Shannon

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Urban History Teaching Portfolio

LESSON PLANS
Lesson Plan Context


This is a four-day study on communities using Letting Swift River Go by Jane
Yolen as a reference of study as well as Elizabeth Leads the Way by Tanya Lee Stone.
This second grade social studies lesson guide will guide learners in the changing
community in the past and how people have an influence on that change.

1. Day 1: How do Communities Use Their Land?
2. Day 2: How do Communities Change Over Time?
3. Day 3: How do People create History of a Community?
4. Day 4: How have Communities Solved Problems in the Past?

Lesson Plan 1 (Day 1)
Community Land Use - Adapted from Social Studies Alive, Lesson Guide

Time 20min

Materials
sticky notes, markers/pens, transparent for the overhead, Letting Swift River Go by
Jane Yolen, Social Studies Alive! Student Textbook

Benchmarks
2 G4.0.1 - Describe land use in the community (e.g., where people live, where
services are provided, where products are made).

Objective
Through activities and discussion, the learner will understand how suburbs are
created and interact with the community surrounding them.

Anticipatory Set

Teacher Directions Draw a circle on the board about 1 foot in diameter. Have
students take a sticky note and draw themselves on it. Then instruct students to
place their sticky note within the circle. (Note: Since the circle is too small for all the
pictures, expect some students to place their pictures outside the circle or on top of

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other pictures. Allow this) Discuss that in a city not all people can easily fit allows
for the creation of skyscrapers and for people to move outside the city to create the
suburbs.

Objective
Today we will learn how suburbs are created and what affects their growth.
Through movement activities and discussion we will interact with different types of
communities.

Instruction
1. On the board, draw a circle a foot in diameter.
2. Have students pass out sticky notes and draw their portrait on the paper.
3. In small groups, have students come up to the board and place their
sticky note inside the city
4. Debrief students by asking the following questions Area all the pictures
inside the circle? Why did some people place their pictures outside the
circle? Then segue into a discussion about suburbs. Explain that some
people live in communities that are close to the city but are less crowded.
5. Using transparencies provided, ask the following questions: What are the
houses like in a suburban community? What are the stores like? What are
the schools like? How are the houses, stores, and schools different from
those in an urban or a rural community?
6. Using the Social Studies Alive book read pages 14 and 15 aloud. For page
14, discuss what is found in suburban communities. For page 15, discuss
the advantages and disadvantages of living in a suburban community.
7. Have the students individually pick either rural, suburban or city and
draw their version of that type of community. Once this is done, have the
students share and identify each classmates community in which they
drew.
Thinking Levels
1. Knowledge: What is a suburb?
2. Application: Participate in small group and large group discussion
3. Analysis: In the reading portion of the lesson, disadvantages and
advantages will be discussed.
4. Synthesis: Draw and label a community and where things are located
5. Evaluation: Sharing their drawings with one another and describing the
type of community they drew.
Modeling

Using the board to model a community
Checking for Understanding

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Providing for students to be able to think about their own opinions and then
sharing their ideas with other students and involving themselves in
discussion. Teach some, walk around and check for understanding of
discussion.
Guided Practice
Provide for modeling at the beginning of the lesson. Guide students with
discussion questions to advance their thinking. They draw their own version
of a type of community and then participate in discussion with others to
discuss what makes their community they drew that type of community.
Closure
Ask summary questions such as what are characteristics of each type of
community. Others such as what did you learn?
Then teacher reflection of lesson write notes


Lesson Plan 2 (Day 2)
Change in Communities Over Time Adapted from MAISA

Time 30min

Materials
Letting Swift River Go by Jane Yolen, How Communities Change Worksheet (2A),
How my Local Community Changed Assessment (2B)

Benchmarks
2 - H2.0.4: Describe changes in the local community over time (e.g., types of
businesses, architecture and landscape, jobs, transportation,
population).

Objective
The learner will understand how and when a community changes.

Anticipatory Set
Ask the class what some things that the narrator in Letting Swift River Go did as a
child. Write responses on the board under the year, 1930s. Once you have obtained
enough responses, ask students what they do now for fun and put their responses
under the year 2014 (whatever year it is). Ask them to discuss the changes they see
between the two categories. Emphasize that over time things change, just like a
community does.

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Objective
During this lesson, you will learn how communities change over time. We will do
this by looking more into Letting Swift River Go, as well as using a worksheet to
document our ideas of change.

Instruction
1. Reread the book Letting Swift River Go to the class.
2. Have the class turn and talk to a neighbor about what changes they noticed to
the community in the story
3. Write the changes on the board make sure to include the following moved
the graves in the graveyard, chopped down the trees, moved the houses, and
more depending on what the students suggest
4. Ask the students what might have caused this change to occur It could have
occurred from a need for fresh water emphasize that this isnt just a single
occurrence as well and that it happens to places all over the world.
5. Have the students imagine themselves as the narrator and ask for a few
students to share how they might have felt knowing their community was
going to change. How might it have felt to move to a new community?
6. Pass out the How Communities Change Worksheet and guide the students
through the instructions and have them complete the worksheet (2A)

Thinking Levels
1. Knowledge: How does change impact a community?
2. Application: Worksheet on changes in the community in the book as well
as the local community
3. Analysis: Comparing the changes to the community in the story to our
local community
4. Synthesis: Apply changes in the story to the local community
5. Evaluation: Once the lesson is over and brainstorming is completed, the
students will complete an assessment by drawing a change to the local
community
Modeling

Using the book as an example and history lesson

Checking for Understanding

How Communities Change Worksheet (2A)

Guided Practice

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Provide support while students are thinking of changes in the community.

Make sure all students are on track and understand what a change to a
community might be.
Closure
Hand out How my Local Community Has Changed Assessment (2B).
Then teacher reflection of lesson write notes


Lesson Plan 3 (Day 3)
How Do People Create the History of a Community? Adapted from MAISA

Time 30min

Materials
Letting Swift River Go by Jane Yolen, Elizabeth Leads the Way by Tanya Lee Stone,
Person Who Shaped the History of Our Community (3A)

Benchmarks
2 - H2.0.3: Use an example to describe the role of the individual in creating
history.

Objective
The learner will understand how people create history.

Anticipatory Set

Ask the class to think of something that they might like to see differently in the
school. (Possible platforms Longer recess, better cafeteria food, new playground
equipment, ect) Pick one idea and have the class write the pros and cons of the
idea. Then discuss how they could influence their community (the school).

Objective

During this lesson, you will learn how people create history. You will also learn
what it takes to create change and make a difference in your community

Instruction
1. Using the example of your own community or the community from the book
Letting Swift River Go from the previous lesson, discuss how history is shaped by

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the actions of people. For example, discuss how community members from
Boston talked to the community about the change they wanted to do.
2. Display Elizabeth Leads the Way and guide students in analyzing the cover and
inferring who Elizabeth Cady Stanton is based on the cover. Then read the book
out loud to the class.
3. After reading the first page, ask again what the students can infer the story might
be about. Then refer back to when the class learned about different events in
history. Specifically the era when women couldnt vote and didnt have many
rights.
4. When you have finished the book, place students in pairs. Explain that partners
should work together to create a list of Elizabeths positive, or good, qualities.
5. Give pairs time to work and then have them share their lists in the large group.
Make a master list of their ideas on chart paper. Note that possible answers
include:
a. Never gave up
b. Good student
c. Stood up for herself
d. Worked hard
e. Helped people
f. Believed in equality for all
6. Using information gathered from a local historical society, books, the Internet,
etc. guide students in learning about someone of significance in the history of
their local community. Note that this could be one of the founders of the
community, a prominent business person, someone who had a road named after
him/her, an important leader, etc. Grand Rapids information is provided in
handout -
7. Summarize the information you have gathered about the person by guiding
students in helping you complete the Person Who Shaped the History of Our
Community (3A)

Thinking Levels
1. Knowledge: How do people impact the greater community? (the nation?)
How does someone impact our community?
2. Application: Discussion on Elizabeth Cady Stanton on her impact on the
community.
3. Analysis: Comparing Elizabeth Cady Stantons characteristics to someone
that influences the local community.
4. Synthesis: Using the worksheet to compare community leaders
5. Evaluation: Once the lesson is over and brainstorming is completed, the
students will complete a worksheet about what they learned about a local
community leader
Modeling

Using the book, Elizabeth Leads the Way as an example and history lesson

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Checking for Understanding

Person Who Shaped the History of Our Community (3A)

Guided Practice
Provide support while students are filling out the worksheet. Encourage
them to thing of comparisons between each of the community leaders.

Closure
Discuss how they could become a community leader in their own way.
Then teacher reflection of lesson write notes


Lesson Plan 4 (Day 4)
How have Communities Solved Problems in the Past? Adapted from MAISA

Time 30min

Materials
Letting Swift River Go by Jane Yolen,

Benchmarks
2 - H2.0.5
Identify a problem in a communitys past and describe how it was
resolved.
2 - G5.0.2

Describe positive and negative consequences of changing the physical

environment of the local community.

Objective
The learner will understand how problems within a community can be solved. The
learner will also be able to analyze how the changing physical environment can
impact the community it surrounds.

Anticipatory Set

So over the past few days we have been using Letting Swift River Go as a guide to
analyzing a changing community. Today we are going to look at another aspect of
the community. How a problem in a community is resolved and how that resolution
might have impacted the community in a positive or negative way.

Objective

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During this lesson, you will learn how people resolved a problem in a community.
You will also be able to see the positive effect and negative effects that changing the
physical environment has on a community

Instruction
1. Briefly review the book Letting Swift River Go, which was used in Lesson 1
and 2 by reviewing the sequence chart the students created in that lesson
and the book itself.
2. Have the students brainstorm in small groups what the problem was in the
community. Discuss this in large group and identify the main problem was
that the inland areas needed water.
3. Now have the students think of ways the community could have resolved this
conflict in other ways (other ways may include bringing in water by land,
have people move to the water) Then ask why the community might have
chosen to create the dam and large river to bring in the water.
4. Then have students fill out Thinking About the Consequences Worksheet (4A)
5. Bring the class back after they have enough time to come up with some
positives and negatives
6. Conduct a large group discussion on that communities problem and how they
resolved it
7. Refer back to the last lesson in which they picked a problem they saw in the
school and have them fill out the bottom of the worksheet the same way by
putting the positive and negative consequences. After that is finished have
the class discuss how both of these situations are similar and how they are
different.
Thinking Levels
8. Knowledge: How do conflicts in a community get resolved?
9. Application: Discussion on a conflict that was apparent in a community and
how changing the physical environment might have impacted the community
10. Analysis: Comparing a large event like the creation of a river to a school
problem. Allow students to realize what is important to a community and
what may not be as necessary.
11. Synthesis: Using the worksheet to show how communities deal with conflict
12. Evaluation: Again, the usage of the worksheet as a evaluation of their
understanding
Modeling

Using the book, Letting Swift River Go and the history behind the creation of a
river to solve a community problem.

Checking for Understanding

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Thinking About the Consequences Worksheet (4A)

Guided Practice
Provide support while students are filling out the worksheet. Encourage
them to thing of comparisons between each of the community conflicts

Closure
Discuss other community actions that might cause a problem to a community
for further lessons.
Then teacher reflection of lesson write notes

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SUPPLEMENTAL WORKSHEETS AND ASSESSMENTS

2A
Name ______________________________

How Communities Change Worksheet

In Letting Swift River Go by Jane Yolen, a sequence of events causes change to the
community. Some of the events are listed below. Cut them out carefully and put
them in order of how they occur in the book.

Fresh water was needed

Trees where cut down

Tunnels where built through the valley

Houses where torn down or moved

The graveyard was torn up

Turn over!

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2A

How Our Community Has Changed
Brainstorm ideas with your neighbors.

Land

Buildings

Businesses




Transportation




Other Changes

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How Communities Change Worksheet Key (2A)

Fresh water was needed

The graveyard was torn up

Trees where cut down

Houses where torn down or moved

Tunnels where built through the valley

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2B
Name _________________________

How my Local Community Has Changed Assessment
Draw a change in the community that has occurred from the past. Include a
description of the change and why they might have done it.

Past








_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________
Present








_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

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3A
Name ________________________

Person Who Shaped the History of Our Community

Who?


What did
he/she do?



What were
some of
his/her good
qualities?





How did
he/she help
to shape the
history of our
community?

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4A
Name _____________________

Thinking About the Consequences Worksheet

Creating a River in
the Swift River
Valley

Negative
Consequences

Positive
Consequences

(Letting Swift River Go)

School Problem

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SOURCES


Bower, Bert, and Jim Lobdell. My Community. Palo Alto: Teachers Curriculum
Institute, 2003. Print.

MAISA - http://gomaisa-public.rubiconatlas.org/Atlas/Public/View/Default

Stone, Tanya Lee. Elizabeth Leads the Way. Illus. Rebecca Gibbon. New York:
Henry Holt and Company, 2008. Print.

Yolen, Jane. Letting Swift River Go. Illus. Barbara Cooney. Boston: Little Brown
and Company, 1992. Print.