Mythic Framework Topic: Immigration, 3.W.2.

Finding a Narrative
Emotional Engagement Central Image or Metaphor Organizing Content into Story Form
What is emotionally What content most dramatically How can we organize the content into a developing story form?
engaging about the topic? illustrates the contrast between
How is it meaningful? Why the binary opposite? Is there a
should it matter to us? metaphor or image that can do
People immigrant for this?
numerous reasons but
students can relate to
wanting to live somewhere
they have freedoms.This
matters because our country
was settled by immigrants Bird in a cage wanting to fly Using historical or current events, there is a huge selection of
and build so we can enjoy real-life immigration stories. Chose stories that highlight as
the freedoms we have. Fish in an aquarium wanting to many reasons for immigration as possible;
Immigrants are a valuable religious prosecution
swim in ocean the
part of our communities. poverty
What binary concepts best government
capture the meaning and economy
emotion of the topic? If this education
were a story, what would the
opposing forces be?
Love/hate
love/hate rich/poor
rich/poor
friend/enemy
friend/enemy
success/failure
freedom/restriction
success/failure
happy/sad
freedom/restriction
happy/sad

2004 IERG. Protected under GNU Free Documentation License.

Developing Cognitive Tools
Images and Metaphor
What activities help students
develop images, metaphors, or other
forms of creative depiction?
Creating a picture collage - discuss
a historical event and ask students
to find visual representations of the
situation or images of the opposite
What jokes or fantastic stories can
be found or invented that relate to
the topic?
Plenty of real-life stories from
historical and current events that
share the story of immigrants.
Must pick stories from history:
potato famine, and founding of the
U.S.
Plus, contemporary stories: Syrian
civil war, economic hardship in
Guatemala, famine in Sudan
Rhythm, Rhyme and Patterns
What activities help students
experience and extend a sense of
rhythm, rhyme or predictability?
The life cycle offers an example of
the rhythm; a parent experiences a
difficult situation and does not want
the same for their child so they
immigrate.
Hopes and fears rhythm - use
historical events to predict the influx
of immigrants. Ideas of "waves of
immigrants" following events such as
famine or war.
2004 IERG. Protected under GNU Free Documentation License.
Teacher-led/structured
Drama and Roleplay
How can the students become characters in
the story? How can they be encouraged and
supported to contribute to or retell the story
using their own words, gestures, and
actions?
Students can participate in a game where
they take on the role of the immigrant and the
country and an exercise where they
experience the desires and hopes of
immigrants
- Class separates into groups and is assigned
a country or a human-role.
- Countries are given a paragraph that
describes the situation in their country. This
description includes what is allowed and not
allowed based on the economy, religion, etc.
-Human-roles are assigned a group name
and are given a list of dreams, hopes,
Student-led/open-ended
desires, needs.
- Each human group asks the countries about
their situation and must decide if the country
fits their list or not. Some will want to move
and others will be satisfied where they are
SECOND:
Star exercise:
- Students are given different colored paper
stars
- Each is asked to write a value or person on
each corner
- A story is read and based on the
situation,some stars are asked to fold down
specific corners
-Students are left with none, few, or all of their
values intact after the story
Looking Forward and Concluding
Towards Further Understanding
How can the unit develop embryonic
forms of Romantic, Philosophic, Ironic
understanding? What cognitive tools
characteristic of literacy, the disciplines,
or embodied self-awareness can be
introduced here?
This unit can develop into self-reflection
through the star activity. This allows student to
reflect on the freedoms they value, have, and
desire.
2004 IERG. Protected under GNU Free Documentation License.
Resolution
How does the story end? How are the
opposites mediated or resolved?
Immigrants come to a new place that is
better suited to their life, desires,
dreams, and goals.
- Students understand what drives
immigration based on historical and
current events.
- Students can gain an appreciation for
what they have and were they live
- Empathy for those who do not have the
situations they want
Assessment
How can one know whether the topic has
been understood, its importance grasped
and the content learned?
Identify events or reasons people
immigrate (historical and current)
- Quizzes of events or reasons, with
matching questions
- Discussion focused on how each
place has different freedoms and
people have different wants
- Observe the collage created by
students to see how they interpreted
and understood the situations being
discussed