Family Features: Interviewing Family Identities-Lesson 2
Appropriate Grade: 1st-2nd Grade Time Need: 3 days
Framework:
It is important to make home and school connections for students because it helps them feel safe in the classroom. Making these connections also gives students a feeling of belonging and acceptance in the classroom. Learning how to talk about race, identity, and ethnicity is an important skill for children, especially when they are asking their family members questions regarding these topics. Students have the opportunity to learn from family members, giving them necessary interviewing skills, and the chance to gain multiple perspectives that will enrich the classroom conversations.
Objectives:
Guiding Questions:
MMSD Standards:
History
Retell past events, legends, biographies, or historical accounts.
Geography
Construct a simple map (house/room, backyard).
Behavioral Science
Examine similarities and differences between family, community, and national traditions, customs and celebrations.
NCSS Standards:
1st Strand-Culture:
-Human beings create, learn, share, and adapt to culture.
-Through culture, observation, and reflection, students will identify elements of culture as well as similarities and differences among cultural groups across time and place.
4th Strand-Individual Development and Identity:
-Personal identity is shaped by an individual’s culture, by groups, by institutional influences, and by lived experiences shared with people inside and outside the individual’s own culture throughout her or his development.
-In the early grades, young learners develop their personal identities in the context of families, peers, schools, and communities.
Materials:
Interview (noun) – a conversation where on person tries to find out information or ideas from one or more other people
Value (noun) – something that a person or group of people thinks of as especially important or worthwhile
Believe (noun) – something a person thinks is true and important; something a person has faith or confidence in
Perspective (noun) – a way of looking at things
Culture (noun)- the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization (various definitions)
Identity (noun)- the set of behavioral or personal characteristics by which an individual is recognizable as a member of a group; the quality or condition of being the same as something else
Activities/Procedures:
1. Begin by having students do a map activity. Tell students they will be making a map of their bedroom.
2. Discuss as a class. Ask students how they chose what they drew and if they left anything out of their map of their room. Mention whether or not how the things shown and represented are the things that are important to them and are part of who they are. Lead into a discussion of what they value in their room. Define value. Also bring up beliefs. Relate these terms to students’ previous knowledge of race.
3. As concepts are brought up, write them on chart paper, along with the definitions.
4. Lead students into the next activity of looking at multiple perspectives in literature. Set up the context of the books, which is the development of the transcontinental railroad. Read one book and then start a discussion about what students noticed. Read the other book and ask the same question. Ask students: What did you notice about both books? What is different in these two books? What is the same? Create a chart with students' ideas so they can visually see what everyone has come up with.
a. Guide the discussion to revolve around multiple perspectives in literature. Define the word perspectives for students and record it on chart paper.
b. Ask students why the teacher would read two books on the same topic. Is it important to hear different views on something? Why or why not? What did you notice about the books in regards to race, skin color, values, and beliefs?
5. To help the class understand the importance of values and beliefs, set up at least two interviews with students’ family members so they hear different views. Explain that one important source of values and understanding of race is from families. Define what an interview is.
6. As a class, chart possible questions students can ask the interviewees. Possible questions might include: When did you first notice the color of your skin? Why is it or not important to talk about race? What does it mean to have a race? Are your values tied to your racial identity? What are some of your values and/or beliefs?
a. Teach students the difference between race, ethnicity, and culture.
7. Finalize the list of interview questions and print out copies for students so they have it when the interviewees come.
a. Prep the interviewees by giving them a list of the questions and talking with them before the actual interview with students so they understand the teacher's objectives. This is also important so the teacher knows what they should deter students from asking the interviewees.
8. Conduct the interviews in a large group.
9. After the interviews, have students discuss what they learned, and if the two interviews shared similar or different ideas of race, skin, and values/beliefs.
10. Further discuss how race is shaped with people’s experiences and physical features.
11. Have students journal about what they learned. Ask them to write about the guiding questions. What are values? What are beliefs? Do different people have different views on race and skin color? Why?
Assessment:
Differentiation:
Lesson Extensions:
Sources:
Teaching Tolerance: A Project of the Southern Poverty Law Center. Family Colors: Interviewing Our Families. Retrieved April 7, 2013, from http://www.tolerance.org/lesson/family-colors-interviewing-our-families
Appropriate Grade: 1st-2nd Grade Time Need: 3 days
Framework:
It is important to make home and school connections for students because it helps them feel safe in the classroom. Making these connections also gives students a feeling of belonging and acceptance in the classroom. Learning how to talk about race, identity, and ethnicity is an important skill for children, especially when they are asking their family members questions regarding these topics. Students have the opportunity to learn from family members, giving them necessary interviewing skills, and the chance to gain multiple perspectives that will enrich the classroom conversations.
Objectives:
- Students will understand and implement interviewing skills, specifically asking questions and reporting on the interviews.
- Students will take into account the different perspectives presented on the topics of race, identity, and ethnicity.
- Students will make connections between their family’s values and the values of their school community, as well as their peers.
Guiding Questions:
- What is an interview? Why do we conduct interviews?
- What are values? What are beliefs?
- Do different people have different views on race and skin color? Why?
MMSD Standards:
History
Retell past events, legends, biographies, or historical accounts.
Geography
Construct a simple map (house/room, backyard).
Behavioral Science
Examine similarities and differences between family, community, and national traditions, customs and celebrations.
NCSS Standards:
1st Strand-Culture:
-Human beings create, learn, share, and adapt to culture.
-Through culture, observation, and reflection, students will identify elements of culture as well as similarities and differences among cultural groups across time and place.
4th Strand-Individual Development and Identity:
-Personal identity is shaped by an individual’s culture, by groups, by institutional influences, and by lived experiences shared with people inside and outside the individual’s own culture throughout her or his development.
-In the early grades, young learners develop their personal identities in the context of families, peers, schools, and communities.
Materials:
- 2 parent/guardian/family member (of classroom students) volunteers
- Chart paper
- Writing/journal paper
- Pencils
- Coloring tools
- Iron Horses by Verla Kay
- Coolies by Yin
Interview (noun) – a conversation where on person tries to find out information or ideas from one or more other people
Value (noun) – something that a person or group of people thinks of as especially important or worthwhile
Believe (noun) – something a person thinks is true and important; something a person has faith or confidence in
Perspective (noun) – a way of looking at things
Culture (noun)- the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization (various definitions)
Identity (noun)- the set of behavioral or personal characteristics by which an individual is recognizable as a member of a group; the quality or condition of being the same as something else
Activities/Procedures:
1. Begin by having students do a map activity. Tell students they will be making a map of their bedroom.
2. Discuss as a class. Ask students how they chose what they drew and if they left anything out of their map of their room. Mention whether or not how the things shown and represented are the things that are important to them and are part of who they are. Lead into a discussion of what they value in their room. Define value. Also bring up beliefs. Relate these terms to students’ previous knowledge of race.
3. As concepts are brought up, write them on chart paper, along with the definitions.
4. Lead students into the next activity of looking at multiple perspectives in literature. Set up the context of the books, which is the development of the transcontinental railroad. Read one book and then start a discussion about what students noticed. Read the other book and ask the same question. Ask students: What did you notice about both books? What is different in these two books? What is the same? Create a chart with students' ideas so they can visually see what everyone has come up with.
a. Guide the discussion to revolve around multiple perspectives in literature. Define the word perspectives for students and record it on chart paper.
b. Ask students why the teacher would read two books on the same topic. Is it important to hear different views on something? Why or why not? What did you notice about the books in regards to race, skin color, values, and beliefs?
5. To help the class understand the importance of values and beliefs, set up at least two interviews with students’ family members so they hear different views. Explain that one important source of values and understanding of race is from families. Define what an interview is.
6. As a class, chart possible questions students can ask the interviewees. Possible questions might include: When did you first notice the color of your skin? Why is it or not important to talk about race? What does it mean to have a race? Are your values tied to your racial identity? What are some of your values and/or beliefs?
a. Teach students the difference between race, ethnicity, and culture.
7. Finalize the list of interview questions and print out copies for students so they have it when the interviewees come.
a. Prep the interviewees by giving them a list of the questions and talking with them before the actual interview with students so they understand the teacher's objectives. This is also important so the teacher knows what they should deter students from asking the interviewees.
8. Conduct the interviews in a large group.
9. After the interviews, have students discuss what they learned, and if the two interviews shared similar or different ideas of race, skin, and values/beliefs.
10. Further discuss how race is shaped with people’s experiences and physical features.
11. Have students journal about what they learned. Ask them to write about the guiding questions. What are values? What are beliefs? Do different people have different views on race and skin color? Why?
Assessment:
- I would informally assess students by making notes of students who participated and/or listened.
- I would formally assess through students’ journal entry, and their conversations throughout the lesson
Differentiation:
- It is possible for the teacher to have the interviews at the same time. The teacher might want to split the students in half for this and then make students accountable to report back as to what the presenters mentioned. An adult can help record during each interview, but students will need to inform their peers what each talk was about.
- Introduce concepts through pictures, especially other hard ones.
Lesson Extensions:
- Give students a copy of the questions and have students conduct an interview at home. Then have students share what they learned in class, either through large group or pair share.
Sources:
Teaching Tolerance: A Project of the Southern Poverty Law Center. Family Colors: Interviewing Our Families. Retrieved April 7, 2013, from http://www.tolerance.org/lesson/family-colors-interviewing-our-families