Kelsi Gilbert & Bailey Doerksen EDUC 3501 (GH), St.

Georges 10/21/2020

LESSON PLAN; Part B

Grade: 5
Lesson Title: “I Am Not a Number” Read and Respond
Lesson Duration: 45 mins

Lesson Overview:

This lesson will introduce grade five students to the complex history of residential schools in Canada. The teacher
will begin with a land acknowledgement and will ask students their previous knowledge of residential schools.
They will then transition into direct instruction. This portion will introduce students to fundamental concepts like
what residential schools were, who created them, who they affected, and key terms. Expectations and boundaries
will also clearly be conveyed to students at this time. The class will then conduct an interactive read-through of
the first section (pages 1-14) of the historical fiction picture book I Am Not a Number. The purpose of this is two-
fold: to introduce them to the ideas and agencies that perpetuated residential schools and to allow them to
critically engage with the characters’ thoughts and feelings. The lesson will conclude with a group
discussion/brainstorming activity and a follow-up assignment, due the following class. This lesson attends to TQS
#5, and GLO 5.2 from the program of studies for grade five social studies.

Alberta Program of Study Goals and Objectives:

GLO /GLE: SLO/SLE

From the Program of Studies, this book could be
used to specifically attend to General Learning
Outcome
5.2:
Students will demonstrate a holistic
comprehension of the diverse peoples, historical
narratives, and ways of life, as well as the
relationships between them, to acknowledge
Canada’s intricate heritage.
● Stories are an essential component in
accomplishing this competency; through
them, people communicate information,
values and attitudes about various
histories, cultures, and heritage. These
manifest in diverse forms, all of which
inform contemporary Canadian historical
narratives and society.
5.2.1 appreciate the complexity of identity in the Canadian
context:
● Acknowledge how their individual and collective
identities are informed by a working knowledge of
Canadian histories and stories
● Respect oral traditions, narratives, and stories as
legitimate, authoritative sources of Aboriginal
knowledge
5.2.2 critically explore the ways of life of Aboriginal peoples
in Canada and reflect upon the following idea:
● What do the stories of First Nations, Métis and Inuit
peoples tell us about their beliefs and/or connections
between people and the land?

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Learning Objectives:
Students will…

1. Thoughtfully define what residential schools were.

2. Explain who the schools targeted, and why.
3. Holistically contrast the differences between the protagonist’s home and the residential school
environment.
4. Discuss what aspect of the lesson was most impactful for them, and why.
5. Justify why oral stories are legitimate sources of Aboriginal knowledge.
6. Evaluate how this part of Canadian heritage continues to affect [them and others as] modern Canadian
citizens.

Inquiry & Guiding Questions:

Inquiry Question: What were residential schools, and how have they affected Indigenous Peoples in Canada?

Lesson Guiding Questions:

1. Explain- what were residential schools? (Understanding/ Comprehension)

2. Contrast the family’s home environment with the environment of the residential school. (Understanding/
Comprehension)
3. List and describe the kinds of things students were forced to do at the schools. (Knowledge/
Remembering)
4. Describe what the illustrations tell the audience about the story. How do they make you feel? Can you
relate to any of the images? (Creating/ Evaluation)
5. Think of a time either where you showed someone compassion, or they showed compassion to you- even
when it was hard to do. Elaborate on why you think showing compassion is important. (Understanding/
Comprehension)
6. Do you think that residential school histories and experiences affect non-Indigenous Canadians? Elaborate
on your thinking. (Evaluating/ Synthesis)

Annotated Learning Resources List:

Resource #1: I Am Not a Number, written by Jenny Kay Dupuis and Kathy Kacer, Illustrated by Gillian Newland
Resource #2: Teacher resource. “Healing Historical Trauma, Residential Schools”
(http://www.learnalberta.ca/content/aswt/healing_historical_trauma/documents/residential_schools_student_resou
rce.pdf )

The first resource is a picture book based on a true story of a young girl named Irene. She was removed from her
First Nations family and forced to live in a residential school. This is a beautifully written and engaging book with
powerful illustrations that describe the text.

The second resource is intended for teachers to provide them with a deeper understanding of the trauma that First
Nations peoples experienced in residential schools. It is important that the teacher has a greater depth of
understanding and is willing to learn about Canada’s past to better teach students.

Material and Equipment:

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● Book: I Am Not a Number, written by Jenny Kay Dupuis and Kathy Kacer, Illustrated by Gillian Newland
● Quiet environment, i.e. classroom or library setting
● Vocabulary Sheet, with visual aids
● Cue cards
● Whiteboard and markers

Lesson Procedures

Introduction (5 min.):

● Outline agenda (and provide visual representation on whiteboard):

○ What are Residential Schools?
○ Important Terminology
○ Reading Together - I Am Not a Number
● Expectations for learning behaviour:
○ Students will show respect to all peoples and cultures, at all times.
○ Students will be active participants in their learning, asking non-offensive questions, sensitively, to
clarify their understanding and deepen contributions to discussions.
● “Does anyone know what residential schools were?”
○ Encourage a couple students to share and from here transition into activity one.

Body (35 min.):

Thirty-five minutes has been given to the body of the lesson. In the first activity, time will be spent learning
foundational material and key terminology that will help students better understand and analyze the book that they
will read. At this point, the teacher will decide either to move onto the reading portion, or spend further time
discussing the history and terminology. In the second, activity students will listen to the story and observe the
pictures in the book. Their knowledge will be formatively assessed through ‘hot-seat questioning’ at the end of
both activities.

Steps and Procedures: Identify Teaching Strategies/Rational

1. Land Acknowledgement- “The land that we stand
on is traditional and enduring Blackfoot
Confederacy land.”
2. Introduction: “Have you heard about residential
schools before? What do you know about them?”
a. If possible, using the information that the
students respond with, transition into
direct instruction.
3. Direct Instruction- Clearly explain what
residential schools were, how they functioned/
operated, who they were targeted for, the legacies,
etc.
a. Formative Assessment: Fist-to-Five (to
check in with students to probe for literal
comprehension and emotional well-being)
Example:
Direct Instructions: This will be used in the
introduction, activity one, and parts of activity
two. It will be used to deliver important
information regarding residential schools and
terminology as well as the reading of the book
to ensure that they understand the overall
ideas.
Collaborative Learning: Used in closure
where students work together to develop a
‘most impactful item’. Drives them to reflect
on what they learned in the lesson.
Interactive Learning: Used in hot-seat
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b. Transition into outlining key terms, questioning as it relies heavily on discussion
necessary for reading of the book in the and sharing. It will take place as a class
next activity. Students will have a discussion and students are able to learn from
vocabulary sheet complete with visual aids their peers.
in order to accommodate more meaningful
differentiation of instruction. Indirect Instruction: Used in the final activity
c. Formative Assessment: Fist-to-Five (to of the lesson and gives students a high level of
probe for literal comprehension) involvement by allowing them to have
4. Transition #1 reflective discussion in their small groups.
5. Interactive Read-Through:
a. Preview the book. See Activity #2 for
more detail.
b. Read the first segment, pages 1-14. This
portion is interactive; be intentional about
taking the time to show students the
images, having them listen for the
vocabulary words, having them respond to
the illustrations, encourage them to ask
questions or make predictions, and really
analyze the tone that the author gives the
protagonist.
6. Formative Assessment: Hot-Seat Questioning
7. Transition #2
8. Consolidation and Closing Activity (Small Group
Discussion/Brainstorm): Upon being divided into
small groups of 4-5, students will discuss and
agree upon the most impactful aspect of the
lesson. This will be recorded on a cue card and
shared verbally with the class.
9. Introduction of Homework Assignment/ Entrance
Slip for Next Class

Activity #1: “What Were Residential Schools?” [Direct

Instruction] (18 minutes) Assessments/Rationale:

● Introduction to the History of Residential School System Type/Name: Fist-to-Five

in Canada
○ Explaining the basic premise of what happened in
residential schools, who was involved, what the
goals were, etc.
● Terminology:
○ Indian Agent: the Canadian government’s
representatives on First Nations reserves from the
1830s to the 1960s. Often working in remote
places far from settler communities, Indian agents
enforced government policy, and made sure that
the contents of the Indian Act were enforced too,
Where Assessment Occurs: At the end of
Activity 1, in order to quickly assess if the
students understand the history of the
residential school system in Canada and
terminology. This quick FA can be done
through asking simple questions, to probe for
literal comprehension. If students are still
unsure of a topic or term, they would hold up
one finger; whereas three to four fingers
signals to the teacher that the student is on
their way to understanding; and lastly, five
fingers informs the teacher that they have
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managing the day-to-day actions of Status
Indians. Today, the position of Indian agent no
longer exists, as First Nations manage their own
affairs through modern band councils or self-
government.
○ Residential School: a government-supported
boarding school for children from Inuit and other
indigenous communities. Children were forced to
attend school here- it was illegal for them not to.
○ Home: the place where someone lives
permanently, especially as a member of a family
or household or community.
○ Lessons: a period of learning or teaching.
○ Remember: have in or be able to bring to your
mind an awareness of (someone or something that
one has seen, known, or felt in the past).
○ Disobey: failing to follow rules, a command, or
someone in authority.
○ Compassion: sympathy and concern for the
sufferings or misfortunes of others- being moved
beyond feeling for another person enough that you
do something to stop or ease their suffering.
10/21/2020
mastered the information/terminology.
Type/Name: Hot-Seat Questioning
Where Assessment Occurs: At the end of
Activity #2, a student will be randomly
chosen by the teacher to answer an baseline
question, followed by a series of further
‘critical thinking’ questions, to provoke them
to analyze and apply their learning. Other
students will be called upon to summarize
what the student in the ‘hot-seat’ said, and/or
their thoughts, what they agreed/disagreed
with, questions they had, etc.
Type/Name: Entrance Slip
Where Assessment Occurs: Introduced in
the closure of the lesson and will be
discussed/submitted the following day in the
Social Studies class. It challenges students to
look further into something that they found
impactful when learning about residential
schools.

● Formative Assessment #1: Fist-to-Five

○ Gage students’ understanding of the place of
residential schools in Canadian history and
terminology that will be used in Activity #2. This
will give the teacher an understanding of if the
information needs to be taught further or if they
can move on to the next activity.

Transition: Explain the next activity. For example, “I would like

you to walk to the carpet when I raise my hand. We will be
reading and learning about a girl named Irene and her experience
in a residential school.” (1 minute)

Activity #2: “Reading Together” [Direct Instruction,

Interactive Learning] (15 minutes)
● Preview the book, I Am Not a Number
○ Examine the:
■ Cover - Look at the visual art. Can we
make any predictions based on what we
have learned from the key terms?
■ Dust Jacket - Look at the paper wrapper on
the book. Is it the same or different from
the cover and back of the book?
■ End Pages - Look at colour and design or
these very first and last pages.
■ Jacket Flaps - Look at summary, author
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notes, and information about illustrator.
■ Title Page - Preview the contents of the
book with students.
○ Make a prediction
● Read pages 1-14 of I Am Not a Number
● Formative Assessment #2: Hot-Seat Questioning
○ Teacher develops a question and a series of
follow-up guiding questions. Students will recall
what they have learned as well as apply their
knowledge to today’s world.

Transition: Dismiss students back to their desks based on the

colour of their shirt. For example, “Students wearing a blue shirt
may walk back to their seats.” (1 minute)

Consolidating and Closure: (5 mins)

Students will participate in a short debriefing following activity one and two. The students will be divided into
small groups (approximately 4 students) and brainstorm one thing that was most impactful to them and why. Each
group member will write their agreed upon most impactful item on a cue card. After students are given time to
develop this the teacher will lead a class sharing when one member from each group shares what they have
written down.

To close the lesson each student will be challenged between this class and the next (which will be the following
day) to research and record one fact relating to their ‘most impactful item’. Students must bring this fact to the
next class as it is their entrance slip.