Culture of the American West Game Created by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget – by Ruth Pennington Paget
This game was inspired by a book about Western scarves I found at Sundance Resort outside Park City, Utah.
Objective:
To encourage research on history of the American West while having fun.
There are 7 levels in this game.
Level 1 – Singing Cowboy and Western Songs
-Start by handing out song sheets for 5 – 10 Western songs from the book Cowboy Songs: 62 Classic Saddle Songs by Hal Leonard
-Sing one song a capella
-Sing the song straight through and then sing it in rounds
-The objective of singing in rounds is to teach children to focus despite noise around them.
The French sing in rounds as in the song Frère Jacques or Brother John as it is called in English.
Instructions for Singing in Rounds
-Choose at least 3 groups
-Hand out song sheets
-The first group begins by singing the first two verses of the song and continues singing
-The second group begins to sing when the first group gets through the first two verses of the song. The second group continues singing the song.
-The third group begins to sing after the second group sings their two verses of the song and continues singing
-When the third group is done singing, the round is over.
Level 2 – English Word Pronunciation Based on the Songs
-Take the song sheet and ask each player to practice pronouncing 20 different words you have selected
-Ask the group if anyone knows what those words mean. If there are some tricky words, ask the players to look them up on Google dictionary
-Ask the players if there are any other words that they would like to know the means of. If there are, have them look these words up on Google dictionary
-Teach players how to use Google dictionary, if they do not know how
Level 3 – Cowboy Drawing and Coloring
-Use the book Cowboy Doodles by Anita Wood to do the following activities without writing in the book so you can use it several times
-First, use tracing paper to copy the images then do the drawing exercises in turn
-Color in the outlined drawing with colored pencils
-Have players read the story that goes with image and correct pronunciation if necessary or make up a story
-Ask the players questions about the story they made up
Secrets of Western Scarves Games
You will need Dianne Zamost’s book Western Scarves for background to play this game. The author also lists outlets where you can purchase these scarves. Each state in the United States has a scarf.
First, read the book to learn about some of the practical uses of scarves out on the range and on the ranch.
Level 3 – Western Scarf Compass Directions Game
-There is a Western scarf for every state in the United States
-The state capital is always featured along with an image of the capital
-Taking a Michigan Western Scarf as an example, ask players to write out the state capital of Michigan – Lansing – on a piece of paper.
-Then, write the compass directions of North, South, East, and West out on the paper around Lansing.
-Ask game players to study the compass directions and look at the cities around Michigan’s capital of Lansing.
-Then, fold the scarf and turn over the compass directions
-After doing this, as a player a question such as “Is Kalamazoo east or west of Lansing?”
-Whatever the player’s response is use the compass you drew and ask the player, “Use the compass directions and Western scarf to verify your response.”
-You can play the Western Scarf geography game to learn the geography of individual states quickly
Level 4 – Western Scarf Crops and Other Foods Games
-On most Western scarves, there are cities with images of foods produced there
-Using Kalamazoo (Michigan) as an example, ask the player, “What crops are grown in Kalamazoo?”
-Most teens cannot recognize corn as a plant, so help them out when you are first playing this game
-Tell them, “That’s corn. Your corn flakes cereal comes from that plant.
-You might want to mention some of Kalamazoo’s other crops such as celery, dry peas, dry beans, and oil seeds.
-Ask the child, if other food products are pictured on the Western scarf
Level 5 – Western Scarves Transportation Networks Game
-To extend the food products game, you could research the following transportation networks that exist and where they go:
-railroads
-highways
-superhighways
-county roads
-airports
Level 6 – Western Scarves Quiz Game
-Players can make the quiz lists themselves, which helps players retain information
-The player will quiz the parent on what he or she knows for an hour and then the parent will take turns answering a question
-Make your own list in the following manner:
-alphabetical order by state
-alphabetical order by city
-for each city, list the crops in alphabetical order
-for each city, list the animal foods in alphabetical
-for each city list the transportation networks in alphabetical order
All of these Western Scarves Games Give Players Knowledge of the Following:
-state capitals
-locations of cities around state capitals to learn geography
-knowledge of what food crops are grown in that area
-knowledge of transportation networks, which include rivers (as in Virginia’s Hampton Roads), railroads, highways, airports, and county roads. (What are the endpoints of these transportation networks?)
-How many state capitals are located at or near the center of their state?
For the next Culture of the Western U.S. Game, ask yourself the following questions:
Level 7 – Read books about the American West
Suggested Books:
-Laura Ingalls Wilder series.
You can watch the television series and ask the same questions.
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-John Bunyan folktales
-John Henry folktale
-Laurence Yep such as Dragonwings (Golden Mountain Chronicles, 1867) and Dragonwings (Golden Mountain Chronicles: 1903), and The Cook’s Family
-Todos al Rodeo: A Vaquero Alphabet Book by Dr. Ma Alma Gonzalez Perez and Teresa Estrada
By Ruth Pennington Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
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| Ruth Paget Photo |
