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Around Your Town
Students use web sites to find information. In this geography lesson, students brainstorm a list of places in their community, talk about the way zoos are organized and explore the uniqueness of the fifty states in the United States of...
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Land Plan Challenge
Students use maps to plan towns, being conscious of water resources. In this geography and land planning lesson, students create collaboratively in small groups towns using maps. At the conclusion of the activity, students build their...
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The Ethics of Outsourcing to China
After viewing clips from a documentary on factory work in China and US outsourcing, learners have a fishbowl discussion. They work in groups to build both personal points of view and strong arguments on the effects of outsourcing in...
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My Life 24-7
Analyze the "My Life 24-7" project as a part of community involvement. Learners discuss the pros and cons of being community involved. They will also write a proposal to increase community involvement and submit a blog entry about the...
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Kid City, USA
What a model community would look like? Get your kids talking with an activity that allows them to create their own town. After printing out a "fold out village," groups of young scholars use a variety of resources to help them build an...
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A Passage Through Time
Young learners research and present information about a chosen subject to their peers, parents, instructors, and community. This instructional activity has a strong research and public speaking component, and would be ideal for your...
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Got Park? Or if you build it, they will come!
Students use GIS and GPS technology to evaluate, research, locate, and recommend where a new park should be located that benefit the community.
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Families and Neighborhoods
Students build their own neighborhood. In this instructional activity on community, students are introduced to books about families and neighborhoods. As a class, the students create their own neighborhood, elect a leader for their...
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Social Studies: The Connecticut Hill Community
Students discover the reasons for the settlement of the Connecticut Hill Community. Through an examination of the climate, occupations of the inhabitants, and demographics, they discuss reasons people choose locations for settlement. ...
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Eminent Domain: Whose Land is it Anyway?
Students research eminent domain and whether or not there has been a land dispute in their community. Students search local newspapers, local history books or talk with civic leaders and long-time citizens and create a chart showing the...
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How Do I Get There? Planning a Safe Route to School
One much-needed skill for young learners is direction giving. Have your class plan and draw a safe route for them to travel from home to school. They will also draw places and items that are in between home and school in order to build a...
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Memorial Day
As a way to understand Memorial Day, build citizenship, practice vocabulary, and discuss current international conflicts, learners create their own Memorial Day. They design their own memorial after learning about the various types of...
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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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Here and There: Discovering Communities Through the Olympic Torch Relay
Pupils compare their hometowns to the towns on the Olympic Torch Relay and complete multi-curricular activities for the lesson plan. In this Olympics lesson plan, students complete math, geography, science, and history activities to...
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Map of Town
Third graders draw a map of the town given different sites to locate on the map by the teacher. They explain that latitude and longitude are used to locate places on maps and globes, identify the distinctive physical and cultural...
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Sense of Place: No River Too Wide-Bridges
Fifth graders discover the history of their hometown Des Moines River. In this U.S. Geography lesson students speak with Iowans that tell stories of the settlers and early villages near the Des Moines River. Students document their...
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Story Stretching: Tall Tales in North America
Students are introduced to tall tales. In this introductory tall tales unit, students explore the tall tales of Casey Jones and Johnny Appleseed. This unit includes many interdisciplinary lessons including graphing skills and geography.
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More of, Less of
Have your class discuss behaviors they like from other people. They will then get into groups and list behaviors they want to see more of from people in their community, classroom, or school. This is a great Character Counts...
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Biomimicry, Nature: Architecture of the Future
Students explore the relationship between nature and architecture. In this cross curriculum history, culture, and architecture lesson, students observe and discuss structures visible in nature. Students view websites in which Native...
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Antarctica
Students explore the Antarctic continent, Australia's role in Antarctic exploration and development, the issues concerning Antarctica's future and the needs of the Antarctic community.
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The City of New Haven
Students examine the geography, politics and history of their local town of New Haven, Connecticut. Using the internet, they explore the neighbors of New Haven and write directions from their house to school. In groups, they research...
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Our Water Resources
Learners build a model aquifer to study groundwater zones and water table formation. Students use the models to measure the movement of polluted groundwater.
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Our City
Second graders familiarize themselves with the town they live in by practicing their imagination, library research and writing skills.
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Geography: Islands and Alcatraz
Students, in groups, create maps of islands including map keys and compass roses. They compare and contrast their island communities with that of the island prison, Alcatraz. Students select from a series of projects, including writing...