Description
What our Biographies: Joan of Arc lesson plan includes
Lesson Objectives and Overview: Biographies: Joan of Arc is a high-interest reading comprehension lesson plan. As such, students will practice various close reading and comprehension skills. In addition, they will learn more about this significant historical figure and her influence on French history. This lesson is for students in 3rd grade, 4th grade, and 5th grade.
Classroom Procedure
Every lesson plan provides you with a classroom procedure page that outlines a step-by-step guide to follow. You do not have to follow the guide exactly. The guide helps you organize the lesson and details when to hand out worksheets. It also lists information in the yellow box that you might find useful. You will find the lesson objectives, state standards, and number of class sessions the lesson should take to complete in this area. In addition, it describes the supplies you will need as well as what and how you need to prepare beforehand.
Teacher Notes
The teacher notes page provides an extra paragraph of information to help guide the lesson. It explains that you can teach this lesson in a whole-class setting or as an independent, small-group activity. You can use the blank lines to write down any other ideas or thoughts you have about the topic as you prepare.
BIOGRAPHIES: JOAN OF ARC LESSON PLAN CONTENT PAGES
Hundred Years’ War
The Biographies: Joan of Arc lesson plan contains three pages of content. To understand the story of Joan of Arc, one must first know a little about the Hundred Years’ War. The Hundred Years’ War was a protracted conflict between England and France that lasted from 1337 to 1453. It wasn’t a single continuous war, and it didn’t last exactly 100 years. It consisted of many smaller wars, battles, and peace treaties that both sides repeatedly broke.
The war started after the death of King Charles IV of France, who had no male heirs. Because the king of England at the time was related to French royalty, he believed he had the right to take the throne of France. The French disagreed and chose a French nobleman instead. This disagreement over the crown led to war.
Divine Mission
Joan of Arc (Jeanne d’Arc) was born in 1412 in the small French village of Domrémy in the middle of the Hundred Years’ War. She was an ordinary peasant girl who grew up working on her family’s farm. But when she was about 13 years old, she began hearing what she believed were the heavenly voices of saints telling her that God had chosen her to help save France.
At that time, the French crown was in danger. English forces had taken control of much of northern France, and many feared France might lose the war. Joan was young and naturally had no military training. After all, she was a girl. But she was determined to follow what she believed was her divine mission.
At age 17, Joan of Arc traveled to see the French prince, called the Dauphin. She convinced him that God had sent her to help France win the war, and that he would become the king of France. At first, he hesitated to accept her into his army. He doubted her claims of hearing the voices of saints. He even had experts examine her to see if she was telling the truth. These experts reported to the Dauphin that Joan’s unwavering faith was genuine and that God had indeed guided her to him.
Leading the French to Victory
So, when hope was at its lowest point, Joan of Arc had stepped forward. Though she was just a teenaged girl from a farming village, she believed God had called her to help save France and support Charles in becoming king. She had traveled through war-torn France to reach Charles and had convinced him she could help. Even though she had no formal military training, she inspired the French soldiers, and her deep faith gave them the courage to continue their fight.
In 1429, Joan helped lead the French army to a significant victory at the Siege of Orléans, which was a turning point in the war. After that victory, Joan encouraged the Dauphin to travel to Reims, a city about 80 miles east of Paris, where France traditionally crowned its kings. With Joan’s support and help, France named the Dauphin, King Charles VII, strengthening the country’s unity.
Wrongful Death of Joan of Arc
Despite this success, Joan’s story did not end in triumph. Sadly, in May of 1430, English allies captured Joan in Compiègne, France. They turned her over to the English, where the Catholic Church tried her for heresy (because she claimed to have heard voices from God) and other crimes. The court convicted Joan a year later in May of 1431 and executed her shortly thereafter. Joan of Arc was burned at the stake when she was just 19 years old.
About 15 years after her death, the Catholic Church retried Joan. It determined that the original court had wrongly convicted her. A few centuries later in 1920, the Catholic Church officially declared her a saint. Today, France and much of the world remember Joan of Arc as a hero. They view her as a symbol of courage and faith, and of the power of standing up for your beliefs, even when others doubt you.
Although she died young, Joan’s role in the war gave the French people new hope. The war continued for over 20 more years, but the tide turned. Eventually, France drove out the English and won the final battle. The Hundred Years’ War changed both countries, and Joan of Arc’s bravery made her one of the most remembered figures in history.
In times of war or national crisis, people often look to influential historical figures to give them hope. Joan’s story became a symbol of courage, patriotism, and faith. That’s why so many statues, paintings, and books depict her as a fearless warrior or even a holy figure, even though she never actually led soldiers in battle or claimed to be a saint.
Legacy of Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc is one of the most famous figures in history, but how people see her has changed over time. Historians try to look at Joan based on facts from her life. At the same time, legends and stories about her have added new layers to her image. Some of these stories are true, but others are exaggerated or imagined.
Some stories say she performed miracles or never felt fear during battle. Others say she predicted the future or that she carried a magical sword. These legends came about because people admired her bravery, strong faith, and unusual rise from a poor village girl to a national leader. Over time, artists, poets, and storytellers added new details to make her seem even more heroic.
By comparing facts and legends, we can learn how stories about people can grow over time. Today, people remember Joan of Arc as a real person as well as a symbol of something greater. This staying power proves that one brave person can change the course of history and inspire generations as they discover her story.
BIOGRAPHIES: JOAN OF ARC LESSON PLAN WORKSHEETS
The Biographies: Joan of Arc lesson plan includes two worksheets: an activity worksheet and a practice worksheet. Each one will help students solidify their grasp of the material they learned throughout the lesson. You can refer to the classroom procedure guidelines to know when to hand out each worksheet.
CHARACTERISTIC COMPARISON ACTIVITY WORKSHEET
For the activity, students will compare Joan of Arc to a modern individual they admire, such as a favorite athlete or activist. They will fill in at least four character traits that the modern person they chose shares in common with Joan of Arc. They can use the ones listed on the page or choose their own.
REVIEW PRACTICE WORKSHEET
The practice worksheet requires students to answer a series of 10 questions. These questions all relate to the content pages, so students will need to refer to them often for the answers. In addition, each question provides which reading tool the question corresponds to, such as text feature, vocabulary, or comprehension.
Worksheet Answer Keys
At the end of the lesson plan document is an answer key for the practice worksheet. The correct answers are all in red to make it easier for you to compare them with students’ responses. If you choose to administer the lesson pages to your students via PDF, you will need to save a new file that omits these pages. Otherwise, you can simply print out the applicable pages and keep these as reference for yourself when grading assignments.
