The learner will:

• explain how one person can make a significant difference in the lives of many others, while acting for the common good.
  
  
• describe Jackie Robinson's personal courage in opening the door for other black professional sports players.
  
  
• demonstrate through writing that citizens have a responsibility for the common good.

Anticipatory Set:

The teacher will wear a baseball cap and/or glove and teach the class to sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." Ask the students what they know about the sport of baseball. Allow them to share their experiences of playing on a baseball team or on a team for another sport.

• Read the story of Jackie Robinson from The Children's Book of Heroes. Discuss the challenges Robinson faced and how he responded to the challenges. In what ways is Jackie Robinson a hero? How did he affect the future of baseball?
  
  
• Have a discussion about Jackie Robinson and incorporate the following questions:
  
  
  • What actions were examples of Mr. Robinson acting for the common good?
    
    
  • How has he helped to enhance a core democratic value?
    
    
  Discuss the importance of showing respect for others.
  
  
• Have the students take a multiple-choice quiz about Jackie Robinson (Attachment One).
  
  
• Brainstorm as a class the characteristics of a hero. List these on the board. Prompt students to think not only of Jackie Robinson, but also of their own heroes and heroes in the community. Guide the students to form a working definition of a hero.
  
  
• The class will create a classroom or hallway bulletin board or display, gathering and recording information about the life of Jackie Robinson. Have the students look for images, facts, essays, and statistics about Jackie Robinson. As they collect data, they can respond thoughtfully to the information in some way: through art, poems, essays, etc. Be sure to teach the students about proper documentation of sources.
  
  
• Discuss the definition of philanthropy and talk about the responsibility of--and benefits to--citizens to act for the common good. Ask students to write a paragraph defending the statement that "one person can make a difference." What does it mean and what evidence is there that it is true?
  
  
• The post office has put the images of many great people on postage stamps as a tribute to their contributions to society. Ask each student to think of a personal hero who matches some of the listed characteristics. Have each student design a stamp for his or her hero. Below their stamps, students should write about the hero, identifying three characteristics of that person that makes him or her a hero.

• If the technology is available, in addition to the classroom/hallway display, the learners could make a data disk, gathering and recording information about the life of Jackie Robinson. Have the students look for images, facts, essays, and statistics about Jackie Robinson. As they collect data, they can respond thoughtfully to the information in some way: through art, recordings, power-point presentations, poems, essays, etc. The responses can be saved on a common disk or placed in a folder. The disk and folder can be stored in the classroom or school media center for people to use as a resource. Be sure to teach the students about proper documentation of sources.
  
  
• Students may attend a local baseball game or play a baseball game against another class in the school.