Dogfighting Curriculum Lesson One- The Game Show

Grade Level- Secondary

Character Concepts: Fairness and citizenship- Fairness means giving equal consideration to everyone without judgment or placing false blame. A good citizen does things that help to make the community a better place for the people and animals to live.

Objective: The students will understand that dogfighting is harmful to people, is illegal, and creates a dangerous community.

Curriculum Connections:
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the health risks involved in dogfighting and use evaluation of personal experiences to see that stereotypes and judgments hurt people and animals.

National Standards Addressed:
NPH-H.5-8.3 and NPH-H.9-12.3 – Reducing Health Risks
NPH-H.5-8.4 and NPH-H.9-12.4 – Influences on Health
NL-ENG.K-12.3 – Evaluation Strategies

Materials Needed:
-laminated picture of a Pomeranian
-laminated picture of a Pit Bull
-bell or buzzer
-“Game Show” questions
-Hip Hop for Hounds CD’s for all students (optional)

Lesson Procedure:

Opening:
1) Ask students if they have ever been judged because of their age, clothes, music, etc. Do you think people make judgments about you based on these things? Allow for a brief discussion about appearances and stereotypes.
2) Display the laminated photos of the Pomeranian and the Pit Bull at the front of the classroom.
3) Ask the students to list adjectives that describe each dog. Allow for several adjectives for each dog.
4) Tell the students, “One of these two dogs mauled a 6-week old baby to death in California in 2001. The baby was lying in a bed sleeping and could not threaten the dog physically nor was the child making any noise.”

Ask students to raise their hand for the breed they believe killed the baby.

The dog who killed the baby was the Pomeranian. Tell the students that while Pit Bulls, or any dog, can harm people, it is our job as humans to make sure those injuries do not happen. The best way to do this is by learning how to be safe around dogs and being responsible caretakers of our animals.

Body:
1) Tell the class, “Each dog breed has different qualities. Some are considered to be more aggressive than others. (Messages put out by the media contribute to the stereotype.) The fact is that any dog can be aggressive. Did you know that the Bloodhound, the Bulldog, and the German Shepherd - some of the top working dog breeds in the U.S. - were considered aggressive in the 1800’s and 1900’s? Much of a dogs’ behavior depends on how that dog was treated growing up and how we act around the dog. Let’s play a game to see how much you know about dogs, the law, proper care and safety.”
2) Ask the students to count off by two’s or split into two teams. Two desks should be turned to face the class; these seats are for contestants and should be empty. Place a bell or buzzer on these desks at the front of each team. (If there is an uneven number of students choose one student to keep score.)
3) Read the rules of the game to the class: “I will read a question aloud. The two people who are in the seats at the front of the room and who are representing their team will be trying to earn points by being the first person to buzz in. ONLY people who have the buzzer can talk. If a team member talks and does not have the buzzer points will be deducted from the team score. Additionally, the students with the buzzer must wait until the entire question is read before buzzing in. If you buzz in before the question is read points could be deducted from the team score or the question will be given to the other team.”
4) Question the teams using question worksheet attachment.

Closure:
1) Once every student has had a chance to participate in the game say, “By the end of our unit we will all know the answers to these questions without guessing and we will be able to make our communities safer and more humane.”
2) Ask students to look at the pictures of the Pomeranian and Pit Bull again. Ask which dog mauled the baby? (Answer: Pomeranian) At the beginning of this lesson many of us thought the answer to that question would have been different.
3) Ask students to tell you why stereotypes for dogs or people can be a bad idea. Ask students if they can tell why dogs need to have training. (Students should be able to provide a few answers from the game show and review why judgments and stereotypes are bad.)

Extension:
1) Pass out “Hip Hop for Hounds” CD’s to everyone. This CD is a compilation of songs that were created by people who were against dogfighting. All of the contest entries can be found on the Hip Hop for Hounds MySpace page: myspace.com/hiphopforhounds or at http://www.myflashfetish.com/playlist/8529218.