5-A-1+Group+A+Project+Page

5-A-1 Group A Project Page
 * On a separate wiki page, as a group:
 * Describe your reasons for selecting this particular recording. Explain why you believe this recording could be effective with students.
 * Describe at least 5 ways the recording you selected could be used in the classroom. Try to expand ideas for different subject areas and/or grade levels. For each lesson idea, include a brief description of how this activity could help promote critical thinking skills in students.



* A brief description of why we chose the Raggedy Man and how this could be used in the classroom.

The Raggedy Man is a good selection because it spans all age ranges for quality lesson possibilities. Since we are a mixed group we thought it would be easiest to choose something that a lower grade level could understand at face value and then find ways to adapt the lesson to the upper grades. The audio is spoken (written) in a way that is easy listening for young students, allowing them to create images of the scenes in their heads. Yet, the audio draws a more mature audience with it's verse and portrayal of the time period. What is expressed in this poem and the time period that it was written can still be applied to our society today. When you combine the original poem with the audio, you have far more room to work with the older students. If I were to use this in a high school classroom, I would definitely have both the audio and poem involved in the lesson. This selection can be used across a variety of subjects. Speaking for teaching younger students, I could use a, dare I say, Raggedy Andy puppet to teach lessons related to the verse of the selection. With references to watering horse and feeding hay, milking cows, chopping wood, shaking apples from a tree, there could be discussion about life on a farm. That topic lends itself to lessons in science with mammals and the food pyramid. In math, references to the raggedy man's work load - time, measurement, money compensation could be discussed as children could create their own story problems. These activities would require students to critically examine aspects of the recording to make determinations for the problems created. As for a writing/social studies activity, students could apply critical thinking skills to writing about what they would like to be when they grow up (how are their aspirations similar or different from the Raggedy Man), as the recording ends with the Raggedy Man asking the boy if he will be a store owner like his father. You could also use this poem as a lesson in rhyming. At the kindergarten level, they could find words within the poem that rhyme, add them to a "list" and also add other words they know that also rhyme. At the 2nd grade level or even older, the students could use what they know about rhyming words and write their own "story" type poem. You could discuss stanza and rhythm at the intermediate (3rd-5th) grade level. Older students, (4th-5th grade), could listen to this recording (and others during the same time period) and use this to research the past. Give them the title, and some background information about the recording, and let me use the internet to find their information. As far as a high school perspective, the poem and audio could be used in a number of ways in an English classroom. First off, students could dissect it from a poetic standoint. What is the poem's rhyme scheme, meter, style, form, and so on? Since it is a poem and poems are meant to be read aloud, this recording would be ideal because it has such emotion and inflection involved and would really enhance the written work. The students could also analyze the poem to understand the society, culture, and lifestyle of the era when the poem was written by examining the characters in the poem, such as the Raggedy Man, the boy, and the others. On a similar note, the recording and poem could be used as a study in characterization. Critical thinking is inherent in all of these lessons and activities inasmuch as the students need to be able to apply prior knowledge as well as personal knowledge in any of the given tasks. From a History/Social Studies standpoint, this recording and poem would be a great introductory lesson on the society and culture of the early 20th century. Students could research the author, performer, and content and do a presentation on what they discovered. ~Jen and jess & Melissa

I could use this poem in my high school sociology class when we discuss social stratification and the possibility of the “American Dream”. I would ask my students to point out any lines that show different social classes and explain how they are represented in the poem. I would also have them rewrite the poem to reflect what today’s “raggedy man” would have to say about working in our current society. Finally, I would challenge my students to think critically and make an argument whether or not the “American Dream” was realistic and if it is realistic today based on the poem and the poem that they rewrote. I could also use this poem in my high school civics class to reflect the difference in philosophies behind the democrats and republicans based on the poem. I would have my students author a response to the poem from the democratic or republican point of view. I would want them to point out how the party that they chose would feel about the author’s portrayal of society and whether or not the author’s perspective was accurate.

Rob

Jeanine **
 * Great Job** ** Group A! You all listed so many diverse ideas of how to use this in your classrooms! I love the Raggedy Andy idea! Anything you can do to make it come alive for your students will help them remember it and relate it to something concrete.