Artifact 6.7A Science Lesson Plan

Maria Sideri
Wheelock College
Lesson Plan

Grade Level:1& 2
Date: November 10, 2011
Time: 10:00-11:00am
Subject Area:Science (Social Studies)-Native American Dyes


Massachusetts
History and Social Science Curriculum Frameworks:
3.12 Explain how
objects or artifacts of everyday life in the past tell us how ordinary people
lived and how everyday life has changed.

Materials Used:
Plastic Gloves
Paper Plates
PaperTowel
Newspaper
Water Bowls
Cotton Cloth Strips
Natural Dye Color Chart
Blueberries
Pomegranate seeds
Spinach
Coffee Beans
ShortStory from http://lewisandclarktrail.com/section2/colorsanddesigns.htm

Learning Goal:
To explore and understand the ways that Native Americans
used natural dyes for their clothing.

Objectives:
Students will be able to recognize that Native Americans
used natural products only to make colors for their clothing.
Students will also be able to recognize that these colors
and natural plants and berries symbolize meanings and representations.

Prerequisite
Knowledge:
I believe that the students need to have an idea of
Native Americans in the sense that they should understand that Native Americans
solely rely on natural objects that they have to collect and gather themselves.
Therefore, Native American clothing is very different to the type of dyes are
very different from the dyes we see on clothing today.

Assessment:
I will know that the students have reached the learning
goal of this lesson when they come to an understanding of how and why Native
Americans use natural dyes. During the class discussion at the end of the
lesson will be when the students discuss and share what they learned.

Implementation:

1.
I will introduce Native American natural dyes to
the students by asking them how they believe color gets into clothing and how
this is done. I will then explain that the Native Americans had to dye their
clothing by hand with natural plants and berries. (10:00-10:05)

2.
I will then read the short story from http://lewisandclarktrail.com/section2/colorsanddesigns.htm
which does a great job of describing what most Native American clothing was
like, how they dyed their clothing, and what those colors represented.(10:05-10:10)

3.
I will have a chart provided that describes what
each color represented, and what was used to make each color. (10:10-10:15)

4.
I will then have the students go back to their
tables (where I have previously set up newspaper on each table, water bowls to
rinse cloth, paper towels, paper plates to work on, berries to crush and cotton
cloth strips). I will explain to them that they will only get a certain amount
of berries to crush onto their cloth, and that the colors may come out lighter
than they expect. I will also remind them to think about what the colors
represented while they crush the berries. (10:15-10:20)

5.
We will work during this time, stopping the
clock to remind students of time, working progress, etc. (10:20-10:50)

6.
We will then come back together as a class on
the rug and discuss what was learned during this lesson about Native American
clothing and the process of using natural dyes. What does this tell us about
how we live today? (10:50-lunch)

Differentiated Instruction:
For the students that are having trouble crushing the
berries or are hesitant to crushing the berries, a teacher will assist the
student in crushing the berries and rubbing on the cloth so the color comes
out. In general, I believe this is something that all students will find they
can conduct.


Reflection:
This lesson was a lot of fun. The students were so
engaged with creating the different color dyes! They would talk to their group
tables and get excited every time a new color came out. At the end of the
lesson, during the discussion, I was so proud of the way the students made
connections to the Native American way of life and how different the process of
making dyes is today. The only thing I’d like to change about this lesson is
the timing. I felt somewhat rushed going through the discussion of what the dye
colors mean to the Native Americans, but overall, this lesson I believe was a
success for a science experiment.