EGP 335.

535 Lesson Plan

Lesson Plan Details
Washington D.C., Melissa Mathis, Lesson 9
Expected duration: 1 hour
Civics, geography, economics
Concepts
o State
o District
o Washington D.C. capital city
o The White House
o National Mall
Vocabulary
o State- a politically unified people occupying a definite territory;
nation
o District- an area of a country or city, especially on regarded as
a distinct unit because of a particular characteristic
o Capital- the city or town that is the official seat of government
in a country, state, etc.
o Would want the students to be able to match the words and
definitions while on a smart board matching activity during the
closure part of the lesson
Skills- vocabulary, technology, group collaboration, summarization of
facts
Goals of Lesson- The goals of this lesson are for the students to
understand that Washington D.C is not a state and is not in a state but
rather it is a district. Students will also gain understanding of how
Washington D.C became the countrys capital.
Integration of Learning Outcomes/Objectives
Students will gain an understanding of the differences between states
and districts.
o Students will be able to give the definition of a state and a
district without referencing.
Students will gain an understanding of how Washington D.C became
the countrys capital.
o Students will be able to write a 5-6 sentence paragraph about
how the capital of the United States ended up becoming
Washington D.C.
Standards PA Civics, History, Economics, Geography &
NCSS Standards
NCSS.1.2 THEME TWO -- Time, Continuity, and Change: Social Studies
teachers should possess the knowledge, capabilities, and dispositions
to organize and provide instruction at the appropriate school level for
the study of Time, Continuity, and Change. Teachers of social studies at
all school levels should provide developmentally appropriate
experiences as they guide learners in the study of time, continuity, and
change.

NCSS.1.2.b ...have learners apply key concepts from the study of

history such as time, chronology, causality, change, conflict, and
complexity to explain, analyze, and show connections among
the patterns of historical change and continuity;
NCSS.1.2.e ...provide learners with opportunities to investigate,
interpret, and analyze multiple historical and contemporary
viewpoints within and across cultures related to important
events, recurring dilemmas, and persistent issues, while
employing empathy, skepticism, and critical judgment

PA State Standards
8.3.4: GRADE 4
8.3.4.A differentiate common characteristics of the social, political,
cultural and economic groups in United States history.
8.3.4.B locate historical documents, artifacts, and places critical to
United States history
8.3.4.C explain how contiguity and change in U.S. history have
influenced personal development and identity
Anticipatory Set

Remember the other day when we learned a little bit about the MidAtlantic region and the states that make up that region? Can anyone
tell me something that they learned about the Mid-Atlantic?
o Whole class discussion until students run out of things that they
remember learning about during the introductory lesson.
Lets look back at a few of the vocabulary words that we learned about
the other day. We learned about a state, a district, and capital. We
spent a few minutes learning about those definitions. Can anyone tell
me if they remember what a state is? A district? A capital? Allow
enough processing time for each student. Put your hand on your head
when you might have an answer. Go over the answers for the students,
write them on the smart board as they give them. If the answer is not
the answer that was originally given to the students, discuss them.
Some of the answers might be interchangeable.
Procedures
Start with a whole class discussion using a KWL chart of things that
they have learned in previous lessons about the mid-Atlantic region.
Start with the K and W parts of the chart during whole class
discussion.
We will be working in groups today to find out more information on our
nations capital, Washington D.C. We will be doing a web quest using a
google custom search that I have made that includes websites that I
have chosen about Washington D.C becoming our countries capital.
While you are working on your web quest, I will have provided you with
a worksheet that you will be looking off of as reference for the
information that you will be looking for.
The next group will be using some books that I have provided and you
will use them to look up the same information on the worksheet. These

books vary in content; some are picture books and some are chapter
books. The worksheet will include RIGHT THERE questions for you all to
focus on.
We will come back and have a whole group discussion and use the
different information that our two different groups found and fill out
the L portion of our chart.
After we fill out our chart as a class, we will be individually making
brochures for Washington D.C. We want to have these brochures
provide information to people coming to the city that want more
background information on how the capital came to be and what the
difference is between a state and a district.
o Aspects of the brochure:
Information about the White House
Information about the Capital
Information about the National Mall
When did D.C become the capital of the U.S?
Where is D.C located?
A picture (drawn by the student)
Differentiation
The groups will be based upon the students abilities. If there are
students that prefer to use the computer, they will use the computer. If
there are students that prefer to use the books that I have provided,
they will be using them. There will be recorded versions of these
stories for students that are struggling along with sets of headphones
for the children that choose to listen to the books on tape.
If there is a student that needs a bit more assistance and explanation, I
will work with them individually while going around the classroom.
I will mark the pages that the students should be looking at in the
books so that they know where their focus should be.
I will provide the students with a google custom search so that they are
not distracted by different websites that are not needed to find the
information that they are asked to find.
I will make sure that all of the websites are on readability mode as to
eliminate any distractions that might be on the side of the screen or
within the text that they are reading.
Closure
We did some great work today! We reviewed some of our vocabulary words
from the past few lessons and we gained new information about how our
capital came to be! Lets go back and look at the key concepts from today
and do a vocabulary matching game. The class will then review the L
section of the KWL chart. Vocabulary matching game will be loaded on the
smart board. The students will need to match the words to the definitions
that they learned in the beginning of the unit.
Formative/Summative Assessment of Students (P-12)
Formative assessment- teacher would be walking around throughout
the groups work time (group and individually) to make sure that they
are on the right track.
Summative assessment- the brochure that the students will be making
about Washington D.C will be used as the summative assessment. I will

be looking to see that they are answering the questions that I asked
them to research.
o See above for things that the students need to be sure to
include in the brochure
Materials/Equipment
A. STUDENT MATERIALS/ READING RESOURCES:
a. Brochure:
i. Markers, crayons, colored pencils, sheet of white printer
paper
b. Research questions (worksheet made up by teacher attached
below)
B. TEACHER MATERIALS/RESOURCES FOR LESSON DESIGN:
a. Google custom search created with websites for the students to
look up the information that is being asked of them
https://cse.google.com/cse/publicurl?
cx=000164472832757304243:nbv4t2vt7_m
b. The videos on this website will be used for the students to get
more background information about Washington D.C
http://schoolmediainteractive.com/view/object/clip/B68CD40AF3
BA1B04D6E7AC4F0E41305B/02
c. A Kids Guide to Washington D.C Houghton Mifflin
d. National Geographic Kids United States Atlas
e. Where is the White House? Megan Stine, David Groff
Technology
Students will be using some websites while working on finding background
information on Washington D.C. These websites will have been preselected by
the teacher so that there are not any distractions and to avoid websites that
should not be looked at.
Reflection on Planning
During the lesson, it is my hope that the students will have the opportunity to
enhance their technology skills. I hope that they will gain more knowledge on
acquiring information from multiple sources. The children will have the
opportunity to work alongside other students and understand the importance
of collaboration. They will also be taking the knowledge that they attained in
this class period and put it to work by making a brochure.
Lesson Plan Element

Lesson Plan Details

Integration of Learning Outcomes/Objectives
Standards PA Civics, History, Economics, Geography & NCSS
Theme/subtheme
Anticipatory Set
Procedures
Differentiation
Closure
Formative/Summative Assessment of Students (P-12)
Materials/Equipment , Citation of Sources

Point Value
Total /25
Notes/Eval /
10
/2
/3
/3
/2
/6
/2
/2
/3
/2

Evaluation of Sources (Information Literacy) /5

Lesson Plan Notes /5
Technology
Reflection on Planning

/5
/5
*
*

KWL CHART
WHAT WE
KNOW ALREADY

WHAT WE
WANT TO
KNOW

WHAT WE
LEARNED

4TH GRADE WEB QUEST: WASHINGTON D.C.

BECOMING THE CAPITAL OF THE UNITED
STATES OF AMERICA
QUESTIONS FOR WHOLE CLASS DISCUSSION
1. What is a state?
2. What is a district?
3. Where is Washington D.C. located?

QUESTIONS TO ANSWER WHILE DOING RESEARCH

1. Who is Washington D.C. named after?
2. When was Washington D.C founded?
3. What was Washington D.C in the beginning?

4. What is in Washington D.C now?

5. When did Washington D.C become the capital?
6. How many capitals were there before Washington D.C?
7. List 3 more interesting facts that you found while doing your research

Current Event Assignment

Global Connections
A. The article is about the country of Myanmar which was previously
called Burma.
B. The current event is based on the election in Myanmar (Burma). The
National League for Democracy won the elections and Aung San Suu
Kyi won at 70 years old. Her father was the key leader in Myanmar
when they were gaining their independence from Britain and Japan.
This connects to my lesson because it is focusing on the government in
another country. This could lead to a class discussion about the
different governments around the world and bringing it to the students
attention that not all countries are run like the USA.