event.
Also to give students an opportunity to talk with
one another about what happened and how they are
feeling.
Have
We Felt This Way Before? Reacting to Tragic Events
(rm04) *
To
have students compare reactions to tragic events
in the past with reactions to this event and to
help students understand that feelings of uncertainty
and sadness will gradually subside.
One
Year Later: Remembering Sept. 11
(n20)
To
make sure that students and staff understand the
anniversary effect, its corresponding reactions,
and that they prepare for it and memorialize it.
Remembering
Sept. 11: Tips for Students (n21)
To
provide a list of ways in which students can protect
themselves from emotional distress around the
anniversary of September 11.
Tolerance
in Times of Trial (n26)
To
explore the problems inherent in assigning blame
to populations or nations of people by looking
at contemporary examples of ethnic conflict, discrimination,
and stereotyping at home and abroad.
Everybody
Needs a Hero (n28)
Provide
opportunities for students to discuss the concept
of a hero in light of the events of September
11. Students will be able to reflect on questions
raised by this exercise in future study of literature
and history.
Circle
of Feelings (n29)
Give
students the opportunity to discuss and have validated
their feelings about the events of september 11
in a non-judgmental discussion circle.
Memorial
to 9/11 (n33)
Give
students the opportunity to express creatively
their feelings toward the events of 9/11.
A
Just World (n34)
The
events of September 11 have certainly caused many
people to reassess the way they live their lives.
Some things that seem important in the past don’t
seem as important today. This activity asks students
to examine some important historical documents
to see the common approaches to the type of society
envisioned. Students will understand the values
that define the American sense of justice and
consider what characteristics would be important
in a world that operated just and fair.
Power
Play (n41)
Elicit
discussion on use and effects of power and compassion
on a personal and social scale as well as an international
scale.
Remember
to Laugh (n42)
Identify
humor as means of social criticism and healing.
Kindness
Towers Here (n44)
To
reinforce the concepts that each of us has an
impact upon one another and that each of us can
make a difference. To remind all members of the
learning community that each person has a story
to share. To practice all components of the writing
process.
Facts
About War and Terrorism
To
obtain the desired Lesson Plan, click on the title.
(*
indicates a Lesson Plan that is located on another
site such as the American Red Cross. You may be
asked for your name, email address and other information
to obtain access to these plans. All materials
listed are available for free.)
Communicating
the Facts (rm05) *
To
identify and communicate students’ perceptions
of an act of terrorism or tragic event. To reach
to correct misconceptions. To determine what further
information is needed to form rational opinions
about the event.
Be
Media Savvy (rm06) *
To
compare and evaluate news stories based on point
of view, the use of fact, opinion, and bias.
Impact
of the Facts (rm07) *
To
identify the impact of terrorism and tragic events
on the family, community, nation, and the world.
Facts
About Terrorism and War (rm08)
To
recognize that people help people during all types
of emergencies.
The
Day the World Changed (n31)
Students
will learn different types of articles that comprise
a newspaper and write examples based on the events
of September 11.
Do Something!
To
obtain the desired Lesson Plan, click on the title.
(*
indicates a Lesson Plan that is located on another
site such as the American Red Cross. You may be
asked for your name, email address and other information
to obtain access to these plans. All materials
listed are available for free.)
Let
It Begin With One (n05)
To
use math in understanding the scope of the Sept.
11th tragedy and how the world could be a better
place if ONE person does a good thing for two
people and then asks each one to do one good thing
for tow OTHER people.
9/11
Memories (n08)
To
record student memories of that day. To write
a history of that tragic day that becomes a personal
narrative for students to read in the years ahead.
Family
Disaster Plan (rm09) *
To
help students and their families learn about family
and community preparedness.
Community
Preparedness (rm10) *
To
give students and opportunity to “experience”
the community planning and decision-making required
to prepare for, respond to, and recover from an
emergency, and to gain an appreciation for those
in the community who respond when disaster strikes.
Do
Something!
(rm11)
To
have students clarify their understanding of tragic
events through verbal and nonverbal expressions
and to have students communicate their gratitude
and concern for community helpers such as fire
and rescue workers, and police officers.
Healing
Tools, Routines and Rituals (rm12)
*
To
help students understand that they can help themselves
feel better by taking care of themselves, by following
their established routines and by identifying
activities that make them feel better.
A
Day in Time (n30)
Consider
what items would be placed in a time capsule to
represent different time periods. Compare the
items that would best represent September 11,
2001 and September 11, 2002.
A
Lesson of Hope – Hope Quilts (n36)
Diversity
awareness and safe school initiatives.
Building
a Memory (n38)
To
design/build a memorial to 9/11.
Moving
Forward (n40)
Building
a “moving” memorial to 9/11.
Celebrating
Freedom (n43)
Identify
American symbols that represent freedom.
In
Addition..
(*
indicates a Lesson Plan that is located on another
site such as the American Red Cross. You may be
asked for your name, email address and other information
to obtain access to these plans. All materials
listed are available for free.)
Crisis
Management Institute’s Sept. 11 Guides*
In
the following guides you will find suggestions
for working with staff on preparedness for fall,
for the 9/11 anniversary, and on setting school
climate that fosters trust.
Peaceful
Tomorrows from the Families of Sept. 11 Victims*
Peaceful
Tomorrows is an advocacy organization founded
by family members of September Eleventh victims.
Round
Robin Memories (n35)
Many
teachers will want to acknowledge September 11,
but will not spend an entire class period discussing
the events. This activity allows for that acknowledgment
and then provides a connection to whatever typically
has been planned for the day.
Smithsonian’s
National Museum of American History Exhibit on
Sept. 11 (n12)
On
the one-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist
attacks, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of
American History, Behring Center will open a commemorative
exhibition, “September 11: Bearing Witness
to History,” containing artifacts, images,
and personal stories. The 5,000-square-foot exhibition
opens on Sept. 11 and closes Jan. 11, 2003.
TIME
presents September 11, 2002. A Nation Remembers
One Year Later (n14)
Following
the magazine’s excellent coverage of the events,
the anniversary edition will include similar reporting
reflecting back on the past year and showing how
Americans are moving forward.
Journey
for America: A Living Memorial (n16)
To
remember the 4000 lives lost on September 11 in
a cross-country walk in which a flag is carried
for each fatality, ending in New York City on
the anniversary of the first year anniversary
of the tragedy.
Suggested
Reading and Music Lists
Suggested
Reading
(contributed by the American Red Cross)
Jennifer
Armstrong, Dear Mr. President
(series)
Miriam
Bat-Ami, Two Suns in the Sky
Eve
Bunting, Smoky Night
Sharon
Creech, Walk Two Moons
Michael
Foreman, War Game
Anne
Frank, Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl
Sherry
Garland, Silent Storm
Marc
Harshman, The Storm
Jeanne
Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston, Farewell
to Manzanar: A True Story of Japanese American
Experience During and After the World War II Internment
Lois
Lowry, The Giver
Ken
Mochizuki, Heroes
Thomas
Yezerski, Together in Pinecone Patch
J.R.R.Tolkien,
The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings
Many
books that are, on the surface, written for young
children suggest themes that are important for
the older child and adolescent to consider. Below
are several such books.
Norah
Dooley, Everybody Cooks Rice
Dr.
Seuss, My Many Colored Days
Dr.
Seuss, Oh, the Places You ‘II Go
Dr.
Seuss, The Sneetches and Other Stories
The
following books were compiled by staff of the
American Library Association’s Booklist
and are intended to focus specifically on the
issue of terrorism. With such a difficult topic,
the books include information that can be scary
and may evoke difficult images. These books are
for more mature readers, ages 12 and older. The
nonfiction is well-written and solidly researched,
intended in most cases to inform rather than inspire
direct social action or “explain” why
such terror exists. The fiction books give readers
lots to think and talk about without giving simple
answers. We can only hope they will open the way
for discussion so older children and teens can
confront their fears with the help of parents,
caregivers and educators.
Non-fiction
- “Political
Violence and Terrorism” ed. by Mary Hull.
A worldwide perspective on the problem of terrorism.
- “Terrorism”
by Anne G. Gaines. The focus is on the Middle
East with some insight on how the United States
is affected.
- “Silent
Death” by Kathlyn Gay. This focuses on
chemical and biological weapons and warfare
and terrorism.
- “Why
Do They Hate Me?” by LaurelHolliday Accounts
of children caught in conflict in Northern Ireland
and Israel/Palestine.
- “Caught
in the Crossfire” by Maria Ousseimi. Words
and pictures of children around the globe whose
lives have been altered by civil war, terrorism
and violence.
Fiction
- “The
Machine Gunners” by Robert Westall. England
in WWII is the setting for this novel, in which
a group of youngsters find a machine gun and
decide to use it to defend their city.
- “Flight
of the Raven” by Stephanie Tolan. A serious
message about two young people who come together
in the face of terrorist violence in the United
States.
- “After
the First Death” by Robert Cormier. Hijackers
take a busload of children; the action unravels
through the perspectives of the terrorists,
the children, and others involved.
- “Samir
and Yonatan” by Daniella Carmi. In the
midst of violence in the Middle East, a young
Arab boy from the West Bank becomes friends
with a Jewish boy. “Samir and Yonatan”
received the 2001 ALA Batchelder Award for most
outstanding children’s book originally published
in a foreign language and subsequently translated
into English for publication in the United States.
For more than 90 years, ALA’s Booklist
has been the librarian’s leading choice for reviews
of the latest books and electronic media. Every
year we review nearly 4,000 books for adults,
more than 2,500 titles for children, more than
500 reference books and electronic reference tools,
and 1,000 other audiovisual materials.
Copyright© 2000, American Library Association.
Last Modified: Friday, 14-Sep-2001 11:11:50 CDT
American
Library Association Home Page
Suggested
Music
Music
has the power not only to express difficult and
deep emotions but also to draw people together.
To complement the Facing Fear curriculum, you
may find some of the following music useful. In
addition, we suggest asking your school music
specialist for titles of appropriate CDs or tapes
for your class. MENC: the National Association
for Music Education is also a good resource for
appropriate music titles. Visit the Web site at
www.menc.org and look for the section titled “0
Say Can You Sing.”
Expressing
Grief/Mournful
Dona
Nohis Pacem by Bach
Finlandia
by Sibelius
Funeral
Ikos by John Tavener
“Pas
de deux” from Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake
Pavane
for a Dying Princess by Ravel
Symphony
no. 3, Eroica. second movement, by Beethoven
Calming/Soothing
Adagio
in G by Tomaso Albinoni
“Make
Our Garden Grow” from Candide by Bernstein
Danses
Sacre et Profane by Debussy
Harp
Concerto in C major, third movement, bv Francois-Adrien
Boidldieu
Irish
Blessing and numerous other pieces for chorus
by Rutter
La
Mer by Debussy
Lux
Aeterna by Skip Lauridsen
‘The
Moldau” from the symphonic poem Ma Blast
by
Bedrich Smetana
Prelude
to (he Afternoon of a Faun by Debussy
Performances
by pianist George Winston
Recordings
of nature sounds such as rainforest, rushing water,
birds, rustling trees
Changing
Your Mood
Folk
dances
Grand
Canyon Suite by Grofe
Klezmer
Scott
Joplin rags
Strauss
waltzes
Tchaikovsky
ballets (Swan Lake, Nutcracker Suite)
Uplifting
Appalachian
Spring by Copland
Cuban
Overture by Gershwin
Eine
Kleine Nachtmuzik by Mozart
Fanfare
for the Common Man by Copland
Symphony
no. 9, Ode to Joy, by Beethoven
Symphony
no. 2, London Symphony, by Ralph Vaughan Williams
“The
Promise of Living” from the Tender Land by
Copland
Choral
pieces by Ralph Vaughan Williams
Energizing
“Spring”
from The Four Seasons by Vivaldi
Latin
and tango selections
American
in Paris by Gershwin
Selections
from West Side Story like “America”
by Bernstein
“Entrance
of the Queen of Sheba” from the Solomon oratorio by Handel
Sousa
marches
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