Estimated Time

Content

Materials

15 mins.

Review of Somalia’s cultural interactions (“Ignite”)

Have students recap key learnings from the previous lesson (@ 2-3 mins. ea.) on Somalia’s cultural interactions with neighboring countries, projecting/posting their visuals as they share, for a later Gallery Walk.

Projector or space for posting for visuals.

Summative Assessment: Evaluate group presentations for understanding of Somalia’s geography and history.

10 mins.

DOK 3

DOK 4

Video Clip on Supply Chain (“Chunk”)

As a bridging idea to help students shift from the Horn of Africa to the U.S.’s involvement with Somalia, ask: What are your thoughts about WHY the U.S. has interests in Somalia, given what you know so far…? (importance of geopolitical location, number of Somalis in America, key to trade from African continent to Middle East, etc.) 

Encourage students to analyze WHY U.S. interests focus on Somalia, particularly concerning the Bab-El Mandeb Strait and global shipping routes.

(As extension, consider showing this video on U.S. supply chain. Note that it is nearly 45-mins. long.)

Slide #4

Slide #7, #8, #9 

Show this Instagram piece.

15 mins.

Preparation for Guest Speaker and Booklet on Somali-American Leaders (“Chew”)

For this first (in a series) of guest speakers, plan to invite a local figure who could address the issue of U.S./Somali relations. (After this first interview, students can be involved in the identification and outreach to speakers.)

Share with students that an outcome of this quarter’s work will/can be their development of a booklet on local Somali American leaders to be shared with the larger community. Their roles are to interview the speakers, capture the stories in notes, and learn basic journalistic practices in writing these community profiles, who function as “primary sources.” Students will have opportunities for different roles as the booklet develops, from writers to editors, to photographers, to designers.

To prepare for this first guest, have students brainstorm questions, beginning with the journalistic basics of: WHO (proper spelling of full name); WHAT they do in the community; HOW they do that work; WHERE they have come from/lived; WHY they are motivated to do the work; WHEN they came to the U.S. 

Help students understand the importance of follow-up questions if the answer is unclear or prompts further questions.

Further brainstorm questions related to the topic of the U.S. interests in Somalia and what the guest might know about the relationship of the two countries.

Be sure everyone has a question to ask and identify a student photographer or two for the interview.

Formative assessment (of check, check-plus, and check-minus) for interview question development.

Differentiation strategy: 

Roles as interviewers and level of questions according to student strengths.

10 mins

.

Intro to Interviewing and Note-Taking 

Note that this activity can either be one day in isolation OR could become part of a larger activity with students interviewing community leaders for a booklet (should there be time in the course of study) to be shared more broadly in the community – through school libraries and community avenues. The journalistic practice of interviewing is the first step of that process. 

Check to see how many students are aware of this system of note-taking, which involves two vertical columns, with the topic/keyword in the left-hand column and details supporting the topic in the right-hand column.

Have students practice by interviewing you with the WWWWH questions. Help them understand the difference between paraphrasing (capturing the interview subject’s ideas in their own words) versus direct quotations – both of which are important. Paraphrasing of the interview belongs in the “Summary” section of the T-chart at the bottom of the page.

T-charts for note-taking

5 mins.

DOK 1

Exit Ticket (“Review”) 

Gallery walk as students exit. Have them note one thing they learned from the other students’ visuals and presentations.

Quick check – check-plus, check-minus – for observations/learnings.