STEAM and Stories
Anthropology, geography, and history-- these are the types of study students engaged in as they researched and planned their STEAM state projects this STEAM cycle.
 |
| Bookmaking |
 |
| Researching |
States are exciting to research. Colorado's striking mountains, Alaska's unique climate, and Massachusetts' intense colonial history, to name a few examples, are fascinating to explore.
But this STEAM cycle, our studies aligned with our literacy unit on Native American mythology, planting an extra imaginative seed in our project work.
In literacy, we have been reading, discussing, and re-telling Native American myths. We've learned about types of myths, like creation myths and flood myths. We've also learned about themes in myths, like sacrifice and courage.
"It was fun because we didn't just write all the time, some of us got to draw pictures, too," remarked one student.
This literacy unit culminated in students writing original myths, centering their myth around a natural phenomenon that occurs in the state they studied for STEAM, bridging the two subjects.
Knowing that Native Americans tell these myths orally, students recorded themselves re-telling their myths.
"Native Americans tell these myths orally." I write this in the present tense very intentionally. Thanks to a semester of my life spent in New Mexico, I have heard these traditional stories straight from Navajo friends and students. It is a blessing to see how respectfully and enthusiastically the Thunder and Lightning students have studied these myths, which have tremendous cultural, geographical, and historical significance.
The students' original myths were part of their STEAM presentations today! The integration between these units was exciting to see and experience!
On top of the integration between literacy and STEAM, the students have been doing beadwork in art class! Students have been using a beading technique from the Plains Native Americans, and have been learning about color symbolism as well.
In literacy, we have been reading, discussing, and re-telling Native American myths. We've learned about types of myths, like creation myths and flood myths. We've also learned about themes in myths, like sacrifice and courage.
"It was fun because we didn't just write all the time, some of us got to draw pictures, too," remarked one student.
 |
| Making puppets to re-tell a traditional myth! |
Knowing that Native Americans tell these myths orally, students recorded themselves re-telling their myths.
 |
| Recording original myths! |
"Native Americans tell these myths orally." I write this in the present tense very intentionally. Thanks to a semester of my life spent in New Mexico, I have heard these traditional stories straight from Navajo friends and students. It is a blessing to see how respectfully and enthusiastically the Thunder and Lightning students have studied these myths, which have tremendous cultural, geographical, and historical significance.
The students' original myths were part of their STEAM presentations today! The integration between these units was exciting to see and experience!
On top of the integration between literacy and STEAM, the students have been doing beadwork in art class! Students have been using a beading technique from the Plains Native Americans, and have been learning about color symbolism as well.
