by Francie Kugelman

I have changed the order of the OCR stories for Unit 5, Going West, for two years now, and have found that because of this, both years my students have a deeper appreciation for the plight of the Native American.

Here is the order I used this year:

1. Sacagawea’s Journey

Here is a You Tube student claymation video I just found about Lewis and Clark: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MpZtWFTbRk

I also show the National Geographic film of Lewis and Clark).  There is also a wonderful animated film of Sacagawea that LAUSD has in their video library. It shows the story from Sacagawea’s point of view. I show that and have a point of view handout the students complete.

It makes the students realize how young Sacagawea was and that her husband was not very attractive or desirable. The students have to complete this short handout. So far, point of view has not clicked, so I have to keep working on this.

We watch a short animated film about Sacagawea, and read the story in Open Court entitled, “Sacagawea’s Journey”.  The stories are about the same person, but they are told from two different points of view (or viewpoints). Here is what is on the handout:

A viewpoint is not the same for everybody.

For example, if you owned a restaurant, your viewpoint would be to have lots of customers and earn money. But if you were a guest in a restaurant, your viewpoint might be to have a nice quiet meal that is delicious and not too expensive.

How we see life is strongly affected by our viewpoints, or our point of view.

On a separate piece of paper, write complete sentences to the following questions. Be sure to re-state the question in your response:

1. What is the viewpoint of the animated film?

2. What is the viewpoint of the story?

3. What did your learn from the film that wasn’t explained in the story?

4. How does the point of view of the film effect what you understand about the Native Americans?

5. How does the point of view of the film effect what you understand about the Lewis and Clark expedition?

6. Which story did you like more – the animated film or the story? Explain why.

7. Can you think of other instances where different points of view would produce different stories or interpretations of the same event?

8. What did you learn from the National Geographic film that you didn’t learn from the story in the book or from the animated film?

2. Buffalo Hunt

I have a web hunt students do at home or at school to learn more. I would enjoy if other teachers and students would use this. Filamentality is an amazing way to create your own scavenger hunts on the web. It is free! You just have to visit your web site once a year to renew it. http://www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/huntmrskugmr.html

3. The Coming of the Long Knives

I also read the picture book, Cheyenne Again by Eve Bunting. This story is about the Americanization of a Cheyenne boy, and how the white people showed no respect for the Cheyenne culture.

I then teach my class about the Trail of Tears, using my handouts and the painting. Hopefully the students will comment on how the Native Americans are dressed in white man’s clothing. One point to discuss is that even though the Native Americans adopted the white man’s ways of farming and wore their clothes, they still were kicked off the land.

Regarding the Primary Source document of the Native American chiefs and the Trail of Tears, my students really empathized with the plight of the Native American. I had them contrast what they learned from their social Studies book as compared to what they learned from the Primary Source material. They explained that they really cared about the Native Americans, and felt bad for them after reading the Primary Source material.

When the students ask why we kicked Native Americans off the land, when there was so much land available, I explain the point of view of the white man, and discuss Manifest Destiny. I have not yet found a good way to teach this. My handout is difficult for the students, but I believe it is an important concept.

4. McBroom the Rainmaker

I teach the genre of Tall Tales. The students work in pairs to write our own Tall Tales, and make puppets (paper taped to a skewer). I am sending a Tall Tale handout. I ran out of time this year for puppet theater practice and presentation, so that is why I will move the story up even further. They really enjoy making the characters and writing the story together. I tell them to color both sides of the puppet, so they can move it around. Someone made me a puppet theater using large wooden boxes. (Inner City Arts, Los Angeles)

5. The Journal of Wong Ming-Chung

I also read the picture book, Coolies by Yin.  It provides background information on the Transcontinental Railroad, and how the Chinese immigrants helped to build the railroad.

Regarding teaching the 5-paragraph essay, I use Powerwriting something a friend of mine taught me. We use this throughout the year, and do a lot of oral practice. I was very pleased at the quality of the essays, and saw that many of the students used the codes on their rough drafts. A handout explaining the structure of Powerwriting is attached.

Find additional tips and resources on the Going West Page.

Special thanks to Francie Kugelman for her tips.