Ashley Hurt

1. Title of activity, Grade Level a. Making a State, 3rd Grade 2. Goals and Rationale of the lesson a. To help students learn about the geography in Michigan and how they would relate it to a state they made on their own. b. It is important to teach students these skills because they live in Michigan so they need to know everything it has to offer. To make sure students understand what each of the landforms are and other parts that make up a state, the students will make their own state. 3. Teacher Objectives a. Students will be able to make their own state with all of the requirements. b. Students will be able to create a state flag for their made up state. c. Students will know the parts of a flag and what features make up a state. 4. Standards
a. 3 G1.0.2 Use thematic maps to identify and describe the physical and human characteristics of Michigan. b. 3 G5.0.1 Locate natural resources in Michigan and explain the consequences of their use

5. Developmental Prerequisites/ Developmental Targets a. Students will need to know how to draw. b. Students will need to know what the Michigan state flag looks like. c. Students will need to know the landforms in Michigan. 6. Location and setup of activity a. This activity will take place at the students desks. The students will sit with their partner to work on their state. 7. Teacher Preparation a. The teacher will need to get blank sheets of paper and colored pencils. b. The teacher will have to get the social studies books. c. The teacher will have to have an example to show the students. d. The teacher will have to make a list of the requirements needed in their state. e. Put a piece of paper with symbol on it on each desk. 8. Instructional Procedures i. Say, 3,126 miles of Great Lakes shoreline (more fresh water coastline than any other state). ii. Say, Anywhere in Michigan, you are within 85 miles of one of the Great Lakes. iii. Students will get their social students books and open up to page 22. iv. Say, We are going to read pages 22-23. We will read popcorn style. I will read a section and when I stop on a word, everyone has to say it. I want to make sure everyone is paying attention. v. Give me a thumbs-up if you are ready and your book is open to page 22 and your finger is on the waterfall section. vi. Read pages 22-23. vii. What did you learn about Michigan from this section? viii. Yes, Michigan has a lot of waterways inside of it and also surrounding us. ix. Now, we are going to make our own dream states. You are going to be with a partner and you guys are going to design a state. It can be any shape that you guys decide on, but there are some requirements that you have to have in your state, which will be on a piece of paper handed out to you, so

Ashley Hurt

you can write down the answers. After you design your states, you will have time at the end to share them with the class and explain why you chose that particular shape, what your state is known for, and to show your state flag. x. The requirements:
A name 3 waterways of any kind 5 cities- one is the capital A railroad Where is your state located, what are its borders A state flag Go over the different types of waterways- Rivers, lakes, waterfalls, glaciers. Go over what a border means- what is surrounding your state. Go over behavior expectations. Respect your partners opinions Each of you needs to do some part of the drawing. Our voices need to stay at about a 2 or 3, so everyone else can hear what their partner is saying. Stay in your seats, unless getting supplies to color your state. Say, There is a piece of paper on all of your desks, please flip it over. Each of you has a symbol on it. You need to find the person that has the same symbol as you, which is who you will be working with today. Find your partner and sit by each other at desks. Hand out a piece of blank paper to each group. You may get started on your state. Walk around and observe how students are working. Give 5 minute warning. Call class together and go over behavior expectations for presentations. Listen to each group talk No talking Sit at your desk, quietly Each person in the group needs to share something when presenting Let students share their states. Call them up by the symbols used to find partner. Clean up.

xi. xii. xiii.

xiv.

xv. xvi. xvii. xviii. xix. xx.

xxi. xxii.

9. Experience/Exploration a. Students continue to make their state until they are finished and it is time to share them with the class. 10. Differentiation a. To simplify, there can be fewer requirements for the students to have in their state. Also the students will be working with a partner, so if I know one student is going to have a more difficult time, I will pair them with someone that will help that student be able to do the activity. b. To make it more difficult, there will be more requirements needed in the state and on the flag. Also the group can come up with a state symbol.

Ashley Hurt

11. Assessment a. Formal: Students will present their state and explain why they did what they did and why they chose what to out on their flag. Also the students will turn in their drawing of their state and their requirements sheet. 12. Clean-up a. Students will turn in their picture of their state to the teacher and clean up the materials they used. 13. Terminating Statement a. This activity was to get you thinking about what you would want in your own dream state and how it would look. It helped you understand the different landforms and features throughout our state of Michigan as well. 14. Transition a. Students will clean up and go back to their own seat.

Ashley Hurt

Requirements for Your State

Names of Partners: State Name:

Shape of state:

Why did you choose this shape?

Where is your state located?

Which 3 waterways did you use?

Name of the capital:

Names of other 5 cities:

Where is your railroad located? (North, south, east, or west part of your state)