CSP Lesson Two

LESSON TWO

Introduction

Talking Circle and Drum or Flute music (East point of the Medicine Wheel).

What is the Big Idea for today's discussion?
Storytelling is the art of knowledge.
Review questions from Lesson One.

The task for this lesson is to read a story.
The story has been divided into two sections.

Presentation

Prior to reading: Anticipation Guide Technique (See Appendix A for further explanation).

Present a set of five to ten questions similar to the following to students and
have them formulate an answer:

1. First Nations stories were important to indigenous people

Agree / Disagree

2. First Nations stories were more than just stories

Agree / Disagree

3. First Nations stories instruct people

Agree / Disagree

And so on.

Present the first part of the story to be read.

Students may read individually or in pairs.

As students read have them underline the part that is important to them.

At the end of the first section of the story and ask them to Think Aloud .

In particular, have the students tell you what they see in this story:

The colour of the sky; The size of the rock; The setting; and The mood.

Create a word picture with the students.

Have students tell you what the storyteller is trying to say.
You will be asking them to draw inferences in order to help them make critical
judgements and unique interpretations. For example, have students tell you:

I'm guessing that...

I predict...

It would be better if...

I really liked how...

If I were the main character...

What I didn't like was...

This method will help the students explain connections between prior
knowledge ( Anticipation Guide Technique ) and the experiences they
are having with the Mi'Kmaq legend.

Hot Seat Activity or Character Chair

At this point the students are halfway through the story.

Have one student become the Younger Sister. This person will sit on a chair or stool at the front of the class, summarize the story and answer questions about her life and role in the story.

She has to talk herself into or out of turning over the rock. What decision does she have to make?

The student playing Sister selects three other students to be her advisors for one side of the decision and selects another three students to be her advisors for the opposite side of the question. Weasel Sister then listens to all six people and then says, "What am I going to do?"

The other students may ask questions focused on the decision to be made.

Weasel Sister a decision and announces it to the class.

The students vote on the decision with a hand gesture:

Agree (thumbs up)

Disagree (thumbs down)

Not sure (flat hand)

Students are then asked to complete the reading of the story.

Assessment and Evaluation

Students are to think and reflect on the story. They are to summarize the story and draw conclusions based on using the I READ / I THINK / THEREFORE graphic organizer.

Create an observation checklist to evaluate the engagement of individual students.

Teacher Preparation / Materials / Planning Notes

Develop questions and techniques to go along with the following literacy strategies.

Anticipation Guide Technique

A method by which students are asked to activate prior knowledge to the story we are about to read in order to generate interest. An anticipation guide is a series of statements usually between 5 and 10, to which students must respond individually before reading a certain text. The statements are designed in such a way as to activate thought about particular events, ideas, plots or issues that will be introduced in the text about to be read. Having students engage in these thoughts before reading prepares them to read as more active participants. They get a sense of the major ideas they will encounter in the text and they have an opportunity to reflect and respond to these ideas individually before being influenced by the group.

Prepare five to ten questions.

Think Aloud

This strategy helps students to create a picture in "my mind about what I am reading".
The students will create visual, auditory or other sensory connections that will help deepen understanding. For example, ask students to answer the following types of questions:

I visualized...

I could see (smell, hear, taste)...

I could orally give you answers to any of the following types of statements.

Drawing Inferences

Students will make connections between prior knowledge. They will be able to use this with a variety of appropriate texts in order to share responses, identify key elements of fiction (plot, characterization, setting), mood, descriptive language and common figures of speech (simile, metaphor, personification) in other oral and literacy tests.

Hot Seat (or Character Chair)
Activity Action strategy for deepening comprehension

One student becomes a character from a familiar story. The "character" sits on a chair or stool at the front of the class, summarizes the story and answers questions about her life and role in the story. This can first be done with many types of stories and also with other types of situations found in most subject areas. After the students understand how it works, a second character can be introduced and could appear, one after the other, or at the same time. The characters may have advisors who help them field questioned posed by the classmates in order to provide information on a topic or insight and perspective on a character. This is the way to practice and participate in respectful and purposeful interaction, share and/or consolidate information, present and defend a point of view. This method will help students develop higher order thinking skills, refine questioning skills, demonstrate and share areas of knowledge and expertise and develop listening skills.

I read / I think / therefore strategy

This strategy is used to summarize the story and draw conclusions. Readers/listeners draw conclusions based on the ideas and information they read or heard from one or more sources. Providing a graphic organizer before and after reading helps students to organize their thinking during and after an activity in order to analyze, make references and draw conclusions after reading. The main purposes of this strategy are to actively use prior knowledge and experiences when reading and listening and to read and respond to the important concepts and issues and therefore making inferences and drawing conclusions. Students will develop content and opinions and become thoughtful speakers during whole class and small group discussions.

Essentially, the strategy asks students to think and reflect about something so that they can say what the conclusion is.

Prepare a rubric to evaluate I read / I think / therefore assignment

Prepare an observation checklist for participation, teamwork and engagement.