These were lessons that I did with my second grade class and student workshops after I told Tiki-Piki-Boom-Boom, a Jamaican folktale.
Spelling
Add any five words from the story to the spelling list for the week. The students can even help pick the words. Write sentences using the spelling words and the words from the story. (Ex. - tiger, shovel, yams, spider, goose, doghouse, etc)
Vocabulary
Write these words from the story on the side of the chalkboard. Anansi, Jamaica, island. Tell the class that anytime they catch you saying those words this week to raise their hand. Have a jellybean prize for anyone recognizing the word.
Language
Make up some mad-libs using sentences from the story. Ask the students for the word in parenthesis ahead of time, put them on the board and then read the sentences with their words. Other suggestions include (color, animal name, feeling, adjective or describing word, adverb or word ending in "ly.")
Ex. Tiger ran when he saw the __________(thing -plural noun) running after him. He _______(past tense action verb) until he saw a dog sitting in his ______________(place noun). Tiger cried out ___________(exclamation).
Make your own Tiki-Piki-Boom-Boom" book for each child. This an extended activity. You must have the cooperation of the principal to have use of the Xerox machine. Write on the chalkboard every scene in the story. There are over 20 of them. Assign one scene to each child. They must draw a picture of the scene with a thin tip black marker and write a sentence or two about it at the bottom of the page. Xerox each picture times the number of children in the class. Each child will have a complete story. Give them time to color in the pages. While they are waiting for the Xerox copies they can work on the title page for their books.
Math
Anansi had four rows of yams in his garden. Each row had 10 yams. How many yams were in Anansi's garden? (Add 10 four times or, if they have had multiplication, multiply 10x4)
Have a paper with several dozen yams drawn on it. Circle the yams in groups in four, five, or six. How many are groups are there? How many are left over?
Comprehension Questions:
Why didn't Anansi dig up the yams himself?
Do you think Tigers really like to eat yams?
Name some other plants that could be planted in a garden.
How many animals did Tiger go see when he was being chased by the yams?
What parts of this story are real? What are make-believe?
Why do you think Tiger was so scared of the yams?
Science - There are differences between yams and sweet potatoes. In America, the two words are used to mean the same.
information on yams http://www.google.com/search?q=yams+stories&hl=en&lr=&start=50&sa=N
info on sweet potatoes http://www.vitacost.com/science/hn/Food_Guide/Sweet_Potatoes.htm
Use toothpicks to suspend the sweet potato over a clear glass of water with the tip down, having enough water in the glass to cover the bottom of the sweet potato. Keep it in a warm, sunny spot. Soon vines with morning-glory-shaped leaves will appear and climb anywhere you train them. Keep the water level constant (covering just the bottom of the tuber). Change the water occasionally and DO NOT plant in soil. When the individual slips put out four to five leaves, you can snap the new plants off the mother potato.
After the plant sprouts leaves add some food coloring to the water. As the leaves change color discuss how the micro roots transport water and nutrients to the leaves.
Movement:
There is a children's game called "Duck-Duck Goose" I adapt the game to "Tiger-Tiger Yam". Children form a ring. One person is the Tiger and prowls around the outside of the ring tapping the other children on their backs saying "Tiger....tiger...tiger" but when the tiger taps a child and says "Yam" the child has to chase the tiger around the circle. If the tiger makes it back to the child's place, he is safe and the other child takes over as the tiger. If the tiger doesn't make it around, he/she is tiger once again.
Pulling the movement from the story. Discuss a movement in the story. Ex. Tiger digging the yams. Have one child come forward and show what that looks like. Have everyone in the circle do the same action 4 times. Discuss another movement Ex. Tiger running (in place). Have everyone in the circle run in place to the count of four plus digging four times. Keep adding new movements and repeating the others. Usually, the class can do up to 5 or 6 of these movements. It can be a real workout. If you add music (Jamaican music) and do the movement it can add to the fun.
Art
Potato Prints (you can use sweet potatoes or yams)
You'll need
Potatoes
Poster paint or tempera
Paper, cardboard, or wood
sharp knife
pencil
1. Cut potatoes in half or thirds.
2. Draw desired design onto potato with the pencil.
3. Young children can carve their whole design with
the pencil but if more detail is preferred,
an adult needs to cut around the pencil outline.
4. Place paint in tray or paper plate in a thin layer.
5. Press potato design into paint and firmly press
onto paper for impression.
Drama
Ask two children to do just a scene from the story. Ex. Tiger talking to Sister Goose. The teacher may need to give prompts Ex. What did tiger ask Sister Goose to do?
This story lends itself nicely to a narrative play. The teacher can simply tell the story and the characters - spider, tiger, goose, dog and goat act it out. The rest of the class can be the "yams" and chant and do hand clapping.
It can be made into a reader's theatre. This will take time. The language needs to be at their reading level. Some lines need to be memorized when the characters come to the front of the stage.
Social Studies
Jamaica is an island country. Find it on the globe. What other islands are close to Jamaica? How far is it to Jamaica? What languages do they speak?
References
Anansi and Nyamé http://www.raceandhistory.com/historicalviews/anansi.htm or www.anansi.org/webwalker/story1.htm
Bra Tookoma and the Gum Tree on www.saxakali.com/youth/caribbean_folktales.htm
Eto: Yams, first boiled and then pounded
information on yams http://www.google.com/search?q=yams+stories&hl=en&lr=&start=50&sa=N
info on sweet potatoes http://www.vitacost.com/science/hn/Food_Guide/Sweet_Potatoes.htm
