Understanding By Design – Backwards Design Process
(Developed by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe, 2002)
Stage 1 – Desired Results
Standards:
1. Historical Skill:
 Tier Two Historical Thinking: Analyzing Change Throughout the Past: Understand history through
common themes and ideas.
 Common Core Writing Standard: CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3 Write narratives to develop real or
imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event
sequences.CA History/Social Studies Standard 5.4 Students understand the political, religious,
social, and economic institutions that evolved in the colonial era.
Understanding (s)/goals
Students will:
1. Read Native American creation stories and
map out story elements on a graphic
organizer.
2. Understand the theme: Creation of an
American Culture.
3. Students will write a fictional narrative
explaining how an element of nature came to
be.
Essential Question(s):
1. Can you identify the story elements for each
story?
2. How do these stories explain the foundational
beliefs of the Native American culture?
3. Can you create a story in the same style as
the Native Americans?
Student objectives (outcomes):
Students will be able to:
 Historical Skill: Understand history through common themes and ideas.
 Writing Skill: Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective
technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.
Stage 2 – Assessment Evidence
Performance Task(s):
Other Evidence:
1. Historical: Students will read Native American
1. Historical: They will be able to analyze the
Cultural stories and be able to explain how
Native American Legends and explain what it
these stories tell about Native American
tells about the Native American belief system.
beliefs.
They will have discussions with partners
2. Writing: Include story elements in writing
explaining how their own writing event
their own nature story.
explains how an element of nature came into
being.
2. Writing: Students will complete the graphic
organizer. Students can organize their
thinking into paragraphs and sequence events
in a logical manner using all of the required
story elements.
Stage 3 – Learning Plan
Learning Activities:
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Introduce Native American Legends to students by reading aloud and then dissecting each story
element as a model.
Have students read the Native American Legends and identify the story elements for each story on a
graphic organizer.
1. Give student groups a copy of a Native American Legend.
2. Have the students “give and get” with members from other groups to help identify the major
elements of their Native American Legends.
3. Re-group as a class and share findings on a class chart.
4. Brainstorm various ‘Events in Nature’ to help students come up with their own Legend.
Give students a graphic organizer that helps them to begin to create their own Native American
Legend.
Students will be able to complete a Narrative about their own Native American Legend.