Inside and Out
Inside and Out:
A Third and Fourth Grade Integrated Unit on Culture for a Hawai’ian Classroom
Caitlin McDermott
Vanderbilt University
2008
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Inside and Out
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Table of Contents
Abstract ...………………………………………………………………………………....3
Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………….5
Learners and Learning ……………………………………………………………............6
Learning Environment ……………………………………………………………………8
Curriculum and Instructional Strategies ………………………………………………...10
Assessment ………………………………………………………………………………21
Conclusion ………………………………………………………………………………22
Lesson Plan 1: Describing Cultural Identity …………………………………………….24
Lesson Plan 2: Mirror Creation ………………………………………………………….25
Lesson Plan 3: Cultural Identity Autobiography ………………………………………..27
Lesson Plan 4: Culture Shares—Round 1 ……………………………………………….29
Lesson Plan 5: Country Map and Window Creation ……………………………………30
Lesson Plan 6: Country Research and Window Completion ……………………………32
Lesson 7: Culture Shares—Round 2 …………………………………………………….36
Appendix to Lesson Plans ……………………………………………………………….37
References ……………………………………………………………………………….43
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Abstract
Hawai’i is a culturally and ethnically diverse state, with the 2006 U.S. Census reporting
the state’s demographics as 40% Asian, 9.1 % Native Hawai’ian, 19.4% multiracial,
7.8% Hispanic or Latino origin, 24.7% white, and 2.5% black. The students in Hawai’i’s
public schools live and work together everyday in such diverse conditions. The purpose
of this project is to use research in the areas of learners and learning, learning
environment, curriculum and instructional strategies, and assessment to create a third and
fourth grade integrated social studies and language arts unit on culture for a Hawai’ian
classroom. The research discovered in each area provides guidance to the construction of
the unit. In the learners and learning category, Hawai’ian students’ culture and ethnicity
are identified and current and former Hawai’i public school teachers provide insights into
their lives. The human relations approach is described in the research in the learning
environment category. The curriculum and instructional strategies category is divided
into multicultural education curriculum, language arts curriculum, and social studies
curriculum.
The multicultural education curriculum section discusses Emily Style’s
window and mirror concept, the language arts curriculum section details Nancie Atwell’s
writing and reading workshops, and the social studies curriculum section focuses on
Tarry Lindquist’s curriculum planning disk and Windows on the World unit. In the
assessment category, Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe’s approach to unit planning is
reviewed with an emphasis on how to evidence student learning. The research helped
generate a unit plan that explores children’s own cultural identities, the cultural identities
of their peers, and the cultural identities of people in different countries. The first half of
the unit focuses on children’s reflection, or mirror, in the curriculum. They identify their
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cultural identities, create mirrors as artistic expressions of these identities, and further
explain their cultural identities in a short autobiography that they paste inside their
mirrors. The children share their cultures with one another and discuss the similarities
and differences in one another’s mirrors. The second half of the project engages students
to think more about similarities and differences in culture. Students choose countries to
study and create windows on those countries through maps, informational data boxes, and
research papers. Students share their countries’ cultures with their classmates and reflect
on the similarities between those countries’ cultures and their own cultural identities.
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Inside and Out:
A Third and Fourth Grade Integrated Unit on Culture for a Hawai’ian Classroom
Introduction
The state of Hawai’i is a culturally and ethnically diverse setting. The U.S.
Census Bureau (2006) establishes the state’s 2006 demographics as 40% Asian, 9.1%
Native Hawaiian, 19.4% multiracial, 7.8% Hispanic or Latino origin, 24.7% white, and
2.5% black. Since I plan to begin my teaching career in a Hawai’ian public school, I
determined to research and write for my Capstone Project a third and fourth grade
integrated curriculum unit on culture for a diverse classroom. I chose an integrated
curriculum unit, because, as Lindquist and Selwyn (2000) stress in their book, Social
Studies at the Center, in an integrated curriculum, one in which social studies is the
center of all learning, meaning and comprehension are considered the most important
consideration (p. 1). The resulting product may be adapted for use in many different
classrooms, but it is based on the learners and curriculum standards in Hawaiian schools.
The following sections are my findings in the literature on multicultural and
Hawai’ian education. They are organized into four categories: Learners and Learning,
Learning Environment, Curriculum and Instructional Strategies, and Assessment. The
Learners and Learning section addresses both the identities of Hawai’ian students and
how all students understand their cultural heritage. The Learning Environment section
concentrates on the human relations approach to multicultural education and culturally
responsive classrooms.
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The Curriculum and Instructional Strategies section is divided into three parts:
multicultural education curriculum, social studies curriculum, and language arts
curriculum. The multicultural education curriculum segment discusses Emily Style’s
window and mirror approach to curriculum, culturally relevant teaching, and strategies to
teach children about other cultures. The language arts segment focuses on thoughtful and
authentic literacy, supported by Nancie Atwell’s reading and writing workshop
approaches. The social studies curriculum segment details Tarry Lindquist’s curriculum
disk planning and “Windows on the World” unit.
Assessment, the final section,
addresses Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe’s approach to assessment.
Bearing this research in mind, I created a unit that addresses the needs of
multicultural students in Hawai’i. The first half of the unit focuses on the unique cultures
of the individuals in the classroom and fosters an appreciation for their peers’ home
culture. The second half of the unit engages students to learn about different world
cultures and asks them to seek out both similarities and differences in their own culture
and a different world culture. An appendix to the lessons shows how the lessons attend
to my findings in my research.
Learners and Learning
As mentioned in the introduction, the residents of Hawai’i are incredibly diverse.
Yet, according to Linda Giles, a former Honolulu public school teacher, Hawai’ian
students do not distinguish themselves by different cultures. They are all simply “local”.
She noted that a unit on culture should focus on asking the students, “Who are you?” The
children’s home lives are usually a fusion of different cultures, and therefore a teacher
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should ask a child to relate the culture of his or her home life in such a unit, rather than
detail a particular ethnic culture (L. Giles, personal communication, August 7, 2008).
Giles’ assertion that Hawai’ian students are generally not of one ethnic or cultural
background is supported by Elly Tepper (1992), a fourth grade teacher in a rural area on
Oahu’s north windward shore (p. 1).
Tepper states that about eighty percent of
Hawai’ian students are at least part Hawaiian, and that these students are able to list off
their “parts”:
“’I’m part Hawai’ian, part Filipino, part Chinese, part Japanese, part
Portuguese, part Irish, part Tongan, part Tahitian…’” (p. 1).
From Giles’ experience, various schools in Hawai’i educate children about
Hawai’ian language, music, dance, and arts and crafts (L. Giles, personal communication,
August 7, 2008).
Thus, the emphasis in the different Hawai’ian schools is on the
similarities of the students through teaching children what it means to be Hawai’ian,
rather than on the differences of the students through teaching what it means to be
multicultural.
When it comes to American students in general, some students find that their
cultural roots are hidden, and generations of adjustment and adaptation have dulled their
knowledge of their origins (Lynch, 1998b, p. 24). They may view themselves as the
result of the American culture without any reference to an ethnic, cultural, or global
background (p. 24).
In fact, European-American (white) students often do not see
themselves as having any cultural identity (Dilg, 2003, p. 62). They see themselves as
normal due to their membership in the majority population, and view people of different
colors as being different as a result of their membership in the minority populations (p.
62). The problem with this thinking is that European-American students do have a
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cultural background in the culture of the majority population. Their “normal” life is their
cultural background.
Furthermore, students who come from more than one cultural background
struggle as they are pulled in more than one direction in an effort to express their cultural
identities (p. 65). These students also tussle with the fact that many people want them to
portray themselves in such a way that rejects part of their cultural identities (p. 65). In
school, students construct their identities through the reflections of themselves in the
eyes, words, and gestures of their peers (p. 67).
Therefore, the students in Hawai’i, while belonging to many different cultural
backgrounds, struggle with the mixed messages of being a “local” Hawai’ian only, being
a member of several races as evidenced in their multiple “parts”, and, for EuropeanAmerican students, being of no cultural heritage whatsoever.
Learning Environment
In any setting, the possible outcomes for diversity amongst individuals are either
positive or negative.
David W. Johnson and Roger T. Johnson’s (1994) state in
“Cooperative Learning in the Culturally Diverse Classroom”, that the outcomes depend
on whether or not the diverse individuals interact with one another and how “social
interdependence is structured within the situation” (1994, p. 57).
Therefore, in the
classroom, it is the teacher’s responsibility to structure social interaction and reciprocal
relationships amongst the students so that they experience a positive multicultural setting.
This can be done in a culturally responsive classroom. Carl Grant and Maureen
Gillette (2006) state in their book, Learning to Teach Everyone’s Children: Equity,
Empowerment, and Education That is Multicultural, that a culturally responsive
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classroom is one in which both the teacher and the student endeavor to create a
considerate social-emotional environment that attends to the individual and group needs
of all members in the learning community (p. 179). It is a classroom in which students
believe, “’I count, I care, and I can’” (p. 181). While the teacher is still responsible for
providing the structure of the classroom, both the teacher and the students need to work
together to create a classroom environment in which all students are valued for their
unique qualities.
How does a teacher create such an environment? Educators often have five
approaches to multicultural education: the teaching the exceptional and culturally
different approach, the human relations approach, the single-group studies approach, the
multicultural education approach, and multicultural social justice education (Grant &
Sleeter, 2007, p. 67-73). The human relations approach will be used for the purposes of
this project.
The human relations approach believes the goal of school is to encourage students
to learn how to live together in harmony and to promote social equality by urging
students to respect one another regardless of race, class, gender, or disability (p. 68). The
objective of the approach is to endorse unity, tolerance, and acceptance among people.
The human relations approach causes positive feelings among all students, encourages
group identity and pride, reduces stereotypes, and strives to remove prejudice and bias (p.
68).
In the human relations approach curriculum, students address differences and
similarities through contributions of the groups of which students are members and
accurate information about different ethnic, cultural, racial, ability, gender, and social-
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Instruction includes cooperative learning, role playing, and
simulated or authentic experiences (p. 68). These experiences enable students to develop
an appreciation for other peoples’ backgrounds and lives (p. 68).
Human relations
approach advocates believe that this approach should be comprehensive, integrated into
several content areas, and implemented schoolwide (p. 68). Therefore, in the human
relations approach, not only are teachers and students striving to create a positive
multicultural experience, they are seeking to learn more about one another through
inclusive and integrated learning activities.
Curriculum and Instructional Strategies
Multicultural Education Curriculum
An important piece of research discovered for this project is Emily Style’s article,
“Curriculum as Window & Mirror”.
Emily Style (1988) states that a classroom’s
curriculum should be both a window and a mirror for students. The mirror reflects the
students’ image and reality back to them, and the window shows them a multicultural
world and the realities of others (para. 7). This window and mirror curriculum gives
children various frames of reference about what they are learning in the classroom (para.
7). Even more wonderful than providing students with various frames of reference is the
fact that oftentimes when students look through a window into another’s reality, they see
their own image “reflected in the glass” and the “window becomes a mirror” (para. 9).
Thus, students see themselves as sharing in the humanity of our world’s cultures.
Style says that, as a culture, Americans are uncomfortable with differences and
therefore focus on the similarities in diverse people (para. 26). She emphasizes that being
color-blind in the classroom does more harm than good, as it does not serve all students
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effectively (para. 26). Rather, a balanced education should validate through the public
setting of the school both the experiences of the students in mirrors and the experiences
of others in windows (para. 39).
Furthermore, the curriculum should provide
understanding of both self and others, as well as “clarification of the known and
illumination of the unknown” (para. 38). In a window and mirror curriculum, students
are able to explicate who they are and discover who others are in the context of their life
situation. In short, they become more culturally aware of themselves and others.
Jocelyn Glazier and Jung-A Seo (2005) documented how one teacher, “Julie”,
integrated mirrors into her classroom. She had her students create posters with their
names on them. Below their names, the students created collages of magazine cut-outs
and images they felt represented their identities (p. 691). The students were also given
opportunities to give presentations about their backgrounds and bring in and discuss
items from their culture (p. 691). This supports Jacklyn Blake Clayton’s (2003) claim
that we can only understand others once we understand ourselves (p. 177). Clayton states
that being aware of our own cultural practices enables us to accommodate those with
different cultural practices (p. 177). This means that in a curriculum unit on culture, it is
important for students to first learn and understand themselves before they move on to
discovering other world cultures.
Elly Tepper (1992), the fourth grade teacher introduced in the Learners and
Learning section, writes that she weaves different cultures throughout the school-year
curriculum via “culture-sharings” (p. 14). These culture-shares provide windows for
students in her classroom. Cultural representatives visit her classroom to share about
their culture. Each representative follows the same outline in his or her presentation.
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They talk about clothing, games, holidays, celebrations, songs, dances, a few words from
their language, special activities, special foods he or she ate, and important lessons taught
to him or her by his or her family (p. 14). At these culture-shares, food is always shared,
because, as Tepper states, the “taste of a culture is one of its most memorable attributes”
(p. 14).
Another way Tepper shares culture in her classroom is through a project which
calls for Tepper’s students to write and publish their families’ oral histories and stories
into a compilation titled Nā Mo’olelo o Ko Mākou ‘Ohana, the Stories of Our Families.
Each year, her class has a publication party where each author reads his or her family’s
story. His or her fellow students applaud and congratulate the student after the reading.
This activity provides both a mirror and a window for students in Tepper’s class, since
the children’s identities are both reflected back to them in their stories and are offered for
their peers to view through a window via their readings of their stories.
A writing activity similar to Tepper’s writing-publishing project is Marietta
Saravia-Shore and Eugene Garcia (1995) suggestion to have students interview their
parents about what their lives were like as children. Specifically, students may ask their
parents about stories they remember, favorite poems, and family recipes (p. 53). When
the students are finished interviewing their parents, they publish the results of their
interviews in booklets that become reading materials for the class (p. 53).
To create windows in the classroom, it is important for students to learn about
other cultures. Eleanor W. Lynch (1998a) states that the four most effective ways to
learn about other cultures are: 1) through information gained in books, the arts, and
technology; 2) through talking and working with people from another culture who act as
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cultural guides or moderators; 3) through experiencing the daily life; and 4) through
learning the language (p. 55).
Although reading alone is not enough, Lynch says that this may be the best place
to start in learning about a different culture (p.55-6). Readings may include history,
geography, poetry, biographies, and fiction (p. 56).
Books, plays, poems and
performances by people from the culture provide an insider’s perspective on the culture
that is generally not available to those living on the outside of the culture (p. 56). These
media enable students to build reading backgrounds in addition to the added benefit of
exploring different cultures and numerous aspects of their own identities (Dilg, 2003, p.
83).
The other feasible method of learning about different cultures in the classroom is
through discussion and interpersonal sharing with members of another culture (Lynch,
1998a, p. 56). Friends, colleagues, and neighbors, as well as the teacher and the students
themselves, may all act as cultural guides for the rest of the class (p. 56).
The
discussions that the guides provide, as well as the aforementioned media, enable students
to learn how to handle identity-related challenges and how to cross cultural borders (Dilg,
2003, p. 84). They also provide writing opportunities for students to research, describe,
or analyze different cultures or their emerging cultural identities (p. 84).
Style’s window and mirror curriculum provides a rich environment in which
learning activities enable students to connect themselves into the classroom and learn
about where they stand in relation to themselves and others. The learning activities
provided in this section show how teachers, students, and community members act as
cultural guides for students’ developing understanding of the world.
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Language Arts Curriculum
In a language arts curriculum, the most important issue a teacher should stress is
comprehension and understanding over coverage and decoding skills.
Reading and
writing lessons need to be meaningful and authentic in order for students to engage in the
content.
In Richard L. Allington and Patricia M. Cunningham’s book, Schools That Work:
Where All Children Read and Write, the authors (2002) state that for most of the
twentieth century, the commonly held principle about reading was that students could
read if they could decode words. Comprehension, it seemed, followed automatically.
Reading and writing lessons, therefore, centered on decoding and editing skills, rather
than on developing children’s knowledge and thinking (p. 41). This resulted in “children
who could read words accurately but who demonstrated little thinking while reading and
little understanding of what they had read” (p.42). When the focus is on decoding and
editing skills, children can read, but they do not truly comprehend what they are reading.
The authors endorse the notion of “’thoughtful literacy’”, which includes
discussion, conversation, reflection, and revision (p. 43). This philosophy views reading
and writing as meaning-focused activities (p. 43).
Important to thoughtful literacy
instruction are modeling, explaining, and demonstrating how to read and write (p. 47).
Students must be taught how to read and write if they are ever going to be able to
comprehend what they read and write.
One teacher who embodies thoughtful literacy is Nancie Atwell. Atwell promotes
a reading and writing workshop curriculum that is student-centered. The curriculum
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focuses on students’ need to learn writing and reading through the writing and reading of
meaningful topics of interest to them. In short, they learn by doing.
According to Atwell, it is important for students to have regular and frequent time
for writing (p. 91). This helps them write well, because it gives them to time to think and
re-think about what they have written (p. 91). When students know that they will have
time to write, they develop the ability to learn how to use their time effectively to either
tackle a writing problem or wait until the next writing session to solve an obstacle. (p.
93).
To further aid students with their writing, Atwell’s classroom has a reference
bookcase that houses files organized by genre of samples of writing created by students,
professionals, and Atwell, the teacher (p. 99). These examples help illustrate for Atwell’s
students what effective writing looks like (p.99).
Feedback is an important aspect to Atwell’s writing program, and it is not
necessarily from the teacher only. Atwell has her students partner with another student,
preferably one that knows him or her well, to whom they read out loud what they have
written at different phases in their writing (p. 128). The partner students listen for
missing elements, notice what works well, and provides ideas for how to improve the
piece (p. 128). In this way writing becomes a task that is not intended for an audience of
one, the teacher, but rather as an opportunity for students to discuss, collaborate, and
consult with their peers about crafting a manuscript that effectively conveys their
thoughts and ideas to the reader. Writing is therefore an authentic activity.
In Atwell’s minilessons, she provides explicit instruction on what her students’
options are before they prepare and communicate their writing plans (p. 142). She uses
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writing language in her instruction, such as draft, revise, topic, and genre (p. 142). After
each minilesson, she asks each student where he or she is in her writing. At this point,
the student may use writing language to convey the status of his or her piece (p. 142).
During the writing period, Atwell visits as many students as possible to conference
individually (p. 224). During an individual conference, Atwell asks the writer to talk
about his or her piece, listens to the writer, paraphrases what the writer says, asks
clarifying questions, suggest options if the writer needs them, and asks the writer what he
or she plans to do next (p. 224).
As with writing, students are given ample time to read in Atwell’s classroom.
They are given a free choice in which books they read (p. 36). Atwell also provides time
for “book shares” (p. 37). This is when students describe what books they are reading to
their classmates (p. 37). Book shares give students an opportunity to discover other
books they may be interested in or share similar books they have enjoyed in the past.
Social interaction is important for children’s reading development, Atwell
believes, because it encourages and broadens students’ interests and knowledge (p. 40).
Another way Atwell includes social interaction around reading is through dialogue
journals. In these journals, students write about what they are reading either to another
student or to the teacher (p. 41). The exchanges may range from plot and characters to
connections to other books and articles, their own writing, or their own feelings and
emotions (p. 41).
Atwell’s writing and reading workshop exemplify thoughtful literacy, because
students are shown the importance of writing and reading, are given ample time to work
on their writing pieces and read their books, and are given the right to choose what they
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will write and what they will read. Their activities are authentic, because they are
performed by the students in collaboration with their teacher and their peers. Genuine
social interaction regarding writing and reading activities ensures that students do not
perform their tasks purely as a means to please the teacher. They perform them because
they are of interest to them.
Social Studies Curriculum
The best piece on social studies curriculum for the purposes of this project is in
Lindquist and Selwyn’s (2000) Social Studies at the Center. In the book, Lindquist
suggests teachers use a curriculum disk to map out how they will create an integrated
social studies unit (p. 33).
The curriculum disk has seven components: READ,
RESPOND, RESEARCH, REPRESENT, REACT, REFLECT, and RELATE (p. 33).
According to Lindquist, these seven components embody the current best practice in
education (p. 34).
The READ component asks students to develop, apply, and refine reading skills
(p. 34). This can be accomplished through read alouds, independent reading, and reading
together (p. 35). Lindquist likes to begin a unit with a read aloud, either from a picture
book, novel, magazine article, or newspaper column. She then has the students read
together, usually from the textbook or a classroom set of books, to familiarize themselves
with the topic. Finally, the students choose their own books to read independently (p.
35).
The RESPOND component invites students to make meaning of what they have
learned. This may take place in a whole group, small group, or independently (p. 36).
Student activities in this component include brainstorming, listing, categorizing, and
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discussion at the whole group level, classifying at the small group level, and journaling at
the individual level (p. 36).
The RESEARCH component deals with students’ study skills, or their abilities to
find and use information through the utilization of reference materials and search skills
and the documentation of information in outlines, notes, summaries, reports, research
papers, etc. (p. 36). This is best done through small group or independent work (p. 36).
Arrangement of information, such as in reports, should be kept to a maximum of five to
six paragraphs in order to keep student interest high in the assignment (p. 37).
The REPRESENT component directs students to exhibit critical and creative
thinking skills after they have researched the topic. Students may classify, interpret,
analyze, summarize, and synthesize their understanding of the topic through various
projects, papers, and presentations (p. 37-38).
Students practice decision-making skills in the REACT component. Lindquist
states that social studies is different than other disciplines, because a response is usually
needed at the end of a unit (p. 39). Students may identify a situation in which they need
to make a decision, such as writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper or working to get
a law changed (p. 39-40). This makes social studies relevant to their lives.
The REFLECT component calls for students to think about their learning. This
may occur through one-on-one interviews, responding to a questionnaire, or writing in a
journal (p. 40). The reflective mantra in Lindquist’s classroom is: “’What did you do?
What did you learn? How do you feel?’” (p. 40).
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The RELATE component enables teachers to find cross-curricular connections in
their unit (p. 41). One example of a cross-curricular connection is a class reading
historical fiction novel about a time period they are studying in social studies (p. 41).
Using this curriculum disk, Lindquist has implemented a social studies unit in her
classroom called “Windows on the World” (p. 42). The unit serves as an introduction to
world geography and cultures for Lindquist’s fourth and fifth grade class (p. 42). In total,
each student creates four windows on the world. The windows depict a map of the
country, four informational sections, and, for one of the windows, a research paper (p.
53-54). For the purposes of this project, Lindquist’s unit supplies a wonderful foundation
on which to build an integrated social studies and language arts unit on culture.
Lindquist begins her unit by introducing her students to different countries
through picture books that tell stories from different countries (p. 43). Students read the
stories and analyze them using storyboards (p. 43). (Naturally, this falls into the READ
component on the curriculum disk)
Next, the students look at the similarities and
differences in the stories and categorize them by geographic location (p. 43). Often, her
students share their own stories that their families tell, which become writing exercises
where students develop voice and practice word choice (p. 44).
For the RESPOND component, Lindquist and her students decide what the
students should study. Location, landmarks, geographic regions, natural resources, and
cultural characteristics are touched upon as the class explores a continent together (p. 44).
After this initial exploration, students choose an individual country they wish to explore
(p. 45).
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In the RESEARCH component, Lindquist and her students decide what would be
interesting to learn about a country. Their list includes such elements as the following:
capital, official language or languages, population, typical foods, work, recreation,
religion, education, history, and problems people encounter (p. 46). It is understood that
the students do not need to research every item on the list (p. 45).
Students show their knowledge in the REPRESENT component. This is done
first by drawing a map of the country on 12”x18” white construction paper, which is then
cut in half and stapled to a second 12x18” piece of construction paper (p. 50-51). The
map is carefully folded back to reveal a window onto that country (p. 51). It is here that
students post four informational sections and research paper that profile the country (p.
51-52).
Students are given the opportunity to share their windows in the REACT
component. The class presents their windows to a primary classroom, and later shares
their windows with one another (p. 52). Students are able to learn different ideas and
perspectives on how to do their windows (p. 52).
Students are able to do the same assignment four times, enabling them to look at
their previous work and improve upon it (p.53). This satisfies the REFLECT component.
The RELATE component is fulfilled due to the language arts, art, and mathematical skills
required for the creation of the windows (p. 55-56).
The Windows on the World unit is a wonderful starting point for an integrated
social studies and language arts unit on culture. The Windows on the World unit will be
easy to adapt into a project that incorporates Style’s window and mirror curriculum and
Atwell’s writing and reading workshops. Since it already provides an outline on how to
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create windows on different countries, a few adjustments in the beginning of the unit will
produce a mirror of the students.
Reading and writing are an integral part of the
Windows on the World unit. Consequently, adding Atwell’s workshops to the unit is
relatively easy.
Assessment
In Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe’s (2005) book, Understanding by Design, the
authors state that planning for assessment should be a backward process, or backward
design (14). The premise behind their assessment method is to create curriculum units by
having teachers first ask themselves what they want their students to learn or understand
and how the students evidence this, rather than what content the unit will address (p. 14).
The first step in backward design is to identify and prioritize what students should
know, understand, and be able to do as a result of a lesson or unit (p. 17). The teachers
must themselves what they want students to ultimately take away from the lesson or unit
(p. 17). This stage draws upon content standards and curriculum expectations to decide
what students truly should gain from the lesson or unit (p. 18).
The second step is to decide what evidence will clearly show the aforementioned
student knowledge, understanding, and abilities (p. 18).
The teachers must ask
themselves how they know the students have attained the desired learning (p. 18). This
forces the teachers to look at the lesson as a means of understanding rather than a means
of content coverage.
The assessment continuum is as follows, ranking from informal to formal:
informal checks for understanding, observations and dialogues, tests and quizzes,
academic prompts, and performance tasks (p. 152). The authors suggest that teachers use
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a range of assessments throughout a unit. Each assessment is a snapshot of the student’s
understanding, and the gathering of these snapshots creates a scrapbook of the student’s
overall learning (p. 152).
Assessment should be authentic.
Authentic assessment
presents students with an authentic problem, something that asks students to complete a
task that tackles situations that include “real issues, needs, constraints, and opportunities”
(p. 155).
The third step is to plan the learning activities for the lesson or unit so that the
students use the appropriate skills to achieve the learning goals (p. 18-19). Teachers need
to ask themselves what they will teach and how they will teach it taking into
consideration the results they want students to display (p. 19).
Backward design induces teachers to plan thoughtfully about what they want their
students to learn, how their students will demonstrate their learning, and what activities
will lead students to such demonstrations. Assessment in this approach to lesson and unit
planning deems that all aspects of the lesson or unit be authentic so as to enable students
to show their understanding in a way that replicates real-life conditions.
Conclusion
Using the research described in the Learners and Learning, Learning
Environment, Curriculum and Instructional Strategies, and Assessment categories of this
paper, I have created a third and fourth grade integrated unit plan on culture. The content
areas integrated are social studies, language arts, and fine arts.
I created the lessons using backward design. I first looked at the curriculum
standards that needed to be addressed and rephrased these in the first part of each lesson
plan under the heading “Learning Objectives”. I then decided the evidence needed from
Inside and Out
23
the students to show that they understood the learning objectives. If the assessment was
informal, I noted how to gather evidence informally. If the assessment was formal, I
created appropriate rubrics for both student and teacher use. Once these two factors were
in place, I wrote the procedures for the lessons, keeping in mind ways to incorporate the
research gathered in this paper.
An appendix to the lessons is located after the seventh lesson. The appendix
notes the Hawai’i curriculum standards addressed and the research used in each lesson.
Each supporting research citation is cross-referenced with the page number of its location
in my paper.
Creating an integrated unit on culture with a focus on multicultural education is
no easy task. In fact, creating an integrated unit of any type is a feat in and of itself. The
next step in my professional development is to create integrated curriculum units that all
have a focus on multicultural education. Social studies, language arts, and fine arts lend
themselves well to multicultural education. My challenge, which I think is a worthy
hurdle for all teachers, is to utilize multicultural education in all content areas. In this
way I will truly be able to utilize the human relations approach in my classroom.
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Lesson Plan 1
Describing Cultural Identity
Learning Objectives:
 Students will understand that culture is the language, traditional lore, music,
dance, artifacts, traditional practices, beliefs, values, and behaviors of a group of
people.
 Students will identify personal cultural roles and identities.
 Students will understand that different people have different cultural heritages.
Assessment:
 Assessment will be informal, as this lesson is an introduction to the first half of
the unit.
 Circulate the room while students are writing to make sure identities and roles are
being written on the lists. Re-direct student work as needed.
 Monitor student discussion and guide it as needed so that students understand that
each student has a different cultural heritage.
Materials:
 Paper
 Pencils
Procedure:
1. Ask students to answer in list form the following question: “Who are you?” Tell
them to write as much as they can. Make sure the students understand that they
need to write down the roles and identities they hold.
2. Give the students ten minutes to write their answers.
3. Ask students to share some of their answers. Lead the discussion to the
understanding that an individual fulfills many different roles and holds various
identities at one time.
4. Tell them to think about whether they would be able to list a larger number of
identities if they had more time.
5. Ask the students to circle the identities that are most important to them.
6. Tell the students that the class will begin a unit on culture and that the list they
created is representative of their cultural background. Explain what culture
means.
7. Inform students that they will be creating mirrors of themselves that reflect their
cultural identities. Part of this mirror will be a brief description of their cultural
identities. They will use the list they created in this lesson to write their
descriptions.
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Lesson Plan 2
Mirror Creation
Learning Objectives:
 Students will use a variety of art and technology media to create an original piece
of artwork representing what they understand about their cultural identities.
Assessment:
 Assessment will be informal, as this lesson will produce the “mirror” on which
student will display their representations of their cultural identities.
 Provide a checklist for both the students and the teacher to use. Explain to the
students that they should use the checklist as a guide to what they need to put on
their mirrors. The teacher uses the checklist to make sure students are following
the assignment correctly.
Materials:
 Checklist
 White 12”x18” construction paper
 12”x18” construction paper in a
variety of colors
 Digital camera
 Scissors
 Glue and glue sticks
 Stapler
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Yarn
Paint and paintbrushes
Markers
Crayons
Colored pencils
Old magazines
Other appropriate art materials
Procedure:
1. Take a picture of each student with a digital camera before the beginning of the
lesson. Print out each student’s picture.
2. After the first lesson, inform students to bring in family photos, artwork, or
magazine clippings they feel represent their individual cultures.
3. At the beginning of the second lesson, direct students to look at the list they made
in the first lesson. Inform them that they will be creating a mirror of themselves
using their photo, construction paper, and art materials. Their mirrors will
represent their cultural identities.
4. Hand out the checklist. Tell students that these are the elements that need to be
present on their mirror and explain what each means. Instruct students that they
will glue their picture at the center of the mirror. Around the picture, they may
represent their cultural identities however they please using the materials they
brought in and the materials in the classroom.
5. Allow the students ample time to complete their mirrors. When they are finished,
let them choose a colored 12”x18” sheet of construction paper. Staple one edge
of the mirror to one edge of the colored construction paper. This creates a mirror
that opens much like a mirrored medicine cabinet.
Inside and Out
Mirror Checklist
 Picture of the student is in the center of the mirror.
 Artwork represents student’s cultural background.
 Student uses more than one medium to create artwork.
26
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Lesson Plan 3
Cultural Identity Autobiography
Learning Objectives:
 Students will write a short (two paragraph) autobiography about their cultural
identities using the list created in the first lesson. Students will learn how to
create paragraphs that contain details, examples, and facts that develop and
support the main idea.
 Students will understand and practice the writing process by creating a first draft,
editing and revising the first draft, and publishing a final draft.
 Students’ final draft will demonstrate students’ understanding of editing and
revising through correct use of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and capitalization.
Assessment:
 Assessment will be informal and formal.
 Informal assessment will occur during the writing workshop period, where the
teacher checks in with each student to monitor student progress and help in the
revision process.
 Formal assessment will be based on a rubric evaluating students’ final draft.
Materials:
 Paper
 Pencils and Pens
Procedure:
1. Begin by having students look at their lists from the first lesson. Explain that they
will be using the lists to write a short autobiography about their cultural identities.
2. Let students silently review their lists before moving on.
3. Review with students what the concepts of main idea and details mean when
reading or writing a piece of fiction or non-fiction.
4. Brainstorm with the students possible main ideas they can gather from the lists
they created. Write these on the board.
5. Ask students to give examples from their lists that support one of the main ideas
written on the board.
6. Explain to the students that each paragraph in their autobiographies about their
cultural identities will begin with a topic sentence, which will be the main idea of
the paragraph. The rest of the sentences will be details that support the main idea.
7. Hand out grading rubric. Explain that they will be graded on their use of a main
idea and details that support it, as well as their effective use of drafting, editing,
revising, and publishing their autobiography.
8. Allow students plenty of time to work through the writing process. Check in with
students during each writing workshop to monitor their progress and guide their
writing. Encourage students to read one another’s works in progress and provide
editing suggestions and feedback. The final draft will be written in pen.
9. When students are finished, they will paste their final drafts on the inside of their
“mirror”.
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Final Draft Grading Rubric
Length
Main Ideas
and Details
Editing and
Revision
Exceptional (3 pts.)
Acceptable (2 pts.)
The final draft is two or
more paragraphs in length.
The final draft is one
paragraph or one and
one-half paragraphs
in length.
Not every paragraph
(at least one) has a
main idea with
supporting details.
Each paragraph (two or
more) has a main idea with
supporting details.
The final draft uses correct
spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and
capitalization.
Total Points Possible: 9
The final draft has
some errors in
spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and
capitalization.
Minimal (1 pt)
.
The final draft is
under one
paragraph in
length.
The paragraphs
either do not have
a main idea or
supporting details,
a main idea with
no supporting
details, or
supporting details
with no main idea.
The final draft has
numerous errors in
spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and
capitalization.
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Lesson Plan 4
Culture Shares—Round 1
Learning Objectives:
 Students will understand that culture is the language, traditional lore, music,
dance, artifacts, traditional practices, beliefs, values, and behaviors of a group of
people.
 Students will understand through group discussion how each person’s cultural
identity is both similar in different to their classmates.
Assessment:
 Assessment will be informal.
 Circulate the room while students are in small group discussions. Guide
discussion so that students are able to explain the cultural elements represented in
their peers’ mirrors and their common and unique qualities.
Materials:
 Students’ mirrors
Procedure:
1. Hang up student mirrors at eye-level around the classroom. Give students time to
look at their classmates’ mirrors. Direct students to think about the common and
unique qualities in the mirrors.
2. Divide students into groups of four or five. Explain that their mirrors have
become windows for their classmates onto their cultural backgrounds, and
sometimes windows reflect ourselves back to us. Instruct students to discuss the
similarities and differences they saw in the mirrors.
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Lesson Plan 5
Country Map and Window Creation
Learning Objectives:
 Students will understand how to free-draw and label a map.
Assessment:
 Assessment will be formal. Maps will be graded using a rubric.
Materials:
 12”x18” white construction paper
 12”x18” construction paper in a variety of colors
 Pencils
 Black fine point markers
 Crayons or markers
 Atlases
Procedure:
1. Inform students that they will have the opportunity to study the culture of another
country. To begin this study, they will create a map of a country of their choice.
Allow the students time to flip through atlases or think about which country they
would like to study. More than one student can study the same country.
2. Once students have chosen a country, direct them to look at a map of the United
States. Ask the children to point out features on the map they notice.
3. Write on the board the items the students think are important to label on a map.
Make sure capitals, notable landmarks, neighboring countries, and geographic
regions are listed. Discuss what these items represent.
4. Explain to students that they will be creating a map of their chosen country.
Using an atlas, they will free-draw the shape of their map on a white piece of
12”x18” construction paper. Their country should be clearly labeled with the
country’s capital city, notable landmarks, neighboring countries, and geographic
regions. Students may label other features of the map if they choose.
5. Hand out grading rubric and discuss how the map will be graded.
6. Students will outline the country and write the labels using a black fine point
marker for neatness.
7. The map should be colorful, and if the students have time, they can create a
border or draw the country’s flag.
8. When students are finished, have them cut their map in half and staple the outside
edges of the map to a whole piece of 12”x18” construction paper in their choice
of color. The map halves act as shutters that open to reveal a window on the
country.
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31
Country Map Grading Rubric
Exceptional (3 pts.)
Labels
(capital,
notable
landmarks,
neighboring
countries,
geographic
regions)
Shape
All required labels are
present and in the correct
location on the map.
The country is drawn in the
correct shape and
proportion.
The map is neat.
Neatness
Total possible points: 9
Acceptable (2 pts.)
Minimal (1 pt)
.
Some required labels Some required
are present and in the labels are present
correct location, or and in the wrong
all required labels are location, or no
present but in the
required labels are
wrong location.
present.
The country is drawn The country is not
mostly in the correct drawn in the
shape and proportion. correct shape and
proportion.
The map is somewhat The map is sloppy.
neat.
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Lesson Plan 6
Country Research and Window Completion
Learning Objectives:
 Students will understand how to locate information using such text structures as
indices, glossaries, and bibliographies.
 Students will understand how to cite information from a variety of appropriate
texts and sources.
 Students will understand how to organize information into a paper that introduces
the information, elaborates on it, and draws a conclusion from it.
 Students will understand how to group related ideas into paragraphs using main
ideas and details.
 Students will apply their knowledge of the following elements of culture:
language, traditional lore, music, dance, artifacts, traditional practices, beliefs,
values, and behaviors.
 Students will learn to use information gathered from sources to describe
characteristics that make different regions unique.
 Students will compare the characteristics of a different culture to their own.
 Students’ final draft will demonstrate students’ understanding of editing and
revising through correct use of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and capitalization.
Assessment:
 Assessment will be informal and formal.
 Informal assessment will occur during the writing workshop period, where the
teacher checks in with each student to monitor student progress and help in the
revision process.
 Formal assessment will use grading rubrics. The data boxes will be graded using
a separate rubric than the report.
Materials:
 Encyclopedias, textbooks, trade books, Internet
 Paper
 Pencils
 Pens
Procedure:
1. Inform students that they will now be creating the view for their window. Begin
by asking students to name general information they think will be important for
them to know about their country. Write these ideas on the board. Make sure
capital, population, elevation, climate and weather, oceans, lakes, rivers, official
language or languages, land area, landmarks, endangered animals and plants, and
geographic regions are listed.
2. On a separate part of the board, create a list for cultural characteristics. Ask
students to name cultural characteristics they think will be important for them to
know about their country. Be sure to include housing, education, food, the arts,
recreation, heroes or celebrities, religion, beliefs, and historical highlights.
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33
3. Explain to students that they will be creating data boxes to add to their window’s
view. One data box will include general information facts and the other data box
will include cultural characteristics facts. Students may choose which facts they
want to research, but each data box should have at least seven facts. The facts do
not have to be in complete sentences.
4. Discuss how to find information using different sources and how to know what
constitutes a reliable source of information. Tell students they must use at least
two different sources for each data box.
5. Talk about how to use text structures, such as indices, glossaries, and
bibliographies, to find information in a text.
6. Show students how to cite information by writing a simple bibliography at the
bottom of the data box.
7. Provide ample time for students to research and record information in their data
boxes. This may take a few days. These activities will take place during reading
and writing workshop times. Check in with students during these times to see
how they are progressing. The final data boxes should be written in pen and
pasted on the inside of the shutters.
8. When most students have finished their data boxes, ask the class to look at their
cultural characteristics data box and choose the characteristic most interesting to
them.
9. Explain that they will be researching this characteristic in depth. They will write
a report that has at least three paragraphs. The report will have introductory,
body, and concluding paragraphs. Discuss the functions of introductory, body,
and concluding paragraphs.
10. Review how to group related ideas into one paragraph using a main idea sentence
followed by detail sentences.
11. Explain that the students will use at least three sources to find information about
the characteristic. In the report, the students need to both describe the cultural
characteristic and compare it to their own culture.
12. Remind students how to cite sources using a simple bibliography.
13. Students will write a first draft, which they will then edit and revise before
publishing their final draft. Their final draft will be written with a pen.
14. Students will work on this report during reading and writing workshop times.
Allow students plenty of time to work through the writing process. Check in with
students during each reading and writing workshop to monitor their progress and
guide their research and writing. Encourage students to read one another’s works
in progress and provide editing suggestions and feedback.
15. The final draft of the report should be pasted on the colored 12”x18” construction
paper portion of the window so that it becomes the view when the shutters are
opened.
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Data Boxes Grading Rubric
Facts
Exceptional (3 pts.)
Acceptable (2 pts.)
Seven facts are present and
correct.
Seven facts are either
not present or not all
the facts are correct.
At least two sources
have been used and
are not cited
correctly, or only one
source has been used
and is cited correctly.
The data box is
somewhat neat and
the handwriting is
somewhat legible.
Sources
At least two sources have
been used and are cited
correctly.
Neatness
The data box is neat and
handwriting is legible.
Total possible points: 9 per data box
Minimal (1 pt)
.
Seven facts are not
present or are not
correct.
Sources are either
not cited or are
cited incorrectly.
The data box is
sloppy and the
handwriting is
illegible.
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Cultural Characteristic Research Report Grading Rubric
Exceptional (3 pts.)
Acceptable (2 pts.)
The paper has at least three
paragraphs (introductory,
body, and a concluding).
The paper has three
paragraphs, but they
are not introductory,
body, and concluding
paragraphs; or the
paper has two
paragraphs.
Related ideas are
grouped in
paragraphs, but do
not have main idea
sentences or details.
The final draft has
some errors in
spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and
capitalization.
The paper uses
information from
sources to describe
one element of the
country’s culture.
Organization
Paragraphs
Editing and
Revision
Content
Related ideas are grouped
in paragraphs using main
idea sentences and details.
The final draft uses correct
spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and
capitalization.
The paper uses information
from sources to describe
one element of the
country’s culture and
compares the information
to the student’s home
culture.
At least three sources have
been used and are cited
correctly.
Sources
Neatness
The report is neat and
handwriting is legible.
Total possible points: 18
At least three sources
have been used and
are not cited
correctly, or one or
two sources have
been used and are
cited correctly.
The report is
somewhat neat and
the handwriting is
somewhat legible.
Minimal (1 pt)
.
The paper has one
paragraph or less.
Related ideas are
not grouped in
paragraphs.
The final draft has
numerous errors in
spelling, grammar,
punctuation, and
capitalization.
The paper does
not use
information from
sources to describe
one element of the
country’s culture.
Sources are either
not cited or are
cited incorrectly.
The report is
sloppy and the
handwriting is
illegible.
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Lesson Plan 7
Culture Shares—Round 2
Learning Objectives:
 Students will compare characteristics of different cultures.
 Students will identify in other cultures similar characteristics to their own.
Assessment:
 Assessment will be informal.
 Circulate the room while students are in small group discussions. Guide
discussion so that students are able to explain the cultural elements represented in
their peers’ windows, compare the different cultures represented in the windows,
and compare the windows’ cultures to their own.
Materials:
 Students’ windows
Procedure:
1. Hang up student windows at eye-level around the classroom. Give students time
to look at their classmates’ mirrors. Direct students to think about the
characteristics of the different cultures represented in the windows. How are they
similar to one another? How are they different? How do they compare to the
students’ home culture?
2. Divide students into groups of four or five. Explain that windows sometimes
reflect ourselves back to us. Instruct students to discuss the similarities and
differences they noticed in the windows. How were they similar to one another?
How were they different? How do they compare to the students’ home culture?
3. Wrap up the unit by having a whole group discussion about what they learned
about culture. What surprised them the most? Do they understand people from
different cultures better? How can they use what they have learned in this unit
with their interactions with people from different cultural backgrounds, both in
and out of the classroom?
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Appendix to Lesson Plans
The following appendix provides information on how the research I include in my
paper appears in the lesson plans I created for this unit.
Lesson
Plan
Curriculum Standards and
Research Used
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1
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Lesson adapted from:
Pederson, P.B. (2004). 110 experiences for multicultural learning.
Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Hawai’i curriculum standards addressed:
o LA 3.6.1 Use oral language to obtain information, complete a
task, and share ideas and personal opinions with others.
o LA 4.6.1 Participate in grade-appropriate oral group activities.
Focuses on “Who are you?” per Linda Giles’ suggestion (p. 6).
Allows students to be part of many different cultural groups at
once, and enables European-American students to understand their
own cultural heritage (p. 10).
Provides a mirror for students per Emily Style’s window and mirror
curriculum (p. 10).
Helps students understand themselves before moving on to
understand others (p. 11).
Writing is a meaning-focused activity (p. 14).
RELATE component fulfilled through the use of writing (language
arts) to think about culture (social studies) (p. 19).
Hawai’i curriculum standards addressed:
o FA.3.1.2 Use a variety of art and technology media to create an
original work of art.
Focuses on “Who are you?” per Linda Giles’ suggestion (p. 6).
Allows students to be part of many different cultural groups at
once, and enables European-American students to understand their
own cultural heritage (p. 8).
Provides a mirror for students per Emily Style’s window and mirror
curriculum (p. 10).
Adapts Glazier and Seo’s report of using collages to represent
student identities (p. 11).
Helps students understand themselves before moving on to
understand others (p. 11).
REPRESENT component fulfilled through exhibition of student
understanding of their cultural identities through artwork (p. 18).
Adapts Lindquist’s Windows on the World unit (p. 19).
Hawai’i curriculum standards addressed:
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o
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38
LA.3.4.1 Write in a variety of grade-appropriate formats for a
variety of purposes and audiences.
o LA.3.4.2 Form and use the following grammatical constructions
when editing writing: imperative sentences; past, present, and
future verb tenses; subject-verb agreement with single-word
subject; plural forms of irregular nouns; adverbs.
o LA.3.4.4 Edit writing to correct use of the following
punctuation: commas in letters, dates, addresses, and items in a
simple series; apostrophes in contractions and singular
possessives; quotation marks and commas or end marks in direct
quotations and dialogue.
o LA.3.4.5 Edit writing to correct capitalization.
o LA.3.4.6 Write legibly, adhering to margins and correct spacing
between letters in a word and words in a sentence.
o LA.4.4.1 Write in a variety of grade-appropriate formats for a
variety of purposes and audiences.
o LA.4.4.2 Form and use the following grammatical constructions
correctly when editing writing: compound sentences; dialogue;
forms of common irregular nouns and verbs; subject-verb
agreement with compound subjects; plural possessives;
transitional words.
o LA.4.4.4 Edit writing to correct use of the following
punctuation: commas in a series of multi-word items, in
compound sentences, and after introductory phrases; apostrophes
in contractions with pronouns; underlining/italics or quotation
marks, as appropriate, to indicate titles.
o LA.4.4.5 Edit writing to correct capitalization.
o LA.4.5.1 Use appropriate facts and interesting details that
develop the intended meaning and anticipate the needs of the
audience.
Focuses on “Who are you?” per Linda Giles’ suggestion (p. 6).
Allows students to be part of many different cultural groups at
once, and enables European-American students to understand their
own cultural heritage (p. 8).
Provides a mirror for students per Emily Style’s window and mirror
curriculum (p. 10).
Helps students understand themselves before moving on to
understand others (p. 11).
Writing is a meaning-focused activity (p. 14).
Promotes thoughtful literacy. Models, explains, and demonstrates
how to write (p. 14).
Utilizes Atwell’s writing workshop model (p. 15-16).
RESPOND component is fulfilled when students work to
brainstorm main ideas in order to make meaning of what they have
learned (p. 17).
REPRESENT component fulfilled through exhibition of student
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5
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39
understanding of their cultural identities through writing (p. 18).
RELATE component fulfilled through the use of writing (language
arts) to think about culture (social studies) (p. 19).
Adapts Lindquist’s Windows on the World unit (p. 19).
Hawai’i curriculum standards addressed:
o LA.3.6.1 Use oral language to obtain information, complete a
task, and share ideas and personal opinions with others.
o LA.3.6.3 Give verbal and nonverbal feedback to a speaker to
promote mutual understanding.
o LA.3.7.1 Add concrete details and specific facts to support and
develop ideas when speaking.
o LA.4.6.1 Participate in grade-appropriate oral group activities.
o SS.3.6.1 Explain that different cultures have unique values,
beliefs, and practices.
o SS.4.6.1 Explain how language, traditional lore, music, dance,
artifacts, traditional practices, beliefs, values, and behaviors are
elements of culture and contribute to the preservation of culture.
Focuses on “Who are you?” per Linda Giles’ suggestion (p. 6).
Allows students to be part of many different cultural groups at
once, and enables European-American students to understand their
own cultural heritage (p. 8).
Utilizes the human relations approach by promoting respect, unity,
tolerance, and acceptance, and by addressing similarities and
differences in students (p. 9).
Provides a mirror for students per Emily Style’s window and mirror
curriculum (p. 10).
Validates all experiences in a public setting (p. 11).
Helps students understand themselves before moving on to
understand others (p. 11).
Utilizes Elly Tepper’s culture-share activity by having each student
be a cultural representative for his or her peers (p. 11).
Each student is a cultural guide (p. 13).
REFLECT component fulfilled when students think about what
they have learned in group discussions (p. 18).
REACT component fulfilled through sharing of mirrors and gaining
new perspective on making mirrors (p. 20).
Hawai’i curriculum standards addressed:
o SS.3.7.1 Use geographic representations (e.g. maps, globes,
graphs, charts, models) to organize and analyze geographic
information.
o SS.4.7.2 Collect, organize, and analyze data to interpret and
construct geographic representations.
Provides a window for students per Emily Style’s window and
mirror curriculum (p. 10).
RESPOND component fulfilled when students describe what they
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40
think is important on maps (p. 17).
REPRESENT component fulfilled with drawing of country map (p.
18).
Hawai’i curriculum standards addressed:
o LA.3.1.6 Locate information in a variety of grade-appropriate
sources.
o LA.3.4.1 Write in a variety of grade-appropriate formats for a
variety of purposes and audiences.
o LA.3.4.2 Form and use the following grammatical constructions
when editing writing: imperative sentences; past, present, and
future verb tenses; subject-verb agreement with single-word
subject; plural forms of irregular nouns; adverbs.
o LA.3.4.4 Edit writing to correct use of the following
punctuation: commas in letters, dates, addresses, and items in a
simple series; apostrophes in contractions and singular
possessives; quotation marks and commas or end marks in direct
quotations and dialogue.
o LA.3.4.5 Edit writing to correct capitalization.
o LA.3.4.6 Write legibly, adhering to margins and correct spacing
between letters in a word and words in a sentence.
o L.A.3.4.7 Differentiate between own information and
information from other sources.
o LA.3.5.1 Add details, descriptions, and information from
different sources to elaborate meaning.
o LA.3.5.2 Organize information by introducing it, elaborating on
it, and drawing a conclusion about it.
o LA.3.5.3 Group related ideas into paragraphs.
o LA.4.2.3 Describe and use text structures common to many texts
(e.g., index, glossary, bibliography).
o LA.4.4.1 Write in a variety of grade-appropriate formats for a
variety of purposes and audiences.
o LA.4.4.2 Form and use the following grammatical constructions
correctly when editing writing: compound sentences; dialogue;
forms of common irregular nouns and verbs; subject-verb
agreement with compound subjects; plural possessives;
transitional words.
o LA.4.4.4 Edit writing to correct use of the following
punctuation: commas in a series of multi-word items, in
compound sentences, and after introductory phrases; apostrophes
in contractions with pronouns; underlining/italics or quotation
marks, as appropriate, to indicate titles.
o LA.4.4.5 Edit writing to correct capitalization.
o LA.4.5.1 Use appropriate facts and interesting details that
develop the intended meaning and anticipate the needs of the
audience.
o LA.4.5.2 Use paragraphs and transitions to organize related
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information and move the reader from one idea to the next.
o SS.3.6.1 Explain that different cultures have unique values,
beliefs, and practices.
o SS.3.7.2 Compare the physical and human characteristics of
different communities and regions.
o SS.3.7.3 Describe the physical and human characteristics that
make different regions unique.
o SS.4.6.1 Explain how language, traditional lore, music, dance,
artifacts, traditional practices, beliefs, values, and behaviors are
elements of culture and contribute to the preservation of culture.
Provides a window for students per Emily Style’s window and
mirror curriculum (p. 10).
Writing is a meaning-focused activity (p. 14).
Promotes thoughtful literacy. Models, explains, and demonstrates
how to write (p. 14).
Utilizes Atwell’s writing and reading workshop model (p. 15-16).
READ component fulfilled with students’ research on countries (p.
17).
RESPOND component fulfilled when students describe what they
think is important to know about their countries (p. 17).
RESEARCH component fulfilled with student selection of
information for data boxes and report (p. 18).
REPRESENT component fulfilled with data boxes and report (p.
18).
RELATE component fulfilled through the use of reading and
writing (language arts) to think about culture (social studies) (p.
19).
Adapts Lindquist’s Windows on the World unit (p. 19).
Hawai’i curriculum standards addressed:
o LA.3.6.1 Use oral language to obtain information, complete a
task, and share ideas and personal opinions with others.
o LA.3.6.3 Give verbal and nonverbal feedback to a speaker to
promote mutual understanding.
o LA.3.7.1 Add concrete details and specific facts to support and
develop ideas when speaking.
o LA.4.6.1 Participate in grade-appropriate oral group activities.
o SS.3.6.1 Explain that different cultures have unique values,
beliefs, and practices.
o SS.3.6.1 Explain that different cultures have unique values,
beliefs, and practices.
o SS.3.7.2 Compare the physical and human characteristics of
different communities and regions.
o SS.3.7.3 Describe the physical and human characteristics that
make different regions unique.
o SS.4.6.1 Explain how language, traditional lore, music, dance,
artifacts, traditional practices, beliefs, values, and behaviors are
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elements of culture and contribute to the preservation of culture.
Utilizes the human relations approach by promoting respect, unity,
tolerance, and acceptance, and by addressing similarities and
differences in students (p. 9).
Provides a window and mirror for students per Emily Style’s
window and mirror curriculum (p. 10).
Validates all experiences in a public setting (p. 11).
Utilizes Elly Tepper’s culture-share activity by having each student
be a cultural representative for his or her country (p. 11).
Utilizes Eleanor W. Lynch’s methods to learn about other cultures
(p. 12-13).
Each student is a cultural guide (p. 13).
REFLECT component fulfilled when students think about what
they have learned in group discussions (p. 18).
REACT component fulfilled through sharing of windows and
gaining new perspective on making windows (p. 20).
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References
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and write. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
Atwell, N. (1998). In the middle: New understandings about writing, reading, and
learning. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Clayton, J.B. (2003). One classroom, many worlds: Teaching and learning in the crosscultural classroom. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Dilg, M. (2003). Thriving in the multicultural classroom: Principles and practices for
effective teaching. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
Glazier, J., & Seo, J. (2005). Multicultural literature and discussion as mirror and
window? Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 48, 686-700.
Grant, C., & Gillette, M. (2006). Learning to teach everyone’s children: Equity,
empowerment, and education that is multicultural. Belmont, CA: Thomson
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http://www.wcwonline.org/content/view/652/299/
Tepper, E. (1992). Culture and a classroom: One teacher’s voyage of discovery. The
Kamehameha Journal of Education, 3, 1-21.
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24,
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