For this unit, I’ve considered three significant teaching strategies: (a) visual notetaking, (b) the use of oral storytelling, and (c) metacognitive practices. These three concepts are all connected to the unit in multiple ways. To start with, students will be already reading a graphic novel with the understanding that examining the visuals will be critical to some students' understanding of the process. As a result, it would only make sense to consider creating their own visuals in order to demonstrate their understanding to someone else. In terms of oral storytelling, the oral tradition is very important to the Native American culture as well as being a beneficial literacy practice. For my students, the ability to practice reading a text and even telling their story without a text in front of them would be a significant experience. Finally, metacognition, thinking about thinking, leads to better understanding of the academic processes. Not only would students consider the role place plays in their learning but also how the visuals and oral practices contribute to building comprehension.
Visual Notetaking
There are many forms of visual notetaking. One specific way is sketch notes where students add small pictorial representation of the information they are synthesizing in order to build connections between material. This process has been shown in studies to increase a student’s ability to retain information.6 This is due in part because the combination of words and visuals activates multiple parts of your brain.7
When considering sketch notes, there are several things to keep in mind according to the editors at Edutopia. A key concept is to reconsider what you are using for paper and encourage to students to use something non-traditional if lined paper doesn’t fit their needs. Another suggestion made is to start small and build a common visual language by creating several key images to represent concepts and ideas that recur in the work the students are doing.8
To develop this process with students, Doug Neill suggests building upon the notetaking processes that kids are already using. For example, taking Cornell Notes and starting by adding an image at the top of the page to represent to topic and adding dividers and small images while taking notes. From there, it is possible to have students explore further with larger ideas, bullet lists, and numbered lists. Initially, this should be very basic. When students get to the key ideas section, it would be at that point that they would further add representative images to help remember the key ideas. Finally, in the summary section, students should try create a diagram or mind map to represent the big ideas of their notes.9
Oral Storytelling
Oral storytelling is a method of presenting information that is passed down through the generations in a narrative form that is spoken rather than written. In this form, traditions are maintained and cultural identities are shared by storytellers to those who are intended to hear them. Besides stories, beliefs and language are also part of the oral tradition.10
A significant part of this unit ask the students to explore different ways of learning (in the classroom vs. in nature / Native environmental viewpoints vs. European centric viewpoints). As such, oral storytelling also allows students to consider other types of learning. Traditionally in the Western classroom, written language is given more weight over oral language. Historically, governments have weighed in on whether or not they will consider oral histories as acceptable evidence in significant legal cases. The idea is that oral histories are inherently biased and altered by the storyteller, while there is no consideration of the bias of someone who writes a text.11 Bringing oral storytelling into the classroom asks the students to big deeper into metacognition.
In the classroom, oral storytelling offers several benefits. First of all, oral myths offer the opportunity for critical thinking and inquiry.12 By presenting stories in a form that is less written language focused, students with limited written language skills have more accessible to the work being done in class. Secondly, oral storytelling has been used as a social-emotional learning activity in classrooms in the United States. By allowing students to share their stories, they are invited to bring what they know and what they respect into the classroom learning environment.13
Metacognition
Metacognition is a process where students become more self-aware of their learning by thinking about thinking. By reflecting, judging, and recording their learning, students have a better understanding of how they think which leads to students being more independent and adaptive. Students ages twelve to fifteen benefit most from metacognitive reflection based on research. The outcomes not only benefit academic success, but social-emotional success. Metacognition helps students to think thoroughly about their actions and the consequences of their decisions. 14
A teacher who is thinking about engaging in metacognition can do numerous strategies. One of those techniques is to have students reflect on what they have learned by considering what new knowledge they have developed. Also, teachers can have students maintain learning journals where they consider successes, challenges, and productive practices.15 Adding a reflective aspect to lessons has shown that students make more academic growth as making learning visible helps those to understand what they are doing right and wrong.16