Culminating Activity: Take a Walk in My Shoes
This is a fun activity that will require students to use their imaginations to create a character of their own, not from experience with a text, but from a physical item. I will collect a wide variety of footwear, different in size, function, and quality. Students will choose a pair of shoes from my collection and write a summary for a day in the life of the person who might be the owner of the shoes. For instance, a pair of men's work-boots will provide for very different experiences than a pair of high heels. Someone who wears a child's flip-flops will have a very different day from someone who wears large soccer cleats. Again, the product may be created using a variety of mediums, including technology and art. If the student is comfortable with the idea, I will take a picture of the student wearing the shoes to add to a display at the completion of the unit.
This unit was designed to be used with a group of fifth- grade Reading Enrichment students. However, it is easily adaptable to other grade levels by varying the literature used. The unit begins with a discussion about change in general but as the unit progresses, this notion becomes more refined and personalized, as the students make connections and empathize with the literary characters encountered. Through discussion and collaboration with their peers, my students will develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for the fictional world and the experiences that literature can provide. At the conclusion of the unit, students will have had significant experience with reading beyond the words presented on the pages and be able to reveal the secret lives of characters.
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