Lesson Plan - History Makers: Jane Goodall

Watch a Video: Dr. Jane Goodall: “We Must Take Action”
Discuss: What does Goodall say it was like to work with chimpanzees up close?

Preview Words to Know
Project the online vocabulary slideshow and introduce the Words to Know. 

• conservationists
• primates

Set a Purpose for Reading
Have students think about words they’d use to describe Goodall—and why they chose them. 

1. Why was seeing a chimp using a stalk of grass to collect termites such a big discovery?
Until that time, scientists believed that only humans made and used tools. The discovery that chimps also used tools was a big step in our understanding of these primates.
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2. What was unusual about the way Goodall observed chimpanzees?
Goodall didn’t just watch the chimps from afar. She got to know them the way you’d get to know neighbors.
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3. What is the section “Hope for the Future” mainly about?
This section is about ways Goodall has helped the planet. She created the Goodall Institute to save endangered chimps and the Roots & Shoots program to get kids to help animals, the environment, and people in need.
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FEATURED SKILL: Text Evidence
Use “All About Jane Goodall” to have students complete a biographical profile using details from the article.
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