Student Activities
This unit focuses on art and text. The students analyzed the characters’ points of view and distinguished them from their own and from other characters by analyzing the choices made by the characters. Along with this goal, this unit is integrated into the social studies concept of the Native American culture groups of California. Art will be integrated throughout the activities, in the form of storyboard, illustrations, and art activities.
Point of View
Recess Stories
To be able to comprehend the concept of point of view, students will begin with their own recess stories. Students will work in pairs for this activity. They will choose a friend they usually don’t play with at recess. For this activity I will provide them ten-minute free recess time, so as to be able to monitor their activities. Using their collaborative skills, they will decide a recess activity or a game they want to play together.
They will write the account of their recess activity using a first-person and a third-person point of view. For instance, Partner A will write about their recess in first person’s point of view, whereas Partner B will write about their recess in third person’s point of view. They will be encouraged to add their feelings and their thoughts into their anecdotes as well.
They will compare and contrast their stories and analyze how different or alike their thinking process was, using a graphic organizer. This activity provides them a safe environment to practice the understanding of the concept of point of view and what it means to distinguish them from others.
Point of View Stories
After reading a story multiple times, students will rewrite that story in their own words. They will pick their favorite character from the story and rewrite the story from that character’s point of view. For example, after reading the story Coyote and the Pebbles, students will rewrite the story from Coyote’s point of view, Frog’s, or from the Raven’s point of view.
They will extend this activity by distinguishing their point of view from that of the characters. Students will create their own Trickster and write a story where their trickster solves a problem. They will draw their trickster and explain through their story either something that this character created or a problem that it solved. In this activity students will work in their table groups using the “Numbered Heads Together” strategy to come up with a their own trickster character. They will use a Thinking Map to describe what their character might look like and the powers or characteristics that it has and illustrate their trickster.
Habitats
The language-art component is integrated through subject areas like science and social studies through the SEAL model. Though science is not a primary focus of this unit, there can be cross-curricular activities. Students learn about Coyote’s habitat and its adaptation to find more about its relevance as a character worth tricking of gaining a reputation of being wily. While the students create their own trickster, they will also create their habitats or adaptations to match their characteristics in a story.
Write your Own Trickster Tale
Students will write their own stories either with the tricksters they know about or with a trickster they created. They will create a comic or a storyboard first with the help of Kidspiration App on the iPad. These stories will be made into an eBook using the Book Creator application on the iPad. This application also has a voice feature that the students can use to dictate their story into or use it to narrate their story. This way they can reinforce reading skills when they write; they will be able to hear their own voice reading it. This gives the students ownership of their work and a sense of pride in their work.
I hope that with this unit I am able to bring in the values taught through these priceless and timeless folktales that make my students productive and responsible citizens. I hope with this unit, along with helping my students be respectful and responsible, I am able to provide a way for my students to enjoy stories of the indigenous people and explore a world of imagination as well as history.
Comments: