 |
Grade: 1-2
Subject: Social Studies
|
 |
Community Helpers
Tyler Rationale Unit Plan
Sarah Merchen
Principles of Curriculum
April 1, 2012Tyler Rationale Unit Plan
The topic I chose to construct a unit plan on is Community Helpers. According to the Moorcroft Elementary focus calendar (which is a guideline for teachers to show what needs to be taught and by when) first grade students need to learn about different helpers in our community, what jobs they do and how these individuals affect our community. Not only is this an area on our district focus calendar but it is also part of the Social Studies standards for Wyoming. I also chose this topic because many of our students will not go onto college after high school graduation. Due to the religious beliefs of many of our students, the girls in my classroom will more than likely marry right out of high school to start their families. The boys in my class will become husbands and fathers right after high school graduation. Due to the high number of students who will probably not go on to college I feel it is very important to give them an opportunity to see what jobs are available to them after high school. Tyler often refers to the needs of the students. I believe that educating them about the different opportunities available to them later on in life is an important need of theirs that we need to meet. I also believe it will give them a better understanding and respect for what different members of the community do.
My group of first graders consists of seven boys and seven girls. Five of my students are still six years old while the other nine are already seven. Our school is a Title I school which means that a large number of our students are on free and reduced lunches and are considered lower income families. What makes our school unique from schools even 15 minutes away from us is that most of these households make a good yearly income on paper, however it is very unusual for a family in this religion to have less than five to six children in their family. Many even have 6 or more siblings. Due to the larger number of family members a lot of families qualify for the low income assistance that our school offers. In my class there is no diversity at all. All of my students are Caucasian. There is some diversity in the school, however the majority of the students are Caucasian as well. Moorcroft Elementary is located in Moorcroft, Wyoming. Moorcroft has a population of 1009 people. The majority of the jobs in our small town are either coal mine jobs or ranching and farming jobs. Many of the students in my classroom live in the country and are not really familiar with different cultures or even different jobs and careers outside of their own or what they have learned in Kindergarten.
To determine what my students already knew about community helpers I talked with Kindergarten teachers to find out what they cover on this topic in Kindergarten. Aside from the fire station visits and a few other smaller activities I determined that my students would not know much about community helpers aside from what they have witnessed in town.
I believe this topic is a very important area of first graders to learn about. They will learn about different occupations in their very own community, what those people do to help the community run and why each and every person is just as important as the next. The students will also be exposed to occupations from all different walks of life. They will learn the value of all of these individuals and will also get an up close view of what they do. They will also learn about different industries in our community such as mining. I hope my students will come away with a newfound knowledge of what is available to them even if they choose not to go away to college.Selection of content/rationale
The broad goal of my unit is to give my students a greater knowledge of the different helpers or jobs in our community and how those jobs help make our community successful. I also want them to learn about the different ways that people make a living in Wyoming as well. I want my students to finish up with this unit with a newfound respect and understanding for the different people and jobs in the community. I also want them to see what different occupations are available to them later in life.
These goals align horizontally between other content areas because not only will my students be hitting on Social Studies standards but we will also be reading a lot of non-fiction books and doing some writing. By implementing the reading and writing into this unit my students will now be covering Social Studies, Reading and Writing Wyoming Standards and also many different areas of our districts focus calendar as well. This unit will also align vertically because although it is touched on minimally in Kindergarten it will build off of the areas they have already learned. Students in second grade are also required to learn versions of this same standard only at a deeper level. I hope to instill a deeper understanding of community so that they take that knowledge with them into second grade.
These goals fill both state standards and our own district focus calendar areas. The Wyoming state Social Studies standards this unit will meet are:
SS4.3.1 Students describe the importance of major resources, industries and economic development of the local community and Wyoming.
SS4.3.2 Students describe different ways that people earn a living in the local community and in Wyoming.I will also be meeting Wyoming Language Arts, Writing, and Speaking and Listening standards. Those standards are:
LA1.1C Students demonstrate understanding of informational text.
LA1.1C.1 Students read nonfiction texts.
LA1.3.2 Students orally share stories, poetry, and nonfiction or informational texts.
LA1.3.3 Students respond in a variety of ways after viewing or hearing a selection such as drawing a picture or asking related questionsWhen thinking about my philosophical beliefs I do not feel like I fit into just one category. I agree with some of the views of the essentialism style of teaching in that I do believe the subject matter should be the center of a curriculum however I also feel I lean a lot toward the progressive style of teaching as well. Tyler states (1949), "...it is essential to see that education provides opportunities for the student to enter actively into, and to deal wholeheartedly with, the things which interest him, and in which he is deeply involved..." (p. 11). I agree with this because I believe there is always a way to teach different content to students in a way that will interest them. I feel I am also a very hands on teacher. I believe there is no better way for students to learn than to either work directly with something or to view it firsthand. That is why I feel my students will take so much away from this unit, because they are going to be witnessing different community helpers firsthand, by either field trips or classroom visits, not just in their reading. They will get to ask questions and get immediate responses. I can only teach them so much about jobs that I have never done, however the individuals who hold these jobs can teach them a lot.
My classroom is a place where my students are excited to learn but are ok with failing too. By this I mean that my students are comfortable trying and giving the wrong answer rather than not trying at all. My classroom is a safe, comfortable place and my students are taught from day 1 that it is okay to say the wrong answer and that we are all here to help each other learn the correct one. That is why I feel my students are more likely to take risks and put themselves out there. It is also a place where students are enjoying the things they learn. I believe that field trips and hands on activities help students engage and to take interest in what they are learning. Tyler states (1949), "He has not acquired the objective when the teacher does the problem solving and the student only watches." (p. 70).Organization of Content/Instructional Plan
Community Helpers-Day 1
Objective:
Students will be able to name different community helpers in their community and what they do.
Materials:
Neighborhoods: Understanding Where We Live DVD
When I Grow Up by Rosemary Wells
Community Helpers from A to Z by Bobbie Kalman
What I learned paper
Pencil
Chart paper
Crayons or colored pencils
Activities:
1. Children will gather on the carpet to begin the discussion on community helpers in their community. Students will discuss different helpers they know about and what they do to help make our community run.
2. The students will then begin filling out a KWL chart as a whole group. The students will take turns writing things they know about community helpers under the K column on the chart paper.
3. The group will then brainstorm things that they would like to learn about community helpers. The teacher will then begin filling in the W area on the chart. The teacher will inform the students that the L portion of the chart will be filled out upon completion of our unit on community helpers.
4. The teacher will then read the books When I Grow Up and Community Helpers from A to Z to the class. The class will then discuss which helpers listed in the two books are present in their community.
5. The students will then watch a short 15 minute video Neighborhoods: Understanding Where We Live. After the video the students will have a short discussion about things they learned. They will then be asked to go back to their desks.
6. The students will then be given a "What I learned" paper to fill out and turn in.
Assessments:
Assessments in this activity will be informal through observation. I will be watching for participation during the class discussion. I will also use a more formal assessment through the students writing. I will look to see if the two sentences and the picture they completed match what we just learned about in the books and video.
Name:_________________________ Date:_______________________Two things I learned:_________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
This is a picture of something I learned:
.
Community Helpers-Day 2
Objective:
Students will learn what police officers do every day. They will be able to tour where they work and look inside of a police officer's car. Students will write a thank you note to the police officers for allowing see where they work.
Materials:
Appropriate clothing for walking
Pencil
Crayons or colored pencils
Thank you writing paper
Activities:
1. Students will gather on the rug to talk about how they should behave on a field trip. The teacher will then talk to them about police officers. As a group we will brainstorm questions that the students may have for the police officer.
2. Students will walk to the local police station where they will be taken on a guided field trip by a local police officer. At the conclusion of the field trip students will walk back to the school.
3. Once back at the school students will be asked to get out a pencil, crayons and will also be given a thank you writing paper. The students will then write a thank you note to the police officer and/or others involved in the field trip. The students will be required to tell them about their two favorite things they learned and draw a picture to match their writing.
Assessment:
This will be done informally by looking at the thank you note to see what they students learned about the field trip.
Thank you so much for teaching us about police officers. My two favorite things about the field trip were:__________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Community Helpers-Day 3Objective:
Students will learn more about police officers and the job that they do in our community.
Materials:
Policeman Lou and Policewoman Sue by Lisa Desimini
In My Neighborhood-Police Officers by Paulette Bourgeois and Kim LaFave
Police Officer hat on card stock
Scissors
Colors or colored pencils
Pencil
Police Officer worksheet
Chart paper
Activities:
1. Students will gather on the floor to discuss things they learned during their field trip to the police station.
2. Students will be read Policeman Lou and Policewoman Sue and In My Neighborhood-Police Officers. Students will then discuss both of these books.
3. As a group we will fill out the chart paper discussing the differences between the two books and the things that were alike.
4. Students will then get a copy of the police officer worksheet. We will read the article together, they will read it with a partner and then they will read it one time independently. They will then be asked to answer the five questions on the worksheet independently.
5. Once they have finished with the worksheet, students will then be given the police officer craft hat. They will color the hat and cut it out. The teacher will then help the students put the hats together.
Assessment:
This will be done informally through observation of discussions and the completion of the craft. Students will also be assessed on the five questions on the worksheet.
Name:______________________________Date:___________________________
Police Officer
Directions: Read the passage. Then answer the questions from the reading.
A police officer is a single member of a police force. They can be a man or a woman. A police officers job is to catch criminals, maintain order in the community, and investigate crime. Police officers are granted the power to arrest and imprison suspects.
Officers are able to respond to a variety of situations that may occur while they are on duty such as emergencies, disasters, search and rescue, and road traffic collisions. To provide a quick response in emergencies, the police often coordinate with fire and emergency medical services.
Due to the nature of law enforcement, police officers can encounter many dangerous situations in their career. Officers face an increased risk of injury or in some cases, death.
1. The larger group that a police officer belongs to____________________________.2. Police officers are granted the power to ________________ and imprison suspects.
3. Do officers face an increased risk of injury on the job?_______________________
4. Police often coordinate with _________________and emergency medical services.
5. Name one situation that may occur while on duty. ___________________________
Community Helpers-Day 4Objective:
Students will learn about more about firemen and about the jobs they do in our community by going on a field trip to a fire station.
Materials:
Pencil
Colors or colored pencils
Thank you paper
Appropriate clothing for walking
Firefighter worksheet
Activities:
1. Students will gather on the carpet to discuss the things that they know about firefighters and what jobs they do in our community. Students will talk about different questions they have that they can ask a fireman.
2. We will then walk to the local fire station where a firefighter will give us a tour through the fire station and for a ride on a fire truck.
3. At the conclusion of the field trip the students will walk back to the school where they will gather on the carpet again.
4. Students will discuss the things they learned on the field trip. They will talk about things they new previously and also about anything new they learned today.
5. Students will then head back to their desks where they will fill out the thank you note that will be sent to the firefighter who conducted the field trip. They will write about two of their favorite things and then draw a picture about something they learned as well.
6. Students will also be asked to complete the firefighter worksheet at the end of this lesson.
Assessments:
This will be done through observations on the field trip and by looking at their thank you notes to see what they learned. It will also be done based on whether or not they completed the worksheet successful and correctly.
Thank you so much for teaching us about fire fighters. My two favorite things about the field trip were:_________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
Community Helpers-Day 5Objective:
Students will learn more about firefighters and the jobs they do in our community. Students will make a fire fighter by following directions.
Materials:
In My Neighborhood-Fire Fighters by Paulette Bourgeois and Kim LaFave
Fireman template
Glue
Scissors
Crayons or colored pencils
Toilet paper tube
Piece of paper
Pencil
Activities
1. Students will gather on the floor where they will discuss the things they learned from the field trip to the fire station.
2. The teacher will read In My Neighborhood-Fire Fighters to the class. They will talk about the differences and similarities between the book and the actual fire station. Students will talk about what their favorite part of the field trip was.
3. Students will then go back to their desk where they will get out the required supplies. They will get a toilet paper roll and a piece of paper with all of the items needed to complete the craft. They will first color all of the items on the paper and then cut them out.
4. Students will then begin gluing the items on to the toilet paper roll with the assistance of the teacher as well as a model that has been previously completed by the teacher.
Assessment
This will be done based on participation in the discussion and the creation of the fireman craft.
Community Helpers-Day 6Objective:
Students will learn more about a dentist, the jobs a dentist does in the community and also about how to take care of their teeth. Students will create a toothbrush using facts they have learned from the dentist.
Materials
People in My Community-Dentist by Jacqueline Laks Gorman
Does a Dinosaur Check Your Teeth by Viki Woodworth
5 strips of white paper
1 strip of colored paper
Colors or colored pencils
Pencils
Glue
Activities
1. Students will gather on the carpet to discuss things that they know about dentists. They will also discuss the job a dentist does in the community and also how to take care of their teeth.
2. The teacher will read People in My Community-Dentist and Does a Dinosaur Check Your Teeth. The class will discuss the books and how they take care of their teeth. The teacher will inform the students that there will be a dentist coming in and visiting with them about their job and how to properly take care of their teeth. The class will then talk about questions they would like to ask the dentist.
3. The class will then welcome in a local dentist who will discuss his/her job and talk about the proper way to care for their teeth.
4. After the dentist leaves the class will gather on the carpet together and talk about what they learned.
5. They will then be asked to go back to their desk where they will complete an activity. The students will be required to write five things that they learned from the dentist. They will write one thing on each piece of paper and then put the pieces of paper together to form a toothbrush.
Assessment
This will be done through observation, discussion and how they created their toothbrush. Close attention will be paid to the facts that each student listed on their completed project.
Community Helpers-Day 7Objectives:
Students will learn more about coal mines, coal miners and the important role both of these items play in our community.
Materials:
Bus for field trip
Sack lunch
Thank you paper
Pencil
Colors or colored pencils
Life in a Mining Community by Natalie Hyde
Activities:
1. Students will gather on the carpet to discuss what they know about coal mines and coal miners. As a whole the class will discuss questions they may have for the coal miners.
2. Students will then board the bus where they will travel to the nearest coal mine for a tour.
3. Upon returning from the coal mine students will once again gather at the carpet where they will discuss things they learned as well as what some of their favorite parts were.
4. Students will then have the book Life in a Mining Community read to them. They will then compare the book to the actual field trip for differences and similarities.
5. They will then return to their desk where they will fill out the thank you letter. They will write two of their favorite things their learned and then draw and color a picture of something they learned as well.
Assessments:
This will be done informally by looking closely at the items listed as their favorite to see what different things they learned.
Thank you so much for teaching us about coal mines and coal miners. My two favorite things about the field trip were:___________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________Community Helpers-Day 8
Objectives:
Students will learn more about postal workers, the postal service and about the services they provide for our community. Students will be able to send a letter using the post office.
Materials:
Writing paper
Envelopes
Stamps
Pencil
Colors or colored pencils
Activities
1. Students will gather on the carpet to discuss the post office and postal workers. They will discuss the things that they know and also the things that they would like to know. As a group we will discuss questions we would like to ask the postal workers when we go on our field trip to the post office.
2. Students will then walk to the local post office where a postal worker will give us a guided tour of the post office and explain to us what they do for our community.
3. Upon completion of the field trip students will then walk back to the school where they will gather on the carpet.
4. We will talk about everything we learned today. We will discuss the things we knew as well as the new information we learned.
5. Students will then go back to their desk where they will be asked to write a letter to someone they know. They will write the letter and then with the teachers assistance they will fill out the envelope and put a stamp on it.Assessments:
Students will fill out an exit card where they will write one thing they learned from the field trip today before leaving school at the end of the day.
Community Helpers-Day 9Objective:
Students will learn more about the postal service. They will turn an old box into their very own mailbox.
Materials:
The Post Office Book, Mail and How it Moves by Gail Gibbons
In My Neighborhood-Postal Workers by Paulette Bourgeois and Kim LaFave
Old box
Paint
Scissors
Pencil
Crayons, colored pencils or markers
Glue
Activities
1. Students will be asked to begin painting their box they brought in prior to this activity in one of the pre-determined colors. After everyone has painted their boxes students will head to the carpet where the teacher will read them a couple of books while waiting for the paint on their boxes to dry.
2. First, we will discuss what we learned from our field trip to the post office. The teacher will then read The Post Office Book, Mail and How it Moves and In My Neighborhood-Postal Workers. Students will then discuss differences and similarities between the facts they learned in the book and what they learned from the field trip.
3. Students will then head back to their desks where they will check to make sure their box is dried. With the help of the teacher the students will cut a hole out of the top of their box. They will then be able to decorate their boxes in any way they choose using paint, colors, colored pencils or markers.
4. Students will keep these mailboxes at school. They will be allowed to write letters to one another and put them in each other's boxes. The teacher will have her own box as well as add letters to the students boxes throughout the next couple of weeks.
5. The class will then walk to the post office to mail the letters they completed during the last class period.Assessment
Students will be assessed informally based on participation and the completion of their mailboxes.
Community Helpers-Day 10Objectives:
Students will begin to wrap up everything they have learned about helpers in their community. Students will complete a community helper book.
Materials:
Community helper book
Pencil
Crayons or colored pencils
KWL chart from the beginning of the unit
Writing paper and a blank piece of paper
Worksheet
Activities
1. Students will gather on the carpet. As a group we will finish filling out the KWL chart that we began at the beginning of the unit. We will add to the L portion of the chart and discuss how the things we knew and wanted to know matched up with the things we learned about community helpers. We will then go over all of the community helpers we learned about.
2. Students will then go back to their desks where they will begin working on their community helper books. Students will be fill in all of the pages of the book and draw a picture that matches what they are writing about.
3. Students will complete the worksheet.
4. Upon completion of this community helper book and worksheet (this activity could need to wait until the next day) students will take their writing paper and write about what community helper they want to be when they grow up and why. They will then draw a picture of themselves as that community helper.
Assessment:
This will be done with the community helper book. Special attention will be paid to what the students stated about each community helper. The worksheet about community helpers and the jobs they do will be completed as a formal assessment.
Name:__________________________Community Helpers and What They Do
This is my favorite community helper. It is a_________________.
A firefighter helps people by:_______________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________A police officer helps people by:____________________________
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
A coal miner helps people by:_______________________________
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________A dentist helps people by:_________________________________
____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
Another community helper I know is: ________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
The most interesting thing I learned about community helpers is:___________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________Name:_________________________________________
Draw a line from the community helper to the job they do:
Postal Worker Deliver the mail
Fireman Produce goods that give us electricityPolice Officer Help us take care of our teeth
Coal Miner Keep our community safe
Dentist Put out fires
As far as formative assessments with this unit plan, I will be grading the last worksheet given to them that simply requires them to draw a line from the community helper to the job they do. These will be community helpers that they specifically learned about. All other assessments will be done informally and students will be graded on participation and completion of each of the projects. All of the different projects and worksheets are attached to each days lesson. The community helpers book that will be given to the students on the last day of the unit will be my summative assessment. I will use that as well as the group KWL chart to determine whether or not my students have been successful with this unit. I will determine after each lesson whether or not I need to re-teach the lesson based on my students responses to exit cards, thank you notes and writing samples. Throughout the unit I will ensure that each student has participated in discussions by marking down my observations on an observation log I will carry with me. If I see that a particular student has not participated in a discussion I will either pull that student aside to make sure they understand the lesson and perhaps re-teach, or I will then call on that student to give their viewpoints and opinions in the discussion.Date Name Comments
Observation Log
References
Books
Bourgeois, P. (1992). In My Neighborhood-Postal Workers. Toronto: Kids Can Press Ltd.
Bourgeois, P. (1992). In My Neighborhood-Fire Fighters. Toronto: Kids Can Press Ltd.
Bourgeois, P. (1992). In My Neighborhood-Police Officers. Toronto: Kids Can Press Ltd.
Desimini, L. (2003). Policeman Lou and Policewoman Sue. New York: Blue Sky Press.
Gibbons, G. (1982). The Post Office Book-Mail and How it Moves. New York: Library of Congress Cataloging.
Gorman, J. (2002) . People in My Community-Dentist. Wisconson: Weekly Reader.
Hyde, N. (2010). Life in a Mining Community. New York: Crabtree Publishing Company.
Kalman, B. (1998). Community Helpers From A to Z. New York: Crabtree Publishing Company.
Tyler, R. W. (1949). Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Wells, R. (2003). When I Grow Up. New York: Hyperion Books for Children.
Woodworth, V. (1995). Does a Dinosaur Check Your Teeth? New York: The Child's World Inc.
Websites:
Enchanted Learning. (2012). Retrieved March 17, 2012, from http://enchantedlearning.com
DLTK's Growing Together. (2012). Retrieved March 25, 2012, from http://www.dltk- kids.com/crafts/miscellaneous/mfireman.html
Education.com. (2012). Retrieved March 26, 2012, from http://www.education.com/activity/article/personal-post-office/
Fun in First. (2011). Retrieved March 30, from http://fun-in-first.blogspot.com/2011/01/more- dental-health-activities.html
DVD
Educational Videos. (2005). Neighborhoods, Understanding Where We Live. United States: SchoolMedia, Inc.
New Jobs on Teachers.Net