Totem Pole Stories

     We had such fun learning about totem poles and creating Totem Pole Stories this week!  You can find this lesson on our "Writing in Kindergarten" lesson book.  This is one of 20 lessons in this book available at Teachers Pay Teachers for $9.00, https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Kindergarten-Writing-Activities-An-Entire-Year-of-Lessons-651208

     This year I found an additional book , Whale in the Sky by Anne Sidwell, to use with the lesson.  These and some videos and informational books about totem poles began our understanding of the poles and stories associated with them.

     Once children understood the concept of a "story pole" they each developed a character to portray.  I placed children into groups of 4 and chose one recorder for each group.  They sketched a story using their combined characters.  I then worked with each group separately to revise, edit, and type their story.  They were very proud of this work - we sent a copy home so they could share the work with their families.

     Next, each group developed a dance that ended with a totem shape!  We practiced these and performed them for some of our 6th grade buddies.

     As art extensions, we also made  totem poles with carpet tubes and displayed them along with our stories.  We used designs from Totem Poles to Color & Cut Out: Tlingit by Stephen Brown to color and display.

Enjoy!

     Molly and Laura