Library Digital Content Access


Exploring and Comparing Other Communities

Created By: Janenne Scott, Oakland Elementary School (Bloomington, IL)
Grade Level: 3rd
Content Area: Social Studies
Database Integration: Students will search TDC database for images of physical geography maps, weather maps, natural resources maps, and old travel brochures.


Illinois Learning Standards Achieved

Standard Achieved

Activity that Meets this Standard

State Goal 15.C.1a: Describe how human, natural and capital resources are used to produce goods and services.

Students will be able to identify features of physical geography, natural resources, and climate of other communities.
State Goal 15.C.1b: Identify limitations in resources that force producers to make choices about what to produce. Students will be able to identify features of physical geography, natural resources, and climate of other communities.
State Goal 18.C.1: Describe how individuals interacted within groups to make choices regarding food, clothing and shelter.

Students will be able to identify features of physical geography, natural resources, and climate of other communities.


Objective:

Students will be able to identify features of physical geography, natural resources, and climate of other communities.


Time:

October/November flexible (one to two weeks)


Procedures/Teaching Activities:

  1. Go to your local travel agencies and get as many travel brochures that they are willing to give you!
  2. Choose one and make a transparency of the brochure.
  3. Define the terms physical geography (i.e. rivers, mountains, beaches), natural resources (i.e. wood, fish, trees), and climate (i.e. temperature, weather) as a whole group.
  4. Talk about the brochure you made into an overhead in terms of what is listed on the brochure. It should have physical geography, natural resources, and climate somewhere on the brochure.
  5. As the days go by, do several more brochures (one a day) and then have the children design a brochure of a make-believe community that they would like to live in. Each brochure should be tri-folded and each section needs to have one of the following - physical geography, natural resource, and climate.
  6. Have a sharing day and put the children in-groups to share their fantasy brochures.
  7. Have students write to or research a real community - different than their own and make a real tri-fold brochure that includes a front cover and the three elements you have been studying. Make sure they label each part and draw pictures to describe their labels.
  8. Invite the parents in for a travel day and let your students be the travel guides for both their fantasy adn real brochures.