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LESSON I PLAY Page 10 i-iarriet Tubman and the Road to Freedom

Introduction and Summary: The name Harriet Tubman will probably be familiar to most students. Although we know her as a great heroine and conductor on the Underground Railroad, we don't often get a chance to think about what she was like as a teenager dreaming about freedom. This play will give students the opportunity to envision Harriet Tubman as a young person like themselves, who had the courage to risk her life 'not only for her own freedom, but for the freedom of as many others as she could help.

: To explore the themes of personal and societal freedom.

NOTE & IRA Standards: Read a range of materials • Read a range of literary works • Apply a range of read- ing strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts • Act as a member of literacy commu- nities • Use spoken, written, and visual language to achieve goals.

Wdte the word "freedom" on the board and ask students to write a journal entry about what this word means to them. Ask them to consider these questions:

a) How much freedom do you have in your daily life? b) Do your parents limit your freedom? In what ways? c) Do laws limit your freedom? How? d) Is our society free? e) Are all societies free? • f) What are some ways freedom is limited in our

country or in other countries? Have volunteers share their ideas in a class discussion.

Conclude by pointing out the difference between per- sonal freedom (e.g., how late their parents will let them stay out) and societal freedom (e.g., whether they have freedom of speech, press, and religion; the right to go to school.)

Postreading Discussion Questions 1. Think about Harriet Tubman as a teenager your own age. In what ways do you think slavery limited her free- dom on a daily basis? (She had to work infields, didn't go to school, feared that she could be sold away from her family, had to obey her master no matter what, etc.) 2. Harriet escaped from slavery when she was in her 20s. Why do you think she went back for others instead of simply enjoying her own freedom? (She couldn't be

happy knowing her family and others were not free.) 3. Both black and white people worked on the Underground Railroad. What beliefs do you think they shared? (that all people should be free; slavery is cruel and unjust) 4. Do you think all people innately (naturally) want to be free? (Answers may include yes, the human spirit always longs for fieedom; Harriet saw the freedom white people had, and that made her want her own freedom, etc.) 5. Can you think of countries today in which citizens or certain groups of citizens do not enjoy the freedoms you think they should? Do you think everyone in the United States is equally free? (China, Cuba, Afghanistan, etc.; answers will vary.)

Writing a Bill of Rights (interpersonal learners) Arrange students in groups and assign half the

groups to discuss personal freedom, and the other half to discuss societal freedom. Ask groups to come up with at least 10 rights that they would include in a Bill of Rights for young people. Eor example, the "personal rights" groups might think of laws like, "Young people have the right to select their own clothing," whereas the other groups might write laws such as, "There wiU be no dif- ference in how boys and girls' are treated in school." Have groups share their final lists with the class. Which rights do they already enjoy? Which do they lack? How much do the personal and societal rights overlap?

Writing Thank-you Letters to Harriet Ask students to imagine that they're among the 300 for- mer slaves whom Harriet Tubman led to freedom. Have them write thank-you letters to her, expressing their gratitude for what she did. Have them describe what the_ir new life of freedom is like compared with the way it used to be. They might also want to point out some of the dangers Harriet bravely confronted along the way.

Calculating Freedom (math/logic learners) Ask students to come up with a way to

"measure" the freedom Harriet Tubman provided to others. For example, 300 people times an approximate number of years they lived in freedom; the number of miles Harriet might have traveled over a lifetime; the number of children who might have been born into freedom rather than slavery; etc. Then, have them use their calculation as the title of a poem they will write, such as "9,000 Years of Freedom."

This symbol stands for Multiple Intelligences. Activities marked with this symboi draw on different iearning styies.

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