Erika Rodriguez & Taylor Manrique

Lesson Title: Since Time Immemorial

Lesson Topic: Native American Oral Story-telling

Social Studies Major Content Area(s):

How are you connecting the lesson to any combination of these…

History: By listening to oral stories that originate from local Native American tribes, students
will be able to better understand the history of the first people in America, and learn where many
lessons and folk tales have originally come from.

Geography: The students will be learning about the locations of tribes within their region (WA),
and use a tribal map to understand where each tribe is, or was, in relation to their own location.
By discovering more about the geography of each Native American tribe in Washington,
students will be able to make better sense of the oral stories, and have a greater respect for the
culture.

Economics: During the time that we are discovering and discussing the Native American tribes
within Washington state, we will also be discussing how the history of these tribes has
contributed to and affected the US economy and their own economy. Students will have the
opportunity to discover and better understand how these tribes were able to survive on WA state
soil and how they were able to make a living despite the assimulation that the US government
tried to force upon them.

Civic: During the discussion of how Native American tribes contributed to the economy of WA
state and the US, we will also be delving into the concept of the rights of Native American tribes
in the past and present years. Students will be able to discover and better understand how freely
Native American people lived when they settle within the United States, then how the US
government decided to strip them of their natural rights, and now how we have finally began to
recognize the wrong-doing towards Native American tribes and how much they truly contributed
to the economy and growth of the US. A good example of this is how we are shifting within the
US from celebrating Columbus Day, to celebrating Indigenous Day, all to honor the exploration
and discovery of the US by the Native American tribes who were settled there.

Community Partner(s):
● Local Tribes
● Tribal Museums
● Tribe leaders/members
● Regional oral story-tellers

Standards:
RL-3.2: Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine
the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the
text.

RL-3.3: Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain
how their actions contribute to the sequence of events

SSS1.3.1 Explain the purpose of documents and the concepts used in them.

H2.3.1 Demonstrate how contributions made by various cultural and ethnic groups have shaped
the history of the community and world.

Objectives/Big Ideas
Students/community members will…
Know/Understand:
SWBAT… give an oral explanation as to why they believe the story they have heard is important
SWBAT… collaboratively create a list of the characters in the story and how they contributed to
the story
SWBAT… determine the overarching lesson behind the story
SWBAT… write their own personal definition of what oral-storytelling is and why it is important
SWBAT… tell their own personal story to a partner from their own culture and/or experiences
SWBAT… orally paraphrase the oral story of their partner

Be Able to Do:
What skills and habits of mind will this lesson help develop?
After this lesson, students will have a better understanding and appreciation of the Native
American tribes within their region, as well as a greater respect for the stories that have
originated from their culture. This lesson will help lead students to develop skills in being more
culturally aware and responsive in a multitude of ways, as well as grasping an understanding of
what Native Americans have been through, and appreciate the impact they have had on our
society.

Eco-Citizenship Focus Area(s):

▪ Human Rights ▪ Arts ▪ Water
(Children’s Rights) ▪ Food Security/Sovereignty ▪ Other(s)
▪ Animal Habitat ▪ Land

Since Time Immemorial Emphasized

A major part of Since Time Immemorial is helping students better understand the concepts of the
Native American culture and how they have contributed to regional and US history. Introducing
students to the concept of Native American oral-storytelling allows them to get a stronger grasp
on a specific concept that is a major part of Native American culture. With oral-storytelling,
students not only better understand the history and tradition of these regional and nation-wide
cultures, but also allows them to understand how oral-storytelling is all around them, and even in
their own cultures. By the end of the lesson, students will have connected this concept of Native
American culture to their own lives, allowing them to better grasp the importance of
understanding and being educated on how Native American culture has influenced our own
cultures and has added to our lives.

Essential Question

● How can oral story-telling help you better understand the Native-American culture?

Sub-essential Questions
● Where else do you hear/see oral story-telling?
● What is the significance of oral story-telling?
● Has oral story-telling ever been used to help you better understand your own history or
culture?
● Why is Native American oral story-telling important?
● What is one way we can use Native-American oral story-telling to spread awareness
about their culture?

Connection between School/Community EQ and Classroom/Lesson(s) Sub-EQs:

● How can we gain a greater appreciation for the surrounding cultures within this
community?
● How can we honor oral story-telling in our classroom?

Materials Needed:
● audio-speaker in order to listen to the Native American oral stories
● oral story reflection/analysis worksheet
● pencil

Activities/Procedures:
Part One: Teacher will give a brief description of the 2 oral stories in which the students will be
listening to. Students will listen to both stories, taking thinking and discussion time in between
so that they can thoroughly process each story. During the thinking and discussion time, students
will be thinking about the importance/lesson of the story and the characters included in the story
and how they are important to the story. During this time, we will be completing a class chart
that acts as a list of the characters and their importance, and ultimately shows student’s
understanding of the story.
Part Two: As a whole group, we will be discussing and developing a class definition of the
overall lesson of the story. Once we have that definition written on a poster paper, we will have a
class discussion on why we think that Native Americans came up with this story, and why they
have been passing this story down from generation to generation.
Part Three: Considering that we will have broken down each story as a whole group and
discussed the reasoning behind these stories, students will be challenged to write their own
personal definitions of oral-storytelling and why they are important. This will allow students to
critically think of all that we have discussed about oral-storytelling, and ultimately show their
own personal understanding of it.
Part Four: Students will take individual thinking time about oral stories that are in their own
cultures, such as stories passed down from their parents or grandparents. This will allow them to
make the connection from Native American oral-storytelling to their own lives. They will share
these oral stories with a partner.
Part Five: With the oral stories that they have just heard from their partners, students will share
their partner’s stories aloud. This will not only keep the students engaged in their partner’s story,
but also give them the opportunity to practice oral-storytelling.

Assessment/Evaluation
How will I know what students have learned?
We will assess students in a formal and informal way for this lesson. We will be able to
use the completed analysis worksheet that students complete to gauge how well they understand
the lessons within the story, and the characters contributions and roles within the story.
Following this, students will be writing their own definition of oral story-telling, and explaining
why it is important. After students share an oral story of their own to their partner, we will
informally assess them by having each student paraphrase aloud the story that their partner
shared with them. By using these three types of assessment, we will be able to determine if the
students have achieved the learning targets, or still need more help in understanding the
importance of oral story-telling within Native American tribes, and how they have contributed to
modern day story.

Support
What do I need to teach this lesson? What might students need to learn within the lesson?

Curriculum/Instructional Coaching:
● Regional Resources- WA State tribes
● Community Resources- Local Tribe Leader/Member
● Global Resources- Tribes from around the US and their oral stories

Community Partner support:

Prior to this lesson, it would be helpful to meet with local or regional tribal members or
representatives in order to gain a deeper understanding of Native American culture and oral
story-telling. By having this previous support and extra learning development on the content I
will be able to improve instruction and teaching strategies for my students. Following this lesson,
we will have a tribe member come into the classroom and speak to the class, telling an oral story
of their own tribe that has significance to them, and share more about the Native American
culture to the students.

Other Support:
Accomodations-
● Copy of the oral story in words or headphones with audio resource for students with
auditory disabilities
● Option to type personal definitions instead of writing them
● Strategic grouping- placing students that are highly capable with students who may
struggle
Notes/ Next Steps
Following the lesson planned for today, we will have a local or regional tribe member
come into the class to share more about their culture with the students, as well as share an oral
story of their own that has significance to their tribe specifically. Seeing and learning first hand
form a tribe member after having gained background knowledge of Native American culture the
previous lesson, will help students create a connect between the two, bringing the ideas and
concepts to life for students.