Grade 5

Math and Value, Hoopa Math

Math and Value, Hoopa Math

K.CC.4.b, 1.NBT.2.a, 1.NBT.2.b, 1.NBT.2.c, 2.NBT.1.a, 2.NBT.1.b, 3.NBT.1, 4.NBT.1, 5.NBT.1

This math unit relates to standards of place value and counting. Teaching students other number systems and concepts of value helps them to better understand base 10 and their own counting/ number systems. This lesson opens math up beyond the typical addition/ subtraction/ multiplication/ division and relates closer to the Common Core based Standards for Mathematical Practice (K-12). By introducing students to multicultural math and the Hupa people, you may find students connecting to math in a deeper, more complex way after this lesson. They may also share with you personal connections as they begin to see their own cultural values as a part of math for the first time. This lesson is simple but presents Math from many different cultures as a way students can better understand concepts of math in general. By exploring counting with the Hupa people of Northwest California, students will also gain a deeper understanding of how math and culture are connected. They will learn about the culture of the Hupa people by understanding how and why they traditionally would count and use math. Students can compare this to their own lives to better understand why they, themselves, need to count and use math. This lesson also connects to the 2023 Mathematics Framework adopted July 12, 2023 by the State Board of Education. Specifically, this lesson does work to expand equity and engagement in the field of math to students who may not traditionally feel a cultural connection to math. Please visit https://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/ma/cf/ for more details on the Math Framework. Essential Questions: What is math? How have different groups of people used concepts of math to represent and understand the world? How do digits and counting help us to understand value? What do different cultures value? How do they measure value?

Mr. Huynh, voiced by Baoan Coleman, holds his baby daughter, Mai.

Tracing the “Phamily” History

HSS 2.1, HSS 2.2, RI.2.6, SL.2.4

Students will describe and reflect on reasons Vietnamese refugees moved to America, or their local communities, through a multimedia analysis and explore their own family history with an interview and creating a medium of choice.

Title supplied by artist: Refugee camps Refugees and Immigrants Vietnamese

"The Boat" by Nam Le and Matt Huynh

RL.4.3, RL.5.2, RL.5.7

Students will be able to summarize the experiences of the second wave of Vietnamese refugees (boat people) and identify major plot elements in the digital story, “The Boat” by Nam Lê and Matt Huynh by answering text dependent questions and completing a plot elements diagram.

Green papaya salad “quab” is a staple dish in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. Photo credit: Ger Thao, 2022.

Sharing Food Stories

HSS 4.4, HSS 4.4.4, RI.4.7, HSS 10.9, RI.9-10.7, W.9-10.9

Students will be able to trace and identify the origins of Hmong cuisine and community hubs in the United States through an exploration of diverse sources. They will connect these elements to the refugee experience and express their understanding by creating a personalized lunch box identity collage.

Image of Hmong refugee camps from The Hmong journey: Hmoob txoj kev taug by Ger Thao.

Portrait of a Refugee Camp

HSS 4.4.3, RI.4.7, 5.VA:CR2.1

Students will understand what a (Hmong) refugee is and why refugee camps were formed. Students will learn about the locations and historical formation of the refugee camps in Thailand. Students will be able to create a portrait of a refugee camp using an art medium of their choice.

Hmong New Year Celebration in Merced, CA in 2008.

HMoob New Year Celebration

HSS 4.4, RI.5.7, W.4.6, WL.CN2.N: Diverse Perspectives and Distinctive Viewpoints

Students will gather that HMoob New Year is interconnected to spirituality and the significance of community and family and fosters an appreciation for the richness and uniqueness of culture and traditions sustained throughout the many displacements and oppressions HMoob people experienced. By learning about the purpose and aspects of the HMoob New Year Celebration (as a public event in the United States), students will compare and contrast their own new year celebrations.

This is early in the years before the story cloths became more streamlined and look alike. In the early years the story cloths reflected more first hand accounts and looked more custom and unique before they began to have the cookie cutter look.

The Story Behind Paj Ntaub (Story Cloth)

HSS 4.4, RI.5.7, W.4.2, SL.5.4

Students will learn about the history of the story cloth and its importance in communicating Hmong history, refugee and migration experience, and preservation of culture. Students will analyze a paj ntaub, and interpret the message, story or feeling that the artist is trying to convey.

A mural in Cambodia Town

Building Community Through Public Art

5.MA:RE7, RI.4.4

Students will gain an understanding of how artists can build community awareness of Cambodian American culture through public art including the Cambodia Town Mural Project. Students will also learn how artists use community engagement to highlight experiences of others.