How can digital resources and effective teaching methods be used to integrate Alaska Native ways of knowing and Western scientific methods in order to create greater understanding of, and interest in, geo-sciences for students?

Final Project-Unit Lesson Plan Lesson Title:

Writing and Creating Visual Arts / Sculptural Arts speaking of in the style of Alaskan and/or Canadian writers (poets)and artists (drawings; paintings; photographs; soapstone carving; multi-media;)

Grade Level: 9-12

Lesson Length: 4 hours per week over one semester elective

1. Objectives for Poetry Writing:
The students will:
• Choose one or more Alaskan or Canadian poets to research and read Write poetry about Alaskan geo-science/changes to the Alaskan environment in the style of studied Alaskan and Canadian writers

NORTHERN THEMES:
• ice; water; geography; Rim of Fire; Lituya Bay; glaciers; glacial formations; weather formations; color and shape in landscape; cultural elements; change in the ecosystems/dynamics/land of the north; Arctic animals, birds, land formations; Tlingit months imagery

Writing Poetry: [Sleeping on the Wing by Kenneth Koch and Kate Farrell: [*INTRODUCTION: Modern Poetry; Reading Poetry; Talking About Poetry; Using Writing Suggestions; Writing Poetry on Your Own]

POETS for examples or choices:
• Nora Dauenhauer: The Droning Shaman and Life Woven With Song
• Judith Aftergut: The Finest Musician
Joy Harjo
Joan Kane
Donna Foulke
Sheila Nickerson
• The Rising and the Rain by John Straley
• Glacier Bay Concerto by Richard Dauenhauer
• Haa Shu Kaa by Nora and Richard Dauenhauer
• Other poet(s ): Tidal Echoes UAS Literary & Arts Journals by UAS

2. Objectives for Visual Arts: Photography:
The students will:
• Choose one or more Alaskan or Canadian photographers to research
• Take photos about Alaskan geo-science/changes to the Alaskan environment in the style of studied Alaskan or Canadian photographer

PHOTOGRAPHERS for examples or choice:
• David Koschmann, Glacier Bay
• David Sheakley, Juneau

3. Objectives for Visual Arts: Painting:
The students will:
• Choose one or more Alaskan/Canadian painters to research
• Paint about Alaskan or Canadian geo-science/changes to the Alaskan environment in the style of studied Alaskan or Canadian painter

DRAWING ARTISTS/ PAINTERS for examples or choice:

• Drawing Artists or Painters from: Icebreakers; Alaska's Most Innovative Artists by Julie Decker
• Inuit Women Artists edited by Odette Leroux, Marion E. Jackson and Minnie Aodla Freeman

4. Objectives for Sculptural Arts: Soapstone Carving:
The students will:
• Choose one or more Alaskan or Canadian carvers to research
• Carve something from Alaskan or Canadian geo-science/changes to the Alaskan environment in the style of studied Alaskan or Canadian carver

CARVERS for examples or choice:
Sculpture of the Eskimo by George Swinton
• Inuit Women Artists edited by Odette Leroux, Marion E. Jackson and Minnie Aodla Freeman

Other Artists:

• Nick Galanin
• Alaska Native Heritage Center artists
• Alaska Native Artists
  

MEDIA RESOURCES:
• All TD’s from Explore Alaska’s Cultural Modules
• Alaska State Museum laser disc with hundreds of NW Coast masks and carvings

MATERIALS:
• Journals, paper, computers
• Paper, canvas, paint brushes, paints, artist pencils
• Soapstone, wood blocks, stone files
• you tubes of Alaskan artists
• Sitka carvers NPS Cultural Center information

ACTIVITIES:

First Month: Writing Poetry:
Using poems by chosen poets, introduce styles, patterns, themes, poem starters from examples in Sleeping on the Wing [*INTRODUCTION: Modern Poetry; Reading Poetry; Talking About Poetry; Using Writing Suggestions; Writing Poetry on Your Own].
• Students write individually and cooperatively in the style of one or more writers
• Final work will be critiqued and displayed

Second Month: Visual Arts: Photography:
Students choose two favorites from chosen photographers. Introduce styles, themes, color or b/w, statements.
• Students take photos in the style of these photographers
• Final work will be critiqued and displayed

Third Month: Visual Arts: Drawing/Painting:
Introduce styles, patterns, illustrative elements, themes from Inuit Women Artists.
• Students draw or paint in the style of one or more visual artists
• Final work will be critiqued and displayed.

Fourth Month: Visual Arts: Sculpture: Soapstone Carving:
Introduce styles, patterns, materials, themes from Inuit Women Artists and ___kb blue Sculpture book
• Students will carve in the style of one or more soapstone artists.
• Final work will be critiqued and displayed

Teaching pattern:
TD, book, and You Tube pieces will be shown weekly, followed by discussion of Native Ways of Knowing, Alaskan Geo-Science Change; and Cultural Science elements and how they can be expressed in writing and art. Students will consider whether to strike out with something new each month, or to continue one theme/element throughout other modules of the class. Students will choose three elements of the Alaska State Standards for each of their final displayed pieces. These elements will be represented in their own individual endeavors.

ALASKA STATE STANDARDS:
[Students will be introduced to these at the beginning of the semester. Students will choose three elements of the Alaska State Standards for each of their final displayed pieces. These elements will be represented in their own individual endeavors.]


English/Language Arts : A student should be a competent and thoughtful reader, listener, and viewer of literature, technical materials, and a variety of other information.

A student who meets the content standard should:

1) comprehend meaning from written text and oral and visual information by applying a variety of reading, listening, and viewing strategies; these strategies include phonic, context, and vocabulary cues in reading, critical viewing, and active listening;
2) reflect on, analyze, and evaluate a variety of oral, written, and visual information and experiences, including discussions, lectures, art, movies, television, technical materials, and literature; and
3) relate what the student views, reads, and hears to practical purposes in the student’s own life, to the world outside, and to other texts and experiences.

Science: Alaska: Concepts of Life Science:

• Students develop an understanding that all organisms are linked to each other and their physical environments through the transfer and transformation of matter and energy.

• The student demonstrates an understanding that all organisms are linked to each other and their physical environments through the transfer and transformation of matter and energy by:

• analyzing the potential impacts of changes (e.g., climate change, habitat loss/gain, cataclysms, human activities) within an ecosystem.

A student who meets the content standard should:

• develop an understanding that culture, local knowledge, history, and interaction with the environment contribute to the development of scientific knowledge, and local applications provide opportunity for understanding scientific concepts and global issues.

Personal Perspectives and Science:

A student should understand the dynamic relationships among scientific, cultural, social, and personal perspectives.

A student who meets the content standard should:

1) develop an understanding of the interrelationships among individuals, cultures, societies, science, and technology;
2) develop an understanding that some individuals, cultures, and societies use other beliefs and methods in addition to scientific methods to describe and understand the world; and
3) develop an understanding of the importance of recording and validating cultural knowledge.

Geography:

A student should be able to make and use maps, globes, and graphs to gather, analyze, and report spatial (geographic) information.

A student who meets the content standard should:

1) use maps and globes to locate places and regions;

5) evaluate the importance of the locations of human and physical features in interpreting geographic patterns; and
6) use spatial (geographic) tools and technologies to analyze and develop explanations and solutions to geographic problems.

A student should understand the dynamic and interactive natural forces that shape the Earth’s environments.

A student who meets the content standard should:

2) distinguish the functions, forces, and dynamics of the physical processes that cause variations in natural regions; and
3) recognize the concepts used in studying environments and recognize the diversity and productivity of different regional environments.

A student should be able to use geography to understand the world by interpreting the past, knowing the present, and preparing for the future. A student who meets the content standard should:

1) analyze and evaluate the impact of physical and human geographical factors on major historical events;
2) compare, contrast, and predict how places and regions change with time;

5) examine the impacts of global changes on human activity; and

ARTS:

A student should be able to understand the historical and contemporary role of the arts in Alaska, the nation, and the world.

A student who meets the content standard should:

1) recognize Alaska Native cultures and their arts;

3) recognize the role of tradition and ritual in the arts;
4) investigate the relationships among the arts and the individual, the society, and the environment;
5) recognize universal themes in the arts such as love, war, childhood, and community;
6) recognize specific works of art created by artists from diverse backgrounds;
7) explore similarities and differences in the arts of world cultures;
8) respect differences in personal and cultural perspectives;

Cultural Standards:

Culturally knowledgeable students demonstrate an awareness and appreciation of the relationships and processes of interaction of all elements in the world around them.

Students who meet this cultural standard are able to:

1) recognize and build upon the interrelationships that exist among the spiritual, natural, and human realms in the world around them, as reflected in their own cultural traditions and beliefs as well as those of others;
2) understand the ecology and geography of the bio-region they inhabit;
3) demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between world view and the way knowledge is formed and used;
4) determine how ideas and concepts from one knowledge system relate to those derived from other knowledge systems;
5) recognize how and why cultures change over time;
6) anticipate the changes that occur when different cultural systems come in contact with one another;
7) determine how cultural values and beliefs influence the interaction of people from different cultural backgrounds; and
8) identify and appreciate who they are and their place in the world.