Erin Andrus

Unit Plan Narrative Essay

My class is an introduction to business law, which is would be considered a business elective.
The unit is the beginning of the unit where they are learning the fundamentals of ethics and law. The
students at this point have not gotten to the basics of business law and what it means. They are
learning more of an overview of law and what it stands for. They will also learn how ethics impacts
decisions and law. Business law is a tough concept to grasp. There are a lot of vocabulary words that
need to be memorized and then need to be applied to real situations. On top of the vocabulary words,
there are a lot of steps that need to be taken to prove torts, negligence, and rules to follow when
creating contract and wills. Also, there are a lot of complicated processes and rules throughout business
law. With all of those concepts, this level will be meant for upper high school, 11th or 12th grade. Since
this is a business elective it is not meant for one grade. This is also a good course to help students to
think about their futures and discover what they are interested in. This is typically the case for all
business courses in high school. This course is meant to allow students to get a basic understanding for
business law and law in general. The concepts and activities throughout the lesson will test the
students thought and make them think about situations on a more in-depth level. This is better for the
developmental level of high school junior and senior students.
The Enduring Understanding for this unit plan are consequences of unethical behavior effect
business success, there is an ethical and social responsibility of business conduct, and business ethical
practices directly affect reputation and ability to be competitive in the marketplace. The ethics in
business are very important. The ethics effect the decisions they make, the way theyre brand is
portrayed, and their place in the market place in regards to making profit. It is very important that
students understand how ethics impact business. This is why there is a focus on ethics throughout this
unit. This unit is also focused on general law and torts as well. Those are the fundamental of law and

effect business by showing different ways a business can act. However, there are still moral and ethical
decisions that influence when a tort or negligence is committed. So with in the class, bringing torts and
negligence back to business and ethics is important.
The essential questions for the unit plan are how do laws influence business practices, what is
the connection between business and ethics, how does the ethical decisions of a business impact the
community, what are business efforts to increase ethical behavior, and what are some of the important
considerations in maintaining ethical responsibility? These questions focus a lot on ethical decisions
businesses make and how those decisions effect business. The idea behind the Essential Questions are
very similar to the Enduring Understanding, however, this is an important part of business and making
sure businesses maintain a good brand. Throughout the unit plan, both Enduring Understanding and
Essential Questions are discussed and thought about. Each day, students write a journal reflection on a
quote. The point of the reflection is to reflect on the quote and connect how it relates to the object of
the day, EU and ES. Also, the students are doing reflection and discussions throughout the lesson.
During this reflection and discussion, students will be asked to reflect back on the EU and ES. They will
be thinking about how ethics influence the court and intentional torts.
Throughout the lesson, there will be a few learning goals. Looking at the national business
standards, there are not too many standards which effect the amount of learning goals for this unit.
However, there are Common Core 21st Century skills that are met throughout the unit. The major
business learning goal for this unit is to analyze the relationship between ethics and the law,
describe sources of the law, and show the structure of the court system. This is the main
purpose of the unit. Throughout the whole lesson, the students are going back to the idea of
how the laws are effected by ethics. They are also focusing on judicial proceedings and how
ethics influence court decisions. They are going to gain an idea of how ethics influence all
decisions in business and in the law. The important 21 st century standards that are being met

with this unit is communicate and work productively with others, incorporating different perspectives
and cross cultural understanding, and to increase innovation and the quality of work. There will be a
good amount of group work throughout the unit. My teaching still will be rooted around group work
and collaborating with others. Students will gain understanding of the importance of different options
and how that will make an argument stronger. They will grow their skills in group work and be able to
collaborate with others to achieve a common goal.
Throughout the lesson, I use both formative assessments and summative. I will use the
summative assessment at the end of the lesson. I will be doing both a performance assessment and unit
assessment. This will allow the students to formally demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of
the topics and concepts covered in the lesson. The performance based assessment is a class trial on an
ethical case. This will integrated both with the ethical decisions a business will go through and also if a
torts was committed along the way by the company. The trail will focus more on the ethical side of
business but will also, briefly, test their understanding of some torts. However, since that only covers
half the unit, I will also be doing a unit assessment. This will have mostly essay questions and apply what
they learned to cases, as well as an about 25 multiple choice section. This will be more definition and
straight forward than the essay questions on the exam. There will also be a lot of formative
assessments thought out the unit. There is an activity each day to test the students understanding of the
topics covered. However, since they are upper high school students, most classes end in a reflection or
class discussion. These reflection will be more informal and will be formative assessments. Some other
summative assessments will include think, pair, share, jigsaw, round tables, and more. There will also be
two quizzes throughout the unit checking on vocabulary understanding.
Throughout the lesson, differentiation instruction is something I tried to do. There are many
times throughout the lesson that students have the opportunity to work in groups or individually. There
are also lectures mixed in with activities. This will allow different types of students to learn and

understand the materials. Students will also have the opportunity to do different trials. The first time
they will be assigned roles, but the second time they will have the opportunity to pick their position.
Each job is slightly different. This will allow different types of learners to pick the job that best fits them
and their learning style. There will also be a unit test and two quizzes throughout the unit. With the
more formal test and quizzes and the open discussion and reflection, all types of students are able to
learn and understand the materials.
Creating the unit plan has been a very enlightening experience. There is a lot more involved in
creating the unit plan than I expected. Throughout the process, I have gone back and forth between the
different stages. There has been a lot of checks to make sure all the parts are needed and the teaching
level was where it needed to be for the projected student learning level. Also, I thought it was
important to start with Enduring Understanding and Essential Questions. As I went through the pacing
calendar, I kept those questions in mind. I wanted to make sure I was referring back to those questions
so that the students will have an understanding as to how those are related to the unit plan. Although,
both the Enduring Understanding and Essential Questions are crucial to the Unit Plan, there were a
challenge to come up with. I am sure this is something that is developed with experience and time, but it
was a challenge to come up with broad, in-depth questions that where appropriate for the intended
age. Since I picked a material that would be most fitting with older high school students, I had to think
of questions that would be thoughtful and not too easy to understand. Most of the idea I originally
thought of was too simple for this age. As I mentioned before, I think this is something that becomes
less challenging with time and understanding of the students level and needs. The pacing calendar was
a bit of a challenge. I was not really sure where to begin. Although I had a business law binder, it was
not the most helpful. There was not a lot of information on curriculum; it was more of a textbook. Also,
there are many different way to teach material, so it was a struggle for me finding the best way to teach
the material to my students. I wanted the lesson to be interactive and thoughtful. I liked creating 8

lesson, just a little less in-depth. I feel that as a teacher the passing calendar is more of a guideline. I
had a lot of ideas as to how I wanted to teach the lesson and the different activities I do during each
lesson. However, based on how my students learn best and the pass they learn the material, I think the
information is subject to change. This was also something I experienced while at my practicum. Either
way, I believe this was a good experience to go through. I was able to have some experience creating
the unit plan which is something I will need to do as a teacher. I was able to learn a lot from creating
the unit plan.

Unit Title: Business Law

Grade level: 11th Grade
Length of unit: 3 weeks
Stage 1 Desired Results
Meaning
Enduring Understandings/Generalizations:

Essential Questions:

There is an ethical and social responsibility of business

conduct.

How are ethical decision made?

What is the relationship between business and ethics?

Business ethical practices directly affect reputation and

ability to be competitive in the marketplace

How does the ethical decisions of a business impact the

community?

Consequences of unethical behavior effect business

success.

What are business efforts to increase ethical behavior?

What are some of important considerations in maintaining

ethical responsibility?

Knowledge & Skills Acquisition

Learning Goals: (e.g., Iowa/Common Core standards.)
National Business Standards https://www.nbea.org/index.html

I. Basics of the Law

Achievement Standard: Analyze the relationship between ethics and the law and descri be sources of the law, the structure of the court system,
different classifications of procedural law, and different classifications of substantive law.
II. Contract Law, Law of Sales, and Consumer Law
Achievement Standard: Analyze the relationships between contract law, law of sales, and consumer law.
III. Agency and Employment
Achievement Standard: Analyze the role and importance of agency law, and employment law as they relate to the conduct of business in the
national marketplaces.
Iowa common core - 21 st Century Skills:

SS.912.PSCL.6
-

Understand the purposes and functions of law.

SS.9-12.PSCL.1
-

Understand ways citizens participate in the political process at local, state, and national levels.

21.912.ES.1
Essential Concept and/or Skill: Communicate and work productively with others, incorporating different perspectives and cross
cultural understanding, to increase innovation and the quality of work
-

Use all the appropriate principles of communication effectively

Agree to disagree in a respectful manner in a group dynamic

Use different perspectives to increase innovation and the quality of work

Students will know

Students will be able to

- Fundamental business law concepts.

o Torts
o Negligence
o Strict liabilities
o Product Liabilities
- The different type of business ethics and how they
affect business decisions.
o Formalism
o Deontology
o Ethical fundamentalism
o Utilitarianism
The court structure and trail proceeding.
How torts, negligence, strict liabilities effect business
decision and ethics.
How to logically think through ethical decisions
The difference between torts and crimes.

Resources/Materials:
Notecards: for students to do vocabulary words
Articles/web access
Access to New York Times
Access to Wall Street Journal
Access to USA Today
o Cases
New York Times Co vs. Sullivan
Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company vs. Sawyer

Explain how ethics effect business decisions.

Understand how the court stricter and how it rules on
business cases.
Differentiate between contract law, law of sale and
consumer law. Also, seeing the relationship on how
they all connect and effect each other.
Apply the code of ethics to various issues confronted
by businesses.
Analyze the nature of ethical character traits.
Critically examine how the law relates to ethics.
Describe how to resolve ethical and legal conflicts.
Interpret the nature of tort law
Understand the elements of negligence and strict
liability.
Able to identify the loop holes in tort, negligence,
strict liabilities and product liabilities.

 Miranda vs. Arizona

United States vs. Windsor
National Federation of Independent Business vs. Sebelius
Texas vs. Johnson
o PowerPoint and projector
o Business Journals
o White boards

Types of assessment: Selected-Response (tests, quizzes); Personal Communication (interview, oral exam,
discussion); Written Response (short constructed response questions, entrance/exit slips, essays); Performance
Assessment (role-play, Simulation, labs, dramatization)
Pre-assessment:
Double-bubble map: Have student write as much as they know about business laws and their thoughts on morals. Students
will be comparing differences and similarities between the two. This will be used to help assess what the students know and
will be referred to throughout the unit. Will do another double-map mid-way though to check for growth and learning.

Formative Assessment:
Double-bubble map
between business law and ethics
- intentional torts, ethics, and business law

Roundtable: discussion after the (first) trail in class. Bring back the idea of business and ethics.
Jigsaw of strict Liabilities and Product Liabilities. Will also be giving presentations.
Think Pair- Share: Criminal law and how to properly handle the situation including the ethics involved with make trail

decisions.
Graffiti: What negligence means.

Make and defend: Given an ethical dilemma and defending personal ideas on how to handle the situation.
Vocabulary quizzes (two): one on ethics and one on torts and negligence
Scaffold classroom trial (performance based): the understanding of the court process and trail proceedings.
Class discussions:
- On the best ethical decisions
- trots, ethics, and business
- Negligence
Reflection
- Intentional torts.

Summative Assessment:
Student trial: Students will each be a part in a trail that is focused on moral decisions with in business. There will be two
different sides: the defendant and plaintiff. There will be a layer for each side and a help group. There will also be a jury for
the rest of the class. Each side will have to present a case using different laws and terms. Overall, there will be a moral
issue at hand that will need to be settled.

Unit Exam: There are a lot of terms that will be presented throughout the lesson. There will be a test on the exam and
application of the term in different scenarios. The exam will be focused more on understanding torts.

B-Law Unit Calendar (45 min classes)

Monday

Tuesday

1
Ethics
Opening activity: Journal
with a quote and what
that means based on the
objectives of the day.
Pre-assessment: Doublebubble map: people are
going to compare ethics
and business. To be turned
in at the end of class.
Lecture (PPT)
-

Go over the
different forms of
ethics: Formalism,
deontology,
ethical
fundamentalism,
utilitarianism.
Go over the 5 step
process to
discussion morals.

Make and Defend

-

Students will be put

into groups. In their

Wednesday

Thursday

Court System/Trial
Procedures

Court System/Trial
Procedures

Opening activity Journal

with a quote. Relate back
to the objectives of the
day/EQ/EU.

Opening activity Journal

with a quote. Relate back
to the objectives of the
day/EQ/EU.

Begin a two day trail:

Round tables:
- The students will be able
to lead the discussion
however, I will have
prompting questions such
as:

New York Times Co. vs.

Sullivan

Each person will be

randomly assigned
a position as they
enter the room.
There will be a
step-by-step guide
to help with the
trial and
understanding
how the process
works.

How does the

court process
ensure justice for
all?
How do laws
influence business
practices?
What is the
connection between
business and ethics?

Friday

Criminal Law

Intentional tort

Opening activity Journal

with a quote. Relate back
to the objectives of the
day/EQ/EU.

Opening activity Journal

with a quote. Relate back
to the objectives of the
day/EQ/EU.

Lecture (PPT)

Lecture (PPT):

State vs. Federal

crimes

What is a tort/
intentional torts

Defenses to
criminal liability

Tort vs. crime

Crimes against
people

Crimes against
property

Think/Pair/Share:
-

There will be two

different cases the
students will be
looking at. They
will have to make
decisions on the
cases. They will
also need to
explain what

Double-bubble-map:

Students will do a
double-bubblemap to see the
connection
between business,
trots, and ethics.
They will then
present their
information to a
group and turn in
the group doublebubble-map at the
end of class.

groups, they will be

given a business
ethical dilemma.
They will need to
choose a side then
come up with an
argument as to
why they choose
that side. One
member of the
group will present
their argument to
the class (while
having a second
dilemma if
needed).

How does the ethical

decisions of a
business impact the
community?

What are business

efforts to increase
ethical behavior?

What are some of

important
considerations in
maintaining ethical
responsibility?

ethical decisions
were made.
Quiz: Ethics

Different cases,
what the ethics
were and how it
was handled in
court.

Intentional tort

Negligence

Opening activity Journal

with a quote. Relate back
to the objectives of the
day/EQ/EU.

Opening activity Journal

with a quote. Relate back
to the objectives of the
day/EQ/EU.

Lecture (PPT):
-

Different torts:
battery, assault,
transfer intent,
defense of
property, false
imprisonment,
emotional distress,
defamation,
disparagement,
invasion of privacy,
appropriation,
intrusion, and
public disclosure of
private facts.

Find article in the news

and write a short reflection
on the article. Due at the
end of class. The summary
must include:
-

Describe the injury

and how it
occurred

What actions
happened after
the injury

What tort(s) were

violated?

How was the issue

resolved?

What where the

ethics that effect

Strict Liabilities/ Product

Liabilities

Strict Liabilities/Product
Liabilities

Graffiti Negligence

Opening activity Journal

with a quote. Relate back
to the objectives of the
day/EQ/EU.

Opening activity Journal

with a quote. Relate back
to the objectives of the
day/EQ/EU.

Lecture (PPT):

Jigsaw:

Present information to the

other group. Each group
will present their
information to one of the
group.

Three step process

to proving
negligence

Rotations around the room

with cases

Need to show the

steps to proving a
case is or is not
negligent.

Ticket out:

Reflection on one
of the cases.

Was it negligence,
what torts were
involved, how/why
does this happen
in a business
setting, what are
ways to prevent it,
how did the
decision effect the
business and their
ethics.

The class will be

split up into two
groups. Each
group will either
get strict liabilities
or product
liabilities. They will
have to create a
short presentation
to teach the other
group. They will
use their book, the
web, and a
packet of
information
provided by me.

Students will need

to ask at least two
question to the
presenters. Each
group will pick one
question to be
brought to the
class for a class
discussion.

Trial roles preferences are

due.

10
Work day
Quiz: over criminal law,
intentional torts, and
negligence.
Students will get their
placements and start
working on collecting
information and creating
their argument.

the business
decision and
choice that was
made.

11

12

Work Day

Work Day

Students are working

with their groups to
gather facts and create
an argument.

Students are working

with their groups to
gather facts and create
an argument. Lawyers
will have the chance to
meet and compare
cases.

Jury members are

reviewing the different
torts and laws and go
through screen out
process.

16

13
Trial
Students will come into
a different designed
room. They will start
right away.

14

15

Exam Review

Test

Jeopardy game to
review concepts and
vocabulary.

25 multiple choice and

5 essay response
questions.

Jury members are

reviewing the different
torts and laws and go
through screen out
process.
17

18

19

20

Class Trial
As a class we will be performing a trial. For this trial, there will be a plaintiff and a defendant. Both the
defendant and the plaintiff will have a lawyer and a team of four to help gather facts. There will also be
one expert witness. The case will be on trial in front of a jury, which will be portrayed by the rest of the
class. The teacher will be representing the judge. Each position will have a set of rules and task they
need to complete, which are outlined below. Each position will have three days to prepare their
argument and get familiar with the case. Both sides will present an opening argument, a rebuttal, and a
closing argument. After all of this, the jury will listen, ask questions, and come to a conclusion.
Please note: the only people that will have access to the initial case is the defendant, the plaintiff, and
the expert witness. Each side will need to listen the information the plaintiff and defendant are sharing
and come up with an argument.
Position descriptions:
Jury: determines the facts in a case, primarily through their acceptance or rejection of the testimony
offered by various witnesses for both sides. Each jury member will ask one question to better
understand the case. The question must be related to the materials covered in class.
Plaintiff: Provide the information to what happened and have examples of torts that where violated
(with explanation) by the actions of the defendant.
Defendant: Provide the information of what happened. Be willing to help provided reasons why no torts
where violated.
Plaintiff Lawyer: Will address the jury, present the arguments, and question witnesses in order to
convince the jury of the defendant's guilt.
Defendant Lawyer: Will address the jury, present the arguments, and question witnesses in order to
convince the jury of the defendants not guilty
Fact checkers: Help the lawyers gather all the facts needed and help to understand the laws in place.
Expert Witness: Will know the specific facts in the case and use their specialized knowledge to help the
jury understand complex evidence.
Things to NOTE:
The Jury will be individually graded and the other positions will be based on a group grade.
At the end of the trial each jury member will be asked to complete a written reflection as to why the
voted the way they did. Using factual evidence from the trail and stating the laws that are in place that
helped persuade them to vote one way or another.
You will be ranking the top two positions you would like by Thursday and you will know your position on
Friday. The trail will happen on Wednesday.
Please view rubric for more information.

The Case:
H. B. Fuller Co. of St. Paul is a leading manufacturer of industrial glues. Its mission
statement says the company will conduct business legally and ethically. It
donates 5 percent of its profits to charity. Now, it is the subject of numerous
media reports pointing out the alternative uses of its shoemakers glue, Resistol, in
many South American countries. Many homeless children in these countries have
become addicted to Resistols fumes and buy it just for the cheap high. The
problem is so widespread that glue-sniffers in these countries are called
resistoleros. Resistol glue manufacturers in Europe have added a foul-smelling
oil to their glue that discourages abusers. Fuller fears that the smell may also
discourage legitimate users.
Plantiff: South American Representative - For making children high
Defense: Fuller (keep in mind he still want to have a business and make a profit)

Rubric for Lawyers/fact checkers/ defendant/plaintiff/expert witness:

4

Respect for
Other Team

All statements, body

language, and
responses were
respectful and
appropriate
language was used.

Statements and
responses were
respectful and used
appropriate
language, but once
or twice body
language was not.

Most statements and

responses were
respectful and in
appropriate
language, but there
was one sarcastic
remark.

Statements,
responses and/or
body language were
consistently not
respectful.

Information

All information
presented in the
debate was clear,
accurate, and
thorough.

Most information
presented in the
debate was clear,
accurate and
thorough.

Most information
presented in the
debate was clear
and accurate, but
was not usually
thorough.

Information had
several inaccuracies
OR was usually not
clear.

Rebuttal

All counterarguments were

accurate, relevant,
and strong.

Most counterarguments were

accurate, relevant,
and strong.

Most counterCounter-arguments
arguments were
were not accurate
accurate and
and/or relevant
relevant, but several
were weak.

Use of
Facts/Statistics

Every major point

was well supported
with several relevant
facts, statistics,
and/or examples.

Every major point

was adequately
supported with
relevant facts,
statistics, and/or
examples.

Every major point

Every point was not
was supported with supported.
facts, statistics
and/or examples, but
the relevance of
some was
questionable.

Organization

All arguments were

clearly tied to an
idea (premise) and
organized in a tight,
logical fashion.

Most arguments
were clearly tied to
an idea (premise)
and organized in a
tight, logical fashion.

All arguments were Arguments were not

clearly tied to an
clearly tied to an idea
idea (premise) but
(premise).
the organization was
sometimes not clear
or logical.

Understanding
of Topic

The team clearly

understood the topic
in-depth and
presented their
information forcefully
and convincingly.

The team clearly

understood the topic
in-depth and
presented their
information with
ease.

The team seemed to

understand the main
points of the topic
and presented those
with ease.

CATEGORY

The team did not

show an adequate
understanding of the
topic.

Jury Paper Rubric

4

Evidence of
Persuasion

Maintains a clear
position
throughout the
entire paper.
Opposing view
mentioned and
then refuted,
making case
stronger.

Maintains a clear
position
throughout the
entire paper.
Opposing view not
mentioned or
mentioned but not
well refuted.

Moves from one

side to the other,
never maintaining
a solid position.

Does not establish

a clear position.

Evidence of
Supporting
Research

Uses evidence
from the book
frequently as well
as research from
outside sources
related to the
theme/crime to
strengthen the
arguments.

Uses evidence
from the book and
outside sources
related to
theme/crime to
sufficiently
supports argument

Uses evidence
from the book or
outside sources
occasionally
and/or without
clear relationship
to arguments.

Does not show any

evidence of
research.

Organization

Introduction sets
up the issues and
states position.
Body paragraphs
each contain one
clear argument
relating to the
position as well as
evidence to
support the
argument.
Conclusion
summarizes and
convinces readers
to believe writers
position.

Introduction
clearly states a
position. Body
paragraphs each
contain an
argument
supporting the
main position with
some evidence to
support the
argument.
Conclusion
summarizes main
points.

Introduction
mentions main
issue, but doesnt
take a clear
position. Body
paragraphs are
not focused on
support for one
argument and/or
they do not
present adequate
evidence.
Conclusion missing
or a repeat of the
introduction.

No distinction
between
introduction, body,
and conclusion.

Composition

Uses a variety of
sentence
structures and
lengths. Word
choice strengthens
the arguments.
Rare errors in
spelling and
punctuation.

Uses some variety

in sentence
structure and
length. Word
choice is
appropriate for the
assignment.
Occasional errors
in punctuation and
spelling.

Uses little
sentence variety
or poor sentence
structure Word
choice neither
enhances nor
takes away from
purpose of
assignment.
Frequent errors in
spelling and
punctuation.

Includes frequent
run-on and
fragmented
sentences,
frequent spelling
and punctuation
errors, and
inappropriate word
choice that does
not convey
meaning.

Interprets and
presents examples
from the text that
clearly demonstrate
their relationship to
the main points of
the argument.

Interprets and
presents examples
from text that
show a
relationship to the
main points of the
argument.

Presents examples
from the text that
author loosely
connects to the
main points of the
argument.

No examples from
selection used.

Comprehension
of Literary
Selection