Subject Area: English Language Arts
From Shakespeare to Siouan: An Investigation of European and American Indian Cultures
Year: 2021-2022 | Level: 9-12In this lesson students will explore American Indian lifeways during Shakespeare’s lifetime, AD 1564-1616. They will compare American Indian culture during that general time period in North Carolina to that of Shakespeare’s Elizabethan England and consider what may have caused conflicts between the two groups following European settlement and colonization….
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Hand Talk – Native American Sign Language
Year: 2023-2024 | Level: K-5Students will learn about and practice Hand Talk, Native American Sign Language, with a focus on the most extensively researched and documented Native American sign language, Plains Indian Sign Language (PISL). Students will investigate this form of communication, used by both deaf and hearing Native Americans, that thrived for centuries…
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Harness the Wind
Year: 2022-2023 | Level: K-5By Laurie Newhouse from Dillard Drive Magnet Elementary OVERVIEW OF LESSON: As first grade students learn about force and motion in science, they will read about the true story of a boy named William and how he created a windmill to help save his family during a time of drought…
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Identity through Storytelling
Year: 2021-2022 | Level: 9-12Students will consider the many ways stories are communicated, not just through words, but also through material culture, to consider how identity is created based on the objects and architecture that surround us today and in the past. Archaeologists call these objects “artifacts” when referring to material culture recovered from…
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Indigenous Culture Through Stories
Year: 2023-2024 | Level: K-5In this lesson, students will learn about two Indigenous cultures by listening to two stories. While they are listening, they will determine the theme of the stories. After listening to the stories, students will compare the characters in the stories by using evidence from the stories. At the end of…
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Making Healthy Lifestyle Choices Through Storytelling
Year: 2023-2024 | Level: K-5Students will learn how Indigenous people address healthy lifestyle choices through storytelling by focusing on characters, themes, and personification. Students will use the YouTube version of the Eagle Book Series written by Georgia Perez. The Eagle Book Series allows young readers to see healthy lifestyle choices. The author developed these…
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Malala: Gender Rights Leader and Refugee
Year: 2022-2023 | Level: K-5By Holly Kolarova from Clear Creek Elementary OVERVIEW OF LESSON: Students will review a picture book and an informational text about Malala Yousafzai and identify what factors forced Malala’s family to become refugees. Students will identify UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are relevant to Malala’s situation, including quality education…
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Migration is a Universal Human Experience
Year: 2022-2023 | Level: K-5By Holly Kolarova from Clear Creek Elementary OVERVIEW OF LESSON: Students will read two historical fiction picture books based on real people that experienced the act of migration in their lives. Students will understand what a migrant is, the push and pull reasons for migration, the hardships migrants face, and…
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Name that Artifact!
Year: 2021-2022 | Level: K-5In groups of 3-5, students will analyze models of 3-D artifacts using the UNC Research Laboratories of Archaeology’s Ancient North Carolinians website. During analysis, students will make observations of their artifact–describing its characteristics, and using those descriptions to make predictions about what the artifact may have been used for. Students will…
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NC Lumbee Tribe Homecoming: A Comparison of Celebrations and Culture
Year: 2023-2024 | Level: K-5Through discussion, students will see that celebrations are a way for communities to share their culture with not only the next generation but with others not of their culture. Students will begin by explaining their personal Fourth of July celebrations and the reasons or purpose behind celebrating this day. Students…
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