Title of Unit: The West Title of Lesson: The Mountain States Submitted By: Jessica Solomon
A. Summary of the Lesson Plan: This lesson explores life in the Mountain States. This lesson uses the 4th Grade Houghton Mifflin Social Studies textbook States and Regions (p. 282-287). B. Target Population: Grade Level: 4th Skill Level: students at all learning levels Grouping: Whole group discussion and reading, small group discussion and activity, individual assessment. C. Materials: Paper and pencils Reading Skill and Strategy (Unit Resources p. 79) for each student see last page of lesson plan for sample Vocabulary and Study Guide (Unit Resources p. 80) for each student see last page of lesson plan for sample Map of Mountain States for each student see last page of lesson plan for sample Houghton Mifflin 4th Grade Social Studies Book: States and Regions (p. 282-287) D. Objectives: o NV State Social Studies Standards o G5.4.2 Identify special patterns on a map of Nevada, i.e., deserts, mountains, population.
Student-Friendly Standards G5.4.2 I can identify deserts, mountains, and other features on a map of the Mountain States.
E. Procedure: 1. Refer to notes on TE 282 Get Set to Read. o o Explain the Study Guide students will complete as we read. Call students attention to the map on p. 283. o o Ask, What do you notice about the colors and distances on the map?
Complete the Reading Skill Strategy worksheet as a class as we read. Identify & Discuss how distances could affect how people live. Create a word web of students responses.
o
Nevada State College
Introduce vocabulary (ecosystem, habitat, extinct).
EDEL 453 - Spring 2013 Karen Powell- Instructor page 1
Title of Unit: The West Title of Lesson: The Mountain States Submitted By: Jessica Solomon
2. As a class, read p. 282-285, stopping to ask questions as indicated in the margins of the TE. 3. Students should take notes and record information on their Study Guide while we are reading. They can continue working on it when we finish reading. 4. Ask questions listed in the margins of the TE as an ongoing check for understanding. Focus on these questions about cities and rural areas: o o o o o o o o o (TE 283) Which states are called the Mountain States? (TE 283) Where do most people live in the Mountain States? (TE 283) What different kids of plants grow in the Mountain States? (TE 283) Why do people who live in rural areas travel to cities? (TE 284) How do tourists help the rural economies in the Mountain States? (TE 284) What does the graph tell you about visitors to national parks? (TE 284) Which Mountain States share Yellowstone National Park? (After paragraph 4 on p. 285) What attracts visitors to the Mountain States? (Review question #3) Explain how Denvers location affects its climate.
1. CLOSURE: Discuss the five statements in the Review and Assess sections of TE 285. F. Assessment: What will you use to measure student understanding? ELL Intermediate/Advanced (TE 283) Students will be given a map of the Mountain States. They will create a map of the Mountain States using colored pencils. They will label the four states, their capitals, and other important features. Students will write a description of their maps and discuss their maps with the class. Explain how you will know students understand the concepts from the lesson. Students will be able to identify deserts, mountains, and other features on a map of the Mountain States by creating their own maps using colored pencils. G. Reflection: 1. Which part of the lesson do you think will be the easiest for you to teach? I think the overall concept of rural communities will be the easiest to teach. I live and plan on teaching in a rural community so the students will all understand why people have to travel into the city for goods and services as well entertainment.
Nevada State College EDEL 453 - Spring 2013 Karen Powell- Instructor page 2
Title of Unit: The West Title of Lesson: The Mountain States Submitted By: Jessica Solomon
2. Which part will be most challenging for you to teach? I think the maps will be the most difficult part to teach. Many students have a rough time with maps so I think the maps assignment will be the most difficult to teach. 3. How will you follow up or extend this lesson? In order to extend this lesson, we will as a class do the Extend Lesson 2 Climate and Elevation on p. 286-287. 4. What will you do for students who dont grasp the concepts? I would pull any students that did not grasp the concepts aside and we would work on the Reteach Mini Lesson described at the bottom of TE 285. We would work together to fill out a two-column chart to reteach the differences between rural and urban areas in the Mountain States. 5. Which part of the lesson, if any, do you think might need to change? If I need to change anything, I think I would need to provide an example of the map if my students struggle with the concepts. I think students might have difficulty with maps so I might need to add a lesson about maps as well. 6. When you were writing this lesson plan, what was the most difficult part? Deciding on the assessment was definitely the most difficult part of this lesson. I felt there were many assessments that would fit in this lesson, but I wanted to choose an engaging lesson, which is why I chose the map using colored pencils.
Nevada State College
EDEL 453 - Spring 2013
Karen Powell- Instructor
page 3
Title of Unit: The West Title of Lesson: The Mountain States Submitted By: Jessica Solomon
Nevada State College
EDEL 453 - Spring 2013
Karen Powell- Instructor
page 4
Title of Unit: The West Title of Lesson: The Mountain States Submitted By: Jessica Solomon
Nevada State College
EDEL 453 - Spring 2013
Karen Powell- Instructor
page 5
Title of Unit: The West Title of Lesson: The Mountain States Submitted By: Jessica Solomon
Nevada State College
EDEL 453 - Spring 2013
Karen Powell- Instructor
page 6
Title of Unit: The West Title of Lesson: The Mountain States Submitted By: Jessica Solomon
Nevada State College
EDEL 453 - Spring 2013
Karen Powell- Instructor
page 7
