Students’ age range: 08-10

Topic: Who were the original inhabitants of Jamaica?

 

Description: Engage
Students will sing the song “Welcome to Jamaica the land of wood and water". Boys will sing and girls will echo what is heard.
Recall the name given to the earliest inhabitants of Jamaica (the Taibos) and where they came from (Venezuela-Orinoco Valley)
Explore
Teacher will make a t-chart on the board and label one side 'Needs' and the other 'Wants'. Ask volunteers to name human needs and write down their answers on the left side of the chart. Guide children to understand that people need air, food, water, shelter, and clothes to live. Then ask students to name some things they want to have, but don't need in order to survive, and record their answers on the right side of the chart. As children mention expensive items they want, guide them to understand that families must carefully budget their money to cover needs and pay for wants using only the leftover money.

Explain
Explain to students the difference between wants and needs by saying “I've got a set of flash cards. When I hold one up, tell me if the picture on the card is something that you need—you have to have it to live—or if it is a want—something that you would like to have, but you can live without it. Shuffle the Wants and Needs flashcards and hold them up one at a time. Allow students to call out the answers. If students disagree on an item, stop and discuss it with the class. Make sure they understand the difference between goods that they must have to survive and those that they don't really need.
Discuss the lifestyle of the Tainos and identify some of the needs they had versus some of their wants.
Elaborate
Observe pictures on the multi media projector showing aspects of the Taino culture. Identify each as a need or a want. Say how their needs and wants differ from that of the Tainos. Teacher will ask the following questions to promote discussion
1. How would you describe the Taino houses?
2. Why do you think their houses were built that way?
3. What did the Tainos do in order to supply their need for food?
4. What did the Tainos eat that we still eat today?