“The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian”

“The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” by  Sherman Alexie

Alexie, Sherman.  The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.  New York: Little Brown and Company, 2007.

Lexile: 600

Summary: This is a story about a boy name Junior who grows up on an Indian Reservation. He likes to draw cartoons and has to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. This book is about his experiences living on an Indian Reservation and what life is like living as both an American and an Indian. Transferring schools stirs up racial tensions on the reservation, and though the reservation is considered like a prison to him, he quickly learns that the grass isn't always greener on the other side.

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Activity:  ELA skill of Analyzing/Evaluating Text for character development when teaching about “Assimilation”. Have students identify through the use of a log how Junior is constantly dealing with the differences between the existence of white people vs. the Indians on his reservation. These differences are mentioned both in the text and in the cartoons. Students will identify 4 examples and how it affected Junior. They will then write a brief summary of their conclusions as to how Junior changed as a character from the beginning to the end.

Student will use this for their note taking

They will be able to discuss and respond to peers with their conclusions through the use of an online blog where they will have meaningful discussions on the results and evidence they concluded on the character development of Junior from the beginning of the book to the end, and how he changed as a person based on his experiences.  Students will post their discussion on KidBlogs, then interact with their peers by leaving them feedback. Here is an example of what a Kid Blog looks like.

Standards:

Common Core: Craft and Structure:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.5Analyze how a particular sentence, chapter, scene, or stanza fits into the overall structure of a text and contributes to the development of the theme, setting, or plot.

AASL:

2.1.5 Collaborate with others to exchange ideas, develop new understandings, make decisions, and solve problems.

2.2.3 Employ a critical stance in drawing conclusions by demonstrating that the pattern of evidence leads to a decision or conclusion.

Information Literacy:

6.3 Combines information and weighs evidence to draw conclusions and create meaning

Learning Outcomes: Students will draw conclusions using evidence from the text to show how Junior changed/evolved as a character through the experiences he went through in the book.

Learning Objectives:

Students will identify 4 quotes/graphic from the text and analyze how those experiences affected Junior and contributed to his character development. (Cognitive)

Students will draw their own conclusions of how Junior changed from beginning to end based on the evidence they analyzed from the text. (Congive)

Students will create a blog and respond to at least 2 other of their peers’ blog’s on their own summations of character development and to provide feedback. (Psychomotor, Affective)

Assessments:

Student note taking sheet

Student created Kid Blog


Work Cited:
Scholastic. The Absolutely True Dairy of a Part-Time Indian Teaching Guide. Retrieved on November 5, 2-17 from https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plans/teaching-content/absolutely-true-diary-part-time-indian-storia-teaching-guide/