By All Kinds of Minds

The following lesson plan was created as part of the Schools Attuned Program. During the school year, Schools Attuned educators participate in Practicum sessions as they implement the program. Lessons such as these are created to use with their students and talk to their class about “Learning About Learning.”

Estimated Time Needed 25 – 30 minutes

Teacher Preparation and Materials

Have a copy of the book “Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge” by Mim Fox (published by Kane/Miller Book Publishers). You will need multiple copies if you want a large group of students to do this activity at the same time. (Two students can share one book.)

Create or print an activity sheet. Make copies of the activity sheets and put them in an envelope.

Make a basket or box with the following items in it: small football, medal on a ribbon, box with seashells, fake birds nest with plastic eggs, puppet, extra items (these are trick clues for when the students feel in the basket for a hint)

Lesson

1. This activity is to help discuss memory with a class. Students read a book about memories and then answer questions to test their own memory about the memories!

2. Tell students that you are going to discuss memory and strategies they can use to help their memory. (If you have access to books such as All Kinds of Minds, Keeping A Head in School, The Mind That’s Mine, or The Memory Factory, read the appropriate section on memory.) Depending on the age of the students, you could include points such as:

There are different kinds of memory (short-term memory, active working memory, and long term memory).

There are different kinds of memory and no one really has an excellent or poor memory overall. We always need to ask, “Memory for what?”

We need our memory every day.

There are strategies we can learn to help make our memory stronger.

3. Give students the following instructions:

Read the book “Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge” and focus on the characters, their attributes, and the special items found in Wilfrid’s basket inspired by their memories.

After reading the story, close the book. DO NOT OPEN THE BOOK AGAIN.

Open the envelope, remove an activity sheet, and follow the directions on the activity sheet.

4. Include the following instructions and table on the activity sheet.

In the chart, fill in the things you learned about each of Wilfred’s friends.

If you get stuck, feel inside the box for some clues! CAUTION: There are more objects in the box than in the basket, so don’t be fooled by extra items.

When you’re done, check your answers by looking inside Wilfrid’s basket! COMMENTS: For younger students, this activity can be done as a class or small group. The teacher can read the book aloud, have a large chart on the wall, and the class can work together to answer the questions. Students could also draw or write their own list of special qualities or strengths they remember about people they know. The class could then discuss why they remember these things.

5. Discuss the activity and memory with the students. You could ask questions such as:

What strategies helped you to remember the characters memories?

Did it get easier or harder as it went along?

What kind of things do we do every day where we need to use our memory?

Lead a discussion on strategies students can use to help their memory. Encourage students to brainstorm and share these strategies.