Return of the Buffalo Lesson Plan

Lesson Plan for "Return of the Buffalo"
by Misty Hargrove and Dr. Lovelace

Introduction to Lesson

P.A.S.S. objectives
Language Arts: The learner will

I.A.1.	Expand vocabulary through word study, the reading of literature, and class discussion (e.g., multiple meanings, definitions, and meaning in context).
I.A.3.	Use synonyms correctly.
I.A.5.	Use a thesaurus to determine related words and concepts
I.B.1.	Read and comprehend both the fiction and nonfiction that is appropriately designed for the second half of grade four.
II.B.	Identify the characters’ actions, traits, feelings, and motives.
II.K.	Connect information and events from text to life experiences, other texts, and world events.

Visual Literacy: The learner will

VIII. E.

Listen to, view, or read literature which tells of characters in American and other cultures.

Social Studies: The learner will

I.B.1.

Locate, describe, and compare the human characteristics and early settlement patterns of regions in the United States and Oklahoma (locations of ethnic group concentrations, the impact of the westward movement, languages, economic activities, and cultural patterns).

Teacher's purposes for the lesson: This lesson is intended to improve students' reading comprehension through

discussing vocabulary words from the story that express the characters' feelings/emotions
teaching students how to use the thesaurus to discover synonyms for words that convey emotions
identifying characters' feelings and relating those feelings to events from the story
connecting characters' feelings to events and emotions from the students' own lives
discussing literature that tells about characters from different ethnic groups drawn from Lawton's history

II.

Objectives

A.	Given vocabulary words from the story dealing with the characters' emotions, the learner will correctly sort the words into two categories: "words that describe emotions" and "words that do not describe emotions."
B.	Given a thesaurus, the learner will find at least three new words that are synonyms for three of the "emotion" words listed on the "Events and Emotions" practice page.
C.	After reading the story "Return of the Buffalo", the learner will correctly match events from the story with characters' emotions related to the events.
D.	After reading the story "Return of the Buffalo", the learner will write a paragraph in his/her character journal extending the story one year into the future, writing from the viewpoint of Frank Rush, Quanah Parker, George Catlin, Oklahoma (the first buffalo calf born on the refuge), Josiah Wright Mooar, General Philip H. Sheridan, or Theodore Roosevelt. The student will include three words describing the character's emotions, telling how the character felt in response to future events.

III.

Procedures

Materials

1.	Copy of the two-page story "Return of the Buffalo" for each student (click here for the story: Page 1, Page 2)
2.	Copies of the "Word Sort" and "Events and Emotions" practice pages
3.	One copy of an intermediate-level thesaurus for each pair of students
4.	Transparency showing vocabulary words from the story (emotion, thesaurus, word sort, event, George Catlin, commercial buffalo hunters, Josiah Wright Mooar, General Philip H. Sheridan, “still hunt” or “stand”, Battle of Adobe Walls, President Theodore Roosevelt, New York Zoological Society, Brooklyn Zoo, Cache, Oklahoma, Pendleton blankets, Texas fever tick, Frank Rush)

Anticipatory set

1.	Key vocabulary words: emotion, thesaurus, feeling, event, George Catlin, commercial buffalo hunters, Josiah Wright Mooar, General Philip H. Sheridan, “still hunt” or “stand”, Battle of Adobe Walls, President Theodore Roosevelt, New York Zoological Society, Brooklyn Zoo, Cache, Oklahoma, Pendleton blankets, Texas fever tick, Frank Rush Key concepts: Sixty million buffalo roamed the Great Plains and provided a livelihood for the Native Americans. Three events helped cause the destruction of the buffalo: the railroad men wanted trains to run on time, General Sheridan wanted to end Indian fighting on the Plains, and buffalo hides were worth a lot of money. The friendship and trust between a Native American and a white man (Quanah Parker, last chief of the Comanches, and President Theodore Roosevelt) resulted in the return of the buffalo to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge.
2.	Method: Post copies of paintings by George Catlin and photographs of buffalo, President Theodore Roosevelt, Pendleton blankets, Frank Rush, old steam engines, etc. around the classroom to elicit student interest in the story. Also, have copies of the following books available: Buffalo Gal by Bill Wallace and Buffalo Train Ride by Desiree Morrison Webber.
3.	Student purpose statement: "Have you ever ridden a train? Did you know that once upon a time 15 buffalo rode a train all the way from New York City to Cache, Oklahoma? Today we are going to learn about the Buffalo Train Ride and how the buffalo returned to the Great Plains. We are going to talk about how people felt about these events, learn how to use a thesaurus to find more words that describe feelings and emotions, and write in our character journals."

Lesson activities

1.	Input: Provide students with a copy of the two-page story, a copy of the practice pages entitled "Word Sort" and "Events and Emotions" and a copy of an intermediate-level thesaurus for each pair of students. (Note: If intermediate-level copies of the thesaurus are unavailable, make photocopies of related pages for the students.) Read the student purpose statement (see above) and then ask the students to look at their copy of the "Word Sort" page. Say: "Before we sort words that describe emotions from other words, let's review some of the vocabulary words we'll meet in today's story." Show the transparency containing the vocabulary words for the story. Pronounce the words as a choral reading exercise with the students. Review the meanings of the words with the students, tapping into their prior knowledge from this unit on the Lawton Centennial. Play a matching game with the words and definitions. Print all of the words and definitions on separate index cards. Give each student a card containing a word or definition. Have the students move about the room seeking to match each word to its definition. The students who hold the matching word and definition will work together as a team during the rest of today's lesson. Review the words and definitions once all the students have paired up.
2.	Modeling: Review the directions for the Word Sort with the students. Use the Think-Aloud technique to show the students how the first few words were sorted.
3.	Guided practice: Have the students sort the words. Check their work by walking around the room and facilitating as necessary Then have the students find at least three synonyms for three of the words about emotions that they listed on the "Word Sort" practice page.
4.	Checking for understanding: Review the answers to the Word Sort as a whole class activity. Then say, "Now I want you and your partner to read the story 'Return of the Buffalo' together. I will walk around the room and listen to each of you read. Take turns reading the story aloud sentence by sentence. Underline any words about emotions that you find as you read the story." [Walk around and listen to each student read, marking miscues on the teacher's copy of the story.] Say, "Now we are going to match up the events in the story with the words that describe how the characters felt. Let's review the directions for the practice page 'Events and Emotions', then you and your partner can work together on this activity." [Review the directions, allow the students to start the activity, then walk around the room and check the students' progress, facilitating as necessary.] Say, "Now, let's see if we all have the same answers." [Check the 'Events and Emotions' answers with the students.]
5.	Culminating activity (independent practice): Say, "Now each of you will write a paragraph in your character journal extending this story one year into the future. You can chose who you want to pretend to be from this list [write the following names on the board]: Frank Rush, Quanah Parker, George Catlin, Oklahoma (the first buffalo calf born on the refuge), Josiah Wright Mooar, General Philip H. Sheridan, or Theodore Roosevelt. Your paragraph must include three "emotion" words telling how your character feels about what has happened during the past year."
6.	Sponge activity: Say, "If you have time, preview the books Buffalo Gal and The Buffalo Train Ride."

IV.

Closure

A.	Summary of what has been learned: Say, "Today you learned about the Buffalo Train Ride and how the buffalo returned to the Great Plains. We talked about how people felt about these events, learned how to use a thesaurus to find synonyms for 'words that describe emotions, and wrote in our character journals."
B.	Transfer: Say, "Have you ever felt the emotions that the characters in our story felt? The emotions we talked about today are emotions that most human beings feel at one time or another. For homework, chose three emotions mentioned in the story that you have felt. Write one sentence about each emotion, describing the event that made you feel that way. We will share these sentences in class tomorrow, and you might want to share them with someone at home tonight."
C.	Student evaluation and assessment: Did the learner correctly sort the words (emotions versus other words)? Did the learner use the thesaurus to find at least three synonyms for three of the emotions listed on the "Word Sort" practice page? Did the learner correctly match events from the story with characters' emotions related to the events? Did the learner write a paragraph in his/her character journal extending the story one year into the future, writing from the viewpoint of the one of the approved characters? Did the learner include three emotions telling how the character felt about the future events?
D.	Teacher evaluation: Reflect on students' mastery of objectives (including re-teaching), teacher's personal response to the lesson, and changes that should be made before the lesson is taught again.