- Age: 16 - 17
- Hours: 20 - 20
The goals of the lesson
Goals:
1-A- To create reading opportunities for reading. Novel: "A Year on the Plateau" by Emilio Lussu.
2-B- To elicit interest in the local historic memories
3-C-- To know and enhance the local historic heritage
1-A- To create reading opportunities . Novel: "A Year on the Plateau" by Emilio Lussu
Time: 8 hours
Knowledge: the students know the main events that took place on the Asiago plateau during t WW I through a Power Point presentation provided by the teacher and thanks to the reading of the novel done at home. Some of its most significant passages will be read during the excursion to Monte Zebio with the aim to create a process of active communication between the novel and the real world, generating an important emotional and intellectual reaction
Skills : the students really understand the relationship between reality and narration and they will identify with the place ; they realise that telling their experiences makes the concept of human historical heritage understandable, thus developing ethical and universal values.
Application of the skills: the students are dynamically involved in the learning process through a preparatory work of selecting the most important parts of the novel and preparing the route to Monte Zebio. The students develop a sense of autonomy as regards to the territory
2-B- To elicit interest in the local historic memories
Time: 4 hours
Knowledge: the students cross-reference what they had learned from the teacher with the scenario described in the novel.
Skills: the students understand the historical and human value of the novel and the places described; they recognize the value of the natural and historical heritage and the need for its protection; they deepens the relationship between perception and emotion in their experience
Application of the skills: the students know how to select salient passages of the novel and how to read them out loud in a clear and meaningful way.
3-C- To know and enhance the local historic heritage
Time 8 hours
Knowledge: the students play an active role with the teacher to acquire the methodologies in order to improve the set reading and, thanks to Google Earth , to plan the route adapting it to everyone's abilities.
Skills: the students understand the value and richness of their territory, becoming a witness of history and humanity
Application of the skills: : the students develop an interest for historical literature, learn how to organize an excursion, develop the digital skills and the ability to interact with others respecting their timing and abilities ( socializing)
Work methods and techniques
1-A- To create reading opportunities .
The reading of the novel "A Year on the Plateau" by Emilio Lussu is assigned as homework to be completed within 10 days . Before that, first the teacher provides the students an overview of the most important events of WW I using a Power Point presentation and then he/she explains how to read the trail maps. The most interesting material is assigned to the students (divided into 4 groups) to plan the excursion route.
Initially the teacher intervenes to make the students interact through cooperative learning and then he/she monitors the ability to work in team and intervenes only if some students struggle to do it.
2-B- To elicit interest in the local historic memories.
After the reading , the students get familiar with the historical sources, Google earth and the maps of the place that is the setting of the novel and the destination of the excursion. Students can take notes with their smartphone or on paper. Divided into 4 groups, they select salient passages of the novel and rehearse reading them out loud in a clear and meaningful way.
3 –C- To organise an excursion to Monte Zebio
Excursion to Monte Zebio: divided into 4 groups, the students will take turns to guide their mates along the path that leads from Asiago to the trenches of Monte Zebio. They will stop six times to read in turn some pages of the novel related to the place where they pause. The goal of the activity is to deepen the relationship between perception and emotion in the experience.
Teaching aids
- Book, maps, smartphones, Google Earth application to frame the war scenarios and define the context, 3D goggles to be used in the trenches.
Course of lesson
A - 8 hours
GOAL : To create reading opportunities
KNOWLEDGE: the students realise that narration is an emotional filter of events and momentous historical moments; they enhance the heritage of the territory.
SKILLS: The students know how to select salient passages from a novel and build a meaningful oral presentation; they respect the timing and the understanding skills of their mates.
B - 4 hours
GOAL: To elicit interest in the local historic memories
KNOWLEDGE: the students know the main events related to the First World War, through a Power Point presentation, reading the novel, using maps and Google Earth; they define the context where to read the selected pages.
SKILLS: the students are involved in the investigative process, recognizing the places described in the maps.
C - 8 hours
GOAL:To organise an educational excursion to Monte Zebio
KNOWLEDGE: Excursion to Monte Zebio: divided into 4 groups, the students will guide their mates along the path that leads from Asiago to Monte Zebio, they will take turns reading some extracts from the novel and they will follow the historical route thanks to their smartphone. The goal of the activity is to deepen the relationship between perception and emotion in the experience and to recover the corporal dimension in its totality.
SKILLS: The students are able to build a historical-narrative path full of testimonies and emotional reactions; they develop the digital skills and the ability to interact with others respecting their timing and abilities
The teacher acts as a supervisor.
D – Follow up activities
The teacher and the students verify if the objectives have been achieved, through a short questionnaire (3 questions - see attachment A) which allows modification of the objectives or the strategies applied.
The experience can be used by the students for their State Examination and to create a Padlet including some selected passages from the novel, photos taken during the excursion and the war scenarios framed by Google Earth application. This activity will help to develop their digital skills.
Evaluation
The teacher prepares an evaluation grid consisting of indicators and descriptors. Because of the flexibilty of the experience, the grid could be modified during the lesson (Grid attached)
ANNEX A
Regarding the excursion to Monte Zebio:
1- How helpful was it to read the novel before the excursion?
Very helpful because_____________
Moderately helpful because_________
A little helpful because_____________
Not helpful because_______________
I do not know____________________
2- What sensations did you feel while walking along the paths and trenches described in the novel?
None
Sadness, because_________________
Curiosity, because________________
Doubt, because___________________
Interest, because__________________