| Teaching
Guide for An Invitation to Senegal
Also refer to the Module Guide for additional information. Content area and grade levels History/Social Studies and Fine Arts for grades 3-5. Standards ILS 16.D.2 (W) - I can describe the various roles of men, women and children in the family, at work, and in the community in various time periods and places (e.g., ancient Rome, Medieval Europe, ancient China, Sub-Saharan Africa). ILS 18A - I can compare characteristics of culture as reflected in language, literature, the arts, traditions and institutions. ILS 18.A.2 - I can explain ways in which language, stories, folk tales, music, media and artistic creations serve as expressions of culture. ILS 27B - I understand how the arts shape and reflect history, society and everyday life. ILS 27.B.2 - I can identify and describe how the arts
communicate the similarities and differences among various people, places
and times. This lesson is presented as a letter written by Anwar, a 14-year old boy from Senegal. Anwar describes what daily life is like in Dakar, Senegal, in an effort to persuade the reader to visit his country. He focuses on the culture and customs of Senegal, including musical traditions, religion, and manners. The lessons in the module A Field Trip to West Africa were developed in response to teacher requests for curriculum materials on contemporary Africa for late elementary and middle-school students. Teachers expressed the need for materials that would highlight everyday life in Africa and that would present the cultural diversity of African countries. The Field Museum, Chicago and the Chicago WebDocent Project partnered to develop A Field Trip to West Africa to address this need. The lesson An Invitation to Senegal is intended to prepare students who will visit The Field Museum’s Africa exhibit. The exhibit includes a display focusing on Senegal, which presents some of the artifacts on view in the lesson. Teachers using the lesson will be able to prepare students for what they will see and learn about in the exhibit, as well as preview key artifacts. In addition to a field trip, this lesson can be
used in conjunction with other Africa
resources at The Field Museum, including online
and hands-on materials from the Harris
Educational Loan Program. Please consult Additional
Activities and Web Links for
other resources for this lesson. The online lesson is designed to be as part of a pre-visit activity for a field trip. It can be completed in one class session; however, the lesson may be delivered over multiple class sessions depending on how long students spend reading, viewing images, exploring dictionary terms, and responding to online journal questions. Please consult the Module Guide for A Field Trip to West Africa for instructional use scenarios that describe how to use the lesson in a classroom or lab setting. The lesson includes images of artifacts and parts of the exhibit that students can closely inspect using a “zoom” tool. This content is presented in a clickable museum icon that opens full screen to reveal a high resolution image. Teachers can engage students in a series of questions that foster visual thinking and critical thinking skills. Invite students to spend a moment looking at the image or object and ask them to describe what they see. Ask students to support their observations by pointing out specifics. Invite the class to analyze what they believe the image was intended to communicate, when it may have been created, by whom, for whom, etc. Typically students will get involved spontaneously offering their interpretations in an energetic discussion that moves learning into their hands. These techniques can be used both in the classroom using digitized images and at the museum looking at artifacts. It is recommended that teachers preview this lesson to find any concepts or vocabulary that may need to be covered before the students begin. All vocabulary words are listed in the lesson in the "Words to Know" box. Teachers may wish to create a vocabulary/spelling list for using the terms found in this lesson. The lesson includes an online journal with several essay-type questions for students to answer and print. Teachers may wish to preview the questions and select which ones students should answer. Teachers are strongly encouraged to set up a discussion time for students after each session so that they can reflect and give feedback on what they have experienced so far in the lesson. top The lesson includes
images of artifacts and parts of the exhibit that students can closely
inspect using a “zoom” tool. This content is presented in
a clickable museum icon that opens full screen to reveal a high resolution
image. Teachers can engage students in a series of questions that foster
visual thinking and critical thinking skills. Invite students to spend
a moment looking at the image or object and ask them to describe what
they see. Ask students to support their observations by pointing out specifics.
Invite the class to analyze what they believe the image was intended to
communicate, when it may have been created, by whom, for whom, etc. Typically
students will get involved spontaneously offering their interpretations
in an energetic discussion that moves learning into their hands. These
techniques can be used both in the classroom using digitized images and
at the museum looking at artifacts. Audio Visuals Assessment
and evaluation In addition
to activities using The Field Museum's resources listed above, the Additional
Activities link provides suggestions for offline projects for students
that can be used for assessment. |