Culture Clash

http://edweb.sdsu.edu/courses/edtec596/project1/CultureClash.html

Unit Authors

This unit was developed by Family G and was delivered to 7th graders at O'Farrell Community School.

Content Areas

This unit is anchored in Humanities and involves science, math and art.

Organizing Theme

The theme of this unit is: What happens when different peoples come into contact with each other? or Culture Clash.

Implementation

The unit lasted a month and simultaneously occurred across disciplines. The classes involved were Language Arts, Math,Art, Social Studies and Science. Only one family was involved.

Outline of Activities

Humanities: * Students read the Ox-Bow Incident. Keep a response journal. * Students read actual treaties the U. S. government made with "Indians" * Students looked at the culture of the pioneer vs. the culture of Native Americans during western expansion. Main focus being how they viewed nature. * Students examined land purchases in U.S. History. *Students looked at modern day Border Issues. Prop 187. Newspapers were used as resources. Math *Students looked at the population decrease of Native American peoples as western expansion increased. Using these numbers students will learn percentages, bar graphs, and ratios. Art & Computers *Students searched the Web for Native American Art and Puritan Art of the 1800's. Students shared their findings with the class. * Students wrote a description comparing the two art forms. What are the differences, what does it say about the culture it came from? What do they value? Science and Geography *genetics. Different human characteristics? Why? Environmental Issue? *Darwin's Theories about genetic mutations and survival of the fittest. Why are Northern Europeans lacking in melanoma?

Student Products

Mock Journals from the perspectives of Pioneers. Students create maps showing the westward expansion. Students create graphs showing the dwindling population of the American Buffalo. Mock journals from the perspectives of Native Americans. A portfolio of the entire unit is kept on hand with the students reflection sheets.

Thinking Skills Engaged

This unit is founded in the idea that thinking skills and content driven learning can be merged. This unit is based on the question of culture clash, and inherently history has shown that one culture becomes the oppressors. Discussions are always opened with a question. Students are to make inferences from what the content provides.. Critical thinking is continually revisited since the students are the researchers. The art aspect takes up the issue of comparison.

Lessons Learned

Closure is probably the most important moment in any unit. Having students reflect and make their own discoveries about the world is the ideal. Students will be asked to reflect on paper what they had learned and how it relates to modern America. A Socratic Seminar works well for a discussion on discrimination, fear, and racism and what can be learned from the past. Many unanswered questions arise when speaking about American History. Problems? Sometimes it was difficult to generate discussions.

This description was written by L. Reingewirtz. Last updated on March 6, 1996.
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