Language & Religion Unit

Lesson title: Effects of poverty on the marginalized & Children

Summary & Background Information:

In this lesson students will be introduced to the many faces of poverty and see how poverty does not equally affect all demographics of the population. They will begin the lesson by highlighting the social and economic inequalities in Ontario and Canada. They will come to understand that poverty disproportionately affects the marginalized in our communities. Students will review the function of text features before examining texts. Finally, students will reflect on the idea of social cohesion and the importance of community as found in scripture. Students will reflect upon how living in community can help alleviate social injustice and strengthen our resolve to live out the faith we proclaim.

Curriculum Links:

Language - Reading for Meaning

1.1 read a wide variety of texts from diverse cultures, including literary texts, graphic texts, and informational texts.

1.2 identify a variety of purposes for reading and choose reading materials appropriate for those purposes.

1.3 identify a variety of reading comprehension strategies and use them appropriately before, during, and after reading to understand increasingly complex texts.

1.5 develop interpretations about texts using stated and implied ideas to support their interpretations.

1.6 extend understanding of texts by connecting, comparing, and contrasting the ideas in them to student's own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them.

1.7 analyse increasingly complex texts and explain how the different elements in them contribute to meaning.

1.8 make judgements and draw conclusions about ideas in texts and cite stated or implied evidence from the text to support their views.

1.9 identify the point of view presented in texts; determine whether they can agree with the view, in whole or in part; and suggest some other possible perspectives.

Religious Education:

Grade 6:

LS2.3: Identify situations of injustice in society, our country and the world which oppose the virtue of human dignity and fundamental human rights. Use examples to describe social justice which reflect the principle that “everyone should look upon his neighbour (without any exception) as another self.

Grade 7:

LS2.2: Describe the forms of solidarity which can effectively address socio-economic problems and explain through example how these forms of solidarity can promote social change and respect for the common good.

Grade 8:

LS2.3: Define the Church’s social teaching with respect to personal responsibility and participation in public life and give examples of how each promotes the good of individuals and the common good of society.

Catholic Graduate Expectations:

3. REFLECTIVE, CREATIVE AND HOLISTIC THINKER who solves problems and makes responsible decisions with an informed moral conscience for the common good.

6. A CARING FAMILY MEMBER who attends to family, school, parish and the wider community.

Guiding Questions:

1. What is poverty? How do different individuals and groups define it?

2. What are the causes of poverty?

3. What is the impact of poverty on marginalized people and children? Are they affected differently?

4. As Catholic Christians, how can we make a positive contribution to society and the world?

5. How can we work for the common good of all people and be the change we want to see?

6. How do we ensure we are acting charitably and also seeking justice?

7. How can using a variety of reading comprehension strategies aid in understanding texts?

8. How can identifying and understanding an author's point of view help in understanding texts?

9. How can connecting, comparing, and contrasting the ideas in texts to our own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts and to the world around us, help to extend understanding?

Learning Goals:

By the end of this unit, students will be able to:

• understand the definition of poverty in relation to various perspectives.

• identify and understand the causes of poverty and assess our individual and societal responsibilities and how these impact our communities.

• use a variety of forms (e.g., oral, written, graphic, multimedia) to communicate learning and ideas, to a variety of audiences, and for a variety of purposes.

• employ a variety of comprehension strategies to make inferences and extend understanding of a variety of texts.

• identify and understand various points of views held by authors of the texts examined.

• connect, compare, and contrast the ideas in texts to their own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them, to help extend understanding.

• develop attitudes and values founded on Catholic social teaching and act to promote social responsibility, human solidarity and the common good.

• become models of Christian living for all those we encounter in our daily lives.

• understand the difference between justice and charity and the need for both.

Success Criteria:

I can…

• understand what poverty means to different people/organizations.

• identify and understand the causes of poverty and how societal and individual actions affect my community.

• communicate my learning in a variety of ways (speaking, writing, drawing, recording).

• use comprehension strategies to make inferences and extend my understanding of texts.

• identify points of view in the texts I examine.

• connect, compare, and contrast the ideas in texts to my own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around me to help extend understanding.

• better understand Catholic social teachings and act to promote responsibility and solidarity for the common good.

• become a model for Christian living for my school and local community.

• demonstrate I understand the difference between justice and charity.

1. Using Text Features to Analyse Texts

• Tell students they will be analyzing texts about poverty prevalence, but in order to do so they will be reviewing text features.

• Share the "Text Features" diagrams with students. This could be posted in the classroom as an anchor chart, or made prominent in an online classroom platform. This could also be projected on screen during the lesson.

• Explain that text features help in the following ways:

1. 1. 1. Emphasize what is important

      2. Clarify complicated information

      3. Narrow down a search

      4. Organize material to aid in understanding

      5. Make the information more visual to aid in understanding

• Have students make a poster that illustrates the importance/benefits of social cohesion (reduced violence, better health, etc.) OR make a poster promoting the scripture passages about living in community. The poster can be displayed in the school.