Collaborative+Unit+Plan

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**Planning** (Thelma Nelson-Teacher/Melisa O’Rear-Teacher-Librarian)

**Children’s or Young Adult Literature** Claro, Nicole. //The Cherokee Indians//. 1992. New York: Chelsea House Publishers. $20.85 (978-0791016527)
 * **Grade Level** 4th
 * **Content Areas** Reading/Language Arts, Social Studies, Technology
 * **Lesson/Unit Length** 45 min. lesson/ 2 week unit plan
 * **Purpose** The purpose of this lesson is for students to discover the importance of other cultures in their world by learning of the Cherokee people and how this culture shares stories and how those stories relate to their world. In relation to the world of the student, the student will realize how the Cherokee people influenced their world through the questioning process modeled by both educators.
 * **Objectives** Students will research Cherokee Natives of Texas to build background knowledge using notemaking and summarizing to compare the two cultures. Students will complete a graphic organizer and collect notes to produce a digital storytelling project after reading a variety of material including traditional Cherokee legends, myths, and folktales.
 * **Resources, Materials, and Equipment**

Everett, Dianna. //Texas Cherokees: A People Between Two Fights 1819-1840.// 1995. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press. $18.85. (080612296X)

Ross, Gayle. //How Rabbit Tricked Otter and Other Cherokee Trickster Stories.// Illus. by Murv Jacob. 1994. 79p. New York: Harper Collins Publishers. $17.00 (978- 0060212858) Tapper, Suzanne Cloud. The Cherokee: A Proud People. 2005. Berkely Heights, NJ: Enlow Elementary. $17.95 (978-0766024540) For Additional Cherokee Legends & Folktales see http://tellingtales.wikispaces.com/Cherokee+Legends+%26+Folktales

**Other Resources** __DVD:__ //The Trail of Tears: Cherokee Legacy//

__YouTube Videos:__ ====American Indian Culture: //The Cherokee War of East Texas 1839-now//. Nov. 2008. Web July 2010. ====

[]
Two Wolves: An example of digital storytelling []

**Websites** WebQuest – Trail of Tears [] Texas Indians: Texas Cherokee [] Oklahoma Historical Society’s The Chronicles of Oklahoma []

The Cherokee of Early Texas - A link to a resource Wiki page that provides educators with the resources included in this unit plan as well as other sources not included that may be of use to educators and students. The Wiki includes resources from YouTube videos, Websites, and books written about the Native American Cherokee people.
 * Additional Resources**

**Graphic Organizers** Teacher resource: Venn Diagram (Web supplement 3N) Notemaking Graphic Organizer (Web supplement 3J), Text to Self Connection (Web Supplement 3D), and Text to World Connection, Storyboard template Graphic Organizer Host: []

**Materials** Paper/Pencils/Graphic Organizers Student checklist for success [] Teacher assessment tool (Digital Storytelling rubric) **Equipment** Interactive whiteboard Document camera/projector Laptop Computers in lab Headphones with microphones

Educators will work with class. Both educators will divide the class into smaller groups, model the use of a text-self chart and support student learning through the use of digital storytelling. Both educators will provide a class discussion that provides students with a text-to-world connection of how cultures and traditional literature impacts their lives daily. Educators will then assess the final product to provide feedback to students.
 * **Collaboration**

Both educators will assess students' ability to make text-self and text-world connections between their culture and the Native American-Cherokee people. The Venn-diagram will show their ability to compare the two cultures. Students will work in partners/small groups to create a final product using digital storytelling to tell their story using new background knowledge on the Native American-Cherokee people. Students will use student checklist for success to self-evaluate their work. Educators will evaluate students’ final project by using the Digital Storytelling rubric.
 * **Assessment**

**Reading and/or writing** (3) Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Theme and Genre. Students analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about theme and genre in different cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding. Students are expected to: (A) summarize and explain the lesson or message of a work of fiction as its theme; and (B) compare and contrast the adventures or exploits of characters (e.g., the trickster) in traditional and classical literature. (10) Reading/Comprehension of Informational Text/Culture and History. Students analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about the author's purpose in cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding. Students are expected to explain the difference between a stated and an implied purpose for an expository text. (16) Writing/Literary Texts. Students write literary texts to express their ideas and feelings about real or imagined people, events, and ideas. Students are expected to: (A) write imaginative stories that build the plot to a climax and contain details about the characters and setting; (17) Writing. Students write about their own experiences. Students are expected to write about important personal experiences. **Listening and speaking** 27) Listening and Speaking/Listening. Students use comprehension skills to listen attentively to others in formal and informal settings. Students continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to: (A) listen attentively to speakers, ask relevant questions, and make pertinent comments; (29) Listening and Speaking/Teamwork. Students work productively with others in teams. Students continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to participate in teacher- and student-led discussions by posing and answering questions with appropriate detail and by providing suggestions that build upon the ideas of others.  **Other content areas**  **Social Studies**  113.6 (1) History. The student understands the similarities and differences of Native-American groups in Texas and the Western Hemisphere before European exploration. The student is expected to: (A) identify Native-American groups in Texas and the Western Hemisphere before European exploration and describe the regions in which they lived; (13) Economics. The student understands patterns of work and economic activities in Texas. The student is expected to: (C) analyze the effects of immigration, migration, and limited resources on the economic development and growth of Texas; (20) Culture. The student understands the contributions of people of various racial, ethnic, and religious groups to Texas. The student is expected to: (A) identify the similarities and differences within and among selected racial, ethnic, and religious groups in Texas; and (B) identify customs, celebrations, and traditions of various culture groups in Texas; and (C) summarize the contributions of people of various racial, ethnic, and religious groups in the development of Texas. **AASL S4L** Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge. 1.1 Skills: 1.1.2 Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning. 1.1.3 Develop and refine a range of questions to frame the search for new understanding. 1.1.9 Collaborate with others to broaden and deepen understanding. Draw conclusions, make informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations, and create new knowledge. 2.1 Skills: 2.12 Organize knowledge so that it is useful. 2.2 Dispositions in Action: 2.2.4 Demonstrate personal productivity by completing products to express learning. Share knowledge and participate ethically and productively as members of our democratic society. 3.1 Skills: 3.1.4 Use technology and other information tools to organize and display knowledge and understanding in ways that others can view, use, and assess. 3.1.6 Use information and technology ethically and responsibly. **Educational technology** 5) Information acquisition. The student acquires electronic information in a variety of formats, with appropriate supervision. The student is expected to: (A) acquire information including text, audio, video, and graphics 10) Communication. The student formats digital information for appropriate and effective communication. The student is expected to: (A) use font attributes, color, white space, and graphics to ensure that products are appropriate for the defined audience
 * **Standards**

**Implementation** **Motivation** Cues and Questions: Teacher defines the meaning of culture and how the diversity of different cultures adds to a community by way of storytelling through folktales, legends and myths. Teacher asks student to think aloud with a partner about stories they have heard in their culture. Teacher librarian shares readings from //The Texas// Cherokee to give students an opportunity to learn more about the Cherokee culture. Once students have discussed their stories and listened to portions of the book read by the teacher librarian, partners are formed and each student group will select to role-play with their partner, or interview each other about the Cherokee culture. The teacher and teacher-librarian circulate the room and provide support for the activity as needed. **Student-friendly Objectives** 1. Use new background knowledge to understand new text. 2. Record text-to-self comparisons on a chart. 3. Tell, write, or draw a response.
 * **Process**

**Presentation** Main Lesson: Co-taught by teacher and teacher-librarian. Students have obtained background knowledge of Cherokee culture through prior lessons. To motivate students to learn more about the importance of the oral storytelling tradition, and also expand their creativity for the technology piece of the unit, the teacher-librarian shares an oral storytelling from the Cherokee culture. Students then view the YouTube video, introduced by the teacher, featuring another Cherokee story “Two Wolves”, which is presented in digital format. Students discuss the differences in the deliveries of the stories and the effectiveness of each story to the audience. The teacher leads a discussion regarding the connection to the Cherokee culture that is found in the digital images. Both educators will assist student learning through the use of think aloud as they model the use of text-self connection as one educator reviews the story and the other completes the chart on the interactive whiteboard. Jointly, the teacher and teacher-librarian give students a brief instruction on creating a digital storytelling video by modeling the completion of a storyboard template. The teacher-librarian retells her previous story while the teacher records the information on the storyboard. The teacher-librarian follows up with a discussion on the need for students to observe copyright laws while working on their projects. Students are then divided into small groups to begin selecting their folktale, legend or myth for their project. After reading their selection, students will begin working on the storyboard. Teacher and teacher-librarian will provide support and feedback throughout the process. When storyboards are complete, students will meet in the computer lab to produce their final project.

**Student Participation Procedures or Student Practice Procedures** 1. Listen to others while reading. 2. Thank-pair-share feelings and experiences. 3. Tell your ideas.

**Guided Practice** Both educators will monitor students’ ability to select and read text in small groups and gather ideas and record information on storyboard template.

**Closure** Students present their digital storytelling projects to their classmates in the library. Finished projects are then posted on the class Website as part of a blog for members of the student body to add comments or ask questions about the stories, culture, or digital story making process. Digital stories will be shared with community members during a Family Literacy Night hosted by school librarian and classroom teachers. The teacher librarian will invite a special guest- speaker to present during the FLN, a Cherokee Native of Texas, will share the culture of the Cherokee people of the 21st century. **Reflection** Student reflection: Students will write a reflection paper on the results of their checklist and how well their group allowed the voice of others into the ideas of their group. Educator reflection: Jointly, teacher, and teacher-librarian will review and assess the completed project and make necessary adjustments for future collaborative projects.

Students work in small groups and use a Cherokee folktale, legend, or myth and create a reader’s theatre script and share it with other classes in the school as well as the community during a Family Literacy Night hosted by school librarian and classroom teachers. Students will select a task from the “Trail of Tears” WebQuest to use as an extension in learning about the Native American Cherokee people. Students will apply their new knowledge to write an imaginative story using make believe characters or relate a personal experience to that of the Cherokee people.
 * **Extensions** (Moreillon 15)

**__Prior lessons__:** Lesson #1: Taught by classroom teacher prior to the main lesson: Texas history and impact of the Cherokee people coming to Texas during the time of the “civilization movement” by using a drama play: “The Journey to Texas”. Lesson #2: Co-taught by teacher-librarian and teacher includes teacher-librarian (O’Rear) reading: //The Cherokee: A Proud People// by Suzanne Cloud Tapper. Teacher (Nelson) models questioning during reading to engage students in learning. Teacher (Nelson) and teacher-librarian (O’Rear) model using a Venn diagram to compare our cultures to that of the Cherokee. Teacher-librarian leads discussion while teacher charts feedback. Lesson #3 : Co-taught by teacher and teacher-librarian. Students review note making skills, proper use of citations, and evaluation of websites and print material with instruction from the teacher-librarian and teacher as they model each process by exploring websites and print materials featuring Cherokee Natives. Students research the culture using resources provided by the teacher/teacher-librarian and complete notes.

Adapted from: Moreillon, J. //Collaborative strategies for teaching reading comprehension: Maximizing your impact//. Chicago: ALA Editions, 2007.

Collaborative Lesson Planning Form