Eleanor Roosevelt

Purpose: To learn about Eleanor Roosevelt and the contributions she made to society.  To understand the character and values that motivated her humanitarian heart.

Contributions: Worked tirelessly to fight against discrimination and poverty.  Took an active and very visible role in politics as the First Lady of the United States and throughout her life.

Values: Compassion, Caring, Hardworking

Teaching aids:

• A Picture Book of Eleanor Roosevelt or The Value of Caring
• Picnic Blanket
• Eleanor's Favorite Pound Cake (to eat in class)
• Supplies for Humanitarian Hygiene Kits

Supplies for each child:

• Unmasking Greatness binder
• A picture of Eleanor Roosevelt to color with a brief discription of who she is.  I use Homeschool in the Woods timeline figures.
• Map of the US
• Glass soda bottle or other narrow mouthed bottle to use as a vase
• Silk or dried flowers and ribbons
• Mini-loaf of Eleanor's Favorite Pound Cake to give away
• Canister for "My Day" capsule - #10 cans work well
• Plaster of paris to make a handprint
• Scraps of fabric, paper, and stickers to decorate canister
• My Favorites worksheet
• Items from home for capsule
• Drawing Paper

Preparation:

1. Ask children to bring objects that represent their daily life for a "My Day" capsule.  Suggestions are a small toy or object showing their interests, a pamphlet from a place they've recently visited, pictures, wrapper and receipt of a favorite candy bar, a copy of a favorite book, favorite recipe, a sample of school work, an art project, an outgrown favorite t-shirt, and a postage stamp.
2. Have a humanitarian relief drive to collect items for the humanitarian hygiene kit used in disaster relief.  The items to collect are hand towels (approximately 15x25 inches), 6-8 ounce tubes of toothpaste (no pumps), sealed toothbrushes, combs without sharp handles, bars of soap (3.5-5 ounces each).  Click here to learn more about LDS philanthropies.

Set up: Lay out a picnic blanket for station #1.  Set up a table with humanitarian supplies for station #2.  Set up a table with flower supplies and mini-loaves of bread for station #3.  Set up a mock office for station #4.

Lesson:

Station #1: Gather children on a picnic blanket.  Tell the children they are going to learn about someone who was very caring and hardworking.  Unmask Eleanor Roosevelt.  Eleanor was born on October 11, 1884 in New York.  Discuss where on the timeline she fits and what was going on at that time -

• When she was a child many new things were being invented such as the automobile
• The 19th amendment passed giving women the right to vote
• World Wars I and II

Find her birthplace on the map and mark it.  Read your favorite picture biography about Eleanore Roosevelt.  Share Eleanor's Favorite Pound Cake with the children while you read.

Station #2: Review some of Eleanor's humanitarian efforts that you read about in the story.  Do a humanitarian service project.  Here's one option: Hygiene Kit for LDS Philanthropies.  This kit is distributed in the US and world-wide in natural disasters and orphanges.

Place the following items in a heavy-duty, one-gallon sealable bag.  (Quality is more important than quantity- You never know, it may be you receiving the kit after disaster strikes your town.)  Remove air before sealing.

• Two unbreakable combs without sharp handles
• Four toothbrushes (sealed)
• One tube of toothpaste (6-8 ounces, no pumps)
• Two bars of soap (3.5-5 ounces each)
• Two hand towels (approximately 15x25 inches)  Dish towels and wash cloths are not acceptable.  If sewing towels, use terry cloth and serge or zigzag edges to prevent fraying.

Ship or deliver completed items to:

Latter-day Saint Humanitarian Center

1665 South Bennett Road

Salt Lake City, UT 84101

Telephone (801) 240 - 5954

Hours: 8am-4:30pm, Monday through Friday

Station #3: Help children make a vase of flowers to give to someone that is sick.  Add silk or dried flowers to a bottle, tie a ribbon around the neck and attach a get well tag.  Instruct the children to visit a sick person and give them the vase of flowers.  Role play some things they might say when they are visiting with someone who is ill.  Give each of the children a mini-loaf of Eleanor's Favorite Pound Cake with instructions to take it to someone who needs cheering up.  Maybe someone who just lost their job, someone who is working over-time and is exhausted, or someone who is lonely.

Station #4: Invite the children to Eleanor's office to learn about "My Day" which is a daily newspaper column written by Eleanor Roosevelt for over 25 years.  She began it when she was the First Lady.  She wrote of her daily activities which ranged from bookdrives for soldiers to the birth of a grandchild to speaking out about women's working rights as she travelled all over the globe.  Here is an excellent website with the entire "My Day" collection. Read through some of her articles and choose some to share with the children.  Let the children capture memories of their own day in a "My Day" capsule.  The following is a list of things to include in the capsule.

• Make a handprint of each child's hand from plaster of paris.
• Have the children get the items they brought from home to put in their "My Day" Capsules.
• Let children decorate a container to encapsulate their treasures.
• Fill out a My Favorites worksheet.
• Give each child a piece of drawing paper to draw a self-portrait.

Conclusion: Review what you've learned about Eleanor Roosevelt.  Remind them to find someone who needs cheering up to give their flowers and bread.  Tell them to put their "My Day" capsules in a safe-place to look at in the future.

Click here to check out more heroes lessons!