Integrated Unit- Provinces and Territories-Grade 4 by:natasha Buchanan

Transcription

1 Integrated Unit- Provinces and Territories-Grade 4 by:natasha Buchanan Overview Although I am not a classroom teacher, I do teach several groups of children, primarily in the junior grades. Therefore, I chose to do a unit with my grade four students in mind. I chose Canada s Provinces, Territories and Regions because I felt it would not be difficult to find information on this topic using the internet. In addition, this is a subject area that, in some capacity, children will work with throughout their academic careers, so I felt the unit could be easily adapted to other grade levels if need be. The specific expectations for the Grade 4 unit are quite extensive, so I chose to break Canada and World Connections down, and therefore I focused strictly on the Provinces and Territories. Timeline The expected duration of this unit is lessons. Depending on how many periods you have in your weekly schedule and how long each block is, will determine the length of time this unit will take to cover. Each lesson integrates, in some capacity, visual, auditory and kinaesthetic learning styles. Provinces and Territories Unit Within the integrated lessons in this particular unit, the Specific Ontario Curriculum expectations that will be fulfilled are: Identify Canada s provinces and territories and its main physical regions Describe and compare the environments of the physical regions of Canada Explain the concept of a region Identify the physical regions of Ontario and describe their characteristics Use graphic organizers and graphs to sort information, clarify issues, solve problems, and make decisions Use media works, oral presentations, written notes and descriptions, drawings, tables, and graphs to identify and communicate key information about the regions, provinces and territories Use appropriate vocabulary to describe their inquiries and observations. Locate on a map of Ontario and label the Great Lakes and other major bodies of water and waterways Use a variety of sources to locate and label the physical regions of Canada on a map Information taken from The Ontario Curriculum: Social Studies, Grades 1-6, Ministry of Education, Ontario.

2 The school board expectation to be fulfilled is: Work with others in using technology (eg. Share tools, build as a group, and work in pairs at the computer. Introduction The unit will begin by sending home a letter to parents (connection to the community) along with an activity that will be played in class, when time permits, and can also be used at home. The following pages will give an example of the letter as well as the game. (Date) Dear Parent or Guardian, Over the next several weeks, our grade 4 class will be studying the provinces and territories of Canada. We will work on our mapping skills, explore characteristics of the provinces and territories and major bodies of water and use technology to gain knowledge of Canada. In order to motivate your child and solidify the tasks we will be working on in class, here are some suggestions for you to consider: Find book, videos and websites at home or at the library on this topic Talk with your child about news or magazine articles Discuss the contents of what was explored in class In addition, I have attached a game entitled What Do You Know About Canada you can play with your child. I welcome your participation and any suggestions for this unit of study, Sincerely,

3 Adapted from Our Canadian Pavilion unit from What Do You Know About Canada Game Number of Players: 2 teams of 1-2 players (4 players maximum) Purpose: The team with the most points wins Materials needed: deck of 15 cards Scoring sheet Pencil Rules of Scoring: 1) Each card has a question based on Canada s provinces, territories and capitals. 2) Each question answered correctly will receive a point. 3) The player (team) with the most points wins. Instructions: 1) The team with the player whose birthday is closest to Canada s birthday (July 1st) goes first. 2) The opposing team will choose a question card and ask the first player. 3) If the player correctly answers the question, then he/she scores a point and then continues to ask the opposing player/team a question. 4) The game ends: After a pre-determined amount of time When the cards have all been read with attempted answers or A pre-determined score is reached.

4 Playing Cards for What Do You Know About Canada What is the capital of Quebec? Iqaluit is the capital city of which province or territory? Quebec City Nunavut What is the capital city of Nova Scotia? Charlottetown is the capital city of which province or territory? Halifax Prince Edward Island What is the capital city of Newfoundland? Fredericton is the capital city of which province or territory? St. John s New Brunswick What is the newest territory to join Canada?..Fill in your own questions here Nunavut??? The teacher can create his/her own cards which can also determine how difficult the questions become. They can easily be modified to accommodate different ability levels. Adapted from Our Canadian Pavilion unit from

5 Integrated Lesson One- Introductory Lessons Distribute KWL Chart: Subtopics What I know What I Want to Know What I ve Learned Ontario Quebec The Atlantic Provinces PEI Newfoundland Nova Scotia New Brunswick The Prairie Provinces Manitoba Saskatchewan Alberta British Columbia The Territories Yukon North West Territories Nunavut Adapted from Our Canadian Pavilion unit from

6 Begin lesson by describing how to use the KWL chart and have the children fill in the first 2 columns. Remind children to record the things they already know such as: landforms, cities, what they are known for etc. Explain that in this lesson the students will be watching a film entitled Over Canada: An Aerial View. In this 58 minute film they will see all the provinces, capitals and regions in an aerial view. Instruct students to fill in the KWL chart (What I ve Learned) while they are watching the film. Assessment Strategy: Teacher will circulate and take anecdotal notes on what the children are recording on their KWL chart. When the film is complete, at the beginning of the following lesson, students will come together in small groups and exchange information they gathered while watching the film. In addition, the whole group will develop charts giving details about each province. Teacher acts as guide, but also encourages appropriate vocabulary and reminds students of physical features, bodies of water etc. of particular provinces and territories. Integrated Lesson-Response to Over Canada: An Aerial View - 2 lessons The children will be working individually for this assignment. Due to a limited number of computers the classroom will need to be managed. Half the group will work on the computers in the lab while the other half (also working in the lab) plays the What Do You Know About Canada game or they can do independent or paired reading about Canadian provinces and territories. The children working on the computers will be given instructions to go to the Smart Ideas program. They will then be expected to choose a province or territory and create a mind map (using words and symbols) that describes what they learned in the film and follow up activities about their chosen province or territory. In addition, using a word processor, the students will use their mind map to create a summary of the main points about their chosen province. For those students who have difficulty with written output, the lesson can be modified by simply having these students assessed on their mind map, or the word processing program can be accompanied by Co-Writer 4000 to assist with spelling and the generating of ideas. For those students who can not complete the assignment in the allotted time, they will be given the opportunity to work again the following scheduled class time.

7 Assessment Tool Category/Criteri a Understanding of Concepts relating to Canadian Provinces or Territories: physical features, location, resources etc. Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 -shows a limited understanding of the concepts through complete explanations -shows some understanding of the concepts through complete explanations -shows considerable understanding of the concepts through complete explanations -shows a thorough understanding of the concepts through complete explanations Communication of required knowledge: uses accurate vocabulary from topic of study. Is clear and precise -communicates with limited clarity and precision by using appropriate terminology, vocabulary and symbols -communicates with some clarity and precision by using appropriate terminology, vocabulary and symbols -communicates with considerable clarity and precision by using appropriate terminology, vocabulary and symbols - communicates with a high degree of clarity and precision by using appropriate terminology, vocabulary and symbols Adapted from Our Canadian Pavilion unit from Lessons 4-6 will be in class, teacher directed lessons with discussion and group and/or seat work to follow. The lessons will be taken from Canada and World Connections: The Provinces and Territories of Canada: Grade 4 Textbook Alternative Resource Units Johnson Publications Ltd., The children will be engaged in using atlases to locate: Capitals of the territories, provinces and our national capital And, locate and label: Great Lakes and other major bodies of water Regions of Canada Working as a whole group, the teacher will explain and discuss vocabulary such as provincial borders, international borders, provincial capital, national capital etc.

8 Integrated Lesson #2 (Lesson 9-10 of Unit) This lesson is an online lesson which will be accessed by the This is a website from the Canadian Government-Natural Resources Canada. Because the website is quite lengthy, it would be wise for the teacher to bookmark this site on the computer lab prior to the lesson. After the whole group introduction, the students will be working in pairs for this lesson. Once the students have gained access to the site, they will then choose the lesson for the province of Ontario entitled Grades 4 and 5-Provinces and Capitals of Canada. They will then choose the Lesson Description where the lesson will come up. It is as follows: Introduction Teacher Activity Introduce (review) the provinces and territories Student Activity Introduce this mapping activity, challenge the students to draw a map of Canada on a piece of paper from memory (five minutes) Lesson Development Teacher Activity Introduce students to the Atlas of Canada Web site at atlas.gc.ca. Using the student worksheet, hand out copies of the Canada outline map showing the boundaries and shoreline. Make sure the students review the What Maps Need section of the student worksheet. Student Activity Complete the student worksheet using the Atlas of Canada Web site. Locate and label a map of Canada with the names of the provinces, territories and capital cities. After labeling, colour the map. Conclusion Teacher Activity Collect maps and worksheets Student Activity Hand in map and worksheet

9 The site also provides an evaluation rubric which is as follows: Evaluation Rubric Provinces and Capitals of Canada Student Name: Date: Expectations for this activity to assess with this rubric: construct and read a wide variety of graphs, charts, diagrams, maps and models for specific purposes locate and label provinces, territories and capital cities within each region on a map of Canada use cardinal and intermediate directions, non-pictorial symbols, and colour on a map to locate and describe physical regions

10 Homework assignment As an extension of the daily activity as suggested by the website, the homework will be for the children to access the website atlas.gc.ca at home. Have students use the Atlas of Canada Quiz section, specifically the Shapes of Canada quiz to test their knowledge. In addition, the students will be encouraged to explore other maps on the site. Lessons of Unit Once again, for these lessons, the students will be using, Canada and World Connections: The Provinces and Territories of Canada: Grade 4 Textbook Alternative Resource Units Johnson Publications Ltd., The class will explore major Canadian Roadways and non-capital cities. Integrated Lesson #3 (Lessons of Unit Children will work in assigned pairs for this assignment. Becoming a Tour Guide! Introduction Activity As a group, the class will have a teacher-lead discussion on what is important information for an individual or family to have prior to visiting a new place. Class will work together to brainstorm ideas. Lesson Each group will choose a capital city to explore (each group must choose a different city). The students will work in pairs and explore internet sites to find out important information about that city (ie: tourist attractions, local events, distance etc.) Children will work together to create a brochure about their particular city. The brochure can take on various forms (ie: powerpoint presentation, typed handout, display etc.), but must include: which province the city is the capital of, the location of the city on a map, a picture of the city taken from the internet, a description of the city as well as why it would be a good place to visit. Students will present their brochure to the class.

11 Assessment For this lesson the students will engage in a peer evaluation in a yes/no form with questions such as: o o o o o Does the presentation name the province the city is the capital of? Is the location of the city clearly identified? Is there a picture of the city? Does the presentation give relevant information about the city? Is the presentation interesting? Final Tasks The final formal task will be for the students to write a test on what was covered over the last several weeks. The final fun task will be to bake maple leaf cookies as a group. Parent volunteers will be asked to assist with this task. The recipe is found at: