CI+CONTENT+HOW-TO

__**How to plan a content-based culture lesson/unit**__

1. Choose your topic/theme/objective. Some ideas to get you started:
 * 1) Music
 * 2) Art
 * 3) History
 * 4) Food

2. Decide what essential vocab/structures will be needed for students to be able to understand the unit. Be sure to check the high-frequency vocab list. Make a list of EVERYTHING. You can narrow it down later.

3. Using your essential structures as your guide, make (of find) a short written version of the historic event (or poem, lyrics, recipe, etc.) in the target language. This will be your EXTENDED READING, which you will use towards the end of your unit. This extended reading MUST include the structures that you have taught and practiced in the form of personalized questions and mini-stories. If possible, use cognates for terms that were not previously taught as structures. In the extended reading, it is OK to include **some** new words that were not previously taught, so students learn the skill of using context to figure out meaning, but the reading must still be totally comprehensible.

4. Keeping your list of structures in mind, start writing down as many personal questions as you can. Your goal is to use a single structure repeatedly in your questions and when you repeat student answers, so choose structures that can fit this goal. For example, if your topic is something historic, your structures might include words like...battle; ally; constitution. Now, ask some kids about a battle they have seen on TV (between sports teams, aliens and earthlings; parents and children...) After writing AT LEAST 4 or 5 questions on this structure, move on to the next structure and repeat.

5. Now, build these structures into a short story. If possible, try to use some of the funny or interesting information that you gathered in your personal questions. Here is a short example: There was a boy named Monty. Monty was very handsome and strong. One day, Monty was walking home from school down Broadway when he saw a battle between a dog and a really small elephant. Monty yelled, “Dog, do not battle an elephant. Elephant is your ally.” So, dog turned to Monty and hit Monty in the stomach! Monty cried. Elephant and dog laughed.

As you create your story, you will need to pause and circle (question) each detail. Try to stop several times during your storytelling to ask these questions before you move on to the next part of the story. Until you get lots of practice, you may want to write a list of circling questions to use. Try to ask questions to elicit yes/no answers or simple answers that students are able to produce. Here are a few examples: Was there a boy? What was his name? Was Monty strong? Was Monty ugly? WHERE was Monty walking? Did Monty see a battle or a romance? WHO was in the battle?

6. After creating the story and asking lots of questions during the story-asking process, you can ask some comprehension questions, you can have students act out the story as you tell it again, you can have students draw the story...Anything to get students involved in the process of hearing a story again. Some examples of post-listening comprehension questions are: WHO was the boy? (Monty) WHERE was he walking? (Broadway) WHEN was he walking down Broadway? (after school) WHERE did dog hit Monty? (stomach)

7. After doing lots of story-asking, circling, questioning, answering, mini-stories...it is time for students to have EXTENDED READING TIME.

8. Additional activities: being a middle school teacher, I always have to dream up some active learning activities that involve moving around the room; drawing; some creative work. Often I use typical “paper-pencil” activities (like matching) and just perform them on a larger scale. Some ideas are: Readers theater Shower-curtain map Stuffed animals/puppets Storytime/ Kindergarten time Thought bubbles/Dialogue bubbles Who Said That? Running dictation Animoto.com Exit ticket explosion Prezi.com

9. How will students be assessed? Project? Test? A final assessment does not have to be in an exam form.