Possum’s Tail - Lesson Plan II

Creating vocabulary slides using PowerPoint. Possum’s Tail from Joseph Bruchac’s book Pushing up the Sky: Seven Native American Plays for Children

DESCRIPTORS

Curriculum Areas: Language Arts, Communications, Culture, Technology

Recommended Levels: Students with reading deficits grades 2-5

Time Frame: This lesson can be adapted depending on group size and level of proficiency with Microsoft PowerPoint. The time frame can be between from several days to a week.

Tribal Affiliation: Muckleshoot

Geographic Location: Muckleshoot Reservation, Auburn, WA

Developed by: Cara Francis

Email addresses of developers: meegat@aol.com

Date lesson was developed: 7/25/01

American Indian Standards:

Standard 5: Read fluently and independently, a variety of materials including those with American Indian themes.

Standard 6: Use a variety of strategies to gain meaning from text.

Standard 8: Locate and use a variety of texts to gain information, for example, historical materials about their tribe, tribal legends and stories and oral history transcription.

Standard 9: Be familiar with children’s literature with Indian themes, especially with that pertaining to the student’s tribe and literature written by Indian authors.

Standard 11: Use different forms of writing to communicate.

Standard 12: Use the conventions of written language with increased accuracy.

INSTRUCTION

Goal: To create learning materials and become self-directed learners; to increase vocabulary and technology skills

Behavioral Objectives: Students will

• Research the meanings of selected vocabulary words
• Create slides using Microsoft PowerPointÔ. The first slide will consist of a selected vocabulary word and several multiple-choice responses. The second slide will display the answer and a good question about how the word relates to a situation or character in the story
• Use self-created materials to increase personal and peer vocabulary

Prior Knowledge Needed:

• Ability to use PowerPointÔ.
• Prior reading of the play “Possum’s tail.”
• Prior viewing of the attached PowerPointÔ presentation
• Completion of Lesson I is highly recommended.

Materials and Resources Needed:

Students should have previously read the play “Possums’ Tail,” from Joseph Bruchac’s book. Targeted reading ability is approximately 2.5-4.0 grade equivalency.

Culture Content and Strategies:

This tale is a traditional Cherokee story. In this lesson reading comprehension practice is presented through the use of a traditional story. Learning through stories has traditionally been an important method of teaching in Native American communities.

Lesson Summary and Performance Tasks:

Students will be directed to choose a word (or several depending on available time).

Students will then create slides using PowerPointÔ. The first slide will consist of a selected vocabulary word and several multiple-choice responses. The second slide will display the answer and a good question about how the word relates to a situation or character in the story. Background colors and other artistic choices can be left up to the student. This can also be done in pairs, with one student supplying the first slide and the other creating the second in “partnership”. See presentation from Lesson I for reference and assessment.

Assessment:

A rubric will be developed based on the examples from Lesson I. Any standards can be added or cut from there. For instance, it could be decided that whether or not a border is present on a slide will not be assessed; however, it could be important that three multiple choices are present.

EXTENSION

Technology Integration:

This lesson provides for student made teaching materials. The finished slides should be inserted into the accompanying PowerPointÔ presentation after the slide displaying the words “Now, it your turn!”

Enrichment/Remediation:

This same exercise could be done using words from any other play in the same book, or any other literature being studied.

Teacher Reflections

To be added by user.