Ms. Story: Mary Townsend Seymour | Votes for Women

Unit 3 Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame presents

Votes for Women:

Mary

Townsend Seymour

Mary Townsend Seymour Aligned to CCSS, C3 Framework, and CTSS Frameworks

Grade 3-5

CONNECTICUT WOMEN’S HALL OF FAME Sarah Smith Lubarsky, Executive Director Content Development Liz Krebs, Education Manager Graphic Design Michelle Marchese, Manager of Marketing and Operations © 2021 by Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form beyond that copyright permitted by Section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law, without written permission from the publisher.

SM is trademarked by Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame.

Common Core Standards © Copyright 2010 National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.

Connecticut Elementary and Secondary Social Studies Frameworks © Copyright 2015 Connecticut State Department of Education. All rights reserved.

Published with support from the Avangrid Foundation (in partnership with CNG, SCG and UI), Comcast; the Elizabeth Carse Foundation, Ensign-Bickford, Bank of America, N.A., trustee; The Hartford; and New Haven Public Schools Special thanks to the educators on our review and revision team: • Lena Harwood Pacheco, The Children's Tree Montessori School • Stephen Armstrong, Social Studies Consultant, Connecticut Department of Education • Sandra Clark, New Haven Public Schools, Supervisor, District Curriculum Team History & Social Studies • Julia Hladky, New Haven Public Schools • Heather Prescott, Central Connecticut State University • Elizabeth Hohl, Fairfield University • Katherine Leonard, Principal, Breakthrough Magnet School-North Hartford Public Schools

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Table of Contents

Developing Questions and Planning Inquiry

Literacy Connections

Applying Disciplinary Concepts and Tools

Evaluating Sources and Using Evidence

Communicating Conclusions & Taking Informed Action

Developing Questions and Planning Inquiry Unit Overview Compelling Question: How did African American suffragists shape the movement for the women's right to vote? Use Mary Townsend Seymour's biography as a case study in service of this inquiry.

Supporting Questions: Who was Mary Townsend Seymour and what causes did she champion?

How did the work of African American suffragists differ from that of white suffragists?

What issues contributed to conflict between African American suffragists and the National Women’s Party?

Planning Inquiry At Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame, we believe that women role models provide a valuable resource for all students as they consider who they are, who they would like to become, and what they believe leadership looks like.

This unit, Votes for Women: Mary Townsend Seymour, allows upper elementary students to explore the story of Mary Townsend Seymour and her role in the Women’s Suffrage Movement specifically for African American women. Teachers may decide to engage students in the entire inquiry arc, or to embed lessons from this unit within their literacy instruction.

Pacing Guide A: One Month Unit of Inquiry Week One Week Two Week Three Week Four

Developing Questions & Literacy Connections (pages 5 - 9) Applying Disciplinary Concepts and Tools (pages 10 - 13) Evaluating Sources and Using Evidence (pages 14 – 15) Communicating Conclusions and Taking Informed Action (pages 16 – 17)

Pacing Guide B: One Week Exploration through Literacy Day One Day Two Day Three Day Four Day Five

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Developing Questions (page 5) Reading Passages and Close Reading (pages 6 - 7) History: Analyzing Perspectives (page 10) Civics: Annotating Direct Quotations (page 11) Integrating Music, Civics, and Writing (page 13)

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Developing Questions Gallery Walk Hang the five images around the classroom. Play quiet music, and instruct students to move around the room, viewing the images and silently responding to them in writing. Children may write initial impressions or questions. They may respond directly to the image or to the comments written by another classmate. These comments can be written on sticky notes or you may provide chart paper and markers by each image for this purpose. When children are no longer productively engaged in responding to the images, gather as a whole group.

Discuss trends found in the comments on each image, and provide time for the children to discuss possible connections between the images.

Question Sort Have your students write down their questions about Mary Townsend Seymour and African American suffragists on sticky notes. Then, have small groups sort their questions by evaluating whether each question is important enough to warrant ongoing whole-class study, and whether or not it is interesting enough to sustain their peers’ attention.

NAVIGATION: Click directly on the image of any worksheet to access the printable version.

Then use the bookmarks icon on the left side of your screen to return to this page. © 2021 by Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame

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Literacy Connections Reading Passages Directions Introduce students to Mary

Townsend Seymour, a champion for African American women’s equality. Her story explains how she became a leader of the women’s suffrage movement in the U.S. and a leader in the Hartford Chapter of the NAACP

Differentiation Provide students with the reading passage that aligns with their guided reading level.

06.1 Levels J, K, L 06.2 Levels M, N 06.3 Levels O, P, Q 06.4 Levels R, S, T 06.5 Levels U, V, W 06.6 Levels X, Y, Z Depending on your class culture, you may want students to discuss what they learned in heterogeneous groups, as the more difficult passages contain more detailed information.

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Standard By the end of the year, read and

comprehend informational texts, including history, social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grades 4-5 text complexity band independently and proficiently. (CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4-5.10)

Close Reading Directions Use Mary Townsend Seymour story to

develop your students’ close reading skills in alignment with the Smarter Balanced Assessment. Review methods for close reading, including highlighting and annotating. Be sure to have students practicelooking back in the text for evidence to support their answers.

Standards Refer to details and examples in a text

when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.1

Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.8

Differentiation Provide students with the close reading printable that aligns with the passage read.

Levels J - N Levels O - T Levels U- W Levels X - Z

07.1 07.2 07.3 07.4

Hands - On Activity Have students practice supporting claims with evidence using colorcoded markers. Prompt students to use a different color to highlight evidence for each claim.

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Literacy Connections Vocabulary Practice Directions Read "Mary Townsend Serymour".

Use context clues to predict the meaning of bold words. Then, use a dictionary to find the actual meaning. Record a check mark if the actual meaning is similar to your prediction.

Standard Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown words and phrases choosing flexibly from a range of strategies. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.3-5.4

Consult reference materials both print and digital, to determine or clarify the precise meaning of key words and phrases. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.3-5.4.C

Differentiation Provide students with the worksheet aligned with their reading level.

08.1 Levels J - Q 08.2 Levels R - Z Students who read passages for levels J-Q have not yet been exposed to all of the vocabulary words in context. For this reason, Worksheet 8.1 includes examples of each word used in context.

Students who read passages for levels R-Z can refer back to their reading passages for context clues.

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Definitions Abolition | Mary Townsend was born in 1873, just a few years after the abolition of slavery.

Advocate | Mary's strong sense of self helped her Advocate for herself and others.

Amendment | They wanted to add an amendment to the constitution.

Compromised| African American women should get to vote, too Their rights should not be compromised.

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Identity | Mary had them update her birth records.

She had a strong sense of identity.

Segregation | City officials considered separating students by race. Mary spoke out against segregation.

Suffrage | She became involved in the suffrage movement, fighting for women's right to vote.

Speaking & Listening Read Aloud: Ida B. Wells: Let the Truth Be Told by Walter Dean Myers Directions Read the story of Ida B. Wells. Her

advocacy has a lot in common with that of Mary Townsend Seymour. Have children use a Venn diagram to compare and contrast these two stories.

Standard Come to discussions prepared, having

read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the topic to explore ideas under discussion.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1.A

Venn Diagram After the students read the story, "Ida B. Wells: Let the truth Be Told" by Walter Dean Myers, ask them to compare and contrast the journey of Ida B. Wells and Mary Townsend Seymour's.

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Applying Disciplinary Concepts and Tools HISTORY Directions Have students examine the document to

determine when it was written and where it was printed. Students can look for clues in the article to determine the significance of Seymour’s run.

• The students should be able to describe Mary Townsend Seymour's run, using evidence from the text to support their description. (If children are in need of extra support, guide them to consider the quote by Seymour in the second to last paragraph).

TEACHER RESOURCE Use "Engaging Students with Primary Sources", Smithsonian National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center, p. 12-14, to guide the primary source discussions.

Frameworks HIST 4.3/5.10 Use evidence to develop a claim about the past.

GEOGRAPHY Directions Have students examine the map and the bar graphs. Challenge them to draw conclusions about the NAACP’s history and relationships with different regions from these documents.

Frameworks GEO 3.6/4.5

Use maps, satellite images, photographs, and other representations to explain relationships between the locations of places and regions and their environmental characteristics.

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Discussion Questions

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Why is voting important? Who shoul

ECONOMICS Directions Imagine that you are a member of the

National Woman’s Party. Should you change your Southern Strategy and begin advocating for the rights of African American women? Make a pro-con list to help you decide.

Frameworks ECO 4.2/5.1 Identify positive and negative incentives that influencethe decisions people make.

CIVICS Directions Read out loud the advanced version of Mary Townsend Seymour’s story. Have students make a list of all of the different strategies that she used to try to change society. Then, have children determine which strategy was most effective, giving evidence for their claim.

Frameworks CIV 4.1 Illustrate historical and contemporary means of changing society.

ld be eligible to vote? How does race and gender affect the way people vote?

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Applying Disciplinary Concepts and Tools CIVICS Connections Interdisciplinary MUSIC Directions Students should answer the questions and use the video and lyrics of the

parody of "Bad Romance", by Lady Gaga to create their own musical parody. This activity could be done individually or in small groups. Make sure to scaffold the process for the students using the concepts below:

Key Concepts • Discuss: What are Mary Townsend Seymour’s beliefs and values?

• Discuss: How does she differ from other famous suffragists?

Planning Your Parody “Today we are going to write a parody from MTS’ perspective. A parody is…”

• Discuss: What musical artists today make you think of Mary Townsend Seymour?

• Discuss: What about their style or their lyrics makes you connect with Mary Townsend Seymour?

Writing a Parody

Have students choose a portion of the lyrics and re-write the lines as a parody keeping Mary Townsend Seymour's struggle in mind. This activity could be done in small groups and then presented to the class.

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CIVICS: Writing | Poetry

Directions Mary Townsend Seymour copied the poem “To

America” by James Weldon Johnson into one of her letters to a friend of hers who was a white suffragist. Have the student(s) read the poem out loud and then answer the questions: 1. What are some of the questions that Johnson wants to ask America?

2. Why do you think the poem is called, “To America”?

3. Find rhyming words in the poem Your students can create a poem about a part of your identity that starts with “How would you have us, as we are?”

• Students can use this poem as a mentor text and create

a poem about a part of your identity that starts with “How would you have us, as we are?” Challenge: students can follow the structure of the original poem.

• Draw an illustration based on the poem.

Frameworks CIV 3.4/ 5.3

Identify core civic virtues and democratic principles that

Extension Activities Essay

Collage

Encourage your students to read about Mary Townsend Seymour at https://www.cwhf.org/ inductees/marytownsend-seymour and write a short response essay to the following questions: • Would you be stand up for what you think is right even though you were in the minority?

• Under what circumstances?

Work with a group to create a collage.

Research symbols, colors, images and quotes that were important to the suffrage movement and incorporate as many of them as possible. Be prepared to explain your selections.

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Evaluating Sources and Using Evidence Evaluating Sources Comparing Primary and Secondary Souces Directions Read both sources to the students

using the method of stopping after each paragraph to discuss what it means and clarify the meaning of unknown words. Since these are old sources, it might be explained to the students that historians often read documents from different time periods, which may be written differently than we speak today. Historians have to read slowly, first looking for information that they understand, and then finding the meaning of unknown words, in order to fully understand the text. On February 18, 1919, Alice Paul claimed that African American women in South Carolina did not want to vote, infuriating Mary Townsend Seymour. Then, compare and contrast the sources. What information does each source provide? What information is missing?

INQ 3-5.6

Gather relevant information from multiple sources while using the origin, structure, and context to guide the selection.

INQ 3-5.7 Use distinctions between fact and opinion to determine the credibility of multiple sources.

INQ 3-5.8 Identify evidence that draws information from multiple sources in response to compelling questions.

INQ 3-5.8

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Use evidence to develop claims in response to compelling questions.

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Using Evidence Gathering Sources Directions: Engage your students in their own independent research inspired by Mary Townsend Seymour's story. You may decide to have students continue to focus on the class compelling question, or you may allow students to shift their focus depending on their interest.

Standard: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.7

Organizing Ideas Directions: Young students sometimes struggle to synthesize what they have learned. Instruct students to make a mind map that shows everything they are thinking about their topic based on their evidence.

The compelling question asks both WHY and HOW, which is represented in the mind map. Guide students to write an overarching claim.

Standard: Gather relevant information from print and digital sources; take notes and categorize information. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.8

Supporting Claims Directions: Now that students have categorized their evidence, they are ready to use it to respond to the compelling question. A graphic organizer is available to scaffold the elements of a strong argument.

Students begin by writing a claim. Then, they cite at least two pieces of evidence. Finally, students explain their evidence, linking it to their claim.

They should cite the documents after quoting or paraphrasing evidence with citations like (Doc. 1) or (Doc. 2). Students can also reference the biography of Mary townsend Seymour on page 6.

Standard: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3-5.9 © 2021 by Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame

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Communicating Conclusions and Taking Informed Action Communicating Conclusions Create an Illustrated Timeline or Infographic Begin by looking at examples of timelines and infographics. As a class, make an anchor chart that lists the key features of each of these tools. Then, provide time for students to organize their thinking using the graphic organizer. Finally, allow students to create timelines or infographics to synthesize their learning.

Writing to Communicate with Others Students may communicate their findings in a traditional, five-paragraph essay or students may also use this graphic organizer to help them plan for other written and oral methods of communication, including letters, debates, speeches, posters, brochures, and websites.

INQ 3-5.10 Construct arguments using claims and evidence from multiple sources.

INQ 3-5.11 Construct explanations using reasoning, correct sequence, examples, and details with

relevant information and data.

INQ 3-5.12 Present a summary of arguments and explanations to others outside the classroom

using print and oral technologies and digital technologies.

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Create an Action Plan

Taking Informed Action

Support students as they plan their final project by providing this graphic organizer. Students might opt to inform others about what they have learned, to advocate for a specific change in policy or practice, or to create a concrete solution for a problem based on their research.

After students fill out the graphic organizer individually or in small groups, direct them to make a list of specific action steps. Remind students that they will be more successful if they assign a particular person to each task, as well as a deadline.

INQ 3-5.16 Explain different strategies and approaches students and others could

take in working alone and together to address local, regional, and global

problems, and predict possible results of their actions.

Extension Activity | Essay Option A: Visit www.myhero.com and browse some of inspiring stories people have submitted.

If you’ve identified someone you find inspiring, submit your own biography/video!

Option B: Write a letter to someone you think is actively making a difference thanking that person for her work and explaining its impact on you and your community.

Fun Fact! | 4th graders at Ellen Hubbard school in Bristol, CT were confused why there was a statue of Nathan Hale, our state hero, but not a statue of Prudence Crandall in the Capitol Buiding in Hartford. The students advocated to make sure Prudence Crandall was represented in our state's capitol building.

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References Images & Resources Image Credits

Mary Townsend Seymour: Image created by Charley Liv | Ukraine Headquarters for Colored Women Voters | Chicago, Illinois |1916 | Image courtesy of the New York Public Library The Negro Star | Wichita, Kansas |Friday, October 15, 1922 | Page 5 Accessed via www.Newspapers.com Women Suffragists Picketing Outside of the White House | Image courtesy of the Library of Congress NAACP | Current Logo Suffragists “march in October 1917, displaying placards containing the signatures of over one million New Yorkwomen demanding to vote.” New York Times photo archive | Public Domain Josue Estrada and James Gregory | Mapping American Social Movements Project | University of Washington

Embedded Resources “To America” by James Weldon Johnson “Audacious Alliance: Mary Townsend Seymour” by Mark Jones, Connecticut Explored, Summer 2003 “Denies South Carolina Negro Women Want Vote,” Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, The Evening News, Tuesday, February 18, 1919 [The Negro Star | Wichita, Kansas |Friday, October 15, 1922 | Page 5 Accessed via www.Newspapers.com http://www. soomopublishing.com/suffrage

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References

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Connecticut Elementary and Secondary Social Studies Frameworks ©Copyright 2015 Connecticut State Department of Education. All rights reserved. https://www.k12.reader.com JONES, MARK H. “‘To Tell Our Story’: Mary Townsend Seymour and the Early Years of Hartford's Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, 1917 – 1920.”

Connecticut History Review, vol. 44, no. 2, 2005, pp. 205–223. JSTOR, www.jstor.orgstable/44369690 Accessed 2 June 2021.

Common Core Standards: NGA Center/CCSSO: “© Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved.”

Ida B. Wells: Let the Truth Be Told by Walter Dean Myers https://www.ctexplored.org/audacious-alliance-mary-townsend-seymour/Association for the Advancement of Colored People, 1917 – 1920 http://depts.washington.edu/moves/NAACP_map-basic.shtml https://www.cwhf.org/inductees/mary-townsend-seymour "Votes for Women", DIY History. New Haven, CT: Connecticut Women's Hall of Fame https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mary Townsend Seymour National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Council of Chief State School https://poets.org "Engaging Students with Primary Sources", Smithsonian National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center https://www.newspapers.com

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