Haslett+Middle+School

Haslett Middle School Field Placement Planning Space **__(for Ben P)__**

We are planning on doing our lesson on November 22nd. The lesson will focus on Thanksgiving and we will focus on giving the students a real "taste" of the holiday and its true meaning. We will be talking with Mr. Pineda on Wednesday during his planning period and figure out all of the logistics.

Assignment: How to make a Thanksgiving lesson informative and factual without ruining the holiday for the students.

To start off our lesson about Thanksgiving we are going to use this political cartoon as a hook:



Lecture: Thanksgiving was not always the happy feast that it is today, but it was a celebration of a joyous occasion. When the pilgrims were trying to start their lives in America it was not an easy task. There was a year that America had a very rough winter and many people suffered and did not have food. The darkness turned to light when the following year resulted in a plentiful harvest. They celebrated with a feast that would include 90 natives who had helped the pilgrims survive that first horrible winter. The Native Americans had taught the pilgrims how to fish and hunt and where it would e a good place for them to plant their crops. The first feast included many fowl, but it is unsure if it really contained any turkey. This was not really the start of thanksgiving since pilgrims had celebrated harvests together. The first time that thanksgiving was really mentioned was in 1623. This year the pilgrims were living through a terrible drought and they spent a lot of time praying for rain, and the next day there was a light rain. At this point, Governor Bradford proclaimed a day of thanksgiving to offer prayers and thanks to God. At this time it was also not a yearly occurrence. The next day of recorded thanksgiving occurred in 1631 when a ship full of supplies that were feared to be lost at sea actually pulled into Boston Harbor. The governor then ordered another day of thanksgiving and prayer. The pilgrims may or may not have been the first to start thanksgiving because there are other areas that claim to have had the first one, but many times when there was drought or hardships a day of prayer and thanksgiving would happen. During the mid-1600s thanksgiving that we know today began to arise. This is when thanksgiving began to become a yearly holiday with days set aside for it. Over the next hundred years, each colony had different traditions and dates for celebrations. Some were not annual though. Massachusetts and Connecticut both celebrated thanksgiving annually on November 20 and Vermont and New Hampshire observed it on December 4th. Finally on December 18th, 1775, the continental Congress declared December 18 to be the national day of thanksgiving. Over the next hundred or so years they declared six more thanksgivings with one Thursday set aside each fall as a day of prayer. George Washington issued the first thanksgiving proclamation by a president of the United States on November 26, 1789. Thanksgiving was still being celebrated in many states but often on different dates. Mostly in November. A woman by the name of Sarah Josepha Hale is an important figure for creating the national holiday. She wrote a book about the importance of Thanksgiving as a national holiday. She even created a campaign to make the last Thursday in November a Thanksgiving national holiday. She even wrote letters to president Lincoln, whom eventually proclaimed a nationwide thanksgiving day as the last Thursday in November. After 1869, each year the president proclaimed the last Thursday in November as Thanksgiving Day.

Rough outline: (I have a .doc file of this as well, but the wiki is having a hard time uploading for me right now)
 * 1) Mr. Pineda's story (10 minutes)
 * 2) Political Cartoon (10 minutes)
 * 3) Pose questions and ask for interpretations
 * 4) Describe what symbols are used
 * 5) Explain what you think the cartoon is trying to say
 * 6) Discuss political cartoon and the commercialization of the holidays
 * 7) Short introductory lecture (5 minutes)
 * 8) Trivia Question and short explanations (led by MSU students) (15 minutes)


 * 1. Fact or Fiction: Thanksgiving is held on the final Thursday of November each year. **
 * Fiction. ** In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln designated the last Thursday in November as a national day of thanksgiving. However, in 1939, after a request from the National Retail Dry Goods Association, President Franklin Roosevelt decreed that the holiday should always be celebrated on the fourth Thursday of the month (and never the occasional fifth, as occurred in 1939) in order to extend the holiday shopping season by a week. The decision sparked great controversy, and was still unresolved two years later, when the House of Representatives passed a resolution making the last Thursday in November a legal national holiday. The Senate amended the resolution, setting the date as the fourth Thursday, and the House eventually agreed.
 * 2. Fact or Fiction: One of America's Founding Fathers thought the turkey should be the national bird of the United States. **
 * Fact. ** In a letter to his daughter sent in 1784, Benjamin Franklin suggested that the wild turkey would be a more appropriate national symbol for the newly independent United States than the bald eagle (which had earlier been chosen by the Continental Congress). He argued that the turkey was "a much more respectable Bird," "a true original Native of America," and "though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage."
 * 3. Fact or Fiction: In 1863, Abraham Lincoln became the first American president to proclaim a national day of thanksgiving. **
 * Fiction. ** George Washington, John Adams and James Madison all issued proclamations urging Americans to observe days of thanksgiving, both for general good fortune and for particularly momentous events (the adoption of the U.S. Constitution, in Washington's case; the end of the War of 1812, in Madison's).
 * 4. Fact or Fiction: Macy's was the first American department store to sponsor a parade in celebration of Thanksgiving. **
 * Fiction. ** The Philadelphia department store Gimbel's had sponsored a parade in 1920, but the Macy's parade, launched four years later, soon became a Thanksgiving tradition and the standard kickoff to the holiday shopping season. The parade became even more well known after it featured prominently in the hit film Miracle on 34th Street (1947), which shows actual footage of the 1946 parade. In addition to its famous giant balloons and floats, the Macy's parade features live music and other performances, including by the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes and cast members of well-known Broadway shows.
 * 5. Fact or Fiction: Turkeys are slow-moving birds that lack the ability to fly. **
 * Fiction (kind of). ** Domesticated turkeys (the type eaten on Thanksgiving) cannot fly, and their pace is limited to a slow walk. Female domestic turkeys, which are typically smaller and lighter than males, can move somewhat faster. Wild turkeys, on the other hand, are much smaller and more agile. They can reach speeds of up to 20-25 miles per hour on the ground and fly for short distances at speeds approaching 55 miles per hour. They also have better eyesight and hearing than their domestic counterparts.
 * 6. Fact or Fiction: Native Americans used cranberries, now a staple of many Thanksgiving dinners, for cooking as well as medicinal purposes. **
 * Fact. ** According to the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers' Association, one of the country's oldest farmers' organizations, Native Americans used cranberries in a variety of foods, including "pemmican" (a nourishing, high-protein combination of crushed berries, dried deer meat and melted fat). They also used it as a medicine to treat arrow punctures and other wounds and as a dye for fabric. The Pilgrims adopted these uses for the fruit and gave it a name—"cranberry"—because its drooping pink blossoms in the spring reminded them of a crane.
 * 7. Fact or Fiction: The movement of the turkey inspired a ballroom dance. **
 * Fact. ** The turkey trot, modeled on that bird's characteristic short, jerky steps, was one of a number of popular dance styles that emerged during the late 19th and early 20th century in the United States. The two-step, a simple dance that required little to no instruction, was quickly followed by such dances as the one-step, the turkey trot, the fox trot and the bunny hug, which could all be performed to the ragtime and jazz music popular at the time. The popularity of such dances spread like wildfire, helped along by the teachings and performances of exhibition dancers like the famous husband-and-wife team Vernon and Irene Castle.
 * 8. Fact or Fiction: On Thanksgiving Day in 2007, two turkeys earned a trip to Disney World. **
 * Fact. ** On November 20, 2007, President George W. Bush granted a "pardon" to two turkeys, named May and Flower, at the 60th annual National Thanksgiving Turkey presentation, held in the Rose Garden at the White House. The two turkeys were flown to Orlando, Florida, where they served as honorary grand marshals for the Disney World Thanksgiving Parade. The current tradition of presidential turkey pardons began in 1947, under Harry Truman, but the practice is said to have informally begun with Abraham Lincoln, who granted a pardon to his son Tad's pet turkey.
 * 9. Fact or Fiction: Turkey contains an amino acid that makes you sleepy. **
 * Fact. ** Turkey does contain the essential amino acid tryptophan, which is a natural sedative, but so do a lot of other foods, including chicken, beef, pork, beans and cheese. Though many people believe turkey's tryptophan content is what makes many people feel sleepy after a big Thanksgiving meal, it is more likely the combination of fats and carbohydrates most people eat with the turkey, as well as the large amount of food (not to mention alcohol, in some cases) consumed, that makes most people feel like following their meal up with a nap.


 * 10. Fact or Fiction: The tradition of playing or watching football on Thanksgiving started with the first National Football League game on the holiday in 1934. **
 * Fiction. ** The American tradition of college football on Thanksgiving is pretty much as old as the sport itself. The newly formed American Intercollegiate Football Association held its first championship game on Thanksgiving Day in 1876. At the time, the sport resembled something between rugby and what we think of as football today. By the 1890s, more than 5,000 club, college and high school football games were taking place on Thanksgiving, and championship match-ups between schools like Princeton and Yale could draw up to 40,000 fans. The NFL took up the tradition in 1934, when the Detroit Lions (recently arrived in the city and renamed) played the Chicago Bears at the University of Detroit stadium in front of 26,000 fans. Since then, the Lions game on Thanksgiving has become an annual event, taking place every year except during the World War II years (1939–1944).


 * 11. How many Americans travel farther than 50 miles away form their home for the Thanksgiving Holiday? **
 * 42.2 million people ** . How The American Automobile Association (AAA) estimated that 42.2 million Americans traveled 50 miles or more from home over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in 2010.

**Minnesota.** According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Minnesota is the top turkey-producing state in America, with a planned production total of 46.5 million in 2011. Six states—Minnesota, North Carolina, Arkansas, Missouri, Virginia, and Indiana—account for nearly two-thirds of the 248 million turkeys that will be raised in the U.S. this year.
 * 12. What state produces the most turkeys? **


 * 13. **** How many turkeys are consumed every year on Thanksgiving? **
 * 46 million ** . The National Turkey Federation estimated that 46 million turkeys—one fifth of the annual total of 235 million consumed in the United States in 2007—were eaten at Thanksgiving.


 * 14. **** How much cranberry is consumed on Thanksgiving? **
 * 750 million pounds ** . Cranberry production in the U.S. is expected to reach 750 million pounds in 2011. Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington are the top cranberry growing states.


 * 15. What are the major pumpkin producing states in America? **
 * Illinois, California, Pennsylvania and New York ** are the major pumpkin growing states, together they produced 1.1 billion pounds of pumpkin in 2010. Total U.S. production was over 1.5 billion pounds.


 * 16. **** What state produces the most sweet potatoes? **
 * North Carolina. ** The sweet potato is most plentifully produced in North Carolina, which grew 972 million pounds of the popular Thanksgiving side dish vegetable in 2010. Other sweet potato powerhouses included California and Mississippi, and the top producing states together generated over 2.4 billion pounds of the tubers.


 * 17. **** What balloon has appeared the most times in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade? **
 * Snoopy ** . Snoopy has appeared as a giant balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade more times than any other character in history. As the Flying Ace, Snoopy made his sixth appearance in the 2006 parade.


 * 18. **** Who were the first two NFL teams to play on Thanksgiving Day? **


 * Detroit Lions vs. Chicago Bears. ** The first time the Detroit Lions played football on Thanksgiving Day was in 1934, when they hosted the Chicago Bears at the University of Detroit stadium, in front of 26,000 fans. The NBC radio network broadcast the game on 94 stations across the country--the first national Thanksgiving football broadcast. Since that time, the Lions have played a game every Thanksgiving (except between 1939 and 1944); in 1956, fans watched the game on television for the first time.

3,500 feathers
 * 19. At maturity how many feathers does a turkey have? **

15 pounds
 * 20. What is the average weight of a Thanksgiving Day Turkey? **

86 pounds
 * 21. How many pounds was the largest Turkey ever raised? **


 * 22. **** Who is credited for persuading Abraham Lincoln to declare Thanksgiving a National Holiday? **

Sarah Josepha Hale, an American magazine editor, persuaded Abraham Lincoln to declare Thanksgiving a national holiday. She is also the author of the popular nursery rhyme "Mary Had a Little Lamb"



I believe that our lesson on Thanksgiving went really well. It was interesting to note the change between the 2nd and 3rd hour students though, because third hour is much rowdier than second. The kids were very receptive to the lesson plan, and it seemed like many people were interested and wanted to get involved with it, Mr. Pineda taught it well too. He accomplished everything we wanted him to, while adding a twist to it that made it his own. I feel lucky that Mr. Pineda is so willing to accept our suggestions, and talk to us about what he believes will be beneficial or not. I feel comfortable discussing things about the curriculum and the lessons. I believe that the fact that Mr. Pineda has a very towering voice keeps his students involved and awake for the most part as well. The Students also really liked the video that we showed them. I think that a lot of times Middle schoolers respond well to movies because they understand them a little bit better. But I really think that Pineda did an awesome job with our lesson.

Being involved in his classroom is easy for me because Pineda is super receptive to the things we have to say, and he is really nice and welcoming. I think this really helps with my experience in his classroom. If I had gotten a teacher that I felt less comfortable about than I may not have been able to speak up as much about things with his class, but Pineda is always including us. I really enjoy my placement, even though sometimes I am tired haha. I hope that when I am in my internship year I will get a teacher that will allow me to be open and talk with them with issues that I am having, or ask for my suggestions on how to make the class better. Overall though, even though this is a short semester for placement, it has gone really well and I am looking forward to the next semester!

-Chrissy

I had mixed feeling about our lesson, but overall I think it can be looked on as a success. I feel Mr. Pineda did a wonderful job adapting our work into his teaching style and I believe this made it much more enjoyable for the students. The one thing that stands out for me, and I'm really glad we included it was the video of the little kids portrayal of the first Thanksgiving. It seemed that the kids really understand and enjoyed the dark humor it portrayed. I think out lecture may have been a bit short and maybe a bit dry, but with the time constraints and the amount of time for planning I think we did the best we could. I was quite surprised, in the good sense of the word, that the students really picked up on our political cartoon. The discussion we had was very enlightening, as it gave a glimpse into the thoughts of 8th graders on the subject of the holidays. I wasn't expecting to hear the answers we did from this discussion, but that was a pleasant surprise. Asking the students to critique our lesson also was helpful in the evaluation process. Some of the responses we got from the students were a bit confusing to me. Some made almost no sense, contradicting themselves ("I thought there was too much info on the powerpoint, but I wish there was more info on it"). I'm not kidding Mark. This was an actual response we got. Other drew pictures of turkeys and such. Some thought it was boring, which is to be expected, you can't please everyone, but the majority of the classes that were presented our lesson enjoyed it. I think for our first attempt at making an actual lesson went a lot better than I had expected and I feel that doing activities that actually involve teaching and planning for teaching like this will only benefit us in the long run.

-Joel

I feel that the lesson that we created on Thanksgiving for Mr. Pineda went pretty well. I liked to watch him teach the lesson and make it his own. He is great with adding his own spin on things but I feel that he still stayed true to the lesson we created but took just the right amounts of liberties with it to make it seem like his own. I am really glad that the students responded well to the political cartoon, I was worried that they might not understand it, same goes with the video we showed. But I was so glad that they picked up on the dark humor and irony that the video portrayed. Those two moments were my favorite from the lesson because it got students to think objectively about Thanksgiving, and in my opinion critical thinking is very important in education.

I am glad that we asked Mr. Pineda to ask the class for feedback after the lesson was over. It was really insightful reading what the student’s thought of the lesson. The feedback was what I expected, some students like the lesson some didn’t. some students felt that there was too much information in the PowerPoint some didn’t think there was enough. This just really shows the importance of mixing things up in the classroom because not all students learn or respond to information in the same way. The feedback we received was very beneficial and I will remember what the students had to say and take that into future unit/lesson plans that I create. Over all the experience went well.

Esm é

When we were planning this lesson, we purposefully decided to allow some room in our planning for Mr. Pineda to improvise and adapt our lesson to his style. In particular, when we were planning the political cartoon discussion, we decide that we would ask Mr. Pineda to pose questions however //he// would pose them, instead of listing questions ourselves. I think this provided a good learning opportunity for us to see how he would approach questioning. The result, I think, was kind of mixed: whereas in class we had been practicing questioning styles that were very incremental and asked students to observe closely before drawing any conclusions, Mr. Pineda led directly to asking students about meaning. They weren't asked to spend as much time observing and deciphering what they saw. This probably isn't how I would have posed the questions, but I did see that it made a lot more sense in terms of time. However, I felt like we could have given more students a chance to interact in the classroom space with the political cartoon. Instead, the discussion was very brief and concise. Still, I think it was a success. The topic of the cartoon seemed to resonate with most of the students, even if it didn't spawn much more conversation.

The video, on the other hand, seemed like a much clearer success. I admit that I was very concerned with showing this video because I was afraid that if students didn't have a substantial enough background with the material, it would weaken their understanding of the seriousness of the topic. I will say that I was somewhat uncomfortable with how much students laughed at the video, but the ensuing conversations were pretty reassuring. Directly after the video, a student sitting near me looked at me and said, "That's so depressing, but it's so funny! I guess it's funny to show how depressing it is." After that, I knew that the video was at least somewhat successful. Mr. Pineda's discussion lead afterward was really enlightening. He asked students if they knew what "dark humor" was, and most of them seemed to respond. His questioning really allowed students to demonstrate that they grasped an understanding of how humor can be used to illustrate really serious, large topics, and that's something I was worried about. (One of the students, in explaining the purpose of the video, even used the word "ironic.")

- Rikki

I feel that the lesson we created on Thanksgiving went well overall. I was nervous about what students would take away from the lesson. I didn’t want them just remembering fun facts but wanted them to gain some knowledge and test their own beliefs about thanksgiving. Mr. Pineda did a good job in teaching the lesson and adapting his teaching style to the lesson we prepared. I was nervous that the students would not understand the movie and political cartoon but they were fine. I was very happy that the students understood the movie and I think they enjoyed it, a change of pace. With the political cartoon I would have taught it a little differently. I would have gone more in depth about what the carton is saying. I would have like to talk about consumerism and the impacts it has on our society. I would have like to go into a deeper level conversation with it.

Anyways the feedback from the students was overall very positive. Some students liked the power point and some found it boring. Some students wanted more information and some wanted less. But you are always going to have that because you can’t teach to what every students likes or wants. For the 3rd period class we decided to change the order a little and not start with the movie rather the lecture and political cartoon. Though it went well I think starting with the movie worked better. The interesting part about the 3rd period class is that we ran out of time. Mr. Pineda never got to tell his story and we barley got to the movie. It didn’t feel like we went any slower or lectured longer but I guess we did. It was a very good lesson to learn that it is easy to lose track of time especially when the students are very interactive in the class. Time management is definitely something that will come with experience. It was a great experience and I learned a lot.

-Andy