Course: Humanities Grade Level: 5

Subject English/Social Studies Time Frame: 10 45 minute sessions

:
Title: Perspectives in Storytelling Developed By: Jennifer Elmore

Classroom Context: The classroom itself has 28 students. The class gets some support through
educational assistants but not very much. The school is extremely new, and has access to a
plethora of assistive technology. In our class, we have a Level 3 ELL student, a student with
attentional difficulties, and a student struggling with literacy skills.

Student 1 (ELL): Student is extremely shy and does not speak very often to other classmates and
definitely does not speak out in front of the classroom. It is assumed that this is because she is
afraid of making errors in her speech. The student is improving in her colloquial speech despite
being shy and quiet. Where she is still struggling is her writing skills, often making errors with
grammar, tense and word choices. This makes her very self-conscious and nervous about writing
assignments.

Student 2 (ADHD): This student has a lot of difficulty concentrating in class, especially for
extended periods of time. He will often fidget around and will distract other students. He prefers
class where he can move around and get out of his seat often. That being said, he usually does
stay in his seat for the entirety of the class, but will often move around in his seat, play with
things on his desk, and often does not engage in the material in the class.

Student 3 (LD – Literacy): This student struggles with spelling has weak phonemic awareness.
There are concerns that her reading is not fluent, and that her decoding skills are below grade
level. Her writing mechanics and sentence construction are concerns. Although interventions have
been put into place, she has been inconsistent and not having much success.

Stage 1 – Desired Results

Rationale and Established Goals: With the recent flood of immigration into Canada and the
current state of the world, it is important that students understand how a different perspective can
shape a story. The ultimate goal is to foster empathetic attitudes in students and encourage them
think critically about our Canadian history.
Content Standard(s):

The Social Studies Programs of Study focuses on students becoming “engaged, active, informed,
responsible citizens” (Alberta Education). A portion of the curriculum focuses on the diversity of
Canada and therefore looks at how these multiple perspectives have shaped our history and our
country as it stands today. Fostering a sense of appreciation and respect for all perspectives,
especially those of Indigenous individuals, develops a “respect for differences as well as the need
for social cohesion and the effective functioning of society” (Alberta Education).

Students will:
5.2.1. Appreciate the complexity of identity in the Canadian context
5.2.2. Examine, critically, the ways of life of Aboriginal peoples in Canada
5.2.3. Examine, critically, ways of life in New France
5.2.4. Examine, critically, ways of life of the fur traders
5.2.5. Examine, critically, ways of life of the United Empire Loyalists
5.2.6. Examine, critically, the ways of life of immigrants from the British Isles during the Great
Migration
5.2.7. Examine, critically, how the North West Mounted Police shaped the ways of life in Canada
5.2.8. Examine, critically, ways of life of non-European immigrants
5.2.9. Examine, critically, how European immigrants shaped ways of life in western Canada

The English Language Arts Programs of Study focus on providing students with the opportunities
to listen, speak, read, write, view and represent.

Students will:
1.1.1. Read, write, represent and talk to explore personal understandings of new ideas and
information.
1.2.1. Seek the viewpoints of others to build on personal responses and understandings.
2.2.1. Experience various texts.
2.4.1. Use texts from listening, reading and viewing experiences as models for producing own
oral, print and other media texts
2.4.2. Experiment with modeled forms of oral, print, and other media texts to suit particular
audiences and purposes.
3.1.3. Develop and follow own plan for gathering and recording ideas and information.
5.1.1. Discuss personal understanding of the lives of people or characters in various communities,
cultural traditions, places and times portrayed in oral, print and other media texts.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL): Differentiated Instruction (DI):

Multiple means of representation: Student 1:

 Communicate content in as many
modes as possible (e.g., oral, written,
visual)
 Give as much background information
and knowledge as possible before
beginning topic in order to activate
prior knowledge as well as interest
levels
Multiple means of engagement:
 Hands on and multi-sensory activities
 Think-pair-share with enough time to
process information
 Purposeful grouping
 Tiered assignments
 Flexible groupings
Multiple means of expression:
 Able to express themselves in multi-
modal ways
 Opportunities to express language
comprehension through physical
expression
 Bi-lingual handouts and cue cards
whenever possible
 Speech to text technology
 Translator technology
 Bilingual books
 Secret signal (if you aren’t understanding)
Student 2:
 Fidget toys and sensory toys
 Movement breaks
 Placed in the classroom where there are
minimal distractions (e.g., away from the
door/window)
 Incentives for completion of tasks
 Scaffolding tasks into smaller pieces
Student 3:
 Individualized instruction
 Speech to text programming
 Allow for more processing time
 Secret signal (if you aren’t understanding)
Understand(s): Essential Question(s):

 Empathy 1. What is a perspective?

 That perspectives shape history and
how it is taught.
 The complexities of Canada’s diversity
 That all stories, including literature,
have multiple points of view
2. How do perspectives shape a story?
3. How does a particular perspective
become dominant?
Prior Knowledge:
 The people’s and stories of Alberta
 Communities around the world
 How to compare and contrast
 Research and record information

Students will know… Students will be able to…

 How to distinguish between different  Compose an alternate perspective using

voices in text
 Critical information about ways of life
of various characters throughout
Canadian history
any mode that they desire
 Infer, based on research, another
characters (fairytale or historical figure)
perspective
 Use research skills to acquire information
about fairytale and historical characters

Stage 2 – Assessment Evidence

Performance Task (s):

 Compose own version of fractured fairytale using the perspective of lesser known
character
 Inquire into different versions of the same fairytale and create a compare/contrast
document
 Group inquiry research project into one of the characters/groups from the Social Studies
curriculum

Student Self Assessments: Other Evidence:

 Peer review portion for written
fractured fairytales
 Group self assessment after fairytale
inquiry (e.g., what can I do better to be
a better group member? How did we
work together well?)
 Mid and final group assessment form
for inquiry research project
 Exit cards after each lesson to ensure
students are engaged in the material
 Informal communication with students
through inquiry
 Thumbs up, thumbs down throughout
lesson to ensure understanding material

Stage 3 – Learning Plan

Unit Sequence: This unit intends to introduce the idea of perspective, first through fragmented
fairytales and then moving forward into real characters in Canadian history and how their
perspective may have shaped the story. The unit will begin with an introduction of what a
perspective is, and then slowly move through the fairytale portion, with some time for students to
do some inquiry into different versions of fairytales using the website SurLaLune Fairytales.
Students during this portion of the unit will work on writing their own fragmented fairytale. The
hope is that students will then move into an inquiry of a character from Canadian history. The
different characters that they can choose are outlined in the curriculum. As this unit is intended to
be interdisciplinary and inquiry based, final assessments may change based on the students
motivation and enthusiasm levels.
Lesson 2: The Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf
Learning Cycle What the Student What the Teacher Time Materials
Does… does…
Review  Discuss what it  Write down on 5:00  Smart board
means to have a smart board  White boards
different what it means for
perspective to have a expression
Students are not different
assessed on their perspective
ability to participate  Think, Pair,
in the conversation Share: “Have
but rather if they are you ever had a
engaged in the different
conversation. Speak perspective
slowly in order to from a
ensure friend/family
comprehension of all member?”
students and allow
for processing time
before asking for
answers.
 Think, Pair,
Share: “Have you
ever had a
different
perspective from
friend/family
member?”
Allow for processing
time of the question
in order to ensure
comprehension.
Students may present
their material or
answers in any way
they want (e.g.,
picture, answer on
whiteboard, spoken)
Introduction  Students put in  Circulate the 10:00  7 large
groups 4. Have classroom pieces of
students retelling while students paper
the story of the are discussing  Different
 Three Little Pigs the story. color
and writing down Encourage markers
the main points students to tell
of the story on their own
large paper. Some versions of the
kids might have a story.
different  Discuss the
recollection of differences (if
the story or a any) of the
different cultural different stories
version. That is on the board. If
encouraged. there are no
Purposeful grouping; differences
students are placed between
into groups with a papers, why is
range of learners. that? Why do
ELL students should you think that
be paired with we all have the
students with a range same idea of
of language abilities. the story of the
Allow students to Three Little
work wherever they Pigs?
please, decorate their
paper etc. to keep
them occupied during
the activity.
 Have students
place their large
paper up on the
board all beside
each other.
Activity  Have students get  Schedule time 25:00 -Computer labs
Sequence into groups of in the computer -SurLaLune
two and inquire lab for fairytales website
into different students.
versions of the
same fairytale
using the website
SurLaLune. They
may expand on
this webpage and
look into
different versions
that they find
with teacher
approval.
Students may use text
to sound software to
read text. Allow for
sufficient processing
 time in activity.
Purposeful grouping.
 Once a fairytale
has been chosen,
they can begin
doing a
compare/contrast
document. This
can be done in
any mode that
they choose (e.g.,
written
document,
presentation)
Document can be
done in multi-modes.
Closure  Why do you  Why do you 5:00 N/A
think that there think there are
are different different
versions of versions of
fairytales? fairytales?
 Game of  Start game of
telephone in telephone
which all  This is what
students sit in a happens when
circle and start gossip goes
whispering a through the
phrase. Once hallways!
the phrase has  Lesson
reached the end, bridge: What
have students if the story of
call out what it the three little
is. It has usually pigs was just
changed. gossip. What
if there is
another side
to the story?
Think about
what that
other side
could be?

Next Lesson begins with reading The True Story of the Three Little Pigs…