Grade 3
Cindy Taylor, Teresa Scheese, and Mendi
Mikek
Michigan Curriculum Framework for Social Studies
ü
Perspective: II. Geographic
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Benchmark: 2. Locate and describe diverse kinds of communities and explain
the reasons for their characteristics and locations.
Materials:
- Pre-baked/iced cookie bar
- Toothpicks
- Labels
- Scissors
- Markers
- Drawing paper
Assorted decorative icing- Assorted candies
- Visiting a Village with copies of Map of a Village (p. 10-11)
Anticipatory Set:
- Lesson Focus: What are some of the things you and your family do
around the town that you live in?
Where do you go when you visit places in your town?
o Use
the Map of a Village (Visiting a
Village, p. 10-11) to
further describe and discuss the components of an older village.
- Lesson Objective: First, we will look at the map below of a village from
olden times describing and discussing what we see. Then we will construct a map of
our own community using edible materials.
- Lesson Importance: We will be exploring similarities and differences
between communities of the past and those that are necessary for people
today.
Input:
- Mode of Instruction: Skill Development and Discussion
- Overview:
This lesson will help students understand how the purposes of
communities change over time.
- Objectives:
o Students
will develop a list of basic needs a community requires to survive.
o Students
will create a community in which they would like to live that includes what
they think a community needs.
Checking for Understanding:
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What are some of the
differences of communities from the past and communities of today?
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What are some of the
similarities of communities from the past and communities of today?
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Which characteristic of
a community do you think is most important? (Evaluation)
Hands-On Activity:
1
As a group, have
students brainstorm a list of basic needs of a community. This list should include housing,
places for jobs, goods (clothing, food, etc.), recreation, and services
(health, protection, and schooling).
2
Have students create
their own community with edible materials.
3
Before the students
discuss their cookie community, they will make a drawing of it to be used in
extension.
4
Upon completion of
cookie community, students will discuss the elements of their community.
Closure and
Reflection:
·
If you could add one
more thing to your community, what would it be?
·
How is the community in
which you live in now different from the community you would like to live
in?
·
What are the
similarities between a community of the past and the one you live in
today?
·
What do you like and
dislike about the community that you currently live in?
Extension:
·
How might you redesign
the community in which you currently live?
o
At home, students will
draw a map of how they would like the community to look.
o
Students also will look
for maps at home so that they can examine what a map key/legend looks like.
o
Students will make a map
key/legend for the cookie
community that they created in class.