DIXIE STATE UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

UNIT PLAN TEMPLATE

Teacher Candidate___ Alison Farnsworth________________________________
Grade Level __K_________ Content Area____ Social studies: Columbus ___
Step 1 DESIRED RESULTS
A. Contextual Factors

14 Students
7 Boys and 7 Girls
0 ELL
0 IEP-1 student is in the process of being observed
Classroom environment: the classroom is divided into three centers; computers, and
two teacher stations. Each teacher station is 10 minutes and the computer station is 20
minutes. Students are divided into groups based on level and row color

B. Utah State Core or Common Core Curriculum Standard

Students will learn why and where early explorers traveled.

C. Enduring Understanding/Big Idea

Students will understand the failures and successes of Christopher Columbus

D. Essential Questions/Guiding Questions

Who is Christopher Columbus?

What was Columbus looking for?
Which way did Columbus travel?
What did Columbus find?
How many ships did he have?
Who went with him?
What happened when he came back home?
E. Concepts

How the new world was discovered and by who.

Know what a sailing ship was.
Know why spices were important and valuable.
Know where the old world and new world are.
Know the differences between success and failure.
Know what maps can tell us.
F. Skills

Read-aloud stories about Columbus

Write If I was an Explorer

Recall the name of Columbus Ships

Identify Columbuss successes and failures
Creating a map
Retelling of events
Step 2 ASSESSMENT EVIDENCE
1. Pre-Assessments
Questioning

2. Formative Assessments/Evidence
Writing on If I was Columbus
Observation during class discussions
Comprehension questions during read-alouds
Map of continents, Columbus route, and ships

3. Summative Assessments/Evidence

Question (same as pre assessment)

Step 3 Lesson Objectives with Instructional Strategies

Lesson 1: I will be able to explain why Europeans wanted to travel to Asia.
Unit pretest
Read-aloud Spice Seekers
Vocabulary
Labeling a map
Lesson 2: I will be able to identify the old world and new world.
Read-aloud Ferdinand and Isabella
Comprehension lesson from story
Vocabulary
Add Columbus route to the map
Lesson 3: I will be able to say the names of Columbuss ships.
Read-aloud 1492
Class discussion on Columbus successes. (make graphic organizer to add to
later)
Lesson 4: I will be able to describe the first year of Columbus Voyage to America
Read-aloud Land Ho
Vocabulary
If I was an Explorer

Lesson 5: I will be able to identify and describe Columbuss accomplishments and

failures?
Read-aloud A New World
Further class discussion on failures of Columbus (graphic organizer)
Lesson 6: I will be able to recall the stories of Columbus.
Sequence of all events from lesson 1-5
Review important vocabulary words
Post test