• Proverbs provide an opportunity for students to be knowledgeable experts as well as learners.
• Proverbs provide an opportunity for students to learn about each other and their shared values.
• Proverbs provide an opportunity for students to gain insight as they discuss their experiences and work out their understanding of proverb meanings.
• Proverbs provide an opportunity for students to use their home culture as a stepping stone into school culture.
• Proverbs provide an opportunity to improve thinking and writing as students both provide and receive information.

• share, study, and interpret proverbs from a variety of cultures.
  
  
• update traditional proverbs for contemporary contexts.
  
  
• create their own, original proverbs.

• Proverb Definition handout
• Common Proverbs handout
• Proverbs from around the World handout
• Proverb Self-evaluation sheet

• Print out a copy of the Proverb Definition handout.
• Print out copies of Common Proverbs and/or Proverbs from Around the World, one for each student (if you choose to use either).
• Print out the Proverb Self-evaluation sheet, at least one for each student.

1. After briefly reviewing what has been already learned about proverbs, introduce to the students the idea of updating proverbs. To update a proverb is to rewrite it using contemporary terms for contemporary contexts. For instance, “Don’t store all your data on one disk” is an update of “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”
2. As a class, update a couple of proverbs which you’ve already discussed.
3. Ask the students to use the Web Resources listed below to look for proverbs they like and have them write them down, including any additional information they have about them, such as culture or country of origin.
4. Ask students to choose from the proverbs they’ve found and, working alone or in groups, update them. If they work in groups, each student should only choose one or two proverbs. If they work alone, they might update three or four.
5. Ask each student or group to share the updated proverbs and discuss what they’ve done.
6. Now that they’ve worked with proverbs for a while, ask them to think about how proverbs work. (Common elements of proverbs can be found on the Proverb Definition handout.)
   • What makes a good proverb?
   • Does it use metaphor?
   • Does it make general observations about specific events?
   • Does it state an idea directly or does it try to say it indirectly?
   • Does it use striking images? Rhyme? Parallel structure?

1. Review with students everything they’ve learned about proverbs, with an eye towards preparing them to write their own proverbs. Be sure to remind them of the difference between a proverb and a cliché. (See the Proverb Definition handout.)
2. Ask the students to create their own proverbs either alone or in groups.
3. When completed, have each student or group share the proverbs they’ve written.
4. At the end of the session or for homework, have each student complete the Proverb Self-evaluation sheet.

• Proverb Mini-posters
  Using arts and crafts materials or PowerPoint, have each student create a mini-poster with their favorite proverb or a proverb they’ve updated or written.
  
  
• Proverb Collection
  Drawing from proverbs the students have found, the proverbs they’ve updated, and the proverbs they’ve created, have the students create their own proverb collections. They can do this using traditional arts and crafts materials, using PowerPoint, or by making Web pages.

Poor Richard's Almanac: Proverbs
http://www.richhall.com/poor_richard.htm

Proverbs gathered from Benjamin Franklin’s Poor Richard’s Almanac. A good site for students to find traditional American proverbs.

Insects: Proverbs, Quotes, Sayings
http://www.bijlmakers.com/entomology/proverbs_insects_2.htm

Includes proverbs about insects collected from around the world. A good site for students to find proverbs.

Proverbs by Country of Origin
http://www.famous-quotations.com/asp/origins.asp

A large collection of proverbs from around the world. A good site for students to find proverbs, though the site contains advertisements.

Proverbs from 300 Countries and Cultures
http://creativeproverbs.com/

Collection of proverbs. Search from 12,000 proverbs from 300 countries and cultures or browse from over 1,500 from 100 countries and cultures. The site contains advertisements.

CogWeb's Proverb Resources
http://cogweb.ucla.edu/Discourse/Proverbs/index.html

Proverbs from around the world and links to external collections. Includes links to proverb journals, articles, and reference materials. Good for both students and teachers.

Proverbs: More Than Words Say
http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/views/proverbs/index.html

Short Peace Corps collection of proverbs from around the world. Locations of origin and meaning/context provided. Provides suggestions for teaching with proverbs.

Proverbial Wisdom
http://www.theotherpages.org/quote-05.html

A collection of 600+ proverbs from around the world, listed alphabetically.

• Observe the students as they use the Web to search for proverbs. How comfortable do they seem with navigating the sites and finding proverbs?
  
  
• Observe the students’ thinking and involvement as they work alone or in groups to update the proverbs. Are they interested and engaged? Are they making contributions? Working together to help each other learn?
  
  
• Observe the students as they discuss the elements of proverbs. Do their comments reflect a growing understanding of how proverbs work?

• Handout the Proverb Self-evaluation sheet and have students evaluate their proverbs.

NCTE/IRA Standards

1 - Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works.

3 - Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound-letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).

5 - Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

6 - Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and nonprint texts.

8 - Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge.

9 - Students develop an understanding of and respect for diversity in language use, patterns, and dialects across cultures, ethnic groups, geographic regions, and social roles.

11 - Students participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities.

12 - Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).