An Introduction to the Age of Exploration

Teachers: Laura Gulbranson

Subject: Social Studies

Common Core State Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.3 : Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary
source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.
CCSS.ELA.L-LITERACY.RH.6-8.6: Identify aspects of a text that reveal an authors point of view or
purpose (e.g., loaded language, inclusion or avoidance of particular facts).
Objective (Explicit):
SWBAT identify central ideas and summarize information from a secondary source.
SWBAT explain an authors purpose and providing evidence from an article.
Evidence of Mastery (Measurable):

Include a copy of the lesson assessment.

Provide exemplar student responses with the level of detail you expect to see.
Assign value to each portion of the response
Students will complete an exit-ticket that has them define and identify America and show their
understanding of the Americas, as well as what it means to be American based on the guided practice.
Mastery will be met if 80% of students score 100% on the exit-ticket. (Exit-ticket is attached at the end
of the document)
Sub-objectives, SWBAT (Sequenced from basic to complex):

How will you review past learning and make connections to previous lessons?
What skills and content are needed to ultimately master this lesson objective?
How is this objective relevant to students, their lives, and/or the real world?
SWBAT apply the 5 themes of Geography in their reading portions of an article.
SWBAT locate North and South America on the map, as well as Central America and the Caribbean.
SWBAT define America and American in their own words.
Key vocabulary:
Materials:
-Five themes of Geography (they will be reviewed briefly
throughout the lesson, but students should already know
them from their notes)
1. Location: Where a person/people or place is, on
the Earths surface. Includes absolute and relative
location.
2. Place: What are the physical characteristics of an
area on earth
3. Region: How are places similar or different from
one another culturally, physically, politically,
socially, and economically.
4. People: How is the world shaped (adapted or
modified) by people.
5. Movement: How the world has become
interconnected through transportation, ideas,
religion, goods, resources
-Ethnicity: A persons origin, heritage, and cultural makeup
-Nationality: The place of birth that one identifies with as a
citizen (Ex: I was born in the USA. My nationality is US
American I was naturalized in Brazil and now a citizen
of Brazil. I am Brazilian)
-The Americas/America: The physical landforms that are
found on the Western hemisphere of the world. The

-One Nation, Many Cultures article:

http://cdn.umb.edu/images/odi/ONENATION_manyculture.pdf

Paragraph strips that section off the article.

Each paragraph strip represents a theme of
Geography.
-Physical map of North America to represent the theme of
Place :
http://www.vidiani.com/maps/maps_of_north_america/north_and_central
_america_detailed_physical_map.jpg

-Anecdotal stories for the Who is American?

component of the opening section of the lesson. This is
featured on the PowerPoint.
-The PowerPoint with the activities of the lesson.
-The foldable notes template that would have been
made in a previous class that lists the five themes of
Geography.
- Scratch Paper for Engage introduction: Students will
write down their ideas for the Who is American activity

Americas consist of North America, South America,

Central America, and the Caribbean Islands.

-Exit-ticket that tests what the students understand from

the lesson.

Opening (state objectives, connect to previous learning, and make relevant to real life) 5 minutes
How will you activate student interest?
How will you connect to past learning?
How will you present the objective in an engaging and student-friendly way?
How will you communicate its importance and make the content relevant to your students?

Several anecdotal stories will be featured on the board. Students will have the chance to guess Who is
the American? The purpose of this activity is to show the wide definition of American and how we
come from different backgrounds, creeds, and ethnicities. Students will write down who they think is
American on their scratch paper. The teacher will then have students show their answers.
We will briefly discuss what they believe an American is. Afterwards we will go over the definition of
American in the Merriam-Webster dictionary. Students will pull out their notes and write down the
definition (a transition into instructional input)
So far in Social Studies, we have gone over the definition of geography as well as explored what it looks
like. We are now going to focus our attention toward a small area of world geography. We will shift gears
slightly, to focus on America and explore the themes of geography

Instructional Input (10 minutes)

The objectives and agenda will be stated at this time.

Teacher Will:
How will you model/explain/demonstrate all
knowledge/skills required of the objective?
What types of visuals will you use?
How will you address misunderstandings or common
student errors?
How will you check for understanding?
How will you explain and model behavioral
expectations?
Is there enough detail in this section so that another
person could teach it?
The teacher will have students take out their foldable note
template that was created in a previous class when taking notes
about the 5 themes of geography. The themes will be briefly
reviewed so that the students understand their expectations. At
this time, the teacher checks for understanding to see if anything
must be re-taught.
The teacher will model how to take notes in the template with a
map she will bring up on the Panel Board screen. The map will
show the western hemisphere:

Student Will:
What will students be doing to actively capture and process
the new material?
How will students be engaged?

Students will listen to the teacher and follow directions.

Students will take notes in their foldable note template.
In the notes, students will write down the different areas of the Americas.
Students will actively participate as the teacher leads in instruction.
Students will identify the parts of the Americas and write them down in
their notes.

(Modified)
(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/Western_He
misphere_LamAz.png)
The teacher will instruct students write down the following
sentence frame (which will be used as an example that they can
refer to, when they are writing the rest of their notes in the guided
practice) in the Location section of their foldable notes:
The Americas include North America, South America, Central
America, and the Caribbean Islands (West Indies).
We did the first one together. Now you guys will get the chance to
explore the other themes of geography in your groups

Co-Teaching Strategy
Which co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?
During this time, the one teach and one observe approach will be utilized. The teacher will lead in direct instruction while the teacher who is
observing will take down notes on students behaviors during the first part of the lesson.
Differentiation Strategy
What accommodations/modifications will you include for specific students?
Do you anticipate any students who will need an additional challenge?
ELL Students: ELL students can be provided with a note template where they fill out important key words that are addressed in the lesson. The
note-taking template can help guide their notes.
Students with Special Needs: Similarly to ELL students, students with Special Needs can be provided with a note-taking template to guide their
notes. Students will be sat in areas that are free from distractions.

Guided Practice (20 minutes)

Gifted/Talented Students: Thought-provoking and critical thinking questions will be posed by the teacher. Teachers will strategically ask these
questions in class, directed toward gifted/talented students to answer.
Teacher Will:
How will you ensure that all students have multiple
opportunities to practice new content and skills?
What types of questions can you ask students as you
are observing them practice?
How/when will you check for understanding?
How will you provide guidance to all students as they
practice?
How will you explain and model behavioral
expectations?
Is there enough detail in this section so that another
person could facilitate this practice?

Student Will:
How will students practice all knowledge/skills required of the
objective, with your support, such that they continue to
internalize the sub-objectives?
How will students be engaged?
How will you elicit student-to-student interaction?
How are students practicing in ways that align to independent
practice?

Teacher will give directions for the Group Jigsaw

Activity, using the One Nation, Many Cultures article:

Students will listen for directions on the Group Jigsaw

Activity.

http://cdn.umb.edu/images/odi/ONENATION_manyculture.pdf

Students will apply prior knowledge and previous learning

to complete the activity.

Before class, the teacher will have already cut small

portions from the article. (A paragraph strip) Each
portion will be divided into the following categories:
2. Place:
http://www.vidiani.com/maps/maps_of_north_america/n
orth_and_central_america_detailed_physical_map.jpg

3. Region:
The United States as a multicultural nation is a work in progress.
Starting at the time of the Declaration of Independence in 1776,
the United States was already becoming a multicultural nation.
The young republic was home to diverse Indian tribes with a
population numbering in the tens of thousands. There were
settlers from England, France, Germany, Holland, Poland,
Scandinavia, Scotland, Spain, and other European countries.
African slaves numbered 700,000 by the time of the first census in
1790 (One Nation, Many Cultures)

4. People (Human Interaction)

Resisting integration and assimilation, they have sought to
maintain their sovereignty and culture while interacting with the
broader society. American Indians, particularly in the last twenty
years, have displayed a growing pride in their heroic history while
maintaining their determination to resist further encroachments on
their culture. Resistance has taken the form of litigation, lobbying
for legislative remedies, and direct action. American Indians have
created remarkable art and literature. The story of America's
indigenous peoples has been as much a story of creative survival
as it has been of destruction of lives, land, and culture. (One
Nation, Many Cultures)

5. Movement
During slavery and increasingly afterward, African Americans
have shaped the country's culture,
contributing significantly to the arts, science, politics, sports,
medicine, the law, and virtually
every other field. (One Nation, Many Cultures)
In the nineteenth century, the United States expanded westward
incorporating parts of Mexico. The Spanish-American War added
Puerto Rico and the Philippines as United States territories. The
great European and Asian migrations of the mid-nineteenth and
early twentieth centuries brought Chinese, Germans, Greeks,
Irish, Italians, Japanese, Jews, and Poles to the United States.
Many had fled oppression at home; all sought improved conditions
and opportunities for themselves and their families. (One Nation,
Many Cultures)
The cultural diversity of the United States is strikingly evident
when looking at religion. At the beginning of the twentieth century,
few people in the United States practiced a religion other
than one based on Christianity. Nearly a century later, a majority of
Americans still identify themselves as Christian; however, the
United States is also home to some 5 million Buddhists,
3.3 million Jews, 3 million Muslims, and 1.2 million Hindus.
Moreover, each of these groups encompasses a variety of
religious practices. Americans identifying themselves as Christian,
for example, include 67 million Roman Catholics, 16 million
of the Southern Baptist Convention, 8 million Methodists, and 5.5
million Presbyterians. Over 2.5 million Americans are members of
one of the Eastern Orthodox Christian churches. Four major
branches of Judaism, two branches of Islam, and differing forms of

Students will collaborate with group members to identify

the themes of geography within the paragraph strips.
Students will use the paragraph strips to take notes in
their note-taking template.
When it is time to reconvene as a whole class, students
will share their findings.

Hinduism and Buddhism have all found significant numbers of

adherents in the United States. (One Nation, Many Cultures)

Each table will have a paragraph of each theme and

will write notes in correspondence to their labeled
note template.
The teacher will call the class back together to go
over the answers.

Co-Teaching Strategy
Which co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?
During guided practice, teachers will team teach as they assist students around the classroom. One teacher can focus their attention toward
students with special needs or the gifted/talented students, while the other teacher circulates around the classroom to answer questions and
check for understanding.
Differentiation Strategy
What accommodations/modifications will you include for specific students?
Do you anticipate any students who will need an additional challenge?
How can you utilize grouping strategies?
ELL Students: ELL students will be placed with native English speakers to help them during the guided practice. The classmates who sit in the
group are encouraged to clarify directions for ELL students and partner up with these students.
Students with Special Needs: Students with special needs will be sat with students who are open and helpful to these students. These students
will be allowed more time to work on the project.

Independent Practice

Gifted/Talented Students: Students will have supplemental questions to answer.

Teacher Will:
How will you plan to coach and correct during this practice?
How will you provide opportunities for remediation and
extension?
How will you clearly state and model academic and
behavioral expectations?
Did you provide enough detail so that another person could
facilitate the practice?

Student Will:
How will students independently practice the knowledge and skills
required by the objective?
How will students be engaged?
How are students are practicing in ways that align to assessment?
How are students using self-assessment to guide their own
learning?
How are you supporting students giving feedback to one another?

The teacher at this time will collect the notes and

administer the exit-ticket. The teacher will verbalize
the expectations for it to be quiet in the classroom.

The students will quietly take the exit-ticket quiz.

While students are taking the quiz, the teacher will

observe and help students who need remediation or
extension (Special Needs, ELL, Gifted).
The teacher will answer clarifying questions students
may have if they raise their hand.

Students will apply their knowledge and assess what they

know.
-Students will write their definition of America
with supporting details
-Students will compare the idea of the USA and
America
-Students will assess their knowledge about what
an American is.
-Students will identify the Americas on the map.

*See attached document below for Exit Ticket.

Students will ask questions for clarification if necessary.
Co-Teaching Strategy
Which co-teaching approach will you use to maximize student achievement?
During independent practice, teachers will team teach together, similarly to the guided practice. One teacher may focus their attention toward
students with special needs or the gifted/talented students, while the other teacher circulates and monitors the students.

Differentiation Strategy
What accommodations/modifications will you include for specific students?
Do you anticipate any students who will need an additional challenge?
ELL Students: Directions will be printed out for them to see
Students with Special Needs: During independent work while other students work on their own, the teacher can come by to make sure the
students understand their expectation, and clarify directions if necessary.
Gifted/Talented Students: Gift/talented students will be provided with an enrichment questions that go along with the independent assignment
upon completion.
Closing/Student Reflection/Real-life connections:
How will students summarize and state the significance of what they learned?
Why will students be engaged?

The teacher will close the lesson by asking the students how they felt about the exit-ticket.
The closing question will be: Why do you think it is important we have a better understanding of the Americas rather
than just America as we know the United States to be? What personal connections can you make in being an
American?
The teacher will allow a couple minutes for students to write down their thoughts briefly or talk to a shoulder partner
(this factor will be based on time left). The teacher will randomly call on students for them to volunteer their ideas. This
will be a way to close the class and have students reflect on what they have learned.

Exit-Ticket: Exploring America

1. What is America? Include at least 3 supporting details.

2. Is America the same thing as the USA? Why or why not?

3. A true American is of European descent.

True

False

4. Christianity is the only religion practiced in America.

True

False

5. You can tell if someone is American, just by looking at them.

True

False

6. Where is America/the Americas? (Name and label them on the map.)

(Johomaps)