Lesson

Subject: Social Studies Grade: 2 Date: December 14th, 2017

Lesson: Oral Tradition Time: 40 Minutes
SLOs:

Social Studies:
2.1.1: value oral history and stories as ways to learn about the land. What are the
traditions and celebrations in the communities that connect the people to the past and to
each other? How are the communities strengthened by their stories, traditions and events
of the past?

Instructional Objectives:

Knowledge:
Students will...
1. Discover the importance of oral stories and traditions to preservation of first
nations culture

Skill:
Students will...
1. Create a oral tradition story about their own family and experiment with several
variants of telling the story to attempt to replicate cultural loss.

Key Questions:
What is Oral Tradition?
Why is storytelling important?
What are the key elements of a story?
What are some difficulties that can emerge with verbal record keeping?
How can language barriers complicate oral record keeping?

Materials:

iPads, Dry-Erase Markers, Whiteboards

Preparation:
iPads plugged in and charging
Lesson Procedure:
Intro/Review
1. Good Morning Everyone! Its a different time of the day today, but it is still Mr.
Leahys favorite time of the day...Social and science time! Today is a very
exciting dayyou guys are going to make up some of your own stories and share
them! But first, we need to talk about what we learned on Tuesday...what did we
learn on Tuesday anyways? (Discuss) 5 Minutes
2. Oh yes of course, we read the book and talked about stories and beliefs! Got it!
The story that we read on Tuesday came out of a book right? Mr. Leahy read it to
you guys and we looked at the pictures and talked about certain things! Books are
a great way to record stories and share them with everyone! But what if books and
paper werent available to write stories down? What if there were no computers
and phones to record videos and words? What then? 3-5 Minutes
Transition
3. Today I want you guys to make up your own stories and share them with
classmates! But before we do that, everyone needs a whiteboard and a dry erase
marker. Lets go do that now: Blue and Red tables grab markers, green and
yellow whiteboards, and then switch! 3 Minutes
Lesson Body
4. Okay, so heres what were going to do. Everyone is going to tell their own story
about a tradition you have in your family. It could be something you do everyday,
it could be something you do at christmas time, it could be something you do once
a year, it could be anything! Thats up to you guys to decide! Your story cant be
more than 1 minute long! So if you think it is too long, shorten it up a little bit.
But I also want you to make sure it isnt too short. 1-2 Minutes
5. Use the whiteboard to write down the key points of the story you want to make
sure you tell people. Not full sentences, just one or two words about details so you
remember. Im going to give you guys 5 Minutes to figure out what your story is
going to be and write down your key details. I dont mind if you talk to a friend
for ideas, but you each need to have your own story in 5 Minutes! 6 Minutes
6. Now here comes the fun part, I want everyone to partner up with their math
buddies! The list of names is up here on the board! Take turns telling your partner
your story! If you are listening, be a good listener and pay careful attention to
your partners story! Dont take notes, but try to remember all the details! Once
you and your partner have each told your stories, switch to a new partner! BUT
HEREs THE CATCH! You have to tell your new partner the story you just heard
from your partner! As close to you can as word for word please! 5 Minutes
7. Okay! Excellent! Lets come back to our table spots now please! 2 Minutes
8. Alright! I need a volunteer please (pick) okay __________! Who was your last
partner during that activity! Okay great. Would you please tell the class the story
that you just heard? 2 Minutes
9. Alright, so ________, the story that you just told was actually the story that
_______ made up! How close was _______ to retelling the story exactly right?
(Time permitting, repeat the process) 4 Minutes
 10. Hmmmmm. So, what do you guys think about the activity that we just did? Any
thoughts about storytelling? (discuss) 4 Minutes
11. For the Inuit people and a lot of Indigenous people, oral storytelling is the only
way that traditions and stories can be passed on! Thats why it is critically
important that people in their cultures are great listeners and respect their elders.
If no one listened to those stories, they would disappear forever as the people
passed away, and that would be a great tragedy. 2 Minutes

Assessment:

Formative Assessment: Review content from Tuesday: make sure that students are able to
recite key story details and the important points covered in class discussion regarding
caribou and tradition.
Formative Assessment: Circulate throughout the room during the work process and
ensure that students are following directions properly. Provide support and
encouragement for students struggling to formulate their own stories.
Formative Assessment: Have students retell one or two stories to the class and discuss
the difficulties with remembering stories orally. Have students discuss the importance of
history and storytelling: check for emphasis on being a good listener and sharing
knowledge