Unit

Plan Overview

Unit: Aztec Legends; la leyenda de Quetzalcoatl y la leyenda de la concha de la tortuga
Stage 1- Desired Results
Connections to Context:
Transfer
This unit is about a culture that is different
Students will be able to independently use their learning to
from their own, however, they are working Retell the Aztec legends to friends and family
on comparing their own culture with other Share with others a little about the Aztec culture
cultures in order to understand other
Build up their knowledge of the Spanish world and language
cultures better.




(What kinds of long-term independent accomplishments are desired?)
(How does this fit with students experiences,
Meaning
the school goals, and the larger societal issues?)
UNDERSTANDINGS
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

Students will understand that
Students will keep considering
Established Goals
Writing systems differ from culture to culture
How and why did the Aztecs tell legends
This unit is part of the East Grand Rapids
Some stories from different cultures have similar
What messages do the legends give and how can we
Public Schools, World Language Curriculum
messages
relate
from May 2009.
The manners in which stories are told depend on their


culture and worldview.
What the students will be able to


accomplish is for those who are at a novice
(What thought-provoking questions will foster inquiry, meaning-

low 2 level in a second language.
making and transfer?)



(What specically do you want students to understand?

What inferences should they make?)

(What content standards and program- or
mission-related goal(s) will the unit address?
What habits of mind and cross-disciplinary
goal(s)- for example 21st century skills, core
competencies- will this unit address?
Include source and identifying number)

Acquisition of Knowledge, Skill and Values/Commitments/Dispositions

Students will know
Students will be skilled at
Students will exhibit
How turtles got the lines on their
Creating their own codices (how
Willingness to participate in the
shells according to the Aztec
the Aztecs wrote down their
classroom activities
legend.
legends)
Patience with themselves and
others as theyre learning another
Who Quetzalcoatl is and how he
Ask and answer basic questions
helped out his people
language
Comparing the Spanish language
and their own
The manner in which the Aztecs

told their legends
Presenting information and ideas

to other students
How to show the relationships

between practices and

(What values and commitments and
perspectives of the culture studied
attitudes should students acquire or


(What discrete skills and processes should wrestle with?)

(What facts and basic concepts should
students know and be
able to recall?)

students be able to use?)

Based on Wiggins and McTighe (2011) The Understanding by Design Guide to Creating High-Quality Units and Van Brummelen (2002) Steppingstones to Curriculum


Evaluative Criteria
How accurate the story is that they
tell when compared to the actual legend.
Whether or not the story map tells
the legend to someone who has very little
knowledge of the legend.

Stage 2- Evidence
Students will show their learning by
PERFORMANCE TASK(S):
Retell the two Aztec legends orally
Complete a story map of each legend

(How will students demonstrate their understanding- meaning-making and transfer- through complex performance?)

(What criteria will be used in each assessment to

evaluate attainment of the desired results?)
(Regardless of the format of the assessment,
OTHER EVIDENCE:
what qualities are most important?)
Ask basic questions about what something is or what it means
Whats most important is that all students
Ask for their opinions on certain aspects of the story/Aztec culture/ideas etc.
understand the legends and the belief system of

the Aztecs.

(What other evidence will you collect to determine whether Stage 1 goals were achieved?

Based on Wiggins and McTighe (2011) The Understanding by Design Guide to Creating High-Quality Units and Van Brummelen (2002) Steppingstones to Curriculum


Stage 3- Learning Plan

Pre-assessment- due ________

Pre-assessing will mostly include having the students verbally answering questions in class. But I can also monitor it by checking out their
Packets and seeing if theyre translating the words to help themselves better understand or if theyre simply listening to me speak.

(What pre-assessments will you use to check students prior knowledge, skill levels, and potential misconceptions?)
(Toward which goal does each
Learning Events
Progress Monitoring
learning event build?)



(How will you monitor students progress
Student success at transfer, meaning, and acquisition depends upon their participation in
Acquisition
toward acquisition, meaning, and transfer
these learning events

during lesson events?)
The reading of the legends and answering basic questions about the legends
Meaning

By
a
sking
q
uestions to see if they
Singing the songs at the beginning of each lesson about the legends and the Aztecs.

understand the concepts that Im trying to
Paying attention and filling out their packets when we talk about the practices and
Transfer
teach them. If not then Ill spend more
significance of important religious celebrations (such as Da de los Muertos (Day of

time explaining or finding a different way
the Dead)) in a community.
to present the concept so that all students
Creating their own WeVideo that tells the Aztec legend of the turtle using pictures
can understand.

as puppets.

(How will students monitor their

own progress toward acquisition,

meaning, and transfer?)

If theyre able to tell both legends in

Spanish and be able to explain what

they mean in Spanish as well as in

English then they have achieved the

goal. If they can only get one legend

then they can see what parts of the

legends they need to work on.

(What
a
re
p
otential
r
ough
s
pots
a
nd

student misunderstandings?)

Understanding the legend of Quetzalcoatl

can be a little confusing because it
Star the multiple means of representation; underline the multiple means of action and
includes more vocabulary that is outside
expression; circle the multiple means of engagement
of their current range.

(Are all three types of goals (acquisition, meaning, and transfer) addressed in the learning
Completing the retell on their own
plan?)
because they dont have another person

(Does the learning plan reflect principles of learning and best practices?)
Based on Wiggins and McTighe (2011) The Understanding by Design Guide to Creating High-Quality Units and Van Brummelen (2002) Steppingstones to Curriculum

telling them that they should do a certain

part over again. Its entirely up to them to
decide when their video is complete.

(Is there tight alignment with Stages 1 and 2?)

(How will students get the feedback they
need?)
By asking questions.
When I hear bad pronunciation or a
friend is struggling to pronounce a word I
will help them figure out the correct way
to say the word.
When the students work in groups we can
provide more one on one time to help out
those who need it.

Based on Wiggins and McTighe (2011) The Understanding by Design Guide to Creating High-Quality Units and Van Brummelen (2002) Steppingstones to Curriculum