Civil Rights: The Native American Perspective

Over the course of the past month, 7th grade ELA classes have focused on reading fiction and nonfiction accounts of the Civil Rights Movement. While this is an extremely significant and important time in American history for students to study and understand, what many students do not realize is that Native Americans continue to face problems with cultural understanding and acceptance, especially with the way Native American mascots are depicted. To provide a better understanding of the controversy surrounding this issue, a select group of advanced 7th graders spent a week working with me, Beth Calaway, Gifted and Talented Teacher, and Peggy Rohan, Literacy Coach, to create presentations that would explain both the pros and cons associated with the issue.

To begin this special project, called a STRETCH, students attended a presentation by local Native American speakers, Richie Plass and Weeya Smith. Their presentations highlighted some of the negative stereotypes others still hold in the community today, their journeys growing up in and out of the state of Wisconsin, and how the stereotypical depictions of mascots have affected how others perceive their cultures. Students also went away with a better understanding of the diversities within each unique Native American tribe and why society needs to reconsider its use of Native American mascots in school, collegiate, and professional sports.

Upon conclusion, students reacted in awe and appreciation for their new understanding of Native American culture. During our follow-up discussion, students expressed how they were now going to look at Native American mascots differently and why it is important to educate the rest of society on the importance of this issue.

This led to the second part of our STRETCH- reading various articles that covered both sides of the Native American mascot controversy and creating a presentation to educate others about the issue. In small groups, students read 10 articles and completed a triple-entry journal documenting important ideas, their thoughts, and further questions. Following their reading, students shared notes with one another and began organizing their digital stories.

Digital stories were created using Voicethread. Students were taught how to find and cite copyright-free images as well as their research resources. Few hard guidelines for presentation format were given to students. All that was required was that they presented both sides of the mascot issue in a non-persuasive way.  Complete freedom was given to them as to how they chose to present the issue and how much information they conveyed. There were no minimum amount of slides, comments, or images required. Students could also find creative ways to share what they learned. One group chose to use a question/answer format while another chose to use the webcam option instead of images for the main slides. We felt that giving students room to make as many of their own choices as possible would empower them to take ownership for their learning.

The final results not only turned out to be significantly informational, but also truly impressive. It was obvious how passionate students became about this topic while engaging intensely in the learning process. We hope that you enjoy learning more about this issue as you view a sampling of the students' completed Voicethread presentations below. To see all of the completed presentations, click here and follow the links listed under each group.

Olympic Video Competition Results

The results are in.  Thanks to all of your votes, we are ready to announce the winner of the 7th grade persuasive Olympic video competition.  Which country should host the next Olympics based on your votes?  Read on for the results.

With 322 total votes, here are the final results:

Congratulations to Madagascar for winning the worldwide vote! If you missed their video, check it out below.




Even though time is up to vote for your favorite video, you can still watch all of the top 11 videos if you missed them.

Great job showing your creativity and persuasion skills 7th grade!

Greek Mythology Trivia Challenge Skype

Our 7th graders' knowledge of Greek Mythology was put to the test today when they connected with a group of 6th graders in Houston, TX, to challenge one another to a Greek Mythology trivia competition. Students at each school prepared this past quarter by learning about the different Greek gods and goddesses and reading various stories associated with each. Then, each class prepared questions to ask one another to determine who is the ultimate Greek Mythology trivia champion. Before the friendly competition began, students warmed up to one another by introducing themselves. They shared information about their respective cities and asked one another questions about everything from favorite foods to music. (Houston seems to have many One Direction fans as well!)

Next, it was time to get serious.  Each school assigned a team captain to answer all of the questions on behalf of the class.  We did rock, paper, scissors to determine who would go first. 

Students from each school took turns asking questions.  Questions were mostly open-ended, but multiple choice was offered when additional help was needed.

Although we kept score throughout the competition, what ultimately mattered was the experience.  Students had the chance to meet a new group of kids from somewhere else in the country and discover that kids from another part of the US are just like them in many different ways.   In addition, we proved that New London students are awesome learners who really understand and know their Greek Mythology. Who was the ultimate victor in this challenge?  I think that we could agree that both schools were winners. 

Look no further for your next vacation inspiration!

Where would you like to go on your next vacation? Let our 5th grade tour guides help you with your decision. Each student selected his or her dream vacation spot. Next, they used what they learned about persuasion to create a video using the free online video editor, We Video, that convinces others to go to their destinations of choice.

Want to get some inspiration for your next vacation?  Watch their videos below.

8th Grade Decade Research Videos

Eighth graders in Mrs. Koshollek's Language Arts classes turned a traditional research paper project into something 21st century by creating videos using Microsoft's free software PhotoStory 3.  Students created a Top 10 list of facts based a research topic they choose from an assigned 20th century decade.  Using PhotoStory, students were able to highlight the most significant events from their research and create a multimedia presentation that combines images, text, and audio. See some of their examples below.