Date created: 04/22/2014 2:32 AM EDT ; Date modified: 04/22/2014 2:46 AM EDT VITAL INFORMATION Total Number of Students 24 Students Area(s) Students Live In Free/Reduced Lunch Ethnicity of Students English Language Learners Students with Special Needs Subject(s) Science, Social Studies Topic or Unit of Study The Gold Rush/ Hyrdaulic Mining Grade/Level Grade 4 KEY CONCEPTS & STANDARDS Big Idea & Essential Questions Students will demonstrate their understanding of hydraulic mining in an experiment where students will create their own mountain to simulate hydraulic mining that would have happened during the Gold Rush. Learning Outcome(s) -The Learner will demonstrate understandings of hydraulic mining by building a model of a mountain and simulate the act of hydraulic mining. -The learner will examine the effects on the environment that hydraulic mining causes. -The learner will examine why hydraulic mining was a popular way to get gold during the gold rush. -The learner will record observations of experiment. Summary SLudenLs wIII creuLe LIeIr own mounLuIn Lo sImuIuLe IydruuIIc mInIng LIuL wouId Iuve Iuppened durIng LIe GoId RusI. Standards CA- California K-12 Academic Content Standards Subject: History & Social Science Grade: Grade Four Area: California: A Changing StateStudents learn the story of their home state, unique in American history in terms of its vast and varied geography, its many waves of immigration beginning with pre-Columbian societies, its continuous diversity, economic energy, and rapid growth. In addition to the specific treatment of milestones in California history, students examine the state in the context of the rest of the nation, with an emphasis on the U.S. Constitu-tion and the relationship between state and federal government. Sub-Strand 4.3: Students explain the economic, social, and political life in California from the establishment of the Bear Flag Republic through the Mexican-American War, the Gold Rush, and the granting of statehood. Standard 3: Analyze the effects of the Gold Rush on settlements, daily life, politics, and the physi-cal environment (e.g., using biographies of John Sutter, Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, Louise Clapp). Subject: Science Grade: Grade Four Area: Earth Sciences Sub-Strand 5: Waves, wind, water, and ice shape and reshape Earths land surface. As a basis for understanding this concept: Standard c: Students know moving water erodes landforms, reshaping the land by taking it away from some places and depositing it as pebbles, sand, silt, and mud in other places (weathering, transport, and deposition). ASSESSMENTS Assessment/Rubrics Students will be informally assessed when the teacher walks around and checks for understanding while the groups are participating in this experiment. The students will also be assessed by looking at their science journals and what observations they made. Lastly, the Venn Diagram is another way to assess to see if students understand the difference of panning and hydraulic mining. Page 1 of 2 MATERIALS AND RESOURCES Instructional Materials & Technology (handouts, etc.) Moist Potting Soil Sand Gravel Small Painted Gold Pebbles Water Large Plastic Trays Toothpicks Clay Water Bottles with Sports Tops Journals and Pencils Markers Chart Paper *For extension activity IMPLEMENTATION Sequence of Activities Intro to the lesson: The teacher will show the class a gold pan and will open a discussion of pros and cons on panning for gold. Then the teacher will tell students they will be learning about a different kind of mining called hydraulic mining, and then simulate this in an experiment. Sequence of Lesson: 1. The teacher will pass out an article that describes hydraulic mining. 2. The class will participate in taking turns reading this article through. 3. After reading this article, the students will watch as the teacher demonstrates how the students will create the model that they will use for hydraulic mining. 4. The teacher will show students that they will build a moistened mountain with soil, sand, gravel and gold pebbles in a plastic tray. Then students will build things like houses, people, and animals with clay and toothpicks to place on the tray by the mountain the made. 5. After everything is set up, the groups will quirts streams of water from their squirt bottles onto their mountains. 6. After checking for understanding, the teacher will place students into groups of four students each. 7. The groups will collect their materials from the back table one by one and begin their experiment. 8. When students have completed their experiments they will clean their area and come back together whole class. 9.The class will discuss observations and what they think are advantages/ disadvantages of this type of mining. 10. Students will write and draw their observations in their journals. *As an extension to this activity, the class will create a Venn Diagram for gold and hydraulic mining. Grouping Strategies When students are reading the article, they will be whole class. Students will be in groups during the hydraulic mining experiement. Differentiated Instruction Students who need ectra assistance will be grouped with students who will be able to help them during the experiment. Students who need more of a challenge will create a venn diagram on their own. REFLECTIONS Prior to Lesson Post-Lesson Page 2 of 2