Lesson:  #2

Lesson Title:  Communities Across The US

Grade:  3rd

Duration:  1 hour

Primary Discipline:  Social Studies

 

Aim:  What are the different types of communities?

 

Objective:

The learner will be able to…

  • Distinguish the difference between the three types of communities: rural, urban, and suburban.

 

NYS Standards:

  • SS Standard 1:  History of the United States and New York
  • SS Standard 3:  Geography

 

Integrated Standards:

  • Arts Standard 1:  Creating, Performing, and Participating in the Arts
  • ELA Standard 4:  Language for Social Interaction

 

Materials:

  • Smartboard
  • Venn diagram (generated as a class)
  • Pictures of actual communities
  • List of Elmont characteristics (generated as a class)
  • Vocabulary
  • Plain white paper
  • Pencil
  • Students’ coloring supplies

 

Procedure:

  • Motivation
    • To begin, the teacher will bring the students on a walk down the school’s street and back.  The walk will give students a first hand experience of their home community, particularly around their school.
    • Prior to the walk, the teacher will make suggestions for as to what students should be making observations on while on the motivational walk.

 

  • Key Questions

o       What type of community is Elmont?

o       Where might we find a rural community?

o       What is an example of an urban community?

 

 

 

 

 

·         Lesson Instruction

o       Once the teacher has brought the students back from their walk, he or she will begin the lesson by asking students to raise their hands to respond to things they saw on the walk.

o       During this activity, the teacher will be making a list on the Smartboard based on the students’ responses.

o       With a completed list, the teacher will explain that Elmont is a suburban community.

o       Important vocabulary terms will be introduced: suburban, rural, urban

o       The teacher will then go on to explain the three types of communities and make a venn diagram to demonstrate the similarities and differences among the three community types.

o       During the lesson the teacher will supplement the lesson with pictures of actual communities across the US by presenting them on the Smartboard.

 

·         Activity

o       Following the lesson, the teacher will ask students to make an illustration of each community which will be placed on the bulletin board in the classroom.

o       Students are to fold their white paper into four sections.  Using a pencil, in the first section they are to title the illustration, Communities, and write their name.

o       The teacher will explain that in each of the three remaining boxes, students will write the type of community (i.e. rural, urban, and suburban) and sketch with a pencil what that community would typically look like.

o       Once all three sketches are made, students will then be able to color their illustrations with their desired medium.

 

Closure:

To conclude the lesson on the three types of communities, students will be asked to present their illustrations to the rest of the class.  If they have not completed them yet, those students can still present what they have drawn thus far.

 

Homework:

Homework Assignment: students will be asked to…

  • Complete the community illustrations

 

Accommodations:

  • The teacher will supplement instruction with pictures whenever possible.  This will help ELL students, as well as those students whom are visual learners.
  • When the students begin to work on their illustrations, the teacher will allow them to choose which medium they would like to color with, because some students work better with markers, while others work better with crayons.

 

Assessment:

Students will be assessed through the lesson’s discussions as well as their illustrations of the types of communities.