Joanne King
District: Reading
Subject: Language Arts/Guided Reading
Grade Level: 4
February 8, 2009
Primary Source: Through a
Different Lens Film Series
Trails of Tears: Native American Experiences with Forced Migration
Enduring Understanding: Using chapter books about Native Americans’ experience
during early colonization, students will understand the important events and difficulties
faced by the characters in their stories.
Massachusetts History and Social Science Curriculum Framework Standards
Addressed: Grade 4 Learning Standards: 4.15 Describe the diverse nature of the
American people by identifying the distinctive contributions to American culture.
Essential Questions: What obstacle(s) does the main character in your story face?
What is the conflict in your story? How would you feel if you were the main character in
this story?
Historical Thinking Benchmark:
 Analysis of primary and secondary sources
 An understanding of point of view
Learning Objectives: At the end of this lesson, students will be able to identify the
essential story elements in their chapter book including character, setting, plot, problem,
and solution. Students will also be able to collect evidence to help them identify the
conflicts faced by the main characters in the stories.
Materials/Resources:
 The Long Walk: Tears of the Navajo film
 Three chapter books written about Native Americans which focus on types of
conflict (see attached annotated bibliography)
 Reading journals
 Pencils
 Colored pencils
Procedure: This introductory lesson takes one 60-minute class session to complete.
Students will continue reading their assigned chapter books and meeting with the
teacher in small groups to discuss the literature for 3-4 additional weeks.
1. Show the first 15 minutes of the film The Long Walk: Tears of the Navajo whole
class.
2. Discuss this important event with students so they understand many Native
Americans were forced to relocate and endured their own “trail of tears” during
this time in American history.
3. Using the Smart board, introduce the reading lesson on plot.
4. Outline the elements of the story so students understand their books will include
the following elements: beginning, middle, end, character, setting, problem,
climax, and solution.
5. Identify the types of conflict which may occur in these stories:
a. Character vs. character
b. Character vs. nature
c. Character vs. society
d. Character vs. self
6. Explain that as students are reading, they need to take notes in their reading
journals and identify the elements of their story and the type of conflict the main
character faces.
7. Break students into smaller reading groups, based on ability, and assign the
chapter books.
8. After completing a “book walk” identifying the main features of each book and
giving a brief introduction to the story, students will read independently and in
small groups.
9. At the end of each chapter, students will write a 1-2 sentence chapter summary
to keep track of the most important events in each chapter. They will use this
information later to complete a plot summary of their book.
Extension Activities of the Lesson:
1. At the end of each assigned reading session, the teacher will meet with small
groups of students to discuss the readings, chapter summaries, important
characters, events, and conflicts.
2. Students may also illustrate their favorite parts of the story in their reading
journals using colored pencils.
3. Pair students up to discuss the conflict in the story and the characters point of
view to give students an opportunity to share ideas.
4. Students work in their small groups to complete a visual display of the plot
contained in their story. They must include all the important elements of plot
including characters, setting, problem, climax, and solution
Assessment: Students will demonstrate an understanding of the conflicts faced by
these characters in their stories by writing in their reading journals and answering
questions in small groups. Having one-on-one discussions with each student will also
help assess their comprehension of the story. Whole class discussions about the topics
covered in each book will also assess the students’ understandings of the social issues
presented as well as the effects these events had on our nation’s history. The art work
created by small groups (plot diagrams) will also show students’ understanding of the
books they’ve read.
Annotated Bibliography
Bruchac, Joseph. Children of the Longhouse. New York, NY: Penguin Group, Inc. 1996.
Eleven-year-old Ohkwa'ri and his twin sister must make peace with a hostile gang of
older boys in their Mohawk village during the late 1400s.
Bruchac, Joseph. Wabi: A Hero’s Tale. New York, NY: Penguin Group, Inc. 2006.
Wabi was born an owl that grew to become such a strong, confident creature that he
was afraid of nothing. But now he is afraid. He has fallen in love with a beautiful,
headstrong human girl. And so he begins the adventure of his life. He shape-shifts into
human form in order to be with her. But before he can win her love, he must face an
even greater challenge in a land he comes to think of as the Valley of Monsters.
Cornelissen, Cornelia. Soft Rain: A Story of the Cherokee Trail of Tears. New York, NY:
Bantam Doubleday Dell Books for Young Readers, Random House. 1998.
Soft Rain, a nine-year-old Cherokee girl, is forced to relocate, along with her family,
from North Carolina to the West.
Howe, John. The Long Walk: Tears of the Navajo. KUED: The University of Utah, 2008.
This documentary depicts the forced relocation of thousands of Navajos in 1864.
Forced to walk to a new reservation in New Mexico called Bosque Redondo, many
Navajos died along this journey west to incarceration.