Heidi Walker's Education Portfolio "The World Is My Family"

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Native American Curriculum Unit   Cultural Diversity and its Basis in Unity   GRADE LEVEL 6 TIME ALLOTTED 4-8 weeks (16 lessons)   GOAL The purpose of the unit is to introduce students to the universals of multi-culturalism. They learn a systematic model for studying other cultures and comparing and contrasting them with their own culture. They truly appreciate that all cultural diversity has its basis in unity.     WHAT I WANT TO ACCOMPLISH - I want to facilitate the students in their growth to be ideal citizens of the Age of Enlightenment, able to be happy, productive and fulfilled themselves and help the world become a "Heaven on Earth".   CONCEPTS AND ORGANIZING GENERALIZATIONS   COMMUNITY/CULTURE/DIVERSITY ADAPTATION/CHANGE ENVIRONMENT/RESOURCES CONFLICT/DISCRIMINATION   MAJOR QUESTIONS STUDENTS WILL WORK TO ANSWER 1. What is a group? 2. What is meant by "culture"? 3. How are we the same? 4. How are we different? 5. How are we affected by the region we live (geography and climate)? 6. How do we affect each other? 7. What do the terms "interdependent" and "independent" mean?   RATIONALE The reason for teaching a unit on cultural diversity and its basis in unity is for students to understand the commonality between cultures, our interconnectedness, even while appreciating all the rich differences and diversity. Students need this understanding in order to be effective world citizens, to be cultured in the idea that "The world is my family" so that everyone works together for the good of the whole, to understand how we all affect each other (including plants and animals, not just people) to act in a responsible caring manner for each other and the environment. One way students learn to do that is by appreciating each others' differences and uniqueness while at the same time noting the things we all have in common.  Students will benefit cognitively and affectively when they read, write, speak and listen in cooperative groups, promoting responsibility, self-reliance, interpersonal skills, and personal worth. As they realize the important of each person to the survival of the group/tribe, personal worth is enhanced and a sense of history crystallizes; they internalize how many "parts" make up the "whole" of one's culture.     UNIT OBJECTIVES   STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND/APPRECIATE Culture consists of shared human experiences We draw from many cultural groups to form our own unique patterns There is diversity within any group, including a cultural group People in the world need one another and depend on one another in many ways Individuals and groups can interact cooperatively for the benefit of all People from diverse groups can learn how to communicate and work effectively with each other to their mutual benefit   STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO COMPARE AND CONTRAST OTHER CULTURES WITH THEIR OWN (AS EXEMPLIFIED IN THEIR OWN COMMUNITY)   STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO WORK COOPERATIVELY IN GROUPS.   CONTENT DESCRIPTION Main curriculum theme - "Cultural Diversity on the Basis of Underlying Unity."   Four Sub themes, 16 lessons:   1. COMMUNITY/CULTURE/DIVERSITY Cultures use a diversity of means to attain similar goals and to satisfy human needs. Individuals become human by learning the culture of their group. An individual's culture strongly influences his or her behavior and values. (4 days) SCI Fundamentals of growth: Creativity, Energy, Intelligence, Rest and Activity.   2. ADAPTATION/CHANGE Culture change takes place when diverse cultures come in contact. Every culture consist of a variety of borrowed cultural elements. Culture is an integrated whole. Changes in one part are reflected in all its components. (4 days) SCI: Vigilance, Purposefulness, Insight, Knowledge.   3. ENVIRONMENT/RESOURCES The physical environment and natural resources of a region affect how people meet their basic needs of food, clothing and shelter. Culture is related to geographic location and to the particular time in which people live. (4 days) SCI: Stability, Adaptability, Resourcefulness, Foresight.   4. CONFLICT/DISCRIMINATION Conflict can result when people from different cultures interact. Groups are often the victims of discrimination and prejudice because of age, gender, racial, religious, or cultural differences. Conflict sometimes leads to social change. (4 days) SCI: Orderliness, Purification, Integration, Happiness.   ACTIVITIES   THEME 1. COMMUNITY/CULTURE/DIVERSITY SCI:Creativity, Energy, Intelligence, Rest and Activity   EXPLORING YOUR COMMUNITY (GRADE 6, 4 CLASS PERIODS) Students will understand the following: A community has an essence, or feel, about it. The essence is the overall impression made by residents, business people, and institutions.   For these lessons, students can choose to do a mural or a video tape, write a letter to a role model, create a community collage.   (ADAPTED FROM SCHOOLDISCOVERY.COM LESSON ON COMMUNITY)   THEME 2. ADAPTATION/CHANGE (Four class periods) SCI: Vigilance, Purposefulness, Insight, Knowledge  For these lessons, students conduct research of foods raised and eaten by early Iowa settlers and Iowa Native Americans and how they are different and the same from our diet. plan (and begin if the season is right) a garden based on their research. Or students could make some gardens raising typical foods eaten by different Native Americans in different geographical locations (See Indian Season in American Schools by Jack Rotherford and Connect Natural Sciences and Cultural Geography through Gardening by Arlene Marturano. Also, GIFTS OF NATIVE AMERICANS TO THE WORLD -FOODS AND POLITICS; GARDENS pp. 23-35)  Their historical research might include oral history, origins of special days, using original source material, birthdays, time lines, and autobiographies: Topic: Diet of early Iowa settlers and Iowa Native Americans. Problem or question to be investigated: What did people eat on a daily basis? Data sources: Interview older people in town, interview grandparents about their typical diet, go to newspaper and look for sample recipes, articles referring to food, Procedures: Students can choose how to collect data about this topic Means of gathering data: Interviews, researching archives. Students might have some sample questions that they would ask while interviewing regarding what foods people routinely grew and ate. Means of processing data: Students could work together to make a chart marking frequency of different foods used. Possible inferences to be made: Students could infer how these eating patterns arose, how people were influenced by the native Americans already in Iowa (if at all).   THEME 3. ENVIRONMENT/RESOURCES SCI: Stability, Adaptability, Resourcefulness, Foresight  (3 CLASS PERIODS)   Students will understand the following: 1. North America includes a vast variety of cultural traditions. 2. Cultural traditions show up in festivals, landscape design and structures, and symbols. 3. Multiple cultures must co-exist, so conflicts must be resolved.   How It Works   The unit's activities focus on Native American "tribes" found in the different geographical regions of the United States:such as the Iroquois, Pueblos, Seminoles and Sioux.  Students will be accessing web sites and gathering information about their tribes.    Students will be working in cooperative groups, doing a different activity daily.    Keywords:  Native Americans of the US, Native American history, Native American cultures, Homes of the Native Americans, Iroquois, Pueblos, Seminoles, Sioux, Native American jewelry, Native American Symbols, Native American stories, Corn And the Native Americans, Native American family living, Native American art   Tips  Review Internet navigation skills with students and how to work in cooperative learning groups. Ask students if any have Native American heritage, perhaps they could share family stories and customs. Investigate if there is a museum with a Native American display and take students on a field trip; see if there are virtual field trips or web quests for students.   North America is made of regions that are very different from each other in terms of climate, geography, animal life, and culture. Students are instructed to find out at least four pieces of information about the weather, land forms, animal life, and culture from each of the major regions in North America and include a Native American culture to study.   Students select a book, either fiction or nonfiction on the native American culture of their choice. They then prepare a book talk which gives a summary of the plot (fiction) or overview of the coverage (nonfiction). They also give an oral reading of a section of the book to give potential readers a feeling for the book. (See Evaluation with Rubric # 1) . THEME 4: CONFLICT/DISCRIMINATION SCI: Orderliness, Purification, Integration, Happiness GRADE LEVEL 6, NATIVE AMERICAN HISTORY, 2-3 CLASS PERIODS Students will study Chief Joseph and other Native American leaders, and create a biography, a time line, or tribal fact book. 1. Students will read about Chief Joseph and understand the following: Chief Joseph was well educated and articulate in English. Chief Joseph tried to break white people's stereotypes about Native Americans. Tell students that you are going to devote a class period to reading the piece of Native American literature included below and analyzing it in a class discussion. Begin by explaining that the piece you will read is from the 19th century but that, unlike so much Native American literature that began orally and later was written down, this piece originated as a written document. Go on to say that the piece was published in a magazine for a white audience in 1879, two years after the writer had surrendered to the U.S. government; that the piece was written by the Nez Perce leader Chief Joseph, whose father had been converted to Christianity by a missionary; and that the son was educated in a mission school. After you've looked over the following excerpt, read it aloud to your students. You may want to read it aloud twice with students taking notes the second time. ((For these lessons, you will need: A copy of an excerpt from the magazine article "An Indian's Views of Indian Affairs"; access to additional reference materials about Chief Joseph.The excerpt is reproduced from Adventures in American Literature [Austin: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1996].) First, ask students to demonstrate their comprehension of Chief Joseph's piece by paraphrasing it based on their notes and memory. Next, initiate a class discussion about how the piece might have surprised listeners because instead of reinforcing stereotypes of Native Americans as wild, uneducated people, it shows a Native American as apparently well educated in the English language and in Christian-like thinking. In continuing to debunk myths about Native Americans, ask students how they imagine Chief Joseph dressed. Then ask students to locate some of the many photographs taken of Chief Joseph and widely available in reference books. (Among the photographers whose images of Joseph have come down to us are William Henry Jackson and John H. Fouch.) How does Joseph's clothes in those photos support or undercut students' initial guesses of what Joseph wore? Draw out from students that Joseph's clothes were appropriate for the climate he lived in and the work he did. 2. Students choose from the following projects: Biography of a Chief -Have students research a Native American leader and then write a biography of the leader, appropriate for a reader in third or fourth grade. Among leaders students might study are Chief Joseph, Little Crow, and Red Cloud. The biography should include information about how the leader related to his tribe and what lasting principles he lived and ruled by. Create a Time Line - Ask your students to make a historical time line showing important events in Native American history from the arrival of white people in the 17th century up to the present day. A Tribal Fact Book - Have your students choose a Native American tribe and make a historical fact book outlining the tribe's history and current status. Students should include information on how the tribe was affected by the encroachment of white settlers and the imposition of federal policies. (This lesson was adapted from one found on schooldiscovery.com on Native Americans)   EVALUATION - See Assessment.     Prairie Unit