Curated OER
Land Use and Lawmaking in California
Students design a plan for a housing development in their city. In this house development lesson plan, students observe pictures of land use, research lawmaking, and develop a plan for an environmentally friendly housing development in...
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Urban Changes
Pupils explore how landscapes undergo constant changes with urban development. They plan and build their own "city" by including features that have minimal resource demands to sustain the city itself.
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Land Use Change Over Time
Students use historical aerial photographs and current aerial photographs to compare the change over time to the land. In this land changing lesson plan, students analyze, compare, contrast, and list the land change in their own community.
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Community Centered Neighborhood Development
Ninth graders explore the culture of the neighborhood. In this Social Studies activity, 9th graders examine the different development sites in their community. Students research the zoning regulations.
American Institute of Architects
Architecture: It's Elementary!—Fifth Grade
Young citizens construct an understanding of urban planning in this cross-curricular unit. Covering every aspect of city development from the political, economic, and social influences to sustainable building practices, this...
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Gwynns Falls
Students investigate the question: What is the impact of urban development and expansion on the health of a decidious forest ecosystem and humans? They examine the issue of land development by responding to a specific scenario and...
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What Is Smart Growth?
Students practice planning for the development of an area using the goals of Smart Growth as a guide. They analyze how regions can affect government policies. They role-play citizens who recommend how an area should be developed.
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Selecting Trees for Urban Environments
Students consider the best place to plant a tree. In this environment lesson, students identify urban locations that are compatible with particular tree types. Students decide what trees would go where and why they would survive.
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"I've Been Working on the Railroad" - Federal Land Grants and the Construction of the Illinois Central Railroad in Mid-nineteenth Century Illinois
Eleventh graders, in groups, design a self-sufficient community. Groups present the communities they've designed. They compare and contrast the communities presented. They research the theories of Johann Heinrich von Thunen online and...
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Country Mouse, City Mouse?
Students recognize the characteristics of a rural area. They analyze land use to determine whether the map is of a rural (country) area or an urban (city) area.
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A Contouring We Go
Students examine the built environment and infrastructures of their community by constructing contour equipment, using the equipment, and comparing their results to current topographical maps of the same area
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A Shopping Center Field Study
High schoolers analyze how developers plan for a shopping center. They take a field trip to a nearby shopping center. Also students participate in a shopping center scavenger hunt. High schoolers identify factors important to the...
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Create the Ideal City
Students examine the significance of city planning. They analyze maps, develop a crossword puzzle using vocabulary terms, and create a diagram of an ideal city and describe the features that make it healthy for the economy, the...
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Green Space in the City
Students identify the different kinds and uses of green space that exist in an urban area. They create maps of local parks and research the history of each park. They conduct a survey of residents near the park and interview a park...
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Understanding Political Cartoons
Students draw two political cartoons. They compare the Wounded Knee Massacre of 1890 to the stand-off that took place at Wounded Knee in l973. They examine the role that Manifest Destiny played in the West.
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Shedding Light on Watersheds
Students discuss what a watershed is, complete online activities showing them how to take care of a watershed, and create a model of a watershed that they experiment with to see what happens when it is disrupted by civilization.
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On a Pilgrimage
Sixth graders engage in a variety of learning experiences surrounding the study of the Middle Ages. They construct a map of Europe, create a graphic organizer for the hierarchy of feudalism, design their own family crest, and write their...
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Guidebook
Students create a book about plants they observe after identifying and researching them.
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Planning a Healthy City
Ninth graders create a scaled model city. They create a blueprint that provides for the economic and cultural needs of a community. They identify where essential elements of the city should be located and explain the rationale for the...
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the Not Forgotten - Sharing History & Archaeology
Students create a catalog of gravestones in a cemetery that includes a burial ground from the Revolutionary War. They photograph and document the grave sites, research the Battle of Bunker hill and work with community members to create...