Pre-Assessment Reflection
For this unit, the freshman class will be reading The Way to Rainy Mountain by N. Scott
Momaday, a text that discusses the North American Kiowa tribe’s history and way
of life, and watching the film Whale
Rider, a contemporary story that is centered in the Maori culture in New
Zealand. After interpreting both of
these stories, the students will be writing 3-page compare/contrast essays
focusing on the ideas present in both stories.
We began by reading The Way to Rainy Mountain. This story is structured with three different
narratives that each tell a different aspect of the same story, which we classified
as the Legendary Voice, Historical Voice, and Present Voice. One of the first things I wanted to do when
teaching this text was to make sure that the students were successfully making
the connections between these three different voices. Their first small assignment was to create a
triangle chart in which they draw the connections between the different aspects
of the story. Some examples can be seen
here:
I could tell from these connections, and later
discussions that the students were struggling to grasp some of the “deeper,”
more meaningful connections (as opposed to tangible objects that connect the
stories). The Way to Rainy Mountain is relatively easy to read, however; the
concepts and connects that students should be making are hidden and difficult
to grasp. Looking back, I could have
scaffolded this lesson better so that students could make these connections
earlier. However, I think this was a
good activity because it got students to realize they need to be making these
connections early on, and it provided them with a visual format with which to
do this.
I realized from this activity that the students would not be able to grasp the concept of the story without some intervention. I decided we would try our own hand at Momaday’s style. One day in class, I asked students to write their own Present Voice story: a story of their own lives that was significant to them, an unforgettable moment. I provided my own example and compared it to Momaday’s style. The students really latched on to this project. Later, we developed our Present Voice story into our Legendary Voice story: a myth. I provided an example of how I turned my own story into a legend. This was challenging for the students, but it gave them the opportunity to see what Momaday was doing in The Way to Rainy Mountain. Finally, we wrote a Historical Voice version of our story as well.
Some of the stories can be seen here. Please note that Mr. Ross (my cooperating teacher) has his students write all of his essays on Google Documents, and all comments are inserted digitally in the document. Therefore, my assessments are all online and I am unable to share them without editing the original documents. Please accept these .docx versions instead. If you download the document instead of just previewing it, you should be able to see my comments in the margin.
I realized from this activity that the students would not be able to grasp the concept of the story without some intervention. I decided we would try our own hand at Momaday’s style. One day in class, I asked students to write their own Present Voice story: a story of their own lives that was significant to them, an unforgettable moment. I provided my own example and compared it to Momaday’s style. The students really latched on to this project. Later, we developed our Present Voice story into our Legendary Voice story: a myth. I provided an example of how I turned my own story into a legend. This was challenging for the students, but it gave them the opportunity to see what Momaday was doing in The Way to Rainy Mountain. Finally, we wrote a Historical Voice version of our story as well.
Some of the stories can be seen here. Please note that Mr. Ross (my cooperating teacher) has his students write all of his essays on Google Documents, and all comments are inserted digitally in the document. Therefore, my assessments are all online and I am unable to share them without editing the original documents. Please accept these .docx versions instead. If you download the document instead of just previewing it, you should be able to see my comments in the margin.
From these two forms of pre-assessment, I saw my students
make great strides in their thinking and connections between the different
stories in The Way to Rainy Mountain. Through this activity, I realized how
important it is to give students work that connects to their own lives: no
longer is it theoretical, but it has a real-life application. Additionally, this gives students credibility
and the ability to doing something hands-on, something that is real to them. Students were very excited about their
stories and willing to let others hear them.
For some students, it became an outlet to write about important events
that had happened in their lives.
Now, after finishing the book and this assignment, we
will watch Whale Rider. After discussing the film, we will compare
and contrast The Way to Rainy Mountain and Whale Rider in a three page
essay. This way, students will be making
connections between different cultures and story lines. The essay will give them a chance to
communicate their higher-order thinking in a focused and organized manner. Standards will include:
·
WHST.9-10.1a
a. Introduce precise claim(s), distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or
opposing claims, and create an organization that establishes clear
relationships among the claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence
·
WHST.9-10.1c
c. Use words, phrases, and clauses to link the major sections of the text,
create cohesion, and clarify the relationships between claim(s) and reasons,
between reasons and evidence, and between claim(s) and counterclaims.
·
WHST.9-10.1d
d. Establish and maintain a formal style and objective tone while attending to
the norms and conventions of the discipline in which they are writing.
·
WHST.9-10.5
5. Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing,
rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most
significant for a specific purpose and audience.
·
WHST.9-10.8
8. Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative oral, print and
digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the usefulness of
each source in answering the research question; integrate information into the
text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and
following a standard format for citation.
·
WHST.9-10.9
9. Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and
research. Include texts by and about American Indians.
Post-Assessment
Reflection
Samples of the students The Way to Rainy Mountain and Whale
Rider compare/contrast essays may be found here:
Overall, I was very pleased with the freshmen’s
essays. It was very evident from the
essays that they understood the ideas in Whale
Rider more than they did in The Way
to Rainy Mountain. I think this is
partly due to the fact that Whale Rider
is a film and The Way to Rainy Mountain
is a complex text. In retrospect, I
would spend more time helping the students make the connections in The Way to Rainy Mountain. We spent about a day discussing the overall
climactic connection, but many of the students were gone and missed that final
discussion. Many students, when writing
their essays, expressed confusion at the ideas in The Way to Rainy Mountain, and it became clear, even after our work
on the subject, they still missed some of the big ideas.
During my process of assessing the students, I realized
that each assignment for students needs to have a direct purpose. Sure, points are important so one assignment
does not make or break their grade. It
is more important, however, to use assignments to assess how students are
performing in class and that their limited time is being used wisely. Overall, I think this was a successful unit
because it required students to make connections within a text, connections
between texts, and connections to their own lives. It required them to read a complex text, as
well.
Through this unit, I realized that I enjoyed the creative-writing (Personal 3 Voice) assignment more than the formal essay assignment. I realize formal essays are important and I will definitely continue to teach them to my classes. They are critical to success in college. However, I think creative writing may be overlooked as a successful teaching tool. Creative writing, when formatted correctly, can force students to stretch their ideas into new ones. For example, in this activity, they had to take their own story and turn it into a myth. This requires them to analyze their own ideas and view them in a new light. In future classrooms, I want to integrate all forms of writing, not just formal essays, because each technique teaches students something new.
Through this unit, I realized that I enjoyed the creative-writing (Personal 3 Voice) assignment more than the formal essay assignment. I realize formal essays are important and I will definitely continue to teach them to my classes. They are critical to success in college. However, I think creative writing may be overlooked as a successful teaching tool. Creative writing, when formatted correctly, can force students to stretch their ideas into new ones. For example, in this activity, they had to take their own story and turn it into a myth. This requires them to analyze their own ideas and view them in a new light. In future classrooms, I want to integrate all forms of writing, not just formal essays, because each technique teaches students something new.
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