Michelle Alberts
Honoring Diversity Activity: Grade 4-6
Introduction
· To begin the thirty minute lesson, all students will be sitting in their desks and informed that today's Health class is focused on the important topic of inclusion and diversity in the classroom. For some students, this may be the first time they are exposed to this concept and the teacher will have an important role in clearly explaining to the class what this means. The teacher will inform the students that not everyone is the same on the inside and outside but we all warm hearts to embrace one another with. This discussion of diversity will lead directly into the teacher addressing "misbehaviours" in the classroom, specifically geared to those students with O.D.D. in the classroom. The teacher must be sure to not pick these students out and instead view this as a "generalized" lesson for all about bad behaviour in the class. It will only ostracize the children with O.D.D. in the class in the teacher brings up their condition to the forefront of the class. All children misbehave, not just those with O.D.D., so this lesson will focus on misbehaviours amongst all students, therefore not isolating those with O.D.D.
Body
· The students, whie sitting at their desks, will view the Bad Kitty book trailor video which will begin class discussion. The teacher will questino the class with questions such as: Why does the kitty misbehave? Does the kitty mean to misbehave? Has this ever happened to you before when you knew you were being a "Bad Kitty" but did not know why?
· This book trailor will grab the students attention and increase their interest in reading the book.
· Students will be informed that they will be reading the book Bad Kitty, which is a short story that desribes a cat that misbehaves often and has no apparent reason why. The cat acts out and often does things he regrets after. Students will be paired up and will alternate reading every page.
· Students will be at their desks with their partner beside them with one copy of the book Bad Kitty. Students will alternate reading with their partner and follow along intently while their partner is reading to them. This is a great paired reading exercise for Grade 4's because their independent reading skills are at a crucial time for development.
· After the reading of the book is finished, students will be asked to take our their journals and write a one page journal entry on a time when they felt they were misbehaving and they were aware of it but couldn't stop. This will serve as a great example for those students suffering from ODD that misbehaviours do occur in all types ofstudents, not just them. This will allow for a sense of community to foster amongst the classroom by students knowing that all of them make mistakes sometimes. The important lesson is to address them and learn from them.
· For those students that finish their journal entry early, they can draw a picture to go with their entry.
· Once the students have finished their entries, the class will be brought back as a whole.
Closure
· To close the lesson, students will be encouraged to share aloud with the class what they wrote in their journals.
· The teacher will share the journal entry they wrote about a time they misbehaved and couldn't determine why.
· The class will be informed that next Language Arts class they will be creating poems based upon their journal entries.
· Lastly students will be once again reminded and encouraged to accept one another always because at the end of the day we are all here for the same reason - to learn!
Based on information and research from:
http://health.howstuffworks.com/pregnancy-and-parenting/childhood-conditions/oppositional-defiant-disorder4.htm
http://www.brighthubeducation.com/special-ed-behavioral-disorders/26631-strategies-for-teaching-children-with-oppositional-defiant-disorder/
See Book Trailor Listed
Book used for this Activity