Teachers Cause and Effect

Instructor Notes

CAUSE

AND

EFFECT

Students learn about a historical event through studying its causes and effects. After researching the subject, writing a couple of paragraphs, and creating a T-chart, students report their findings to the class.

TEACHER NOTES

FOR

DISCUSSION

This lesson is broken into two parts. The Cause and Effect Review is a practice exercise. It deals with the basic concepts of cause and effect. Depending on the level of your class and their familiarity with the concepts of cause and effect, you may opt to move straight to the activity.
Objective

CAUSE

AND

EFFECT REVIEW

Prior to this lesson, create cause and effect cards. Pass one card out to each student. Use the following examples to get you started:
CAUSE I HAD TO WALK HOME AS A RESULT OF THE RAINSTORM I HAVE A LATE ASSIGNMENT, THEREFORE EFFECT BECAUSE I LOST MY KEYS. MY GAME WAS CANCELED. MY HOMEWORK GRADE WILL BE LOWER.

By the end of this activity, students should be able to identify the causes and effects of a historically important event and create a T-chart to represent the event.

Time Considerations

First, students must decide if their card is a cause or an effect. Point out key word phrases such as “as a result of,” “because,” or “therefore” to help identify a cause/effect relationship. Next, give each student two or three minutes to find a plausible “cause” for their “effect” or vice-versa. Have students present their cause and effect relationship to the class. Follow up with a discussion regarding the accuracy of their choices and how some causes may have several different effects or one effect may have had several different causes. For the actual activity, students research an event and summarize their findings, identifying cause/effect relationships of the event by placing their analysis on a T-chart poster.
For Example:

Instructor preparation: 90 minutes Student activity: two classes

July 21,1861: First Battle of Bull Run...