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The unit will be presented through an integrated approach, involving primarily the areas of reading, language arts, and social studies. In all activities, the underlying academic focus of most material will be on developing reading and writing skills. Comprehension and related reading skill lessons will be developed from stories we cover. Writing activities will revolve around summarizing, conveying impressions, recognizing parallels from their own families, and imagining themselves in similar situations. I will develop individual worksheets which will focus on the skills developed in Degrees of Reading Power, a system which develops the use of context clues and is an important part of New Haven's reading skills program. I have included an example in my section on specific lesson plans.
On a regular basis, I will read to students and students will read to me, to each other, to students in other classrooms, and to their parents, guardians, and other family members. Initially, I will read stories to the class during our daily oral reading time. As material with historical connections appears, appropriate factual material will be presented. In order to widen my students' knowledge of African American culture and history, I will call upon elements of previous units I have written. These include: "Poetry: A Mirror in Which to See Myself" (1989), "The Family That Endured" (1990), "Building Dreams--Who is There to Help You?" (1991), and " Poetry: A View of African American Life" (1994). These, together with material which arises from stories being read or current events with relevant references, will be used to make the setting and plot of various stories more meaningful to the student. The manner in which such historical information is integrated by the individual teacher should vary to suit the circumstances, but it should not be omitted.
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The historical periods from slavery through the Civil Rights Movement will be covered more systematically during social studies and the events centering around African American history month. In turn, stories set in different time periods will supplement historical facts we cover in social studies. Mildred Taylor's Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, which shared the spotlight with James Comer's Maggie's American Dream in my 1991 unit, "Building Dreams," is an outstanding example of a book capable of achieving many of this unit's goals. Though set in the Depression, this story guides the reader through slavery, reconstruction, and the migration of some African Americans to the North. It has strong family members of both sexes and different ages who are at the same time quite human in their weaknesses. Its white characters range from the despicable to those whom we sympathize with and even admire. Extended family, community, and church are all woven together in this novel which I will use, at least in part, to strengthen my student's understanding of the African American family. Shorter works by Mildred Taylor which are generally easier to present to a third grade include The Friendship, Song of the Trees, and Mississippi Bridge. I plan to use individual copies of one or more of these titles for independent reading, depending on the ability of my students. If not read independently, they will be read orally and discussed with the entire class.
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Though it is not the primary focus of my unit, I will also use the lives and accomplishment of the women who authored the books we read as a means of initiating discussion and some investigation into the forces which have influenced, often adversely, the roles women play in our society. Both the struggles faced by Faith Ringgold as she fought to be accepted as a legitimate artist and author of children's books and the positive influence played by Mildred Taylor's father and other family members are appropriate examples. As with our study of the African American family, historical connections will be made to the Women's Movement, with the strength and survival of women being emphasized.
Along with Mildred Taylor, whom I have mentioned, the three other authors I will focus on are Virginia Hamilton, Faith Ringgold, and Connie Porter. I select them because of their personal story and those which they created. I will use additional authors as I am sure other teachers will. There is considerable material available about all four, especially Taylor, Hamilton and Ringgold. I will include a brief summary on each and something of how I will integrate their lives and their works into my unit. Most of the material in these summaries has come from a compilation of information from the internet site, "Voices from the Gaps--Women Writers of Color," biographical information presented in each book, and facts I gained while writing some of my previous units.