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Early Explorers
Fourth graders examine how the early explorers from Spain and England competed in their search for riches and new lands. They read and discuss text from their book, participate in a debate, and create a poster.
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From Missions to Ranchos
Fourth graders examine the conversion of the California missions into ranchos. They develop a pros and cons chart, write a first person narrative describing the changing life from the missions to the ranchos, and create a poster of...
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Houghton Mifflin Social Studies/ Chapter 5, Lesson 2: Mexico Defeated (pp. 116-120)
Third graders study how the United States declared war on Mexico and succeeded in gaining control of California. Several activities are included in the lesson. The lesson outline is included as a link.
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The Railroad Is Born
Fourth graders examine the proposal of Theodore Judah for the first transcontinental railroad. They analyze a map, write an obituary for Theodore Judah, and create a symbolic poster of Judah's dream for a transcontinental railroad.
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Houghton Mifflin Social Studies/Chapter 13, Lesson 1 The Past Shapes the Future (pp. 292-295)
Fourth graders reflect upon the events of the past in order to make cognitive connections to present or future history. Students use Blooms Taxonomy to attain higher levels of thinking.
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"Eggs-hibit" Students' Egg-Carton Art
Students follow instructions and exercise creativity as they take an old egg carton and a few other easy-to-find art supplies and create "eggs-quisite" art! In addition, they recycle an every day egg carton into art.
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Up Close with Author Allen Say
Students explore the Asian-American culture. They read several books written by Japanese-American author Allen Say and create questions to ask the author. Students write letters to the author.
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Signs Signs - Everywhere Signs
Students examine advertising techniques. In this media literacy lesson, students collaborate to create PowerPoint presentations that feature multimedia formats to share advertising that is present in their community.
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Cartoons for the Classroom: 2011 Pulitzer Prize
In this current events worksheet, students analyze a political cartoon about the 2011 Pulitzer Prize and respond to 3 talking point questions.
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Cartoons for the Classroom: Unemployment
In this current events worksheet, students analyze a political cartoon about unemployment and respond to 3 talking point questions.
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Houghton Mifflin Social Studies/Chapter 13, Lesson 2 California Fights Smog (pp. 296-300)
Third graders look into certain environmental problems. The governmental branches are investigated and how government takes care to solve problems of the environment.
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Design an Egyptian Playground
Students are broken up into four groups. Each group will use their knowledge about Egypt to originate a playground for Egyptian children. This will involve brainstorming ideas on paper, building a prototype with Legos or other material,...
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I Am Me and More! Assemblages and Pepon Osorio
Students discuss their role and importance of being a part of a community. After listening to a story, discuss how an artist's memories affected his pieces. Using the internet, they research the different roles of community members.
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A Lion's Lair
Students evaluate the likelihood that a particular animal lived in a particular habitat. They research and illustrate lion habitats to determine whether lions were likely to have lived in ancient Greece.
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Grandma Tells A Story
Students read a story with the teacher to reflect upon their own family history. The application of the story is when children create their own family tree and complete the questionaire.
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Explaining a Legend
Students explain the place of the legend of Herakles in ancient Greek life and compare ancient and modern legends in an essay.
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The Golden Rule of Reciprocity
Students compare and contrast versions of the "Golden Rule of Reciprocity" as it is stated in several major world religions. They write their own version of the rule.
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For the Record: Black Inventors and Inventions
High schoolers create a database with the inventions of African-Americans. They analyze and sort the data in an appropriate fashion. They use the internet to gather their information for the database.
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California's Resources
Students research the natural resources of the state of California. They read a chapter of their social studies text, write and answer questions for the chapter, and create illustrations for five vocabulary terms.
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Pioneers in California
Fourth graders examine the changes the pioneers brought to California in the 1800's. They develop a timeline that includes captions, symbols, and pictures, and write a paragraph describing the experiences of the early California pioneers.
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Growth in Southern California
Fourth graders examine the impact of orange crops and the railroad industry on the growth in southern California. They develop a fact list about the history of oranges in California, and create a family tree demonstrating the impact of...
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Problems Facing Agriculture
Fourth graders examine the conflicts over land ownership and water in the second half of the 1800s in California. They write a criticism about the problems that farmers faced, and work in pairs to define key vocabulary terms.
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Conflicts Between Cultures
Fourth graders examine the issue of discrimination against new immigrants to California. They develop a class word web, read and discuss text, create a poster, and write a picture poem.
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The New Californians
Students identify the groups of immigrants who came to California. They trace the route they possibly took to American on a world map. They discuss the reasons why they left their homeland and what challenges they faced once they arrived.