Exploring Cultural Identity

Curriculum Area

Subject: World Languages – Chamorro
Grade Level: Year 3 (3rd Grade)
Time Frame: 2 Weeks (10 School Days, 45-Minute Sessions Daily)
Standards Alignment:

• World-Readiness Standards for Learning Languages (ACTFL):
  • Comparisons Standard: Learners can demonstrate understanding of the nature of language and culture by comparing the Chamorro language and culture to their own.
  • Cultures Standard: Learners can investigate, explain, and reflect on the relationship between the practices and perspectives of the Chamorro culture.

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Unit Objective

Students will identify and compare cultural behavior patterns of the Chamorro community with those of their own cultural backgrounds in areas including food, rituals, and family values.

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Enduring Understandings

• Culture influences daily practices and perspectives.
• Individuals identify with culture through language, customs, and traditions.
• By learning about others, we better understand ourselves.

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Essential Questions

• What are important traditions in Chamorro culture?
• How does Chamorro family life compare to my own?
• Why is it important to learn about cultural behaviors and differences?

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Week 1: Introducing Chamorro Culture

Focus: Food Practices and Mealtime Rituals

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❖ Day 1 – “What is Culture?”

Objective: Students define “culture” and identify aspects of their own culture.
Activities:

• Class Discussion: “What does culture mean to you?”
• Group Activity: Create a culture web — students draw or write about food, family, celebrations, and traditions they know at home.
• Vocabulary Introduction: Chamorro words – inastosu (custom), gustot (food), familia (family)
  Resources/Materials: Chart paper, markers, dictionaries
  Assessment: Exit ticket — draw one thing that represents your culture.

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❖ Day 2 – Chamorro Food Traditions

Objective: Recognize and describe Chamorro traditional foods.
Activities:

• Visual Presentation: Photos of Chamorro dishes (kelaguen, red rice, fina'denne', titiyas)
• Taste & Tell: Sample traditional Chamorro snacks (e.g., latiya or banana donuts, if permissible)
• Create a recipe card from a Chamorro dish (with visuals and ingredients in both English and Chamorro).
  Resources/Materials: Food visual aids, samples (optional), recipe card templates
  Assessment: Students write a sentence in their journals: “I tried ___ and it tasted ___.”

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❖ Day 3 – Food in My Culture

Objective: Compare personal cultural food traditions with Chamorro food practices.
Activities:

• Sharing Circle: Bring a photo or draw a picture of a favorite family meal.
• Venn Diagram: Compare Chamorro dishes with students' family cuisine.
• Read-Aloud: Chamorro children’s story or poem involving food.
  Resources/Materials: Storybook, Venn diagram handouts
  Assessment: Complete a Venn diagram comparison.

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❖ Day 4 – Mealtime Rituals

Objective: Explore customs and practices during meals in Chamorro culture.
Activities:

• Discuss: “Before eating, do you say a prayer, wash your hands, sit in a certain order?”
• Watch: Short video or dramatization of a Chamorro family meal
• Role Play: Students act out a traditional Chamorro meal setting.
  Resources/Materials: Props for roleplay, video clip (without hyperlinks)
  Assessment: Oral reflection: “One thing I noticed about Chamorro mealtime is…”

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❖ Day 5 – Culmination: Food Fair & Cultural Show & Tell

Objective: Synthesize understanding of food traditions in different cultures.
Activities:

• Food Fair: Students share a dish (real or drawn) and explain its significance.
• Class Museum: Display recipe cards and cultural comparison charts.
• Chamorro Phrase Practice: Practice saying polite mealtime phrases in Chamorro.
  Resources/Materials: Classroom set up for presentations, food samples (optional)
  Assessment: Peer feedback cards: “I learned ___ from your culture!”

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Week 2: Rituals and Family Values

Focus: Lifestyle, Values, and Generations

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❖ Day 6 – Family Values in Chamorro Culture

Objective: Understand the role of elders and family structure in Chamorro communities.
Activities:

• Read and Discuss: Story featuring grandparents or extended family (e.g., “Grandpa’s Visit”).
• Explore Vocabulary: sångan (to say/tell), mañaina (elders), respetu (respect)
• Art Activity: Create a family tree including Chamorro names for family members.
  Resources/Materials: Storybooks, art supplies
  Assessment: Students explain one Chamorro family value they admire.

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❖ Day 7 – Rituals and Celebrations

Objective: Identify key Chamorro celebrations and their purposes.
Activities:

• Presentation: Cultural events – Fiestas, Liberation Day, and village saint days
• Music Moment: Learn a traditional Chamorro song or chant used in celebrations
• Mini Poster Creation: Each student selects a celebration to illustrate
  Resources/Materials: Music samples, poster paper
  Assessment: Oral presentation of student posters.

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❖ Day 8 – My Own Celebrations

Objective: Encourage reflection on personal family traditions and rituals.
Activities:

• Storytime: Students draw or write about a family celebration
• Cultural Quilt: Students decorate a square that represents a family tradition; quilt assembled and displayed
  Resources/Materials: “Quilt” squares, crayons, glue
  Assessment: Quilt contribution and oral sharing.

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❖ Day 9 – Respect Across Cultures

Objective: Compare the concept of respect in Chamorro and student’s home cultures.
Activities:

• Scenario Discussion: How do children show respect to elders in Chamorro vs. other cultures?
• Movement Activity: Practice Chamorro greetings and gestures of respect
• Create: Respect Chain – each student contributes one way to show respect in their culture
  Resources/Materials: Strips of construction paper for chain
  Assessment: Chain link contribution and roleplay performance.

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❖ Day 10 – Culmination: Cultural Gallery Walk

Objective: Synthesize and celebrate students’ learning.
Activities:

• Gallery: Tables display quilts, posters, food cards, family trees
• Invite another class or school staff to visit the Gallery Walk
• Reflection Journals: Students write about the most interesting thing they learned about Chamorro culture and their own
  Resources/Materials: Displays, journals
  Assessment: Journal entry and gallery feedback form.

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Differentiation and Modifications

• ELL Support: Visual aids, bilingual vocabulary lists, use of students’ home language where available
• IEP Adjustments: Modified writing tasks, peer support, extended time
• Gifted Extension: Independent research on another Pacific Island culture for comparison

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Materials Summary

• Storybooks and poems with Chamorro themes
• Art supplies: poster board, drawing paper, markers
• Construction paper, chart paper
• Audio music samples
• Props for role-playing
• Visuals of Chamorro cultural items and food

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Assessment Overview

• Exit tickets, journals, posters
• Class discussions, roleplays, Venn diagrams
• Final Gallery walk presentations
• Informal formative teacher observations

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Reflection and Teacher Notes

Encourage students to bring their own perspectives weekly through drawing, speaking, and writing. Allow opportunities for peer-led learning, and revisit vocabulary regularly with games, chants, or flashcards.

This unit invites deep understanding of cultural diversity and respect, while embedding linguistic development in meaningful, joyful ways.