ELA Course Outline
Day One:
- Introduction to Oral Histories
- Start with a journal:
- Sit for 1 minute and listen to every sound you hear. Do not write, simply listen.
- After the minute is up, try and record everything you just heard.
- Let students share and guide them through a discussion on the skill of active listening.
- Listen to Oral histories
- Listen once all the way through without taking notes.
- Next, listen using the Library of Congress’ tool for analyzing oral histories.
- Exit ticket: LOC worksheets
Day Two:
- Active Listening and asking good questions
- Start with a journal:
- Why is it important to know how to listen?
- Teacher guides students on discussion about asking good questions
- Choose several events that all students will remember, this can be worldwide, nationwide, schoolwide, etc. Give students options for which they’d like to do. The more emotionally provocative the event, the better. (Examples: The Presidential election, when Trayvon Martin was killed, the government shutdown, etc)
- Students will create a list of ten questions to ask a fellow classmate about the topic they chose.
Exit Ticket: Topic and list of questions
Day Three:
Meet in computer labs or have computers.
- Put students into pairs according to who chose what event, if there are an uneven number of students, it’s okay if they interview each other about a different topic. Write their partners name on the list of questions and designate student 1 and student 2.
- Stand at the door as students walk into the classroom and hand them their questions with their partner’s name written at the top. Have students sit with their partner.
- Guidelines for conducting an oral history
- Students One interviews Student Two.
Exit ticket: Students will email you their first oral history.
Day Four:
- Students continue to interview their classmates
- Student Two interviews Student One.
- Exit ticket: students will email you their second oral history.
Day Five:
- Start with a journal:
- What did you learn about your partner that you didn’t know before?
- With permission, students will share their oral history experiences.
Day Six:
- Ask students to choose an older family member, friend, or neighbor who they know they’ll see this week, i.e. someone who lives on their street, a parent, an older sibling.
- Assignment for creating an Oral History with a Community Partner
- Students should think of an event that they know this person lived through, i.e. (9/11, man on the moon, the home team winning the World Series).
- Students should create a list of broad but meaningful questions about their chosen topic.
- Homework: Conduct Oral History, due on Day Eight.
Day Seven:
- Start with a journal:
- What has this unit on Oral Histories taught you about listening?
-Do you think listening makes you a better communicator?
- Have students get into groups and listen to one of the Oral Histories.
- As a group, they will list
a) Besides the words being said, what is important to pay attention to in order to learn more about the speaker.
b) Using the list from question a) how do these aspects of the Oral History inform what you know about the speaker.
c) What was the speaker’s feeling on the topic and what specifically shows that.
Day Eight:
- In computer lab, work with students to edit their oral histories.
- Exit ticket: Students will email final oral histories to teacher.
Day Nine:
- Students share their oral histories
Day Ten:
- Students share their oral histories
Special Collections and Archives
Archives for Research on Women and Gender
Donna Novak Coles Georgia Women's Movement Archives
Lucy Hargrett Draper Collections on Women's Rights, Advocacy, and the Law
Phone: (404) 413-2880
Fax: (404) 413-2881
E-Mail: archives@gsu.edu
Mailing Address:
Special Collections & Archives
Georgia State University Library
100 Decatur Street, SE
Atlanta, Georgia 30303-3202
In Person:
Library South, 8th floor
