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Pablita Indian Legends
Scholars are introduced to the characteristics of a legend. They read and discuss Old Father Story Teller by Pablita Velarde. Then, in groups, they write and illustrate a poem based on one of the legends from the book. This lesson plan...
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Native American Legends
Students create a "legend" about an animal. In this Native American legends lesson, students define the purpose and importance of Native American legends. Students read "Why the Possum's Tail is Bare" and "Earthmaker's Lodge" and...
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Mexican "Tona" Animal Masks
Students study the Mexican legend related to masks. They select an animal with traits they can identify with and recognize in themselves. Afterward, they create a mask that will retain some human features, but take on the life of the...
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The Legend of Jack-O'-Lantern
Young scholars examine various Halloween traditions and the legend of the Jack O'Lantern. They listen to the story "Pumpkin Pumpkin," examine a map and locate the origins of pumpkins, weigh and measure a pumpkin and graph the results,...
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Native American Legends, Folk Stories and Tales
Students write an Indian tale explaining a natural event, an animal characteristic,
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The Legendary Raptors
How are raptors and airplanes alike? Combine science and language arts in this fun and interactive project. Young scientists research the animal in order to design their own aircraft, and compete in a contest for farthest, fastest, and...
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The First Fire : A Cherokee Animal Tale
Fourth graders discover movement through the telling of "The First Fire", a Cherokee tale. Small groups are given sections of the story to tell by creating dances. Music (live and recorded) adds to the final performance and assessment.
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Owl Eyes.
Students create an animal with clay and use toothpick to draw or carve features. Students write descriptions of their animal and tell why they created it in a certain way. Students write legends on their own, perhaps using their created...
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Snowy Owl Adaptations
Students explore the adaptations that are made by the snowy owl. They discuss why these adaptations are necessary and how they protect the owl. Students create a snowy owl puppet.
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Chinese New Year
Students identify and present the history and legend of the Chinese New Year and respond to questions included. Students practice saying the common greetings and wishes in Chinese for the Chinese New Year. Students identify and explain...
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Chinese Shadow Puppet Play
Students experience through role-play the art of shadow puppetry and appreciate the role of oral traditions in Chinese history. They research the origins and history of puppetry as a part of a unit on China. They discover what Chinese...
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Impressive prints!
Students explore Inuit artworks and legends, and create prints of a fictional animal. They familiarize themselves with the concepts of positive and negative spaces through printmaking techniques.
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Horses
Students discuss the importance of the horse as a "beast of burden" animal in Japanese culture and create a legend, myth or tall tale set in Japan with a horse as the central character.
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Netsuke
Students identify different objects from Japanese culture and their purpose. They read Japanese folktales and discuss common themes. They create a sketch and clay sculpture of a character or animal in one of the folktales.
Montana State University
One Mountain, Many Cultures
Americans may think of Mount Everest as a region dedicated to adventurous hikers, but many cultures have flourished there! Learners read informative books, watch videos, participate in classroom discussion, analyze folk tales, and...
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How Do I Get There? Planning a Safe Route to School
One much-needed skill for young learners is direction giving. Have your class plan and draw a safe route for them to travel from home to school. They will also draw places and items that are in between home and school in order to build a...
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Masks of Africa
Students explain the purpose of masks to various cultures in Africa. They recognize the conceptual patterns used to create African masks and illustrate their understanding by creating their own masks
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A Walk Around the School: Mapping Places Near and Far
After reading Pat Hutchins’ Rosie’s Walk, have your young cartographers create a map of Rosie’s walk. Then lead them on a walk around the school. When you return class members sequence the walk by making a list of how the class got from...
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How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun
Students explore U.S. history by reading a Native American tale in class. In this cultural storytelling lesson, students read the story How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun and discuss the characters and themes of the Native American...
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Kansas Clues
Learners examine the Kansas state quarter and the Buffalo nickel and look for clue to help them identify why the bison was so important to the Native American. They perform "freeze frames" depicting Native American use of the bison.
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Paper Masks/Heads
Learners examine the processes and beliefs used by different cultures to create works of art. Using the internet, they research the types of arts used by cultures that have been transmitted to future generations. They use recycled...
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King Arthur's Family Tree
Students examine the genealogy of King Arthur. They create a poster of his family tree and shares with the class. They also place other key figures of the time period on the poster to put his life in perspective.
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Children's Literature Across the Curriculum Ideas-In The Small Small Pond
Students read In The Small Small Pond by Denise Fleming. They complete a variety of cross-curricular activities surrounding the study of the pond ecosystem. Included are reading, art, math, science, writing, social studies, and library...
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Groundhog Day
Learners use the SMART Board to learn about Groundhog day and create a tally chart of predictions for whether he will see his shadow or not. In this Groundhog day lesson plan, students respond to questions throughout the instructional...