Overview

Students will research Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad, then use virtual reality tools to place themselves in the shoes of different historical figures, to become more familiar with the history of slavery in America.

Vocabulary      

Virtual                                                             Simulation
Virtual Reality                                              Collaborative
Image                                                              Reality
Perception                                                     Simulate
Interactive                                                      Differentiate

Objectives

Required Project Materials

Multimedia Resources

Optional Multimedia Resources

Before the Lesson/Background Information

The Lesson

Part 1: History of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad video/documentary (30 minutes)

  1. Students select a video/documentary of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad from a list of approved websites/Youtube channel.
  2. Tell students that they will select a historical figure to represent from the video they view by inserting themselves into the role of that person in the video using the VR.

Part 2: Reenacting a scene of the Underground Railroad using Virtual Reality headset (30 minutes) 

  1. Using the VR headset, students will select a particular section of the movie to reenact, placing themselves in the scene virtually. Students will work on this project as a pair/small group.
  2. Discuss the effect of viewing the video versus placing themselves in the video as though they were experiencing what the historical figures went through during that period. 

Homework: Students will write an essay on the correlation of Harriet Tubman, the Underground Railroad, and American slavery in today's society of racial equity.