Winter Count Project

A contemporary Native American, Susan Powers, is the descendent of the Sioux Chief Mato Nupa.  Her grandmother was part of Sitting Bull’s tribe.  She was raised in the oral tradition where stories are spoken aloud rather than committed to paper.  For those who practiced a Native spirituality other than Christianity, Judaism, or Islam, there were no religious texts like the Bible or Koran.  Instead each tribe created sacred symbols drawn on tanned hides.  These hides, known as the winter count had a new symbol painted on it each year to represent the most significant event of the year.  This winter count was their history and aided in storytelling.

You will create your own winter count telling the story of your academic life.  You will complete a winter count and choose one of the stories on your hide to narrate but you will do so in the written form as that is our tradition.

Step One:  Think way back to your first years at school and select one event from each year of your academic career that was important to you.  It could be something funny, an epiphany you had, an event you participated in, etc.  Choose a symbol to represent the event.  You should end up with 11 symbols including kindergarten.  These symbols should be placed chronologically on your hide.

Step Two:  Select one of the symbols on your winter count and narrate the story that goes along with it.  Choose only one to retell.

Step Three:  You are the storyteller!  Remember in narration to include characters, a setting, a sequence of events, and, a theme/lesson.  This narration is not an autobiographical writing (entire life story), but a snapshot in time of a single event.

Step Four:  Remember to be descriptive and include sensory details, vivid precise language, figurative language or comparisons, adjectives or adverbs that paint a word picture, and an organization suited to the subject.

Step Four:  Type your narrative in MLA format.

Begin writing your personal narrative after this point:
(remember, you are telling about one event that is pictured above, you are using imagistic language [showing, not telling], and are telling a complete story that is interesting to the reader.)

Feel free to review the video we watched in class. The grading rubric follows.

Rubric for Winter Count Narrative

Introduction

A clear introduction that grabs the reader’s attention and introduces the setting
A clear introduction but may not grab the reader’s attention or adequately introduce the setting
A weak introduction that does not introduce the characters or setting
Organization

A logical organization that tells the story clearly—there is an obvious beginning, middle, and end
A logical organization but may not use enough transitions or tell the whole story
Unclear and disorganized with few transitions
Details
(SHOW don’t tell!)

Details described using impressive vocabulary with vivid, precise language and ample sensory images
Details included but they may not use grade level vocabulary or paint a picture in the reader’s mind
Too few details are present so the story does not engage the reader
Autobiographical Elements

The details, thoughts, feelings, and insights are from the writer’s perspective and illustrate what was learned from the experience
Some thoughts and feelings are provided but the message is unclear
An unimportant event is described that doesn’t express the writer’s perspective
MUGS
mechanics, usage, grammar, spelling
There are no errors or typos in spelling or grammar in the narrative
There are few errors in grammar or spelling in the narrative
There are frequent errors in grammar and spelling
Possible Points:
6…5
4…3…2
1…0

Total:        /30

Category: Essays