Unit of Study title:
Washington, D.C.
Topic
Area: Social Studies, Language
Arts, Math
Grade
Level: Third Grade
Time
Frame: 2-3 weeks
Key
Words: Washington, D.C.
Unit
Designer: Andrea Hart
Unit
Designer E-mail: andrea.hart@k12.sd.us
UNIT GOALS
·
The students will learn that Washington,
D.C. is the center of
government of our country.
The nation’s president, lawmakers,
and the justices of the Supreme Court work in the nation’s capital.
·
The students will identify the
Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution as landmark
documents upon which our country was founded.
·
The students will identify Washington,
D.C. as the capital of our country.
·
The students will identify the White
House as the building in Washington, D.C., where the President lives and works.
·
The students will use a grid system on a
map and locate key sites on a map of Washington, D.C.
·
The students will recognize that
Washington, D.C. has many monuments where Americans can go to learn about their
country’s history.
·
The students will write and share a brief
report about Washington, D.C.
·
The students will compose a letter to
send to the President of the United States.
TASKS
Day 1:
Teacher will introduce the unit with the following question, “What do
you know about Washington, D.C.? Together
the teacher and students will create a KWL chart to assess student’s prior
knowledge.
Day
2:
The class will read Lesson 1: A New Country
Students
will recognize that the American Revolution brought independence to our country,
and explain why the Declaration of Independence was written.
Day
3:
The students will access the web site: http://www.teachervision.com/lesson-plans/lesson-780.html
to
see the text of the Declaration of Independence including a brief description of
the document and a list of the signatures.
Day
4:
The class will read Lesson 2: Governing Our Country
Students
will identify the Constitution as a landmark document upon which our country was
founded, identify the three branches of government, and describe the work of
each branch of government.
Day
5:
The students will access the web site: http://www.pittsford.monroe.edu/jefferson/calfieri/government/govframe.html
Students can read about the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Branches.
When they have finished they can take a quick quiz for understanding.
Day
6:
The class will read Lesson 3: A Capital for a New Country
Students
will explain why our country’s capital is named for George Washington, explain
how Benjamin Banneker contributed to the planning of the capital, and recognize
that Washington, D.C., has changed since it became the nation’s capital.
Day
6: (Math)
In small cooperative learning groups students will research what states
our presidents have come from using the web site http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents
Groups
will then take their findings and make a class graph showing this information.
Day
7:
The class will read Lesson 4: A Tour of Washington, D.C.
Students
will identify the White House as the building in Washington, D.C., where the
President lives and works, identify the capitol as the place where Congress
meets, explain why Washington, D.C., has monuments to the Presidents, and
recognize the American flag as a symbol of our country.
Days
8-10
Students will be working together in cooperative learning groups to
construct a grid map of Washington, D.C. They
will include the following areas on their grid map:
Washington, D.C.’s Mall, Potomac River, Lincoln Memorial, Washington
Monument, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Smithsonian, National Museum of
American History, Air and Space Museum, Capitol, Supreme Court, Library of
Congress, Union Station, Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial, and the National Gallery
of Arts.
Days
8,9 (Writer’s Workshop)
Students will compose a letter to the President of the United States.
They will be using the writing process to improve their written work.
(Ex: prewriting, drafting, revision, editing, and publishing)
Days
11,12
Working with partner students will access the Internet sites provided by
the teacher to obtain information about a president, monument, or the White
House. Students will use this
information to present a PowerPoint to the rest of the class.
Expand: The teacher will work with small groups at a time to help
them with their Power Point presentation. Teacher
will also take a Digital picture of the students to have on their power point
presentation.
Days
13,14
Students will present their power point presentations to the class.
Teacher will use a rubric to assess the presentations.
Students will assess their projects using a rubric.
Day
14
Students will complete the KWL chart as an evaluation tool.
Interactions:
The teacher will be the facilitator of this unit.
The students will work independently, in pairs, and in cooperative
learning groups to complete this unit. They
will also receive direct instruction form the teacher.
Assessment:
The teacher will evaluate the student on their discussions,
participation, and projects. To
assess projects, the teacher and students will construct a rubric.
The students will also complete a KWL chart.
Tools
A. Bibliography
v
Communities
Near and Far – Macmillan/McGraw-Hill
B. Equipment
v
Digital
Camera
v
Computer
§
Internet
Access
§
PowerPoint
software
§
Excel
C. Websites
http://www.teachervision.com/lesson-plans/lesson-780.html
www.whitehouse.gov/history/president
http://www.pittsford.monroe.edu/jefferson/calfieri/government/govframe.html
D.
Charts
STANDARDS
THIRD
GRADE GEOGRAPHY STANDARDS
STUDENTS
WILL:
2. Use grid systems to
locate communities.
3. Construct a map
using map key and symbols, map scale, title, compass rose including
intermediate directions, and boundaries.
THIRD
GRADE CIVICS STANDARDS
STUDENTS
WILL:
2. Analyze human
relationships and roles between and among individuals and groups,
cultural groups and a community, and communities and state.
3. Explain the
fundamental ideas and principles that form the foundation of our government
and various communities of the past and present with
emphasis on life, liberty, pursuit of
happiness, and equality under the law.
4. Explain why
communities have rules or laws and how they protect the rights and
freedoms of individuals.
5. Explain the process
of making rules and laws, enforcing laws, voting, becoming a citizen.
6. Recognize that
there are various government bodies such as councils, boards, and
legislatures.
THIRD
GRADE READING STANDARDS
THE
STUDENT WILL:
10. Compare the lives
of various people as described in biographies and auto-biographies.
16. Use reference
tools to locate information. (example: dictionaries, maps and globes,
encyclopedias, periodicals, Internet)
18. Compare information on the same topic found in several expository selections.
THIRD
GRADE WRITING STANDARDS
THE
STUDENT WILL:
10. Write to explain
what is known about selected topics in various content areas
12. Use
the writing process to improve written work. (example: prewriting, drafting,
revision,
editing, publishing)
15. Generate personal and
formal letters using proper form. (example: thank you notes, and
invitations)
19. Edit final copies for
capitalization and punctuation.
THIRD
GRADE LISTENING AND VIEWING STANDARDS
THE
STUDENT WILL:
1. Listen and respond
thoughtfully and respectfully to others.
2. Listen attentively
by making eye contact and facing the speaker.
THIRD
GRADE SPEAKING STANDARDS
THE
STUDENT WILL:
1. Deliver brief
descriptive presentations that use concrete details to describe people, places,
things, or experiences.
3. Present brief oral
reports/stories that have a beginning, middle, and ending and include
concrete details that provide a central focus/impression.
4. Organize and
present ideas so that others can understand the message.
6. Express knowledge,
ideas, and requests clearly using
appropriate vocabulary and sentence structure.
11. Create visual aids to
use in oral presentations. (ex: pictures, maps,
charts, graphs, props)
12. Use technology to
enhance spoken messages.