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Lesson 1

We will learn about the unit’s topic and Framing Questions. We will also view and discuss a short video about storytelling and will begin to think about what stories we would like to tell in anticipation of the unit’s Culminating Task.

Lesson Goals

  • What do I already know or think about storytelling?

  • Can I explain where the unit is going and what will be expected of me?

  • Can I use guiding questions to identify and analyze details from a short video about storytelling?

Texts

Core

  • Digital Access
    • “Introduction to Storytelling” from “Pixar in a Box: The Art of Storytelling,” Pixar Animation Studios, Khan Academy, 2017

Optional

  • Digital Access
    • “Arrow to the Sun,” Gerald McDermott, YouTube, 1973

Materials

Tools

Reference Guides

Question Sets

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: View

We will begin the unit by viewing one of a series of short videos from pixar Studios to explore how Storytellers talk about the art of storytelling.

Watch "Introduction to Storytelling."

As you watch the video, consider the following questions:

  1. Who is Pete Docter? How and why did he become a storyteller?

  2. What does Docter suggest is "the power of story"?

  3. What is Docter's advice about how and why to "put something from your own life" into a story? What evidence from the video supports your response?

  4. What experience from his own life did Docter use to make the movie Monsters, Inc. connect with its audience?

Activity 2: Discuss

We will discuss the video to establish our initial understanding of why we tell stories and the effort that goes into creating them. Then we will begin thinking about what ideas and experiences of our own might become a story.

After watching "Introduction to Storytelling," share your responses to the questions from the last activity.

Then, in your Learning Log, write down some experiences from your own life that you would like to develop into a story. Also, list any Pixar movies you have seen and what you remember liking about them.

Activity 3: Discuss

We will discuss storytelling and the Storyteller’s art, thinking about the unit’s framing questions.

Think about and discuss the Framing Questions from this lesson’s question set as a class

  1. Why do people tell stories? How are stories culturally important?

  2. Where do stories come from? How do people become storytellers?

  3. What makes a story good? What are the elements used to make a good story?

  4. Who tells the story? How does the storyteller’s voice color the story?

  5. What stories do you have to tell? How might you tell them artfully?

Activity 4: Read – Discuss

We will review the Unit Text List to familiarize ourselves with the texts we will analyze and discuss throughout the unit.

Step 1

Access and review the Unit Text List. Note the information that is included about each text. These texts are also listed in the activities in which they appear, under the Materials tab. You will notice that each text has an icon by it. These indicate where the text is located, which corresponds to the Location column in the Unit Text List.

Text locations:

  • Tradebook: These texts are full-length novels or nonfiction books you will most likely have copies of.

  • Digital Access: You can find these texts online. Use the information provided in the Unit Text List or on the Texts tab for the activity to conduct a web search for the resource. Digital Access resources include online articles, videos, podcasts, and other web sources.

  • PDF Texts: These are formatted PDFs of texts that are available for download on the Materials tab.

  • CD/DVD: These materials are available on CD or DVD and might also be available through online content providers.

Step 2

Review the Independent Reading Text Options. Here, you will find suggested options for independent reading related to the unit.

Activity 5: View – Write – Discuss

We will continue to think about the art of storytelling by watching a video interpretation of a pueblo legend, “Arrow To The Sun.” we will individually interpret and write down details from the video that tell the story graphically, then combine and list them as a class in a sequence of captions that retell the story in words.

Step 1

Follow along as your teacher introduces the video "Arrow to the Sun," a Pueblo Indian legendary story told mostly through visual images created by author Gerald McDermott.

As a class, watch the video, trying to figure out what is happening in the story. Individually, list as many details as you can from the sequence of images presented.

With a partner, share and compare the lists of images you have noted, and discuss your initial reactions to the story and its potential meaning.

Step 2

As a class, discuss initial reactions to the video and possible interpretations of its meaning. Using your notes, make a sequential class list of what happens in the story, and think about how you might caption an image sequence from the story. For example, in the first 45 seconds of the video, corn stalks appear and produce corn, which then becomes an image of the sun and might be captioned as, "The sun is the source of life for the corn."

Discuss the concept that all stories present a sequence of events: their plot. Review what you know about story plots and how they are connected to development and meaning in a story.

Review the plot you have outlined for "Arrow to the Sun" and share ideas about what that plot adds up to: what the story seems to mean. Think about its meaning both in relation to the Pueblo people, from whom the story comes, and all people.

Identify other stories you know that are similar to "Arrow to the Sun."

Activity 6: Read – Discuss

We will discuss the concept of story archetypes by connecting “Arrow To The Sun” with other archetypal stories from other cultures.

Follow along as your teacher introduces or reviews the concept of a story archetype—a story that reappears across time and cultures and seems to have some universal meaning for humans. Using the genre of fairy tales as a reference, brainstorm a list of stories that might be seen as archetypes in terms of their plots and meaning, such as the story of the three little pigs and its connection to other stories about preparing—or not preparing—for life’s challenges.

Read an excerpt from the Bible, either John 3 or Matthew 1, which presents a cultural story in some ways related to "Arrow to the Sun."

Discuss as a class the plot and meaning presented in John 3:16 and how that story compares to the Pueblo legend. Imagine that you were going to produce a video representing the Bible story, in a vein similar to McDermott’s movie. Brainstorm a list of images you might use to tell that story visually.

Consider the following question:

  1. In what ways can all stories be seen as archetypes that have meaning both within and across cultures?

Activity 7: Write – Discuss

We will discuss the expectations presented in the Culminating Task checklist.

Step 1

Locate the Culminating Task Checklist and think about the Central Question:

What makes a good story?

Now look at the Task Question and prompt:

What is your story?

Write an original narrative that presents an interesting story from your life, your imagination, current events, or history. Choose from one of the following genres to structure your narrative:

  • Option 1 - Personal Narrative or Memoir: Recall an experience that was important in your life. Tell the story of that experience and its meaning to you so that it comes to life for your readers.

  • Option 2 - Original Story or Folk Tale: Combine your experiences and imagination with the art and craft of storytelling to tell a fictional story that is entertaining and meaningful.

  • Option 3 - Nonfiction or Historical Narrative: Identify a contemporary or historical event or character and use new-journalism narrative techniques to tell the story of the event or character in an original and engaging way.

In this unit, you will be reading and studying all of the narrative genres mentioned in the prompt

Write down your thoughts in response to the following reflection questions in your Learning Log:

  1. What kinds of stories most interest you?

  2. What kinds of stories might you want to tell other people?

  3. What stories from your own life might you incorporate into a story you could tell?

Step 2

Now find the Culminating Task Progress Tracker and reflect on the following:

  1. What do you think you need to know to be successful on the Culminating Task?

  2. What do you need to know how to do to be successful on the Culminating Task?

Write your responses on the checklist and share them with your partner or as a class.