EDC 739:

Portfolio

Social Studies Concept

Development in Bilingual/Bicultural

Early Childhood Settings,

Birth to Grade 2

Arianny Savinon-Perez

Lehman College Fall 2013

Bronx, New York

Course number and title: EDC 739: Social Studies Concept Development in Bilingual/Bicultural Early

Childhood Settings, Birth to Grade 2. Instructor: Annabelle Paredes

Content

Assignments

Grades/Score

SS autobiography

Pass/Fail

RJE(summary of chapters and reflection) 10

Response to Black Board Postings/Articles 10

Field Work: Interview/ Class Observation

Research On Historical Sites

Individual Presentation: Chapter 10

25

Article Review

Children Literature: book Summary

10

Website Critique 5

Lesson Plans

20

Professionalism 20

TOTAL 100

       

Index

Assignment Page(s)

• SS Autobiography

• Journal entries(chapters)

• Response to Bb Assignments

• Field Work part I: Standards

• Field Work Part II: Class Observation

• Projects:

• Article Review

• Children Literature

• Website Critique

• Research On Historical Sites

• Important Places of the community

• Lesson Plans

• Reflection on lesson taught

• Individual Presentation

1

Soc ia l Stud i e s Autob i ography [pa s s/ fa i l]

In order to recall your experiences with Social Studies in your native and second language,

students will interview each other by asking questions about how they learned social studies

on the first day of class. Then you will write your SS autobiography focusing on your

learning experiences in both languages and reflecting on how those experiences affect your

academic life.

SS Autobiography

  I consider that social studies are related to the study of people, culture, physical environment and the

way they interact with each other. This includes places, people, society and its organization, and human

interaction, including friendship, rules, and people’s role in society, etc. Some of the topics covered by

social studies are: people, social status, laws and regulations, diversity, location of places of the world,

beliefs, customs, values, etc. In my native language the topics I learned while taking Social Studies lessons were related to concepts

about to geographic locations, family, maps, the Earth and its resources, countries, flags of the world,

government, politics, economy, presidents and famous people of the world. Meanwhile, in my second

language I explored another aspect of social studies, such as importance and implication of citizenship,

freedom, immigration, diversity: social and ethnic differences, discrimination, the value of rights and the

role of education in society.

In my particular case, these experiences have had a positively impact in my professional and personal

life. The knowledge acquired helped understand how to become an active member of society. Also, I

became more interested in knowing more about my rights and the importance of getting a better education

as the key for social and economic growth. In addition, knowing about different cultures has contributed

to develop tolerance and appreciation for other’s values and customs. As an educator, I recognize the

importance of teaching social studies to young children in order to create awareness and appreciation for

all the social factors that surround them.

 

R espon s e t o R ead ing s Journa l Entr i e s (R JE)

[10 po in t s]

Using critical analysis, write about your reaction, relevant experiences and its application to fieldwork to each chapter in your journal entries. These journals entries should include the following:

• A summary of your observations and reaction to the readings for that week; and

• A discussion of how can you apply this acquired information to your practice, fieldwork experience and to your personal experiences with social studies.

Response to Reading Journal entry

Chapter I: These Are the Social Studies

Summary and Reflection

Social studies are defined as the integrated study of the social sciences and humanities to

promote civic competence. The purpose of the social studies is to help children develop ability to

make decisions as citizens of a culturally diverse, democratic society in an interdependent world.

Social studies is an important element in young children’s education. This serves as a foundation

for future understanding of more complex ideas. Learning social studies takes place naturally as

children participate in classroom activities in which they can experience democracy, decision

making and other factors that will help them use the knowledge, attitudes, skills and processes

that will serve for later social studies learning. In the past, there different approaches used to

introduce children to social studies were based on study of fact to be memorized, which were

neither functional nor meaningful for children. In contrast, nowadays teaching social studies is

founded on the fact that a child should be oriented to “do social studies” by being exposed to

different functional and meaningful experiences. The contribution John Dewey, Jean Piaget’s

and Vygotsky’s theories of learning to this field has encourage educators to make substantial

modifications to the social studies curriculum and teaching approaches. Also, educators have

assumed that children develop ideas and concepts about their world when they are very young.

Therefore, their prior knowledge is used as a foundation for teaching new concepts. Social

studies is oriented to train children in the skills and habits necessary to function and participate in

a democratic society. This allows children absorb the information provided through firsthand

manipulation and encounter such as play, active learning and connection of new learning with

previous experience. Social studies also focuses on supporting and fostering the social and

emotional growth of young children through teaching how to share materials and ideas, healthy

relationships with others, responsibility for their behaviors, interest, cooperation, appreciation for

others and development of self-concept and self-respect.

As a professional, acquiring this knowledge about the implications of teaching social studies

to young children gives the base to become a more effective social studies teacher. I would apply

these in my classroom by providing children different experiences that are integrated and

meaningful to them. This will be done through the integration of the topics into children’s

cultural background, personal knowledge, interests, family and experiences in their community. I

will take into account the different stages of children’s development to provide them with

developmentally appropriate practices that match their cognitive, emotional, social and physical

maturity. This chapter helped me understand that teaching children isolated facts doesn’t provide

children meaningful learning. I believe that children are capable of acquiring high level

knowledge at a young age, and as an educator, I need to provide children with developmentally

appropriate practices and tools they need to promote thinking development and expand their

capabilities in all aspects of their life.

 

Response to Reading Journal entry

Chapter II: Planning and Assessment Summary and reflection

When teaching social studies to young a child is very important for educators to know about children’s

development, cultural background and interests. This knowledge will lead teachers to make appropriate

decisions when planning goals, objectives, teaching strategies, meaningful activities, and assessment.

Although all children pass through same stages of development and have similar needs, as individuals,

they are very different and unique. Therefore, when planning, educators have to take into account this

knowledge to select appropriately the strategies and assessment that best fit each child’s needs in the

classroom. The reference point for doing this is to use children’s experiences, abilities and individual

needs as a reference for effective learning, planning and assessment. Teachers should create an inclusive

environment where all children can learn and expand the skills and abilities they need to perform as active

member of society (independence, autonomy, pride, tolerance, empathy, and appreciation for cultural

diversity, competency, confidence and respect).

Another important aspect I learned from this chapter is that for teaching social studies to young

children is that educators need to become acquainted with children’s ethnic, subcultural background and

values of the community where they live. In addition, when planning, in order to match the standards with

the resources available and to provide effective teaching, teachers need to acquire in-depth knowledge of

the concepts key to each social science, and the skills and values considered to be part of social studies.

Some of the skills children learn in social studies class are map reading, thinking, finding and using

information, and social skills, attitudes and values. For effective planning, teachers should select goals

and objectives for children’s learning of content and skills that will foster each child’s own worth and

dignity, respect for self and others, participation, responsibility for the group, and disposition of learning

to learn. I agree that planning is essential for successful teaching and learning. As bilingual educator,

when planning, I will take into account children’s interest, goals of education, content knowledge of the

social studies, and setting specific goals and objectives that address the learning of all children in the

classroom. In addition, in order to provide effective and authentic assessment, I will evaluate children’s

learning by using different approaches such as performance task, checklist, standardized tests when

necessary, observations, interviews, portfolios, etc.

   

Response to Reading Journal entry

Summary and Reflection

Chapter III: Resources for Learning

This chapter highlights the importance of making good selection of resources for teaching social

studies to young children. The social studies curriculum demands that children be able to learn through

firsthand experiences grounded in their here-and-now environment. This environment includes interaction

with others, children actions in the physical environments of the classroom and communities. Families,

people, school, children and communities are valuable resources for social studies learning. All of them

provide meaningful experiences and information that are useful to promote learning. Therefore, educators

are encouraged to use different strategies to involve the families and the community as much as possible

in this learning. The school should provide the environment with the resources necessary that meet young

children’s interest and needs.

Some resources and activities that foster social studies learning in the child’s physical environments

are fieldworks, field trips, guest speakers, community service, learning centers, children literature,

reference materials, visual discovery, bulletin boards and displays, commercial materials, video clips,

audiovisual resources, CDs, DVDs, technology and online resources.

The information acquired in this chapter has been very useful for me. I wasn’t aware of the richness of

the resources that we have around us. I agree that the child’s experiences are the most important resource

we can use since this prior knowledge serves as the foundation for new learning. As an effective educator,

I understand the usefulness of families, school and communities as resources for children’s learning.

When teaching social studies I will plan meaningful activities to foster the children’s exploration of and

interaction with these environments such as fieldworks, fieldtrips, family days, action projects, leaning

center, celebrations, etc. Also, I will use the local library as a resource to obtain children literatures that

represent children’s cultures, diversity and interests.

 

Response to Reading Journal entry

Summary and Reflection

Chapter IV: Thinking Concept Formation

This chapter presents strategies to help children develop thinking skills and concept formation. It’s

been proven that young children use the same processes involved in adult thinking. Teachers can foster

children’s thinking by providing meaningful, integrated, and interesting experiences. Teachers are

encouraged to identify what families, communities and children have to offer. These resources represent

firsthand meaningful and interesting experiences for children. The here-and –now experiences promote

thinking because they are firsthand, involve others and are filled with language. Play is the cornerstone

for cognitive and social-emotional development.

In order to help children develop thinking skills and concept formation, teachers should provide

children with experiences that involve observation, organizing and interpreting information, graphing,

comparing and contrasting, classifying, interaction with others, experiences that require language, touch,

taste, move about, take apart, and put together again, see relationships, generalizations, questioning,

reaching conclusion etc.

As an educator of young children, in order to promote concept formation and thinking skills, first, I

will take into account the developmental stage of my students. I will provide developmentally-age

appropriate experiences that match their abilities and understanding. I will provide a variety of

experiences and resources for children to develop strong foundation of thinking. I will promote activities

that involve exploration and manipulation of their environment. I will plan my lessons taking into account

children’s experiences. Also, I will use children’s play as a means for developing thinking and concept

formation. I will plan activities for encouraging children to ask questions and find solutions to problems,

locate information, organize data, interpret data and draw conclusions. I will also identify key ideas and

concepts and use them to organize children’s learning experiences.

Response to Reading Journal entry

Summary and Reflection

Chapter V: Social Skills: Self, Others and the Community

This chapter presents the concepts and strategies that teachers should promote to develop social skills

in young children. Since children enter the classroom with a variety of social skills, it’s important for

teachers to help them relate these skills to adults and peers. This represents a challenge for children when

they are asked to give up some of their individualities for the good of the group. In the classroom children

will learn necessary skills, attitudes and values to interact with others within a democratic environment.

Through the social studies children learn form the foundation of a healthy self-concept, develop the

skills of communicating, sharing, cooperating and participating in a social group. Although there are

many factors that affect social development in young children (family interaction, role of culture, role of

school), in the classroom educators can promote activities that support each child as an individual while

providing all children with structured routines, acceptance of children’s feelings and behaviors and to find

different ways for children to express their feelings and emotions (play, running, drawing, painting,

building, telling stories, etc).

In the school, the focus on social skills acquisition is to help children develop self-concept, pro-social

skills, and making and keeping friends. The learning of social and thinking skills are considered the most

important for young children. These social skills are related to self-concept and self-esteem. In order to

acquire these skills, teachers are encouraged to promote social interaction and cooperation in the

classroom. Children should learn to relate to others, communication skills including listening, speaking,

reading and writing, learning to share and cooperate, how to prevent and solve conflicts.

As an educator, I will promote social skills in my classroom by providing children experiences and

activities in which they can make friends, interact with each other, develop respect for themselves and for

others, integrate into groups, solve and prevent conflicts, feel accepted, respected and valued, and develop

appreciation for individual differences. I will provide them with a variety of developmental level

materials such as toys, books, DVDs, software, games, etc., that encourage social interaction of all

children including those with disabilities, sharing and cooperating with others.

Response to Reading Journal entry

Summary and Reflection

Chapter VI: Culture, Diversity and Values

This chapter addresses the importance of developing in young children the concepts of values,

attitudes and culture. Other concepts that teachers should address in social studies related to this

topic are community, friendship and diversity. At this age it’s important that children learn about

others too. Learning about interconnectedness and interdependency, multiculturalism, tolerance

and conflict resolution are key concepts addressed in social studies that help children develop a

sense of and appreciation for diversity.

One of the purposes of the social studies class is to help children develop skills for addressing

democratic values in the classroom. Since values and attitudes are related to feelings and

personal beliefs, many believe that children should learn them in their homes or churches. They

claim that school should not be responsible for teaching other people’s children what to value or

believe. However, since everything that occurs in the classroom is bound up in and influenced by

values and attitudes, their transmission to young children is unavoidable. Although there is

disagreement about what values should be taught in the school, educators are encouraged to

through social studies activities, provide a setting for children to acquire knowledge of history

and the social sciences and to be exposed to abroad variety of opinions, facilitating the

formulation, reassessment, and affirmation of their beliefs. Teachers need to be aware that the

universal values that are worthwhile and necessary are those that are consistent with the values

of equality and democracy.

Educators are encouraged to practice some strategies that promote anti-bias learning

environments for children such as cooperative learning, prejudice reduction activities, conflict

resolution, teaching peace and understanding war.

As an educator of multicultural children, through my teaching I will foster in my children

experiences that help them develop appreciation and respect for themselves, for diversity,

individual differences, and to learn handling challenging situations with others without

aggression or violence. In order to foster a nurtured environment for my children, I will evaluate

and observe my own value system and attitudes. I will also respect and learn the origin and

meaning of the attitudes and values of children from differing cultures, racial and ethnic groups,

and socioeconomic classes. I will expose the children to use a variety of resources (literature,

DVDs, CDs, movies, software, etc.) and experiences that represent their own cultures, ethnicity,

gender and beliefs. I will provide role model who demonstrate the values inherent in a

democracy, such as the dignity of each individual, universal participation, freedom of speech and

opportunity to express their ideas and feelings, the right to feel protected and happy, participation

in society and responsibility for others, cooperation and acceptance of one’s role in the

community.

Response to Reading Journal entry

Summary and Reflection

Chapter VII: Children’s Study of Time, continuity, and Change: History

This chapter presents the key concepts that young children should learn in history, and the

strategies that are age-appropriate for teaching these concepts to them. It also shows strategies to

integrate history concepts with human activities from their daily experiences. The study of

History should be based on concepts of time, continuity and change. Through the exploration of

these concepts, children develop understanding of their historical roots, and to locate themselves

in time. The basic concepts children learn in history are time, change, the continuity of human

life, the past and the methods of the historian.

Children are introduces to the study of time though a variety of activities that involve

sequencing in their daily routines. Through actual experiences and listening to stories of the

recent, past and long ago, children learn that change is constant and should not be feared. To gain

understanding of life before their time, children can experience the past by analyzing recordings,

handling objects and records from the past, listening to stories and poetry about the past.

Children also can learn to use methods of the historian, such as inquiring, children can make

their lives more meaningful, richer and fuller. They learn to recognize problems and ask

questions, to observe, analyze, and infer as they collect and examine evidence, and finally to

reach conclusions.

To engage young children in experiences that foster the learning of these concepts, educators

are encouraged to implement a variety of strategies and activities that involve readings, field

experiences, routines that teach time, measuring time, the passage of time, change and how it

affects their lives (school, community, nature, themselves), the continuity of human life (family

history, generational contacts, holidays celebration and traditions) the past (people, objects and

visual discovery, narratives and the Arts), methods of the historian( generate questions and

identify problems, gather information, observation of data, analyze information, and draw

conclusions).

I will use this knowledge in my classroom to help children develop interest for the past

through the exploration of their personal history. This will be fostered through the practice of

regular activities in the classroom. I will focus on the key concepts of the past, time, change,

continuity of live and the methods of historian to help children develop understanding of history.

I will expose children to a variety of concrete relevant experiences. Also, I will integrate

scientific and technological change in my activities.

Response to Reading Journal entry

Summary and Reflection

Chapter VIII: People, Places and Environments: Geography

This chapter presents teachers the key concepts and skills that young children can learn in Geography.

When teaching geography to young children teachers need first to be aware of the children’s immediate

physical environment and their ability and opportunity to observe, speculate about, analyze and evaluate

that environment. Some of the themes and concepts recommended for educators to teach at this age are:

the Earth is the place where we live, directions and locations, relationships within places, spatial

interactions and region.

In order to help young children understand these concepts, it’s essential to create awareness of the

world where they live through different types of experiences with living and nonliving things that

surround them. Taking children to field trips where they can observe and compare the different features of

the earth will help them better understand the concepts and develop a sense of belonging and

responsibility to care for our earth. Other important concepts and skills that children learn and develop at

this age are interdependency of living and nonliving things, aesthetic awareness (appreciation for nature)

and social consciousness (responsibility for environmental protection). Some of the strategies that help

children build these skills are related to action projects that include recycling, reusing and reducing.

As an educator, I will help children to develop understanding of geography concepts through the

implementation of a variety of concrete experiences, strategies and activities that involve environmental

exploration, hands-on activities, movement exploration, field trips, locating themselves and objects in

space, learning their addresses, analyzing movies and other visual resources, mapping and exploring how

people interact even when they are separate in space. In order to make my teaching meaningful and

functional to children, I will keep in mind that the first point of reference is the children’s immediate

environment and experiences.

Response to Reading Journal entry

Summary and Reflection

Chapter IX: Economics: Production, Distribution, and Consumption

This chapter explores strategies for teachers to help children develop economic concepts such

as distribution, consumption, scarcity, producer and consumer. There is evidence that although

young children’s reasoning about economic issues doesn’t develop until they reach 10 or 11,

they still develop interest and awareness of some economic concepts that are present in their life

every day. Young children come to the classrooms knowing that making purchases implies the

use of money, their wants often exceed their resources, and that they can offer some services or

product to get money. At this age, teachers work to build and extend this informal knowledge of

economics to continue developing the bases for citizenship and democracy. It’s been determined

that when children understand economic concepts and implications, they are developing skills to

become adult role models as consumers, producers and voters. When educators use knowledge

of children’s awareness of economics concepts such as scarcity, wants and needs, and their direct

experiences with these concepts, they introduce children to essential economic principles.

When teaching young children economic concepts, it’s recommended for teachers to focus on

the ideas about scarcity, decision-making, and the function of production and consumption as

well as future career choices and roles. To do so, educators should use children’s experience,

both incidental and structured. Children needs to develop awareness of the importance of

conservation of energy and materials, availability of resource to make responsible decision

regarding their needs and wants, role of money in acquiring services and goods, kinds of jobs

and the resources used in each of them, and so on. Teachers are encouraged to introduce

economic concepts to young children through an integrated, whole curriculum that includes

experiencing, doing and acting for themselves.

As an educator, I will use children’s experiences to introduce economic concepts. I will

implement a naturalistic and constructivist teaching approaches where children will learn (in

their natural environment) to build their knowledge through hands-on experiences, using their

previous knowledge, discovering and integrating new information in a meaningful and functional

way.

Response to Reading Journal entry

Summary and Reflection

Chapter X: Developing Citizenship: Civics and Participation

In this chapter it was discussed about the content that children should learn in social studies to develop

citizenship. When addressing these topics, children learn a variety of democratic and governance

principles such as responsibilities, power and authority, rules, roles, laws, individuals and groups,

participation, values, fairness, democracy, rights. According to the Strand X, about Civic Ideals and

Practices: “Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of the ideals,

principles and practices of citizenship in a democratic republic.” Some of the activities recommended for

teachers to introduce these topics are: allow children helping set the classroom expectations, conducting

service projects, participating in class meetings, making decisions to balance the needs for the wellbeing

of individuals and the group, view implication of citizenship in other times places through stories,

dramas, readings.

Since Civic Educations is essential to the preservation and improvement of a democratic society, it’s

important that young children learn from informal and formal experiences that start in the classroom.

These democratic values are the foundation for complex civic understanding and participation. In social

studies class young children learn how to become members and build a democratic society, that they are

valued, worthy and respected, their rights, to give up their egocentrism, and to share and balance their

individual needs with the common good.

Similarly, political concepts are based on children’s own experiences and should be introduced

informally. Educators need to use their knowledge about the President, Flag, Pledge Allegiance, songs to

introduce political topics. Children also understand authority through their experiences at home and in

school –Connections- Through the use of a variety of symbols children begin to understand abstract

political concepts in concrete terms: pictures, visuals, songs, stories, movements, etc.

As an educator is important to expose children to different learning experiences in which they have the

opportunity to practice their learning. As a teacher I will use my classroom as a small laboratory by

providing children with meaningful experiences that will be useful for them to develop citizenship,

democracy and civism. They will have the opportunity to interact with each other to make decisions,

participate in their community, collaborate and solve real life situations in an appropriate manner. This

will build a strong foundation for children to become active and exemplary members of society.

Response to Reading Journal entry

Summary and Reflection

Chapter XI: Global Connections

This chapter addresses the importance of teaching children topics related to global connections and

peace education. According to the authors educators should expose young children to explore these

concepts by relating those connections to their own experiences and lives. Since Worldwide events affect

children’s lives through the media and personal experiences, this should be the starting point to make this

learning meaningful to them.

Young children need to learn that we need to live with others, and others need to live with us. It

represents a challenge for young children to understand the Interconnectedness of our nation with other

nations for trade and commerce and the Cultural interdependence of all nations. For addressing this

situation, educators have to foster in young children a basis for developing the concept that every part of

the world is interdependent. Children also need to learn that humans have many things in common

(similarities) such as basic need, group rules and organization and art forms. Teachers may introduce

these topics by conducting investigations focusing on those in America and comparing them to those

found in other countries. Children’s knowledge about others can be based on their own background and

experiences. Teachers can obtain information though people in the community, the Internet, children’s

books and other literature and media.

Regarding to Global education, children’s natural interest in toys can be springboard for investigating

the life of children in other countries. This can lead to further investigation into the lives and perspectives

of others. Educators can introduce the concept of Peace education to children through the idea of helping

others and tolerance.

As a bilingual educator, I will use the resources and experiences that each child an their families bring

to the classroom to build the concepts related to global connection. Since our classrooms are integrated

with children with multicultural backgrounds, this represents a prefect point of reference for them to

develop awareness of the meaning of interconnectedness, and cultural interdependence. I will use these

concepts to help children inquire beyond their own cultural perspective and understand the world of other

people, obtaining information about similarities and differences among people around the world and by

addressing global issues and problems, cross-cultural activities and human choices. Regarding to Peace

education, through the promotion of social action projects, I will focus on helping children to understand

the importance of making this world a better place in which to live.

Fieldwork Journals Entries (FWJE) [25 points]

*Observation: About the S.S. program, materials, websites and resources 1.5hrs

Part II Class observed: 2nd Grade Bilingual Classroom

1. Visit a bilingual class (SE bilingual class) during a social studies lesson.

2. Observe how the teacher supports second language learners as readers and writers of social studies.

This lesson was about the Mexican culture. During the lesson the teacher presented pictures of people

from Mexico in different activities. The teacher asked children questions related to the pictures shown to

explore prior knowledge. Then she explained the topic. The support provided for ELLs were pictures and

repetition of key concepts. She wrote the children’s responses on the board too. This helped children to

connect their oral language with the graphic representation of the words they said. During the independent

work when the children had to write about the topic, they were able to consult the information from the

board.

3.Then describe and analyze the lesson and the activity based on how the students complete the

activity.

During the guided activity the teacher made different groups and assigned a different feature from the

Mexican culture: Music, food, language, art, clothing, location, celebrations, Etc. Then they had to complete

a chart with the information about their assigned task. In the groups each child had a different task: writer,

presenter and researcher. At the end of the lesson, each group had to present their assigned feature of the

Mexican culture. The teacher drew a big chart on the board and as each child explained their part, she

wrote the information on the chart and added pictures. Then she asked the children complete their charts

with all the information from the board.

4. Also, based on what you are learning from readings; chapters, articles, and activities in class in your

reflection include what would you recommend the teacher use if she doesn’t have materials.

   The   teacher   explained   that   she   uses   the   common   core   and   the   state   standards,   she   uses   different  

materials,  but  didn’t  specify  about  the  scope  and  sequence  to  consult  the  content  appropriate  for  the  

grade.  The  school  has  their  own  curriculum  that  serves  as  a  reference  for  teachers.  I  will  recommend  the  

teacher  to  use  the  scope  and  sequence  as  a  guide  for  her  planning.  I  also  would  recommend:    

Based   on   what   I   have   learned   about   the   standards   and   the   scope   and   sequence   content   for   social  

studies,  I  will  make  the  teacher  the  following  recommendations:  

 

*Use   the   standards   and   social   studies   content   as   the   first   point   of   reference   to   select   the   topics,  

materials,  strategies  and  activities  for  your  lessons.  

 

*When  selecting  a   topic,   find  the  correlation  between  the  common  core  and  the  scope  and  sequence  

content  for  each  topic  to  be  taught.  

*Use  the  library  as  a  resource  to  make  the  lesson  more  interesting  by  using  different  types  of  books  and  

sources.  

 

*Use  the  resources  available  in  the  community  to  make  lessons  meaningful  and  interesting  to  children  

(e.g.  plan  field  trips  to  explore  places  and  buildings  of  interest).  

 

• Make   the  necessary   accommodations   to   support   the   learning  of   children  with   special  

needs  and  ELLs  in  all  your  lessons.  

 

*Provide  children  with  a  variety  of  learning  experiences  as  possible  inside  and  outside  the  classroom.  

5. Provide sample(s) of Children’s Work.

These are examples of the worked done during the last part of the lesson. The teacher provided a worksheet and the

children had to use a book about the Mexican culture to complete the information requested.

 

     

 

 

 

Fieldwork Journals Entries (FWJE) [25 points] Review an Interview: About the standards 1.5hrs

Part I Kindergarten Bilingual Class

1. First review the common core standards (CCS) and the S.S. scope and sequence online including Pre-Kindergarten city and

state standards.

2. Then interview the teacher that you will be observing throughout the semester.

3. Write what you know or your experience with the standards and explain how the teacher you interviewed is using the common

core standards and the S.S. scope and sequence, Pre-K city and state standards to plan and teach social studies.

4. Compare and evaluate what you learned about the common core standards to what is going on in the classroom according to

the teacher you interviewed. (Describe in as much detail the common core standards and scope and sequence and its best

practice in the classroom.

Guiding questions:

• What do you know about the standards?

• Have you received training?

• What standards do you use?

• How are you using the standards to plan, prepare and teach?

• How long have you been using the standards?

• What parts of the standards do you find useful or effective? And what parts of the standards do you find challenging?

                               

 

Fieldwork Journals Entries-Interview I

Interview Date: ________ Reflection

Teacher Interview:

1. What do you know about the standards? T-They are used in the public system. The common cores will be implemented in September.

2. Have you received training? T-No really. We have received informal instructions about how to implement the Creative Curriculum and the 10 standards from NAEYC

3. What standards do you use? T-Some of the standards are Approach To Learning, Physical Development And Health, Social Emotional Skills And Interaction.

4. How are you using the standards to plan, prepare and teach?

T- I’m not using the common core, but I use the ones from NAEYC as a reference for planning.

5. How long have you been using the standards? T-4 years

6. What parts of the standards do you find useful or effective? And what parts of the standards do you find challenging?

T- Useful: Approach to learning and social emotional development and family involvement because there are more resources available to develop the lessons. Challenging: Communication, language and leadership because we need more training and resources to know how develop these topics.

What I know or experience about the standards The standards are established guidelines for educators. They indicate the content children need to learn and when. Since they are organized by grades and follow a sequence, they provide the topics and content children should master in each stage of their learning development. They provide the information teachers should know to plan their lessons. How the teacher is using the standards to plan and teach social studies The teacher is not using these standards. She is using 10 pre-established standards from NAEYC. She states that these standards are related to the common core standards. She uses these guidelines to know the topics she will teach. The standards being used include topics related to family, community, leadership and physical environment. She is also using guidelines from a program named ASPIRE and CREATIVE CURRICULUM. Compare the content of the common core and the way the teacher is applying this content. Since the teacher is not applying the common core, she is not following the guidelines suggested to integrate social studies content in her lessons. The common core indicates specific topics and content necessary to plan the lessons. According to the teacher, administrators understand that is not relevant to aligned social studies content into the lessons since age-appropriate resources are difficult to obtain. Teachers instead follow the creative curriculum approach in which they obtain the resources by themselves and select the social studies topics that they consider appropriate for their lessons. Describe the common core standards and scope and sequence and its best practice in the classroom. The standards and scope and sequence are the guidelines available for teachers to provide sequential and age appropriate content for children. Since the common core standards and the scope and sequence are interconnected, educators need to use them as a reference for their teaching. When selecting a topic, teachers should consult these guidelines to make sure that the content selected is appropriate for the children and what other alternative for teaching the selected topics are recommended in these guidelines.  

Teacher’s Interview

 

Teacher’s  Interview***Maria  Alvarado:  Kindergarten  

Interview:  

 

Does  your  school  purchase  a  social  studies  program?    

T-­‐ NO.  Teachers  get  books  from  the  library,  the  Internet  and  any  resource  we  can  get  from  the  community.  

What  is  included  in  this  program?  N/A  

(If  not)  what  other  materials  or  resources  are  teachers  in  the  school  using  to  teach  social  studies?    

T-­‐We  use  visual  support  from  the  Internet  and  purchased  by  teachers.  

We  use  guidelines  from  CREATIVE  CURRICULUM,  APLANING  GUIDE  TO  CREATE  SCHOOL  CURRICULUM  and  ASPIRE  

How  do  you  use  them?      

I  use  the  books  for  Reading  Aloud  and  small  group  activities.  I  use  visual  support  from  pictures  to  complement  the  lessons.  

I  use  the  guidelines  from  these  curriculum  models  to  plan  my  lessons.  

Is  it  these  materials  aligned  with  the  standards?  

Yes.  They  are  aligned  with  the  standards  we  use  from  NAEYC.  

 Also  ask  the  teacher  what  kind  of  Social  Studies  program  is  used  in  the  classroom  you  work  in  or  are  observing;  state  the  publishing  company,  materials,  resources,  assessments  and  activities  etc.    If  there  is  no  purchased  program  or  materials,  ask  the  teacher  what  kind  of  resources  the  teachers  in  her  school  are  using  to  teach  social  studies.      Teacher:    there  is  no  a  specific  program.  We  use  different  resources  from  different  sources  such  as  library,  Internet,  teacher  made  materials,  etc.  

Reflection:    Observe  how  the  teacher  supports  second  language  learners  as  readers  and  writers  of  social  studies.    During  the  lesson,  the  teacher  used  gestures  and  visual  aids  (pictures  of  the  vocabulary).  During  the  lesson,  the  teacher  supported  ELLs  by  using  gestures  while  reading,  sometimes  used  children’s  native  language  to  clarify  concepts,  provided  children  with  labeled  pictures  in  English  and  the  Native  language.    During  the  independent  activity  the  children  were  given  labeled  pictures  for  them  to  consult  for  the  writing  task.      Recommendations  for  the  teacher:    Based  on  what  I  have  learned  about  the  standards  and  the  scope  and  sequence  content  for  social  studies,  I  will  make  the  teacher  the  following  recommendations:    *Use  the  standards  and  social  studies  content  as  the  first  point  of  reference  to  select  the  topics,  materials,  strategies  and  activities  for  your  lessons.  *When  selecting  a  topic,  find  the  correlation  between  the  common  core  and  the  scope  and  sequence  content  for  each  topic  to  be  taught.  *Use  the  library  as  a  resource  to  make  the  lesson  more  interesting  by  using  different  types  of  books  and  sources    *Use  the  resources  available  in  the  community  to  make  lessons  meaningful  and  interesting  to  children  (e.g.  plan  field  trips  to  explore  places  and  buildings  of  interest)  *Select  age  appropriate  books  and  materials  for  children  to  explore  *Select  books  meaningful  for  children  that  represent  their  different  cultures  and  backgrounds.  *Explore  a  variety  of  websites  and  online  resources  such  as  lesson  plan  ideas,  activities,  books,  etc.  to  make  your  lesson  interesting  and  meaningful.  *Support  the  learning  of  ELLs  with  a  variety  of  pictures  books  in  their  native  language  and  rich  print  environment.  *Select  age  appropriate  activities  and  strategies.  *Use  children’s  prior  knowledge  to  introduce  new  topics.  *In  order  to  make  learning  meaningful  to  children,  build  upon  what  they  already  know.  *  Make  the  necessary  accommodations  to  support  the  learning  of  children  with  special  needs  and  ELLs  in  all  your  lessons  *Provide  children  with  a  variety  of  learning  experiences  as  possible  inside  and  outside  the  classroom  *Use  the  classroom  as  a  laboratory  where  children  can  practice  the  social  studies  content  that  they  are  learning.  

Webs i t e Cr i t i q u e : (5 Poin t s) You will investigate online websites that offer support to Bilingual Social Studies teachers. WEBSITES:

7. click under Resources to Core Curriculum 8. and summarize what kinds of information about your state can be found on this site. 9. write a summary of what you find 10. write a summary of what you find 11. write a summary of what you find

Website Evaluation Form

Use the following evaluation form to review the websites above.

Name of Site: Curriculum & Instruction URL:  

This website provides specific information about the standards related to all the content areas. The area of Social Studies

includes a webpage named learning experiences, which includes detail information about planning and teaching social studies to different grade levels. It provides examples of lesson plan and activities for teachers. PART I: Use a rating scale from 1 to 5 to assess each statement, with 1 being “poor” and 5 being “exceptional.” FUNCTION/USABILITY It is easy to move from one page to another on this website. Rating__5____ The site uses graphics and colors that are appealing. Rating__3____ The material is well organized Rating__5____ CONTENT/INFORMATION The information provided is up to date. Rating___3___ The information provided is relevant Rating___4____ The information was unbiased Rating___4____ The content helped me as a Social Studies teacher; how and why? Rating_______ 5 CREDIBILITY The name of the institution that updates this site is included. Rating___1____ The site provides a contact person or address if I want to know more about this site Rating__5_____ The authors/institution’s credentials and expertise are specifically stated. Rating__3____ _____________________________________________________________________________________________

Website Evaluation Form

Use the following evaluation form to review the websites above. Name of Site:  URL:  www.50states.com

This website provide SS teachers with quick access to a great amount of information related to the 50 States. Teachers can find

information about the city, resources, activities, people, population, demographic information, etc. PART I: Use a rating scale from 1 to 5 to assess each statement, with 1 being “poor” and 5 being “exceptional.” FUNCTION/USABILITY It is easy to move from one page to another on this website. Rating______ 5 The site uses graphics and colors that are appealing. Rating______ 4 The material is well organized Rating______ 5 CONTENT/INFORMATION The information provided is up to date. Rating_____5 The information provided is relevant Rating_______5 The information was unbiased Rating_______ 5 The content helped me as a Social Studies teacher; how and why? Rating_______ 5 CREDIBILITY The name of the institution that updates this site is included. Rating__5 The site provides a contact person or address if I want to know More about this site Rating_5 The authors/institution’s credentials and expertise are specifically stated. Rating_5  

Website Evaluation Form

Use the following evaluation form to review the websites above. Name of Site: nationalgeographic URL:  www.nationalgeographic.com

This website provides useful information for SS educators about science, animals, plants, research base facts, education,

environment, videos, juegos, etc.

PART I: Use a rating scale from 1 to 5 to assess each statement, with 1 being “poor” and 5 being “exceptional.” FUNCTION/USABILITY It is easy to move from one page to another on this website. Rating______ 5 The site uses graphics and colors that are appealing. Rating______ 5 The material is well organized Rating______ 5 CONTENT/INFORMATION The information provided is up to date. Rating_______ 5 The information provided is relevant Rating_______ 4 The information was unbiased Rating_______ 5 The content helped me as a Social Studies teacher; how and why? Rating_______ 4 Rating_______ The site provides a contact person or address if I want to know more about this site Rating_______ The authors/institution’s credentials and expertise are specifically stated. Rating_______ Rating_______ The site provides a contact person or address if I want to know more about this site Rating_______ The authors/institution’s credentials and expertise are specifically stated. Rating_______ CREDIBILITY The name of the institution that updates this site is included. Rating_______ 5 The site provides a contact person or address if I want to know more about this site Rating_______ 5 The authors/institution’s credentials and expertise are specifically stated. Rating________ 5

Website Evaluation Form

Use the following evaluation form to review the websites above.

Name of Site: USGS Education_URL:   This  site  contains  information  about  Biology,  Geograpphy,  geology,  etc.,classroom  activities,  for  SS  teachers  and  

for  children  from  different  grades.  This  Web  site  contains  selected  USGS  educational  resources  that  may  be  useful  

to  educators  in  primary  school  grades  (Kindergarten  to  Grade  6).  Many  of  these  resources  can  be  used  directly  in  

the  classroom  (see  Resource  Symbols)  or  will  be  useful  in  classroom  lessons  or  demonstration  activities  

preparation,  or  as  resources  for  teacher  education  and  curriculum  development.  It  contains  videos,  maps,  games,  

documentals,  etc.  

PART I: Use a rating scale from 1 to 5 to assess each statement, with 1 being “poor” and 5 being “exceptional.” FUNCTION/USABILITY It is easy to move from one page to another on this website. Rating______ 5 The site uses graphics and colors that are appealing. Rating______ 5 The material is well organized Rating______ 5 CONTENT/INFORMATION The information provided is up to date. Rating_______ 5 The information provided is relevant Rating_______ 5 The information was unbiased Rating_______ 4 The content helped me as a Social Studies teacher; how and why? Rating_______ 4 CREDIBILITY The name of the institution that updates this site is included. Rating_______ 5 The site provides a contact person or address if I want to know more about this site Rating_______ 5 The authors/institution’s credentials and expertise are specifically stated. Rating_______5

Website Evaluation Form Use the following evaluation form to review the websites above.

Name of Site: USGSweb:Paper Mpodels URL:  www.usgs.gov/education/learnweb/ This site shows paper models related to earth science. It contains links that transfer to another sites related to environmental topics such as water, plants, animals, etc. PART I: Use a rating scale from 1 to 5 to assess each statement, with 1 being “poor” and 5 being “exceptional.” FUNCTION/USABILITY It is easy to move from one page to another on this website. Rating______ 2 The site uses graphics and colors that are appealing. Rating______ 1 The material is well organized Rating______ 3 CONTENT/INFORMATION The information provided is up to date. Rating_______ 1 The information provided is relevant Rating_______ 3 The information was unbiased Rating_______ 4 The content helped me as a Social Studies teacher; how and why? Rating_______ 2 CREDIBILITY The name of the institution that updates this site is included. Rating_______ 5 The site provides a contact person or address if I want to know more about this site Rating_______ 5 The authors/institution’s credentials and expertise are specifically stated. Rating_______5

Website Evaluation Form .

Name of Site: Teacher Page: a resource for teachers

URL:   This website provides a list of useful different sites related to topics about history and social studies. It contains links for other websites with information about different topics that SS teachers can use to plan their lesson. PART I: Use a rating scale from 1 to 5 to assess each statement, with 1 being “poor” and 5 being “exceptional.” FUNCTION/USABILITY It is easy to move from one page to another on this website. Rating______ 5 The site uses graphics and colors that are appealing. Rating______ 3 The material is well organized Rating______ 4 CONTENT/INFORMATION The information provided is up to date. Rating_______ 5 The information provided is relevant Rating_______ 4 The information was unbiased Rating_______ 5 The content helped me as a Social Studies teacher; how and why? Rating_______ 4 CREDIBILITY The name of the institution that updates this site is included. Rating_______ 5 The site provides a contact person or address if I want to know more about this site Rating_______ 5 The authors/institution’s credentials and expertise are specifically stated. Rating_______5

W ebs i t e Cr i t i q u e :

PART II:

Try to visit all the websites and then select two of your favorite websites and write a comprehensive summary of what these sites have to offer to Social Studies teachers. 1. www.udel.edu/dssep/literature.html Description: This is a useful website for teachers to find literature related to a variety Social Studies topics. It contains

different types of books, which are organized by grade level. This site provides teachers information

about the content of each book. The themes covered by this site are Geography, Economics and Civics:

Rules and Laws, Values and Principles, Citizens' Rights and Privileges, Government and Participation in

Civic Life.

2. Teacher resources and professional development across the curriculum

http://www.learner.org/resources/series166.html?pop=yes&pid=1796 Description: This is a useful websites for teachers who need information about teaching strategies. In this site teachers

can find a variety of resources such as videos and other information of how teachers can insert the

different learning standards and guidelines establish by the educational system in the classroom while

teaching Social Studies to children form different grade levels.

General Information: The Social Studies in Action teaching practices library, professional development guide, and companion

Web site bring to life the National Council for the Social Studies standards. Blending content and

methodology, the video library documents 24 teachers and their students in K-12 classrooms across the

country actively exploring the social studies. Lively, provocative, and educationally sound, these lessons

are designed to inspire thoughtful conversations and reflections on teaching practices in the social studies.

Week ly Blackboard Pos t ing s on

Di s cu s s i on Board [10 po in t s]

Article: Enseñar y Aprender Estudios Sociales” de Ileana M. Quintero y josefina Mora: Después de leer el articulo "Enseñar y Aprender Estudios Sociales” de Ileana M. Quintero y josefina Mora: a)Explica con tus propias palabras y da ejemplos de como fue que se alinearon y se integraron el currículo a los estándares de estudios sociales. b)Cuales tu crees que fueron los propósitos de implementar actividades que fueran de interés para los estudiantes? c)Siguiendo el ejemplo del tema que se investigo. Piensa en un tema que tú puedas planear y desarrollar y que además sea apropiada para la edad de los niños con los que trabajas. d)También piensa en actividades en que los niños puedan participar activamente. En este artículo se plantean estrategias de como los educadores podemos trabajar el currículo

de estudios sociales y crear un currículo integrado y relevante para los estudiantes. De acuerdo

con los autores, los educadores deben trabajar para formar estudiantes proactivos que busquen

respuestas a problemáticas latentes de su sociedad, en vez de ser pasivos receptores de

información presentada como verdades incambiables. Se plantea una integración de los

diferentes elementos del currículo a los estándares de estudios sociales de manera que sean de

interés y relevancia para los estudiantes. En el estudio realizado, se integro el currículo cuando

a los estudiantes se les dio la oportunidad de visualizar en su propio medio ambiente los

contenidos trabajados, y partiendo de este punto, generalizaron y expandieron sus conocimientos

a otros contextos. Les fue dada la oportunidad de inquirir, analizar, observar e investigar

diferentes aspectos tratados y pudieron ellos mismos construir sus conocimientos partiendo de

sus intereses y experiencias. En un estudio de la comunidad los educadores integraron las áreas

de historia, sociología, psicología, economía, ciencias políticas, antropología y geografía. Las

estrategias utilizadas con los estudiantes fueron viajes de campo, diálogos, entrevistas,

observaciones, encuestas, mapas, visitas a lugares históricos, encuestas, análisis de fotos, diseño

de árbol genealógico, etc.

Considero que el propósito que tuvieron los educadores al implementar actividades que

fueran de interés de los estudiantes fue promover la participación activa y el deseo de aprender

de los mismo. Esta iniciativa logro que la experiencia de aprendizaje fuera relevante y exitosa, ya

que los estudiantes se sintieron identificados con las mismas. Los estudiantes, mas que tareas

escolares, vieron cada actividades como una forma divertida de aprender.

Siguiendo el ejemplo tratado en el articulo, para mis estudiantes yo trabajaría el tema de los

ayudantes de la comunidad. Daría a los niños la oportunidad de explorar varios lugares donde

trabajan diferentes ayudantes de la comunidad tales como doctores, carteros, dentistas,

bomberos, policías, mercaderes, etc. Para este proposito utilizarías diferentes estrategias de

investigación tales como exploración de los conocimientos previos de los estudiantes,

entrevistas, a ayudantes de la comunidad, analizar con los niños la importancia de la labor que

realizan, análisis de fotografías de cómo van evolucionando y cambiando los servicios y el

personal a través del tiempo, viajes de campo y visitas guiadas, invitación de ayudantes de la

comunidad al salón de clases para explicar sus funciones y las herramientas que utiliza para

hacer su trabajo, juego dramático en los cuales los niños puedan personificar diferentes

ayudantes de la comunidad, presentar videos o lecturas sobre ayudantes de la comunidad en otros

lugares del mundo, etc.

Article: Touch the World: Realia for Social Studies by Alicia Van Borssum

Add a list of all the Realia that you have at home or school. This article highlights the importance of using artifacts and hands-on activities to teach social

studies for ESOL. Realia is a fundamental approach that states the effectiveness of using hands-

on strategies and multisensoy experiences to acquire meaningful learning. Realia are objects

from real life used in classroom instruction by educators to improve students' understanding of

other cultures and real life situations. A teacher often employs realia to strengthen students'

associations between words for everyday objects and the objects themselves. This approach

states that more comprehensive learning of abstract social studies concepts takes place when

children are exposed to multisensory expereinces that lead to observation, exploration,

manipulation inferences and description of objects and other artifacts.

Realia ( real things)I have at home or at school:

Phone, puppets, maps, balance beams, clothes, clocks, kitchen objects, dolls, broshures, tickets,

computer, cards, insects, coins, rocks, plants, pet, stamps, fruits, flashdrives, money bills, letters,

newspaper, boxes, pieces of furnitures, hats, tools, etc.

Article: Bringing Grandparents into Social Studies: A Unit of Study by Carole and Daniel Hittleman After reading this article, a) Write about the importance of including grandparents into social studies: b)Explain how the themes on grandparents can be covered and embedded within the ten thematic strands (see S.S. scope and sequence page ii) c)Also, explain how important is to evaluate and select authentic literature in terms of accuracy, authenticity, content and perspective and up to date thinking. d)Finally, create a thematic unit for your grade (birth - 2nd) following the examples presented in this article. *While writing your paper feel free to make connections by providing personal experiences of your own relationship with your grandparents, or your parents, future grandparents.

According to the article, it’s very important to include grandparents into their grandchildren’s

social studies learning. Grandparents are great sources of knowledge and experiences for their

gradchildren. Thorough grandparents children acquire a great deal of information related to their

family history, cultures and traditions. Involving grandparents in their grandchildren’s social

education provides them with meaningful and fuctional experiences that they enjoy and

remember all their lives.

The themes about grandparents can be convered and embeded within the following thematic

strands:

1- Culture: Grandparents are great sources of information about family customs, beliefs,

language and traditions. This topic can be included when working with topics related to

families, neigborhoods, communities, etc.

2- Time, continuity and change: Grandparents experiences are useful for grandchildren to

know how life has changed throughout the times and to compare life styles from the past and

present. The topics in which gradparents can be included are urban, suburban and rural

communities, families and communities, community geography, NYC overtime, neigborhoods,

etc.

3- People, places and environment: Grandparents provide valuable information about how

people has interacted with the environment they live and how this has affected them with the past

of the time. This topic can be included when working on topics related to community’s

geography, neighborhoods, families divesity, urban, suburban and rural communities, NYC over

time, etc.

4- Individual Development and Identity: Grandparents are able to provide udeful insights

about how people develop and change over time and the roots of their identity. This topic can be

included when working on topics related to self and others, families, neighborhoods,identity and

diversity, uniqueness, etc.

5-Individual groups and institutions: grandparents’ experiences can be useful for children to

learn how people used to be organized and how the institution worked and have developed over

time. This can be included when working on topics related to communities, rights, rules and

responsibilities, self and others K, 5.2f, etc.

6-Power, authority and governement: Grandparents are one the the greatest role models of

authority in children’s lives.They are seen as very respected members within the family and can

provide valuable information of how power, authority and goverment have impacted their lives

and how have changed over time in their culture, families and today’s society. This can be

included when working on topics related to the community, rights, rules, and

responsibilities,governement, etc.

7- Production, distribution, and consumption: Grandparents are valuable sources for teaching

grand children about their needs, wants and resources and how they dealt to obtained the goods

and services they needed to survive long time ago. This topic can be included when working on

themes related to families, comunities, self and others, urban, suburban, and rural comunities,

etc.

8-Science, Technology and Society: Through interaction with grandparents children learn

useful information of how science, technology and society was long time ago. They can share

artifacts used long time ago, stories, experiences and struggles they went through due to the lack

of resources and technology that we have in present times. This can be included when working

on content related to urban, suburban, and rural comunities, NYC over time, families now and

long ago, families and communities, etc.

9-Global Connections: Grandaparents can provide children with a variety of information

regarding their diverse cultures and how they dealt with politics, economics long ago, which can

be compared and connected to other’s cultures as well. This can be included when working on

topics related to self and others, diversity, community’s geography, families and communities,

rights, rules and responsibilities, etc.

10-Civil ideals and practices: Grandaparents are valuable sources of information for children to

learn the evolution and development of civic ideals and practices in their own cultures and

compare it to the new culture acquired. This topic can be included when working on contents

related to rights, rules and responsibilities, the community, etc.

It’s very important for educators to make a careful selection of authentic literature in terms of

accuracy, authenticity, content and perspective, and up to date thinking. These factors should be

taken into account when expossing children to different materials to teach them social studies.

Educators have to make sure that the information provided can be proven as authentic, true and

accurate. Since some literature might ommit important information necessary for children to

compare with their own lives, they might become a misrepresentation of what we want them to

learn. For instance, they might mislead the message we want to transmit to our children. In

addition, the content should be aligned with the preestablished learning standards for the grade

being taught. Since perspective about a particular topic changes over time, educators have to

make sure that the materials selected are still aligned with the current conceptions. Likewise, the

style, format, illustration and organization of the materials must be appropriate for the children

and intended purpose of such materials.

Regarding my personal experience with grandparents, since I was a child, I have acquired

valuable information from my grandmother. She shared great stories about her life during her

childhood and youth. I learned about economics, politics and family culture and how these have

changed over time. I learned to appreciate the resources I had because I understood the struggles

she went through long time ago. I had the opportunity to compare and contrast society and

family life long time ago and in present times, and valorize many aspects of both periods of

times. Thematic Unit: Through interaction with grandparents children learn about their family past and present culture.

Grade: 1st-2nd grade

Content: Geography, economics, social

Concepts: Diversity, identity, traditions, change

Literature: Something from Nothing by phoebe Gilman

Literature Response: a)Infering about and creating the story that the child in the

reading was going to write about. b)Designing a web graphic organizer highlighting the different elements of their culture that

they learned from their grandparents.

Literature Strategies: understanding how sensory images are created in descriptive passages.

Technology used: web graphic organizers cliparts, pictures, computers

Article: Developmentally Appropriate Map Skills Instruction by George W. Maxim In this article the author states that, "Map skills instruction should begin with experiences that help develop fundamental background knowledge about the world".

a) Think of a lesson that will help students learn about map skills. What books, kinds of maps would you use for this lesson? b) What activities, meaningful experiences, or projects the students will work on? c) Which standards address this big idea? Don't forget to incorporate Maxim's ideas on how to teach "young geographers"

Taking into account the guidelines suggested by the author, I would plan a lesson for 2nd grade

children about the neigborhood. The standards adressed are People, Places and Environment, and

Community’s Geography.

I will start my lesson by exploring children’s prior knowledges about the different places they know in

their neigborhood. I will use a the book “ Me On The MAP” to show children example of how we can

represent different spaces through a map. I will explore with children places they usually go in their

neighborhood and will take them for a walk around it. As we walk around, I will ask questions about the

places they see. After, they will design a 3D model of the places observed. Children will work in pairs to

build their models and as they work on it, I will ask them to explain the features they are representing in

their models. I will explain to children that their models can be represented in a flat surface as well, and

together we will represent the different places with simbols and shapes in a flat surface(carboard). As an

extensión of this lesson, children will design a map of their room in a flat surface. For the following

lesson, I will bring maps of the city transportation system to analyze with children the routes follow by

the trains and to locate important streets and places. As a closing Project, children will design a broshure

with a map highlighting the different places of the community using different simbols and drawings.

Articles: “Once upon Genocide: Columbus in children’s literature” and “Columbus and Native Issues in the Elementary Classroom.” After reading, “Once upon a Genocide: Columbus in children’s literature” and “Columbus and Native Issues in the Elementary Classroom” :

a) Explain the important facts presented in both articles and how your perspective of Christopher Columbus has changed, if so. If not give your strong reasons and facts. b) From now on think about and explain how you would teach about Christopher Columbus and the Discovery of America. c) What kind of literature (books, authors, documentaries, movies, etc) would you use? d) What kind of activities (learning experiences) would be provided? e) Now make a connection with “Thanksgiving Celebration" and explain how you would also teach children about the Pilgrims and the Native Americans upon the arrivals of the Europeans settlers.

In the article Columbus and Native Issues in the Elementary Classroom, the authors state the

importance of educating young children to recognize stereotype tendencies behind many social topics

presented in the books they read and to appreciate the contribution of all cultures equally. They point

out that children must be exposed to different literature that portrait the truth of the social and

historical topics about the Americas to avoid stereotypes and misconceptions about different cultures

and practices. Likewise, educators are encouraged to be knowledgeable about the history of native

people and other historical topics to provide children with authentic and meaningful activities and

information that will help them develop a variety of thinking skills such as inference, analysis,

research problem solving and critical thinking about the social and historical issues. The authors

recommend teachers besides selecting unbiased literature for their children, to promote parental

involvement to address this issue. They highlight the importance of exploring children’s prior

knowledge to detect stereotypical misconceptions c and practices. In addition, they recommend

inviting native people from the community to talk about their culture and practices.

Bill Bigelow, in his article Once Upon a Genocide points out that “children’s biographies of

Christopher Columbus function as primers on racism and colonialism.” The author states that these

types of literature teach children to be passive learners accepting oppression and violation to rights as

an acceptable common action throughout the human history. The author also highlights that these

books teach children to accept passively racist attitudes and inhibit them from developing democratic

and multicultural attitudes. It claims that Columbus is portrayed as good man but doesn’t encourage

children to think critically about the real facts behind the history.

As an educator I will use literature that gives children opportunity to think critically and analyze

the situation from different points of view. I will promote class discussions to help children think and

ask questions that are not addressed in these books. I will analyze different sources such videos, field

trips to museums, documental, books, biographies, etc, to find information about the social, political

situation and reality of Columbus’s times for children to have an idea of what really happened.

Regarding teaching about Thanksgiving, I will introduce the topic with a class discussion about the

reasons why people have to move from their places looking for better life. I will use different books

and literature to show children how people lived and why they moved from their places. I will

encourage children to think about how people would feel with they are forced to leave their homes

and properties. I will provide them with real life situation and ask them to say how they would feel if

they are forced to do so. Some of the activities I will implement in my class are role playing, reading,

videos, field trips, ect.

Article: “Learning language and learning History”by Mary Schleppegrell.

This article explains the importance of using grade-level content to teach History to ELLs. The authors point out that

since “History is primarily construed through language; and for ELLs learn the content, they need to learn strategies

to decode the language embedded in the textbooks. Teachers are encouraged to use grade-level instructional

materials with ELLs to make their learning less difficult. Some of the activities and strategies recommended for

educators help ELLs to read and write in the content areas are:

• Conducting Pre-reading: setting purpose for reading by asking key questions, previewing the text, chapter,

• Have students skim and take notes

• Implementing scaffolding strategies

• Teach students functional analysis of text

• Decoding unfamiliar words/texts

• Using cloze passages to add the missing information

The functional analysis will allow ELLS to understand content by understanding form and meanings are presented

in the history textbooks. According to the authors students need to learn what signals the 5 W’s ( what, when ,

who,…) to improve their reading skills. The following strategy is follow to develop a functional language analysis:

1- Identifying the different kinds of verbs used in writing

2- Kinds of power relations between participants in the events

3- Presentation of points of view

4- Organization of texts.

Steps:

a) Identify the kind of information provided by categorizing verbs into action verbs, saying verbs (expressed,

said,.. feelings, verbs, relating verbs( is , have).

b) Learn meaning of the verbs and categorize them: (action, relating, thinking, feeling and thinking and

saying). Students need to use dictionaries for this task.

c) Encourage students to discuss questions using the 5 W’s

* Action verbs help to describe events.

*relating verbs provide background information or descriptions.

d) Identify participants. This is provided by the nous included in the events.

As a bilingual educator I consider these strategies very useful to teach academic content. I will use it to help students

comprehend the material when necessary. These strategies can be applied to any content area besides History. I

agree that teachers need always use grade-level materials to avoid ELLs fall behind the rest of the proficient English

language speakers.

Article: “Ciclos Tematicos by katiuska Salmon

Este artículo esta relacionado a los ciclos tematicos. Los define como unidades de estudio

centradas en el estudiante como protagonistas activos principales del proceso ensenanza-

aprendizaje. Estan basado en el aprendizaje significativo y cooperativo donde los ninos aprenden

de acuerdo a sus intereses y estilos diferentes de aprendizaje. En este enfoque el maestro tiene el

role de guía y observador del desarrollo del estudiante. Este enfoque resalta la importancia del

juego y el uso del lenguaje como herramientas esenciales para aprender. La autora explica que

los ciclos tematicos promueven pensamiento critico y exploracion del medio para buscar

respuestas a las preguntas de los estudiantes. Reconoce que los ninos parten de experiencias

previas para construir nuevos conocimientos. Estos utilizan el lenguaje, la escritura, lectura y

demas areas del saber como vehiculos para aprender cosas del mundo. La autora enfatiza la

importancia del maestro como observador de las necesidades de aprendizaje del niño y guía para

proveer demostraciones de las funciones del lenguaje y otros sistemas necesarios para el

aprendizaje. Puntualiza ademas el factor social como elemento esencial en el desarrollo del

lenguaje. La valoracion individual y la motivacion son reconocidos como factores basicos de una

educacion efectiva basadas en los ciclos tematicos. Estos promueven que los ninos se apropien

de su aprendizaje y exploren su medio social y natural.

Como educadora considero de gran importancia la implemetacion de los ciclos tematicos como

ejes del aprendizaje. El aprendizaje significativo y cooperativo es una clave para que los ninos se

interecen y construyan su propio conocimiento. El ambiente de aprendizaje es de gran

importancia, ya que este determina la actitud de los ninos hacia la ensenanza, y en consecuencia

en el rendimiento.

Les son Plans

For the next five hours of fieldwork you will have to develop a thematic unit following the scope and sequence and the common core learning standards:

1. Explaining why you chose the grade and themes.

2. Then you will have to teach the lesson to a group of students or whole class and write a reflection for each lesson.

               

       

Thema t i c Uni t : Diversity and Identity  

   

This thematic unit includes topics related to cultural and physical differences, nationalities, families and uniqueness. The objective of this unit is to help children develop appreciation for their cultures, talents, heritage and their individual differences that make them unique. It also addressed topics related to mutual respect and appreciation for other’s culture and physical differences. Children will be exposed to different meaningful experiences related to their own lives. I chose this topic because the population of students that I will teach belongs to different cultural backgrounds, and I consider these topics extremely relevant to their lives. The lessons included in this unit are: We All are Unique, Different People Share Different Cultures, Extraordinary Friends, Different families, and I Love My Hair.

             

Unit  Topic:  Diversity        &  Identity  Lesson  I:  We  All  Are  Unique  

Lesson  Plan:    We  All  Are  Unique   Teacher:     Grade:  Kindergarten  Common  Core  Standards  Addressed:    Reading:      

• K.1-­‐With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  ask  and  answer  questions  about  details  in  a  text.  

• K.3  –  With  prompting  and  support,  identify  character,  settings  and  major  events  in  a  story  

• K.9-­‐  With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  make  cultural  connection  to  texts  and  self    

• K-­‐  with  prompting  and  support  describe  the  connection  between  two  individuals,  events,  ideas  or  piece  of  information  I  a  text  

Language:  • K5.c  Identify  real  life  connections  between  words  and  their  use  • K.6  –  Use  words  and  phrases  acquired  in  conversations,  reading  and  being  

read  to,  and  responding  to  texts  Listening  and  Speaking    

• Describe  familiar  people,  places,  things  and  events  and  with  prompting  and  support  provide  additional  details  

• Participate  in  collaborative  conversations  with  diverse  partners  about  kindergarten  topics  and  texts  with  peers  and  adults  in  small  or  large  groups  

Social  Studies  Common  Core:  k.2.a  Each  person  is  unique  but  also  shares  common  characteristics  with  other  family,  school  and  community  members  

k.1.a    A  sense  of  self  is  developed  through  physical  and  cultural  characteristics  and  through  the  development  of  personal  likes,  dislikes,  talents,  and  skills.  

S.S.  Scope  and  Sequence:  Identity  and  Diversity:  

• People  are  diverse  1.1a  • People  are  unique  3.1d  

Unit  Goals:        

• At  the  end  of  the  unit  students  will  be  able  to  identify  some  ways  how  people  are  different  from  each  other  and  what  things  they  have  in  common    

• Students  will  recognize  and  show  appreciation  for  individual  differences    Content  Learning  Objectives:  

• The  students  will  be  able  to  identify  and  appreciate  physical  characteristics  that  differentiate  one  from  another    

Language  Learning  Objectives:      

• Children  will  be  able  use  the  vocabulary  learned  in  the  lesson  to  orally  describe  what  characteristics  make  them  unique        

Learning  Intentions:    Children  will  identify  and  develop  appreciation  for  individual  differences    Technology:    computer,  Smart-­‐board      

Students  will  engage  in:  

¨ Independent  practice  ¨ Small  group  work  ¨ Project  work  ¨ Other:________________  ¨  

 Partner  work  Whole  group    Centers  _______________  

Time   What  the  Teacher  will  do…   Vocabulary   Materials  __10_  min  

Motivation  (Review/Connections  to  Prior  Knowledge):  This  first  lesson  of  the  unit    is  designed  to  teach  about  physical  characteristics.  Since  God  made  us  each  unique,  no  two  people  look  

Shade,  hue,  tint,  tone,  cocoa,  tan,  almond  

Chart  paper,  pencils  mirrors,  Venn  diagram,  labeled  picture  of  different  types  of  

     

the  same.      

 I  will  introduce  the  lesson  playing  the  game  “Mirror,  mirror,  what  do  I  see?”  we  will  make  a  circle  and  each  child  will  take  a  turn  to  see  the  mirror  and  say  what  he/she  sees.  

I  will  explain  to  children  that  each  person  has  different  physical  characteristics  (i.e.  blond  hair,  brown  eyes,  tall,  short,  etc.).  Then  ask  t  two  students  to  stand  up  in  front  of  the  class  and  ask  what  is  “different”  about  these  students.  Student  responses  will  vary.  Write  students  responses  on  a  pre-­‐made  Venn  diagram.    Questions  –  What  is  the  same  in  these  children?  What  is  different?      Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  /learning  through  their  responses  and  engagement  in  the  conversation/activity  

“Have  you  ever”      

eyes,  hair,  skin,  hair,  nose,  mouth    Book:  Shades  of  People”  by    

_15__  min  

Procedure/Mini-­‐lesson:  I  will  have  children  look  at  the  cover  of  the  book  “Shades  of  People”    I  will  ask:  What  do  you  think  this  book  is  going  to  be  about?  Why?    Then,  I  will      start  reading  the  book.    While  reading  the  book,  I  will  ask  children  questions  about  the  pictures  they  see  and  will  guide  them  to  make  connections.      Questions  to  ask:    what  do  these  children  have  that  is  the  same/different?  Differentiation  –  I  will  do  a  book  walk  to  help  ELL  have  an  idea  of  what  the  book  will  be  bout  and  help  them  make  connections  before  starting  reading.  While  reading  the  book  I  will  write  the  new  vocabulary  found  in  the  book  and  will  draw  or  post  pictures  that  represent  each  word  or  idea.  Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  and  learning  through  their  participation  and  responses.  

   

_10_  min   Guided  Practice:    With  teacher’s  support,  the  children  will  work  with  a  chart  paper  to  trace  their  bodies.  They  will  use  mirrors  to  see  their  faces  while  drawing.  They  will  add  eyes,  nose,  ears  mouth  and  hair  to  their  drawings.    

   

_10_  min   Practice  (Independent/Group):  The  children  will  label  their  body:  “This  is  me”___  Inside  they  will  draw/write  or  paste  pictures  of  things  that  make  them  unique  such  as  preferences,  special  talent,  etc.  They  will  complete  a  graphic  organizer  to  show  the  things  that  make  them  unique:    e.g.:I  have—I  can—I  like—I  am-­‐-­‐-­‐  

   

_15min   Closure/Summary/Sharing:  I  will  end  the  lesson  by  reviewing  with  children  key  concepts  and  ideas  learned  during  the  lesson.  I  will  ask  them  to  present  their  works  and  share  something  they  like  the  most  from  the  lesson.    Children  will  show  and  talk  about  their  graphic  organizers  and  drawings.    

   

  Homework  Assigned/Extension  Activities  I  ask  children  to  say  one  characteristic  that  make  them  unique,  then  we  will  sing  the  following  song  with  them  and  will  be  adding  other  characteristics  such  as  sing,  talk,  jump,  plays,  voice,  tc.  Tune:  London  Bridge  No  one  else  has  a  smile  like  mine,  Smile  like  mine,  smile  like  mine  No  one  else  has  a  smile  like  mine    

   

       

Unit  Topic:  Diversity  Lesson  II:  Different  people  Share  Same  Things  

Lesson  Plan:    Different  people  Share  Same  Things   Teacher:     Grade:  Kindergarten  Common  Core  Standards  Addressed:    Reading:      

• K.1-­‐With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  ask  and  answer  questions  about  details  in  a  text.  

• K.3  –  With  prompting  and  support,  identify  character,  settings  and  major  events  in  a  story  

• K.9-­‐  With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  make  cultural  connection  to  texts  and  self    

• K-­‐  with  prompting  and  support  describe  the  connection  between  two  individuals,  events,  ideas  or  piece  of  information  I  a  text  

Language:  • K5.c  Identify  real  life  connections  between  words  and  their  

use  • K.6  –  Use  words  and  phrases  acquired  in  conversations,  

reading  and  being  read  to,  and  responding  to  texts  Listening  and  Speaking    

• Describe  familiar  people,  places,  things  and  events  and  with  prompting  and  support  provide  additional  details  

• Participate  in  collaborative  conversations  with  diverse  partners  about  kindergarten  topics  and  texts  with  peers  and  adults  in  small  or  large  groups  

Social  Studies  Common  Core:  k.2.a  Each  person  is  unique  but  also  shares  common  characteristics  with  other  family,  school  and  community  members  

k.1.a    A  sense  of  self  is  developed  through  physical  and  cultural  characteristics  and  through  the  development  of  personal  likes,  dislikes,  talents,  and  skills.  

S.S.  Scope  and  Sequence:  Identity  and  Diversity:  

• All  people  share  common  characteristics  3.1  d  • People  are  diverse  1.1a  

 Unit  Goals:        

• At  the  end  of  the  unit  students  will  be  able  to  identify  some  ways  how  people  are  different  from  each  other  and  what  things  they  have  in  common    

• Students  will  recognize  and  show  appreciation  for  individual  differences    

Content  Learning  Objectives:    Students  will  be  able  to  identify  similarities  they  have  with  their  classmates  and  with  others  although  there  are  apparent  differences.    Language  Learning  Objectives:      

Students  will  engage  in:  ¨ Independent  practice  ¨ Small  group  work  ¨ Project  work  ¨ Other:________________  ¨  

 Partner  work  Whole  group    Centers  _______________  

• Children  will  be  able  to  orally  explain  how  they  are  different  from  other  children  and  what  things  they  have  in  common    

Learning  Intentions:    Children  will  identify  and  develop  appreciation  for  individual  differences      Technology:    computer,  smart  board,  projector.  Time   What  the  Teacher  will  do…   Vocabulary   Materials  10m  Motivation  (Review/Connections  to  Prior  Knowledge):  I  will  present  the  class  with  a  brown  egg  and  a  white  egg  in  bowls.  Allow  the  class  to  touch  the  egg  and  feel  the  weight  and  texture  of  the  egg.  Allow  for  plenty  of  exploration  time  with  the  two  eggs.  Student  responses  can  be  written  on  a  dry  erase  board.  When  the  class  has  observed  the  eggs  ask  them  what  they  think  the  eggs  will  look  like  on  the  inside.  Crack  the  eggs  open  into  the  bowls  and  explain  to  the  students  that,  “even  though  the  eggs  look  different  on  the  outside  they  are  the  same  as  you  and  me”.  Further  explanation  of  how  people  are  the  same  can  follow  this.  Questions:  How  do  you  think  the  egg  will  look  like  inside?  At  the  end,  have  the  students  dictate  responses  to  the  question,  “What  did  you  think  the  different  colored  eggs  look  like  on  the  inside  before  we  broke  them  open?”  What  did  we  learn  after  we  broke  the  egg?    

Joy,  grown,  wherever,  whoever,      Wides,  lands,  “just  like”,  remember,  hut,  heart,      

markers,  tape      scaffold  vocabulary  sheet,  Graded  white  egg,Graded  brown  egg  and  Two  bowls,  scavenger  hunter  worksheet,  children’s  body  drawings,  labeled  pictures,  book  “Whoever  You  are”  by    Mem  Fox,  Venn  diagram,  chart  paper,  markers,  construction  paper,  glue,  tape  

Link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cA0Gl_wjgRQ&feature=em-­‐share_video_user  

 

15min  Procedure/Mini-­‐lesson:  I  will  present  the  book  “Whoever  You  are”  by    Mem  Fox.  I  will  have  the  children  make  predictions  based  on  the  front  cover  illustration.  I  will  ask:  Who  is  the  man  in  the  blue  hat?  Who  are  the  children  he’s  carrying?  After,  I  will  take  a  brief  picture  walk  with  them  and  ask  what  kind  of  children  they  see,  who  looks  like  them,  where  they  live,  and  so  on.  Before  starting  the  reading  I  will  say:    “as  we  read  today,  I  want  you  think  about  what  makes  all  these  children  different  and  what  makes  them  the  same.”  While  I  read,  in  order  to  monitor  comprehension  I  will  ask:  who  do  you  think  the  man  in  the  blue  hat  is?  To  whom  is  he  talking?  What  kind  of  houses  do  these  children  live  in?  Why  do  think  the  little  boy  is  crying?  What  does  “love  is  the  same”  means.  As  they  respond  to  these  questions,  I  will  redirect  answers  and  restate  the  purpose  of  the  lesson  by  asking  children  to  think  about  how  different  they  all  are  and  what  makes  them  the  same.  I  will  write  the  answers  on  a  graphic  organizer  posted  on  the  board.  Questions:  What  makes  these  children  different/the  same?  How  a  child  from  China  will  feel  if  he  hurts  finger  or  toe?  How  about  you?    Differentiation:      *The  oral  presentation  will  be  accompanied  by  visuals  and  key  points  will  be  summarized  throughout  the  

   

lesson  visually  as  well  as  orally.  I  will  use  labeled  pictures  to  support  comprehension  of  new  concepts  introduced.  I  will  do  a  picture  walk  before  reading  the  book.  *Provide  ample  “waiting  time”  for  students  who  may  have  difficulty  answering  questions  or  sharing  their  thoughts.  *Students  there  is  any  student  who  is  identified  as  having  a  physical,  auditory,  or  visual  impairment  may  need  special  seating  arrangements  during  the  lesson  to  a  location  in  the  classroom  that  is  most  conducive  for  their  learning.    Also,  I  will  provide  proper  lighting,  equipment,  supports  and  materials  that  are  needed.  *  I  will  use  a  graphic  organizer  (Venn  diagram)  to  show  information  to  students  in  a  meaningful  way  so  that  they  can  more  easily  understand  the  concept  of  two  people/groups  having  both  differences  and  similarities.    Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  /learning  through  their  responses  and  engagement  in  the  conversation/activity  10MIN-­‐Guided  Practice:    With  support,  children  will  use  a  scavenger  hunt  worksheet  and  work  with  a  partner.  They  will  interview  each  other  to  find  out  what  things  they  have  in  common.  Then,  they  will  go  to  another  partner  to  do  the  same  thing  until  they  complete  the  sheet  with  their  names  Differentiation  –  Support  EELs,  I  will  use  labeled  pictures  to  accompany  the  worksheet.  Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  and  learning  through  their  participation  and  responses.  

   

 

10  MIN  Practice  (Independent/Group):  With  support,  students  will  work  with  the  drawings  of  the  body  from  a  previous  lesson.    They  will  select  the  partner  that  shares  more  (same)  things  with  them.  Inside  the  pictures  of  the  body  they  will  draw,  write  or  paste  picture  of  the  things  that  they  have  in  common  to  other  children  in  the  classroom.    For  doing  this  they  will  use  information  from  the  scavenger  hunter  worksheet.  

   

5  MIN-­‐Closure/Summary/Sharing:    I  will  end  the  lesson  by  reviewing  with  children  key  concepts  and  ideas  learned  during  the  lesson.  I  will  ask  them  to  present  their  works  and  share  something  they  like  the  most  from  the  lesson.  I  will  ask  children  to  answer  to  these  questions:  Questions:    How  are  you  similar  to  and  different  than  your  classmates?  What  do  you  think  would  happen  if  everyone  were  exactly  the  same?  Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  and  learning  through  their  participation  and  responses  to  these  questions.  

   

Homework  Assigned/Extension  Activities    Children  will  complete  a  pre-­‐designed  Venn  Diagram  in  which  they  will  draw,  paste  pictures  or  write  characteristics  they  have  in  common  to  and  different  from  a  family  members  or  friends.  

   

     

Unit  Topic:  Diversity  and  Identity  Lesson  III:  I  Love  My  Hair”  

 

Lesson  Plan:    We  All  Are  Unique  part  2   Teacher:     Grade:  Kindergarten  Common  Core  Standards  Addressed:    Reading:      

• K.1-­‐With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  ask  and  answer  questions  about  details  in  a  text.  

• K.3  –  With  prompting  and  support,  identify  character,  settings  and  major  events  in  a  story  

• K.9-­‐  With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  make  cultural  connection  to  texts  and  self    

• K-­‐  with  prompting  and  support  describe  the  connection  between  two  individuals,  events,  ideas  or  piece  of  information  I  a  text  

Language:  • K5.c  Identify  real  life  connections  between  words  and  their  use  • K.6  –  Use  words  and  phrases  acquired  in  conversations,  reading  and  being  

read  to,  and  responding  to  texts  Listening  and  Speaking    

• Describe  familiar  people,  places,  things  and  events  and  with  prompting  and  support  provide  additional  details  

• Participate  in  collaborative  conversations  with  diverse  partners  about  kindergarten  topics  and  texts  with  peers  and  adults  in  small  or  large  groups  

Social  Studies  Common  Core:  k.2.a  Each  person  is  unique  but  also  shares  common  characteristics  with  other  family,  school  and  community  members  

K.1.a  A  sense  of  self  is  developed  through  physical  and  cultural  characteristics  and  through  the  development  of  personal  likes,  dislikes,  talents,  and  skills.  

S.S.  Scope  and  Sequence:  Identity  and  Diversity:  

• People  are  diverse  1.1a  • People  are  unique  3.1d  

Unit  Goals:      • At  the  end  of  the  unit  students  will  be  able  to  identify  some  ways  how  

people  are  different  from  each  other  and  what  things  they  have  in  common    

• Students  will  recognize  and  show  appreciation  for  individual  differences    Content  Learning  Objectives:  

• The  students  will  be  able  to  identify  and  appreciate  physical  characteristics  that  differentiate  one  from  another    

Language  Learning  Objectives:      

• Children  will  be  able  use  the  vocabulary  learned  in  the  lesson  to  orally  describe  what  characteristics  make  them  unique        

Learning  Intentions:    Children  will  identify  and  develop  appreciation  for  individual  differences  and  talents  that  make  them  unique.    Technology:    computer,  Smart-­‐board,  online  book:  “I  Love  my  Hair  “,  Internet  connection,    

Students  will  engage  in:  

¨ Independent  practice  ¨ Small  group  work  ¨ Project  work  ¨ Other:________________  ¨  

 Partner  work  Whole  group    Centers  _______________  

 

Time   What  the  Teacher  will  do…   Vocabulary   Materials  __10_  min  

Motivation  (Review/Connections  to  Prior  Knowledge):  This  2nd  lesson  of  the  unit  is  designed  to  teach  about  physical  characteristics.    

 I  will  introduce  the  lesson  showing  pictures  of  children  from  different  cultures  (on  the  smart  board).  I  will  ask  children  about  what  they  see  and  how  these  children  are  alike  and  different.  

 I  will  write  their  responses  on  the  board  with  pictures  (e.g.  if  they  say  different  eyes  color,  I  will  write  the  word  eyes  and  port  a  picture  of  eyes).  

I  will  ask  children  to  recall  from  previous  lesson  characteristics  that  make  each  person  has  different  from  each  other:  (i.e.  blond  hair,  brown  eyes,  tall,  short,  etc.).      Then,  I  will  tell  children  that  today  we  will  learn  how  a  girl  learn  to  love  and  used  her  unique  hair  style  to  have  fun.  Questions  –  What  is  the  same  in  these  children?  What  is  different?    Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  /learning  through  their  responses  and  engagement  in  the  conversation/activities.  

Comb  Afro    Style  Hairstyle  Braid  Bun  Ponytail  Shape  up      

Construction  paper,  gluesticks,  magazines,  newspapers,  scissors,  pictures,        Online  book:  I  Love  My  Hair  by  Natasha  Tarpley    

_15__  min  

Procedure/Mini-­‐lesson:  I  will  have  children  look  at  the  cover  of  book  “I  Love  my  Hair”  and  I  will  ask:  What  is  happening  in  this  picture?  What  is  the  woman  doing  to  the  child?  I  will  show  another  picture  where  the  child  is  crying  and  will  ask:  why  do  you  think  the  child  is  crying?  Then,  I  will  start  playing  the  online  book.  I  will  stop  after  each  page  to  ask  questions  to  the  children  about  the  pictures  in  the  book.    Then,  I  will      start  reading  the  book.    While  reading  the  book,  I  will  ask  children  questions  about  the  pictures  they  see  and  will  guide  them  to  make  connections.      Differentiation  The  online  version  will  provide  an  effective  visual  support.  In  addition  I  will  repeat  information  and  write  key  points  on  the  board  as  we  discuss  the  reading.  While  reading  the  story,  I  will  write  the  new  vocabulary  found  in  the  and  draw  or  post  pictures  that  represent  each  word  or  idea.    Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  and  learning  through  their  participation  and  responses.  

   

_10_  min   Guided  Practice:    With  teacher’s  support,  the  children  will  make  a  collage  using  pictures  from  magazines  or  newspapers  to  show  different  hair  styles.  I  will  make  a  list  of  different  hairstyle  on  the  board.  

   

_10_  min   Practice  (Independent/Group):  The  children  draw  a  self-­‐portrait  showing  their  favorite  hairstyle.  They  will  label  their  pictures  and  will  write  why  this  is  the  favorite  hairstyle.  

   

_15min   Closure/Summary/Sharing:  I  will  end  the  lesson  by  reviewing  with  children  key  concepts  and  ideas  learned  during  the  lesson.  I  will  ask  them  to  present  their  works  and  share  something  they  like  the  most  from  the  lesson.    

   

       

Unit  Topic:  Diversity  Lesson  IV:  Extraordinary  Friends    

Children  will  show  and  talk  about  their  portrait  and  hair  styles.    

  Homework  Assigned/Extension  Activities    I  will  ask  children  to  draw  pictures  of  a  classmate  with  different  hair  style  and  to  say  one  thing  why  this  is  a  great  hairstyle.  I  will  post  their  work  on  a  display  board  labeled  as    “  Our  favorite  hairstyle.”    

   

Lesson  Plan:    We  All  Are  Unique   Teacher:     Grade:  Kindergarten  Common  Core  Standards  Addressed:    Reading:      

• K.1-­‐With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  ask  and  answer  questions  about  details  in  a  text.  

• K.3  –  With  prompting  and  support,  identify  character,  settings  and  major  events  in  a  story  

• K.9-­‐  With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  make  cultural  connection  to  texts  and  self    

• K-­‐  with  prompting  and  support  describe  the  connection  between  two  individuals,  events,  ideas  or  piece  of  information  I  a  text  

Language:  • K5.c  Identify  real  life  connections  between  words  and  

their  use  • K.6  –  Use  words  and  phrases  acquired  in  conversations,  

reading  and  being  read  to,  and  responding  to  texts  Listening  and  Speaking    

• Describe  familiar  people,  places,  things  and  events  and  with  prompting  and  support  provide  additional  details  

• Participate  in  collaborative  conversations  with  diverse  partners  about  kindergarten  topics  and  texts  with  peers  and  adults  in  small  or  large  groups  

Social  Studies  Common  Core:  k.2.a  Each  person  is  unique  but  also  shares  common  characteristics  with  other  family,  school  and  community  members  

k.1.a    A  sense  of  self  is  developed  through  physical  and  cultural  characteristics  and  through  the  development  of  personal  likes,  dislikes,  talents,  and  skills.  

S.S.  Scope  and  Sequence:  Identity  and  Diversity:  

• People  are  diverse  1.1a  • People  are  unique  3.1d  • All  People  share  common  characteristics  

Unit  Goals:        

• At  the  end  of  the  unit  students  will  be  able  to  identify  some  ways  how  people  are  different  from  each  other  and  what  things  they  have  in  common    

• Students  will  recognize  and  show  appreciation  for  individual  differences  

Students  will  engage  in:  ¨ Independent  practice  ¨ Small  group  work  ¨ Project  work  ¨ Other:  ________________  ¨  

 Partner  work  Whole  group    Centers  _______________  

 Content  Learning  Objectives:  

• Students  will  be  able  to  identify  people  with  disabilities  and  show  respect  and  appreciation  for  their  capabilities  and  talents  

• Students  will  recognize  that  although  people  have  physical  differences,  they  still  share  common  characteristics      

Language  Learning  Objectives:    • Children  will  be  able  use  the  vocabulary  learned  in  

the  lesson  to  orally  explain      

Learning  Intentions:    The  children  will  be  able  to  recognize  differences  and  similarities  in  people's  appearances  and  abilities.  The  children  will  each  assume  the  role  of  a  person  with  a  disability  while  participating  in  a  cooperative  activity.  Technology:    computer,  Smart-­‐board      Time   What  the  Teacher  will  do…   Vocabulary   Materials  __10_  min  

Motivation  (Review/Connections  to  Prior  Knowledge):  Questions  –    I  will  start  the  lesson  by  show  the  class  a  bowl  of  different  kinds  of  fruit  (apple,  banana,  grapes,  and  an  orange.).  I  will  ask  the  students  what  is  different  and  what  is  similar  about  the  fruits.    I  will  put  their  responses  on  the  fruit  chart  to  show  the  categories  that  are  different  (size,  shape,  color)  and  the  same  (taste,  type  of  food)  about  the  fruits.2)  Ask  the  students  to  think  of  something  that  is  different  about  everyone  in  the  class  (example:  all  live  in  different  houses)  and  something  that  is  similar  (all  go  to  the  same  school).  Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  /learning  through  their  responses  and  engagement  in  the  conversation/activity  

  Venn  diagram,  labeled  picture,    book,  A  Rainbow  of  Friends,  

Wheelchair,  blindfold  

_15__  min  

Procedure/Mini-­‐lesson:    Show  the  children  the  cover  of  the  book  and  ask  them  to  tell  you  about  the  children  that  are  illustrated.  If  the  child  in  the  wheelchair  is  not  mentioned  by  one  of  the  children,  bring  it  to  their  attention.  Ask  the  children  if  they  know  anyone  with  a  disability.  Make  a  KWL  chart  to  see  what  they  know  about  physical  differences,  what  they  want  to  find  out,  and  what  they  learned  during  the  lesson.  

Then,  read  the  book,  A  Rainbow  of  Friends,  as  a  springboard  into  the  lesson.  Revisit  the  book  to  review  the  pictures.  

Ask  the  children,  "Why  do  you  think  this  book  is  called  "A  Rainbow  of  Friends?"  Children's  responses  should  include  that  the  children  have  different  colors  of  skin,  hair,  eyes,  and  clothes.  

1. Show  the  page  where  the  boy  is  in  the  wheel  chair  playing  ball.  What  is  different  on  this  page?  

   

(The  boy  is  in  a  wheelchair.)  What  is  the  same  about  these  children?  (They  are  all  working  and  playing  together.).  Continue  reading  and  show  the  page  in  the  book  where  a  blind  boy  with  a  Seeing  Eye  dog  is  being  welcomed  by  a  friend.  Then:  

1. Tell  the  children  they  are  going  to  participate  in  an  activity  with  a  partner  to  experience  what  it  feels  like  when  you  can't  see  and  you  need  to  depend  on  someone  else  to  guide  you.    

2. Blindfold  one  of  the  children  and  have  a  partner  lead  him  safely  around  the  room.  Give  each  child  a  turn.  

1. Have  the  children  sit  in  the  circle  area.  Explain  the  similarity  between  the  role  they  played  as  a  guide  to  the  blindfolded  child  and  the  role  a  Seeing  Eye  dog  plays.  

Differentiation  –  While  reading  the  book  I  will  write  the  new  vocabulary  found  in  the  book  and  will  draw  or  post  pictures  that  represent  each  word  or  idea.  A  graphic  organizer  will  be  provided.  

Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  and  learning  through  their  participation  and  responses.  

_10_  min   Guided  Practice:    We  are  going  to  play  a  game  of  ball  like  the  children  in  the  book.  We  are  also  going  to  see  what  it  feels  like  to  play  ball  while  in  a  wheelchair.  

Divide  the  children  in  to  two  teams.  Tell  the  children  the  rules  for  the  game.  They  will  follow  these  rules:.    

• You  may  hit  the  ball  out  of  a  child's  hands,  but  you  may  not  hit  or  push  the  child.  

• Only  one  child  from  each  team  may  be  within  the  two  feet  perimeter  of  the  can  at  a  time.  

• The  children  will  take  turns  sitting  in  the  wheelchair  to  play  the  game.  Once  a  basket  is  scored,  a  different  child  sits  in  the  chair.  

• The  first  team  to  score  three  balls  in  the  can  wins.  

Then,  have  the  children  sit  in  the  circle  area  after  the  game  to  discuss  the  game  and  to  complete  the  KWL  chart.  

Questions?  "What  do  you  think  about  this  game?  How  did  it  feel  to  play  the  game  in  a  wheelchair?  

 

   

_10_  min   Practice  (Independent/Group):      With  teacher’s  support,  the  children  will  work  with  a  graphic  organizer  (Venn  diagram)  with  a  picture  of  a  child  with  disability.  They  will  draw,  paste  a  picture  or  write  things  they  and  the  child  with  disability  share  that  are  the  same.    

   

_15min   Closure/Summary/Sharing:    I  will  end  the  lesson  by  reviewing  with  children  key  concepts  and  ideas  learned  during  the  lesson.  I  will  ask  them  to  present  their  works  and  share  something  they  like  the  most  from  the  lesson.    Children  will  show  and  talk  about  their  graphic  organizers  and  drawings.    

   

  Homework  Assigned/Extension  Activities  I  will  plan  a  day  when  students  with  disabilities  from  another  class  or  school  will  get  together  with  the  class  for  a  recreational  activity  such  as  an  outdoor  picnic  and  some  games.    The  teachers  of  both  classes  will  pair  students  to  be  buddies  for  the  day  or  put  them  into  groups  so  that  students  can  get  a  chance  to  interact  and  get  to  know  each  other  as  well  as  to  play  together  and  develop  a  relationship.    In  this  way,  students  will  experience  firsthand  the  similarities  they  have  with  others  despite  differences:  particularly  disabilities  and  how  they  can  still  enjoy  spending  time  with  each  other.  

   

   

 

 

 

 

 

                                             

Unit  Topic:  Diversity  &  Identity  Lesson  V:  Different  Families  

Lesson  Plan:    We  All  Are  Unique   Teacher:     Grade:  Kindergarten  Common  Core  Standards  Addressed:    Reading:      

• K.1-­‐With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  ask  and  answer  questions  about  details  in  a  text.  

• K.3  –  With  prompting  and  support,  identify  character,  settings  and  major  events  in  a  story  

• K.9-­‐  With  prompting  and  support,  students  will  make  cultural  connection  to  texts  and  self    

• K-­‐  with  prompting  and  support  describe  the  connection  between  two  individuals,  events,  ideas  or  piece  of  information  I  a  text  

Language:  • K5.c  Identify  real  life  connections  between  words  and  

their  use  • K.6  –  Use  words  and  phrases  acquired  in  conversations,  

Students  will  engage  in:  ¨ Independent  practice  ¨ Small  group  work  ¨ Project  work  ¨ Other:  ________________  ¨  

 Partner  work  Whole  group    Centers  _______________  

reading  and  being  read  to,  and  responding  to  texts  Listening  and  Speaking    

• Describe  familiar  people,  places,  things  and  events  and  with  prompting  and  support  provide  additional  details  

• Participate  in  collaborative  conversations  with  diverse  partners  about  kindergarten  topics  and  texts  with  peers  and  adults  in  small  or  large  groups  

Social  Studies  Common  Core:  k.2.a  Each  person  is  unique  but  also  shares  common  characteristics  with  other  family,  school  and  community  members  

* 1.2a families exist in many different forms and structures in all communities and societies  S.S.  Scope  and  Sequence:  Identity  and  Diversity:  

• People  are  diverse  1.1a  • People  are  unique  3.1d  • All  People  share  common  characteristics  

Families are diverse 2.1c There are many different kinds of family structures 3.1a, 3.1d*Families can be found in communities around the world 2.1c Unit  Goals:        

• At  the  end  of  the  unit  students  will  be  able  to  identify  some  ways  how  families  are  different  from  each  other  and  what  things  they  have  in  common    

• Students  will  recognize  and  show  appreciation  for  culturaland  individual  differences  

 Content  Learning  Objectives:  

Students  will  be  able  to:  •  make  connections  to  different  types  of  families  in  the  classroom  •  create  a  “School  Family  Tree”  that  builds  on  the  diversity  of  the  students  in  the  classroom    

Language  Learning  Objectives:    • Children  will  be  able  use  the  vocabulary  learned  in  

the  lesson  to  orally  explain  how  people  from  other  cultures  are  alike  and  different.    

Learning  Intentions:    The  children  will  be  able  to  recognize  differences  and  similarities  in  people's  appearances  and  abilities.    Technology:    computer,  Smart-­‐board      Time   What  the  Teacher  will  do…   Vocabulary   Materials  __10_  min  

Motivation  (Review/Connections  to  Prior  Knowledge):  Questions  –    I  will  start  the  lesson  by  showing  the  class  pictures  of  different  families.    I  will  ask  the  students  what  is  different  and  what  is  similar  about  them.    I  will  write  their  responses  on  the  board. 2)  Ask  the  students  to  share  about  their  family  structure  (members)  and  what  activities  they  like  to  do  with  them.  Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  /learning  through  their  responses  and  engagement  in  the  conversation/activity  

Everyone, everywhere, “one another”, together, celebrate, aunts, uncle, brothers, sister, grandparents adopted, stepparents,  

Book  Families  by  Ann  Morris    

_15__  min  

Procedure/Mini-­‐lesson:    Show  the  children  the  cover  of  the  book  and  ask  them  to  tell  you  about  the  children  that  are  illustrated.  I  will  ask  them  to  identify  where  they  think  this  family  is  from  and  why.  I  will  write  their  responses  on  the  board.  

Then,  read  the  book,  Families.  As  I  go  page  by  page  I  will  ask  children  to  identify  where  the  families  are  from  and  who  are  the  members  of  each  family  presented  in  the  book.  I  will  ask  them  which  of  these  families  look  like  theirs.  I  will  identify  key  words  and  write  them  on  the  board.  I  will  explain  with  simple  examples  each  new  concept  introduced.  

Differentiation  –  While  reading  the  book  I  will  write  the  new  vocabulary  found  in  the  book  and  will  draw  or  post  pictures  that  represent  each  word  or  idea.  Assessment  –  I  will  assess  children’s  understanding  and  learning  through  their  participation  and  responses.  

Guided  Practice:  

I  will  ask  children  to  tell  words/phrases  to  describe  the  word  family.  I  will  write  their  answers  in  a  web  graphic  organizer.  They  will  complete  a  graphic  organizer  with  this  information.  Independent  Practice:  After,  I  will  provide  a  worksheet  with  a  tree  for  children  to  write  the  names  of  their  family  members  and  phrases  from  the  board  in  each  part  of  the  tree.  Closure:  Children  will  present  their  trees  to  the  class  during  circle  activity  at  the  end  of  the  lesson.  They  will  share  about  their  family  members  and  what  things  they  like  and  do.  

Extension  

Children  will  bring  pictures  of  their  families  and  will  be  posted  on  the  display  board.  They  will  learn  the  song  about  “la  familia”  in  Spanish.  

Assessment.\differentiated  assessment:  

Children  learning  will  be  assessed  through  their  engagement,  participation  and  presentation  of  their  projects.  There  will  be  oral  assessment  and  Witten  assessment  where  children  will  identify  by  pointing,  labeling  or  saying  the  name  of  the  family  members  requested.  

 

 

   

 

                                     

 

Reflection on the lesson:  My  Lesson  was  about  different  families  and  cultures  around  the  world.  This  lesson  was  very  important  

for  my  class  because  there  are  children  from  different  nationalities.  I  chose  this  topic  because  I  consider  

it’s  very  important  for  children  to  learn  about  their  cultures  and  to  develop  appreciation  other’s  cultures  

too.  My  objective  with  this  lesson  was  for  children  to  learn  more  about  their  family  cultures  and  to  and  

develop  pride  for  their  identity  and  heritage.    

 

         Throughout  the  lesson  the  children  were  able  to  identify  features  of  the  different  cultures  presented.  

They  have  a  lot  of  prior  knowledge  and  this  helped  me  introduce  new  concepts.  The  children  were  able  

to   identify   people,   music,   clothes,   and   pictures   related   to   Mexican,   Dominican,   Chinese   and   African  

cultures.   We   analyzed   different   aspects   of   each   culture   and   made   a   Venn   diagram   to   compare   and  

contrast  cultures.  The  children  were  grouped  and  chose  a  culture  to  compare  and  contrast.  They  drew  

pictures  and  wrote  words  related  to  the  culture  represented.  At  the  end  of  the  lesson  they  were  able  to  

present   their  diagram  and  explain   the  similarities  and  difference  between  the  cultures  chosen.  During  

the  independent  work,  they  had  to  draw  a  picture  representing  their  own  culture  and  write  sentences  

saying  what  things  from  their  culture  they  like  the  best.  This  was  a  great  lesson  were  all  children  were  

very   engaged   and   enjoyed   learning   about   their   own   cultures.   They  were   able   to   recognize   and   show  

appreciation  for  special  features  from  different  cultures.

   

Resear ch On His t o r i ca l Si t e s  

For  the  remaining  2  hrs  you  will  have  to  do  a  research  on  historical  sites,  museums,  centers,  etc.  Then  

visit  a  place  in  the  school  community  or  community  at  large:  Possible  Places;  Museum  of  Natural  

History,  Transit  Museum,  Native  American  Museum,  Van  Courtland  House  or  any  point  of  interest  in  the  

neighborhood,  the  community,  the  city.  Then  plan  an  integration  of  lessons  and  field  experience  to  

enhance  social  studies  concepts.    

Integra t i on o f Le s s on s and f i e l d Exper i enc e

Point of interest in the city:

Transit Museum and Intrepid Museum

 

Trans i t Museum and Intr e p i d Museum

Social Studies Content: Important Places and Buildings

Topics  that  can  be  integrated:      

• Transportation  today  and  long  time  ago  • How  changes  in  transportation  impacts  people’s  life  • Different  modes  of  transportation  

• How  the  different  modes  of  transportation  work  • Which  mode  of  transportation  to  use  in  specific  situations  

 Common  Core  Standards:      

• Local,  state,  and  national  landmarks  are  places  of  cultural  and  historic  significance  • A  variety  of  historical  sources  exist  to  inform  people  about  life  in  the  past,  including  

artifacts,  letters,  maps,  photographs  and  newspapers  1.9a  • Historical  sources  allow  students  to  make  comparison  between  the  past  and  the  present  

1.9c    Scope  and  Sequence  Content:      

• There  are  important  places  in  communities  (monuments,  parks,  Public  buildings,  and  places)  1.1a,  3.1c  

• Changes  in  communities  can  be  observed  and  recorded  1.4c,  2.2b  • Special  places/buildings  in  a  community  can  reveal  the  community’s  history  3.2a  

             

 

B ackground I n f o rma t i on : I n t r e p i d M useum

New  York  City’s  Intrepid  Sea,  Air  &  Space  Museum  Complex  is  a  dynamic,  interactive  and  educational  journey  for  all  ages.  The  museum’s  mission  is  to  honor  our  heroes,  educate  the  public  and  inspire  our  youth.  The  Intrepid  Sea,  Air  &  Space  Museum  is  the  only  museum  where  visitors  can  experience  a  legendary  aircraft  carrier,  the   first   space  shuttle,   the  world’s   fastest   jets,  and  a  Cold  War-­‐era  submarine.    Welcoming  more   than  one  million  visitors  a  year,  the  Museum  is  using  history  and  technology  to  inspire  and  advance  innovation  by  developing  the  next  generation  of  leaders  in  science,  technology,  engineering,  and  math.    The  Museum  was  founded  in  1982  with  the  acquisition  of  the  USS  Intrepid  aircraft  carrier,  now  a  National  Historic  Landmark,  which  served  tours  of  duty  in  World  War  II  and  Vietnam,  and  was  the  recovery  vessel  for  the  Gemini  and  Mercury  space  missions.    As   a   showcase   for   sea,   air   and   space   innovation—and   the   stories   of   human   triumph   that   they   represent—the  Museum  Complex  also  includes:  • Space  Shuttle  Pavilion:  The  home  of  Enterprise,  the  world’s  first  space  shuttle,  and  a  shining  example  of  American  

ingenuity  • USS   Growler:    The   world’s   oldest   existing   nuclear   missile-­‐carrying   submarine   and   the   only   American   diesel-­‐

powered  strategic  missile  submarine  open  to  the  public  • British  Airways  Concorde:    The  fastest  commercial  aircraft  to  ever  cross  the  Atlantic  Ocean  

• 27  authentically-­‐restored  aircraft:     Includes  the  Lockheed  A-­‐12  Blackbird,  the  world’s  fastest  military   jet  and  spy  plane;   propeller-­‐driven   planes   that   flew   in  World  War   II;    jets   that   flew   in   Vietnam;   and   helicopters   that  recovered  NASA  astronauts  

• An  18,000-­‐square-­‐foot  education  center  • Pier  86,  a  publicly-­‐accessible  pier  that  is  part  of  the  Hudson  River  Park  Trust  Intrepid  fulfills  its  mission  to  honor  our  heroes,  educate  the  public,  and  inspire  our  youth  by  engaging  visitors  of  all  ages  and  connecting  them  to  history  through  hands-­‐on  exploration  while  bridging  the  future  by  inspiring  innovation.  (source:  http://www.intrepidmuseum.org/About-­‐Us/About-­‐The-­‐Museum.aspx)  

Transit Museum: The  New  York  Transit  Museum,  one  of  the  city's   leading  cultural   institutions   is   the   largest  museum  in  

the  United  States  devoted  to  urban  public  transportation  history,  and  one  of  the  premier  institutions  of  

its   kind   in   the  world.   The  Museum   explores   the   development   of   the   greater   New   York  Metropolitan  

region   through   the   presentations   of   exhibitions,   tours,   educational   programs,   and  workshops   dealing  

with   the   cultural,   social,   and   technological   history   of   public   transportation.   Since   it's   inception  over   a  

quarter  century  ago,  the  Museum,  housed  in  a  historic  1936  IND  subway  station  in  Brooklyn  Heights,  has  

grown   in   scope   and   popularity.   As   custodian   and   interpreter   of   the   region's   extensive   public  

transportation  networks,  the  Museum  strives  to  share,  through  its  public  programs,  this  rich  and  vibrant  

history  with  local,  regional,  and  international  audiences.  

(Source:  http://www.mta.info/mta/museum/)  

 

 

 

Les son Int egra t i on : One of the many ways of how these two places can be integrated is to teach children how people

used transportation long time ago and how it has change over time. Also, we can analyze with

children the difference between different modes of transportation shown in both museums

(airplane, ship, buses, trains, etc.) and make graphic organizers to compare and contrast the

different types of transportations before and after. Also, to indicate which mode of transportation

should be used in specific situations and to analyze how people lived during these times.

Children will have the opportunity to go inside each of these modes of transportation and

appreciate the difference among them, learn how they work, what is the fastest, name of the main

parts of each, etc.

Exten s i on Act i v i t i e s :

As an extension in the classroom children can analyze different types of transportation in different places

and can design 3D models using different materials as they are able. At the end of the lesson, they can

have an exhibition or fair to present their projects.

P oin t s o f in t e r e s t in t h e c ommun i t y : Local Bank and Supermarket

Social Studies Content: Economics

Topics that can be integrated:

• Saving • Use of money • Cost • Bank • Decision making • Products • Family collaboration • Expenses

• Budge

Common core Standards: • People Make decision about the money they earn 1.13d • People and families work to earn money to purchase goods and services they need or

want 1.13c • Families and communities must make choices due to unlimited needs and wants and

scarce resources and these choices involve costs

Scope and Sequence Content: Community and Economics • People in communities work to earn money to provide for their needs 4.1a, 4.1c, 4.2 • People make decision about money 4.1a, 4.1b, 4.1c

Integration: I will schedule a field trip to a supermarket and to a local bank. These two places will be

integrated by developing sequential lessons to teach children about the importance of making

smart decisions when using money to satisfy the needs of the family. I will emphasize how

saving money can impact the family’s budget, where in the community family can keep their

money saved, and what people can do to save money. In order to integrate the supermarket, I will

explain to children the importance of making smart choices when buying food and how to avoid

unnecessary waste of money. I will explore with children the choices they have available in the

supermarket, how to select healthy and inexpensive goods.

Proj e c t s

• Field Work

• Social Studies Assignment: Children’s Literature Bibliography (10

points)

• Website Critic

• Research in Historical Sites: Integration of Lessons and field

Experience:

• Point of interest in the city:

• Individual Presentation ( In -Class)

Par t 1.

Read the McNair article and Boys and Books by McFann prior to your visit at the either the public library, the Lehman library or your school library in the children’s section. Investigate what kind of social studies literature is available in

English and Spanish. Write a 2- 3 page introduction explaining your findings and what these mean for you as a future

bilingual social studies teacher. Include the location of the library, and the characteristics of the community in which it

is located. Be as creative as you want. Must cite articles to support the investigation and findings.

Art i c l e Rev i ew and Re f l e c t i on

Titles: Boys and Books by Jane McFann and Representation of Authors and Illustrators of Color in School-Based Book Clubs

Jane McFann, in her article Boys and Books, presents the struggles faced by teachers to

encourage boys to read. According to this article, when compared to girls, boys are less

interested for reading and usually lag behind them academically ( McFann, 20). As noted by the

author, research on gender and literacy reveal that compared to girls boys read less, take longer

to learn to read, value less reading as an activity and tend to have more difficulty when dealing

with narrative and expository texts than girls. McFann confirms that according to a national

survey conducted to boys, 39% of them considered reading as a boring or no fun practice. (

McFann, 20).

In addition, some book writers point out that the main reasons for this lack of motivation is

the shortage of male readers role models in the boys’ life, deficit on the amount of books with

topics related to boys’ interests in the libraries, and the misrepresentation of male writers and

male teachers in the educational system. She also claims that more “males are needed as role

models for reading.” ( McFann, 21). She states the importance of male role models within family

members to encourage boys to value reading as a mean of entertainment and knowledge

acquisition.

This article also highlights some effective strategies suggested by the Massey Magazine to

encourage boys to read such as clear structured instruction, short burst of intense work, specific

goals, praise, had-on learning, and use of humor. They also encourage educator to organize boys’

readers clubs as a motivating practice for young readers. In addition, is recommended to teachers

to provide boys with a variety of materials that might be of their interest such as magazines,

informational texts, newspaper articles, graphic novels, comic books, books about hobbies,

sports, and things they might do or be interested in doing( McFann, 21). It’s also important when

selecting reading materials for children, to offer a variety of literature that represents their

diverse cultural and linguistic background in which boys, in this case, feel more identified with.

In the same direction, Jonda C. McNair in her article The Representation of Authors and

Illustrators of Color in School-Based Book Clubs recognizes the importance of providing

children with literature in which “they can find themselves and people like them in the books

they read and have read to them.”

On the other side, McNair states that Scholastic Book Club excludes African American

writers and Illustrators from their book order list, which implies a selective tradition within their

book clubs. This author points out that since this book clubs have a great impact on the libraries,

classrooms and homes, it’s crucial for educators to make sure that young children are exposed to

reading materials that help them “develop a positive and healthy sense of racial identity.”

According to this article, this selective tradition reveals that racism is still alive in our society

and even more; “many Americans perceive it as natural and ordinary instead of abnormal or

deviant”(McNair,195). As McNair points out, “this exclusion is present in children literature by

either omitting African American people completely or stereotyping them and their culture”

(McNair,195). McNair notes also that there is a substantial misrepresentation of Latin American,

Native American and Asian American writers and illustrators in their selections too

(McNair,197). The author concludes that in order to practice equity in our society, there should

be a proportionate representation of number of books written and illustrated by people of color.

After reading these two articles, as an educator I have assumed the responsibility to provide

my students with meaningful resources taking into account their cultural background, language,

gender, interests, individual differences, social-emotional and learning needs. I understand that

children learn important information since they are very young, and literature plays and

important role in the acquisition of this knowledge. After conducting a research in a local public

library to confirm the information provided by the authors, I could confirm some of the facts

presented in both articles. I conducted a fieldwork on Saturday afternoon and visited Mott Haven

Library, located in the South Bronx. This library is at the center of a community of African

Americans, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican and Central American families. When I entered

the library there was a group of about ten adults reading in the quiet reading area in the first

floor, while some young adults were at the computer lab station. When I went up to the second

floor, I noticed that there was only a group of three students (ages between 10-14) working on a

common table. There were no parents or instructors working with children or adults. When I

asked for the Social Studies area, they showed me several sets of books organized in 4

consecutive bookshelves. I realized that the books were not organized by topics, but there were

many sets of encyclopedias and other books related to famous African Americans. Also, I saw a

couple of books related to Latin Americans, Native Americans and Asian Americans. In

addition, I could appreciate a great variety of children books in Spanish, which reveal an interest

for providing these children with resources in their native language. Although there was material

available for each culture, there’s still a substantial difference on the amount of resources

available from each culture in comparison with the predominant literature from European

American authors. Regarding to boys’ literature, I saw several comic books and action books,

science fiction books and stories related to boys and topics of their interests. Since the

predominant population around Mott Haven library, is from African American background, I

could perceive that administrators are working to obtain the resources these children need.

However, I understand that in order to help these children becoming good readers, parental

involvement is crucial.

Some of the books I found interesting in this library are the following: El Vecindario de

Quinito by Ina Campiano, El Viaje en Tren by June Crebbin, Black-Stars book collection of

Famous African American, Asian American, Jewish American and Hispanic American, Journey

Around New York from A to Z by Martha and Heather Zscheck, Native American Tribes,

Pandemonium by Chris Wooding, The Ashly Brian Collection of African American Tales and

For Ever Friends by Caring Berger.

As a bilingual educator, I will use the library as a resource for obtaining books that best match

my students’ culture and preferences. I will expose my children to different types of literatures to

enrich my teaching and their learning. I will encourage parents to visit the library with their

children to choose books they can read with them, either in their native language or in the second

language. I will inform parents the importance of reading with and to their children, and how to

make good choice of reading materials that help them develop positive attitude and appreciation

for their culture and the others’.

Part 2. Book Summary guidelines

You are required to choose 10 children’s book in Spanish and English that you intend to use in your classroom. For each of children’s books you have to follow the is format

§ Title

§ Author § Publishing company § Age range for which the book is appropriate § Summary regarding the main idea § Explain why you have chosen the book § How you intend to use it in the classroom § CCLS § S.S. content objectives § Skills this book is appropriate for § Content and language standards addressed; language structure and vocabulary used; biases, if any.

                                 

Children’s  Bibliography:  Book  Summary      

   Book  

Whoever You are

Shades of People

Author   Mem Fox Illust:Lesley Staub

Photographs by Shelley Rotner

Publishing  company   San Diego :, Voyager Books :, Harcourt,, 2001, c1997 Holiday House, Incorporated, 2010

 Age  Range   K-2 Prek-K Summary   Despite the differences between people around the world,

there are similarities that join us together, such as pain, joy, and love.

This book is filled with wonderful photographs of happy, smiling, inquisitive, trusting, and adorable children—all with varying skin tones, hair colors and textures, and facial features.

Why  I  chose  it   The book addresses important topics included in the The book addresses important topics included in the standards and

standards and scope and sequence. It’s also available in both, English and Spanish

Easy language used and attractive pictures for children

scope and sequence. It portraits children from diverse cultures and backgrounds. It’s perfect to teach children about physical differences. Pictures are realistic and the language used is simple. The text is minimal, with approximately 3 to 10 words per page.

How  it  will  be  used   It will be used to introduce a topic about diversity: how different people from around the world share similar feelings, characteristics and needs

I will use the book to teach the lesson about uniqueness and physical differences. I will teach a mini-lesson by reading and analyzing the content of the book with the children.

S.S.  Content    

Identity and Diversity: • All people share common characteristics

3.1 d • People are diverse 1.1a

Identity and Diversity: • People are diverse 1.1a • People are unique 3.1d

Skills   Critical thinking Compare and contrast, identify, predict Analysis    

Critical thinking Compare and contrast Observation, Analysis

Language  objective    

Language Standards: • K5.c Identify real life connections between words

and their use • K.6 – Use words and phrases acquired in

conversations, reading and being read to, and responding to texts

• Objective: Children will be able to use vocabulary learned to explain what t things they share with others that are the same

• K5.c Identify real life connections between words and their use

• K.6 – Use words and phrases acquired in conversations, reading and being read to, and responding to texts

Objective: Children will be able to verbally use the vocabulary learned to describe their individual characteristics *Children will explain what makes them unique from others

Vocabulary    

Whoever, Wherever, Lands, Wide, Repetition of words and phrases “may be” “like you”, “Like your” “Whoever you are “Wherever you are” “the same”

Shade, hue, tint, tone, cocoa, tan, almond “ have you ever” Simple sentences

CCLS    

k.2.a Each person is unique but also shares common characteristics with other family, school and community members  

k.2.a Each person is unique but also shares common characteristics with other family, school and community members

Content  Objectives   Students will be able to identify similarities they have with their classmates and with others although there are apparent differences.

• Students will be able to identify and appreciate physical characteristics that differentiate one from another

   

Children’s  Bibliography:  Book  Summary    

   Book  

ABC of JOBS

I f I Were Pres ident

Author   Roger Priddy

By: Catherine Stier

Publishing  company   SCHOLASTIC Albert Whitman & Company.

 Age  Range   PK-2 K-2 Summary   This picture book is a selection of jobs people do in he

community. It describes who does each job and the skills and Children describe the basic duties of the U.S. President, from campaign

tools needed to do it. speeches to lighting the national Christmas tree. It creates a fine introduction to the office for younger children.

Why  I  chose  it   Pictures are attractive to children. It portraits people from different culture and gender

Cheery illustrations, simple text,

How  it  will  be  used   I will read it to introduce a lesson about different jobs I will read it to introduce a lesson about the President and his duties

S.S.  Content    

People in the communities have different jobs 3.1a, 5.3b, 5.3c

People elect officials to represent them 5.1a, 5.3e The President is the leader of the USA 5.2f

Skills    Compare and contrast, analysis, inference Analysis, inference, prediction, observation, synthesis,

Language  objective    

Children will use the vocabulary learned to describe different jobs

Children will use the vocabulary learned to describe s the president and his functions/role

Vocabulary    

Builder, pilot, chef, dentist, firefighter jockey, illustrator, gardener, nurse, mechanic, police office, teacher, vet, zoo keeper

Constitution, Mansion, cabinet, navy, marines, armed forces, congress, speech, leaders, limousine

CCLS    

K.11b People perform a variety of jobs in a community-to help meet other people’s needs and wants

K.6d the President of the US and the governor of the State of New York are important leaders with key responsibilities

Content  Objectives   Children will use the vocabulary learned to describe different types of jobs

Children will use the vocabulary learned to explain who is the president and what he does  

       

Children’s  Bibliography:  Book  Summary    

   Book  

Camiones de Bomberos/Fire Trucks

Swimmy

Author   Carol K Lindeen Leo Lionni

Publishing  company   Capstone Press 2006 Alfred A. Knopf, New York

 Age  Range   K-2 K-2

Summary   This book describe a fire truck, its parts and how it’s used by the firemen Deep in the sea lives a happy school of fish. Their watery world is full of wonders, but there is also danger, and the little fish are afraid to come out of hiding . . . until Swimmy comes along. Swimmy shows his friends how—with ingenuity and teamwork—they can overcome any danger.

Why  I  chose  it   It’s in English and Spanish It has big and colorful pictures and simple sentences

Suitable to promote team work and appreciation for individual differences

How  it  will  be  used   I will use it as a support in an enrichment/extension activity on community workers I will read it to introduce a lesson on diversity about appreciating individual differences

S.S.  Content    

There are people in the community who help in emergencies 4.1f Transportation 3.1a, 3.1d, 3.e

People have various talents and abilities 3.1d Students help eac other in many ways5.3c

Skills    Inference, analysis, identification   Analysis, inference, compare and contrast, problem solving, social skills,

Language  objective    

Children will use words learned to describe a fire truck , how is used and its parts Children will use vocabulary learned to explain how people with different skills can work as team Children will be able to explain why having individual differences is okay

Vocabulary      BIAS  

Camion, manguera, bomberos, hidrantes, cabina, Centellantes Hydrants, flashing lights, truck, hose, cab, Doesn’t portrait people from diverse background

Darting gulp, creatures medusa, , marvel rainbow jelly, lobster, seaweed, eel,

CCLS    

People use tools, science and technology to meet their needs 1.2c k.2.a Each person is unique but also shares common characteristics with other family, school and community members

Content  Objectives   Children will be able to describe a fire truck Children will be able to identify the parts of a fire truck and their function or use

Friendship Collaboration Appreciation of individual differences

                               

Children’s  Bibliography:  Book  Summary    

 Book  

Me on the Map

Fami l ies

Author   (Author), Annette Cable (Illustrator) Ann Morris Publishing  company   Dragonfly Books; Reprint edition (July 13,

1998)

HarperCollinsPublishers

 Age  Range   1-2 PK-2 Summary   Using the premise that simple drawings can be maps, the book

begins with crayon drawings of the floor plans of the girl's room and house. The concept becomes progressively more complex, as her horizons expand from home to street, to town, to state, to country, and finally to the world. Colorful illustrations show a composite of the entire area that is being charted on the facing page. On each successive page, the child points out her street, hometown, state, and country. The process then reverses as she

This book portraits all kind of families from different cultures and backgrounds. Some children live with their mothers and fathers. Others have stepparents or live with just one parent. Still others live with grandparents or foster parents who chose them specially. But all children all around the world, are part of families--big and small, loving, sharing, and caring for one another. This look at all kinds of families from all over the world helps young children begin to think about families they belong to, as it gives them a glimpse into

finds the U.S. on a world map and works back down the scale to her own room again. The text concludes with the statement that "...everybody has their own special place on the map.

the rich variety of world cultures.

Why  I  chose  it   This book is a great one to share in the classroom as an introduction to mapping.

I chose it because it presents colorful and attractive pictures for children. It represents different families with which children may be identified with. The language used is simple (one word per page mostly).

How  it  will  be  used   I will use it to introduce children the concept of mapping. I will use it to introduce a lesson about diverse families. I will read it during a mini-lesson and discuss its content with the children

S.S.  Content    

A school and community/neighborhood can be located on a map 3.1c

Families are diverse 2.1c There are many different kinds of family structures 3.1a, 3.1d Families can be found in communities around the world 2.1c

Skills   Observation, analysis, synthesis, compare and contrast, spatial, identify,

Identify, compare and contrast, observation, analysis, inference

Language  objective    

Children will be able to use the vocabulary learned to explain why maps are important to people and how they can be designed

Children will be able to use the vocabulary learn to describe different families Children will be able to use vocabulary learned to describe different kinds of families

Vocabulary    

Map, State, town, country, city, Everyone, everywhere, “one another”, together, celebrate, aunts, uncle, brothers, sister, grandparents adopted,

CCLS    

Familiar places, building, structures, and physical features can be located on a map of a neighborhood or community k.7d 1.6d maps are used to locate important places in the community, state and nation, such as capitals, hospitals, monuments, museums and cultural centers

1.2a families exist in many different forms and structures in all communities and societies

Content  Objectives   Children will be able to identify the features of map and design a map of their house, school and/or community

Children will be able to identify and differentiate vary kinds of families

       

Children’s  Bibliography:  Book  Summary    

   Book  

Author   Pamela Zagarenski P. D. Eastman

Publishing  company   Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; BRDBK BLG edition (August 15, 2001) Random House; 0 edition (March 12, 1982)

 Age  Range   PK-K K-1

Summary   The books presents pictures of animals showing different feelings Why  I  chose  it   Simple vocabulary suitable for young children, attractive

pictures, content can be used to addresses social emotional behavior

It’s in both English and Spanish, easy language, addresses friendship, team work, individual differences

How  it  will  be  used   I will use it to introduce a lesson about how to manage with feelings and needs when interacting with others.

I will use it to introduce a lesson about cooperation and friendship

S.S.  Content    

All people have needs and wants 4.1 a All people share common characteristics 3.1d

Friends 3.1a, 3.1d Student help each other in many ways 5.3c People have different talents and abilities 3.1d

Skills    Analysis,  compare  and  contrast,  observation,     Analysis, compare and contrast, inference Language  objective    

Children will be able to use the vocabulary learned to express their feelings and needs Children will be able to explain how to show their feelings and express their needs in an appropriate manner

Children will be able to explain how people wih different abilities can work as team Student hel each othr in many ways 5.3c

Vocabulary    

Happy, sad, cold, hungry, thirsty, ang Remolacha, spinacas,flauta, tuba, grande, pequeno

CCLS    

*Personal experiences shape our sense of self and help us understand our likes, dislikes, talents, skills, as well as our connection to others k.1 b *Each person is unique but also shares common characteristics with other families, schools and community members k.2a

Personal experiences shape our sense of self and help us understand our likes, dislikes, talents, skills, as well as our connection to others k.1 b

Content  Objectives   Children will learn how to express their feelings when interacting with others in an appropriate manner

Children will be able to recognize that disregarding individual differences they can work together for a common goal

                 

           

Individual Presentation

Chapter 1o

   

                   

Developing Citizenship:

Civics and Government

Chapter 10

Social Studies for Preschool/Primary Child

By Carol Seefeldt Sharon Castle & Renee C. Falconer

Presented by Arianny Savinon-Perez

EDS 739

Lehman College

Summer 2013

                 

What would children learn? Democratic and governance principles:

•  Responsibilities * Power and authority •  Rules * Roles •  Laws * Individuals and groups •  Participation * Values •  Fairness •  Democracy •  Rights

National Councils for the Social Studies Strands(1994) Related to Civics

Strand X, Civic Ideals and Practices:

!  “Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of the ideals, principles and practices of citizenship in a democratic republic”

!  K-4 Strand:

!  Children should know about democratic principles, government, the Constitution, world affairs, and citizenship

!  Children will acquire intellectual skills such as critical thinking within a democracy and participatory skills

!  Children should be exposed to questions and social issues related to:

!  Civic participation

!  Citizenship and role in the community, nation and world

!  Rights and responsibilities

Activities:

Helping set the classroom expectations, conducting service projects, participating in class meetings, making decisions to balance the needs for the wellbeing of individuals and the group, view implication of citizenship in other times places through stories, dramas, readings.

!  NCSS Strand VI, Power, Authority and Governance:

!  “ Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of how people create and change structures of power, authority and governance”

!  Children should be exposed to questions and issues related to:

!  What is power, how is earned, used and justified, who hold it, what forms does it take?

!  What is government, how is created, structured, changed and maintained?

!  How we keep government responsive to citizens’ needs and interests?

!  How can individual rights be protected?

!  Activities:

!  Children learn about fairness, rights, responsibility, rules and order through their relationship with others in specific contexts

!  They develop notion of power and authority as they interact with teachers

Why is it important to Develop Citizenship in Young Children?

!  Civic Educations is essential to the preservation and improvement of a democratic society

!  Young children learn from informal and formal experiences that start in the classroom

!  Children learn democratic values : foundation for complex civic understanding and participation

Democratic Values

!  Young children learn how to become members and build a democratic society

!  Children learn that they are valued, worthy and respected

!  Children learn their rights

!  Learn to give up their egocentrism

!  Learn to share and to balance their individual needs with the common good

!  Strategies to Manage a Democratic Group

!  Teachers share control

!  Children make decisions

!  Discipline is firm and consistently, but does not involve around force, coercion, embarrassment or threat

!  Freedom of thought and speech are fostered

!  Children are NEVER overwhelmed by the power of others

!  A sense of community is built

!  Teachers model respect for others

!  Teachers promote caring behaviors and respect from the children

What do Young Children Learn?

 

Civic Participation

The National Standards for Civics and Government states that:

By the end of Grade 4, children should have develop the following participation skills:

•  Influencing decisions by working with others

•  Clearly articulating interests and making them known to decision makers

•  Building coalitions, negotiating, compromising, and seeking consensus •  Managing conflicts

•  Young children start developing participation when they assume responsibility for

themselves

•  Children learn to participate in enabling other children with special needs to function fully in

the group

     

Special considerations When Teaching Civic Participation to Young Children

Goals to move toward:

!  Knowing that rules and laws are established by people

!  Realizing that rules and laws are always changing

!  Understanding that people have control over their own lives

!  Being empathetic, socially responsible, and considerate for others

Goals to move away from:

!  Perceiving rules as coming from “on high”

!  Thinking of rules as unchanging

!  Perceiving people as powerless before the law

!  Being egocentric, self-centered, and indifferent to others

 

Political Concepts

How do we teach political concepts to young children?

!  Political concepts are based on children’s own experiences and should be introduced informally

!  Use their knowledge about the President, Flag, Pledge Allegiance, songs to introduce political topics

!  Children understand authority through their experiences at home and in school –Connections-

Research about Children’s Political learning:

!  “Children become politically aware and talk about politic topics even when their range of knowledge is narrow…”

!  Children acquire information from different sources and experiences including home, school and media

!  “Young children involvement in politics begins early with strong emotional attachment to the President….”

!  Concepts of politics begin in early childhood, and the process of development is continual

!  Basic attachments and identifications are among the first concepts acquired

!  Children view political authority figures as positive, benevolent, and personal

!  Feelings and affection develop before knowledge

!  Not until early childhood can children distinguish between different political roles and basic factual information

 

Voting Voting is a challenging topic for young children because of their egocentric thinking: the concepts of winning and losing are difficult to accept

Strategies to Help Young Children Learn the Concept of Voting:

1.  Ask children to make choices and explain the reasons for their choices

2.  Let children experience the consequences of their choices

3.  Graph children’s choices so they can talk about them

4.  Give children two choices( in the group, decide to make a cake, then ask children to choose between 2 flavors, then graph their choices and analyze with them the outcomes)

“When we vote we accept that the majority will is followed”

After being exposed to many experiences with

voting, children will learn to follow the will of the

majority…

Children can vote to make decision about: Rules to cleanup time, games, taking turns for specific tasks, who will lead the group for the day, what service project they prefer to do, and so on.

Symbols of Democratic Government

!  Children understand that symbols stand for things

!  Through the use of a variety of symbols children begin to understand abstract political concepts in concrete terms: pictures, visuals, songs, stories, movements

!  The Flag

•  The flag serves as a visual symbol

•  Young children seem to recognize the importance of flags

•  Experiences with flags can help develop a sense of ownership which is he foundation of pride and loyalty

Activities that help children develop a concept of the flag: •  Design flags in the classroom •  Post various flags around the classroom •  Have children construct a booklet about the flags

•  Read stories about Betsy Ross and the history of the flag

•  Start research projects about the American flag •  Research project about other flags •  Sing song or read stories about flags •  Organize a flag display day

Ownership and Pride

School and Community

!  Children develop pride in being members of the school community

!  Children share in caring for the school, cleaning, decorating, participating in events, appreciating the job of people within their community and school

!  Children take neighborhood field trips and explore their community

!  They learn how people are interdependent and develop awareness of the place their school and neighborhood into the community

Nation

!  Teacher can provide young children with experiences that help them comprehend the sizes, magnificence and diversity of the nation

!  Using maps, identify, culture, features, habits, customs, and practices of people from different parts of the nation, comparing places within their community and nation and around the world