Day: Date:

Subject:Social Studies- Geography- Grade 3

Common Core Standard(s):

SS:GE:4:1.3: Locate major physical and human features in the United
States and on Earth, e.g., mountain ranges, principal parallels or meridians.
(Themes: C: People, Places and Environment, G: Science, Technology, and
Society)
SS:GE:4:3.2: Demonstrate how physical processes shape features of Earth's
surface, e.g., weather or tectonic forces. (Themes: C: People, Places and
Environment)
SS:GE:4:1.1: Identify and describe the characteristics and purposes of
geographic tools: maps, globes, graphs, diagrams, photographs, satellite-
produced images, and other technologies. (Themes: C: People, Places and
Environment, F: Global Transformation)

Objective(s):
Students will be able to label all five oceans and all seven
continents
Students will be able to use a globe to locate oceans and
continents

Resources/Materials List:
Inflatable Globe
The Earths Ocean Basins handout for each student
Ocean Basins Worksheet handout for each student

Procedure:
1. Opening activity of World Toss Game:
a. Have one student start by saying someones name
and tossing the infl atable world to that student
b. When the student catches the infl atable world, have
that student read aloud where his/her right thumb is located.
c. Have the students continue tossing the world around
the circle in this manner, calling the receiving students name
before the world globe is tossed. (This helps build inclusion.)
d. Once a persons name has been called, that person
should fold his/her hands in front to signal he/she has already
had a turn
e. Every time students catch the world and read where
their right thumb is located, the recorder will keep track, using
tally marks, when the students thumb is on one of the ocean
 basins or on land.
f. Repeat the same pattern of tossing the world around
the circle several times, keeping track of the number of times
someones thumb lands on an ocean or on the land.
g. On the board calculate the percent of times the
thumb landed on ocean and the percent on land.
2. After students have played the game and results have been
recorded onto the chart paper, ask them the following reflection
questions:
a. What did you notice about our tally marks? (You
should see that a greater percentage of the time their thumb
landed on an ocean.)
b. Why do you think so many peoples thumb landed
on an ocean? (Approximately 70 percent of the worlds surface is
ocean.)
c. What are the five ocean basins? (Pacific, Atlantic,
Southern (Antarctic), Indian, and Arctic Oceans.)
d. What are some things you already know about some
of these ocean basins? (Varied responses.)
e. What do you think the ocean does for the world?
What are its functions? (Varied responses.)
3. As a class read The Earths Ocean Basins. Help students with
vocabulary and unfamiliar words as they read. Students will each have
an individual copy and there will be a copy projected onto the board.
4. After reading, pass out the worksheet so students can label the
oceans based off of their reading. The teacher should circulate around
the classroom to keep students on track and help students who are
struggling.
5. After students have labeled their world map with the ocean
names, engage students in discussion with the following questions:
a. Which Ocean is the largest? (Pacific)
b. Which Ocean is between North America and Europe?
(Atlantic)
c. Which Ocean is bordered by Africa, Asia, and
Australia? (Indian)
6. Next bring the class into deeper discussions. These following
questions can be used to measure students deeper understanding of
the ocean and its features and importance.
a. Are the ocean basins connected?
b. Does the ocean and life in the ocean shape the
features of the Earth?
c. Is the ocean a major influence on weather and
climate?
d. Does the ocean make Earth habitable?
e. Does the ocean support a great diversity of life and
ecosystems?
 f. Are the ocean and humans interconnected?
g. Is the ocean largely unexplored?

Plans for differentiation:

for students who need help with labeling the oceans I will have
some copies of the map with the first letter of the name filled in so
they can have an easier time locating the oceans.
some students may benefit from a colored map, knowing that
the oceans are blue and continents are brown like the globe.
some students may need to use the globe to look for the oceans.

Plans for accommodation/modification:

Some students may need the teacher or the paraprofessional to transcribe
their answers on the worksheet.
Assessment:
To assess this lesson the Earths Oceans worksheet will be reviewed. The
main focus will be the discussions about the ocean and the teacher should
make sure that all students have a chance to voice their opinions and
explain their thoughts on the ocean.

Whats next?
After this lesson students can be lead through a lesson on using latitude and
longitude to plot different locations and islands in the ocean.

Reflection: N/A

Rivier University
STUDENT TEACHER LESSON PLAN FORMAT
2014-15