Social Education and Humanities Unit Plan

Kate Troy: 30126805

COURSE: Bachelor of Education P-6

Tutors name: Di Harrison Tutorial Group Day: Thursday Time: 1:30 4:30

CURRICULUM TITLE: Why are maps important in everyday life and how can you use them successfully?

INTRODUCE AND SUMMARISE UNIT

Within this unit of work, students will engage in a range of learning areas under the topic of location and interpreting maps. They will develop their learning
through four phases beginning with the layout of their home continuing with the location of the school, followed by their hometown and then moving through to
a whole country approach. Students will initially be engaged through the use of a guest speaker from the local fire brigade, who will introduce them to the
importance of maps for the CFA and how they use them to be successful. I chose this to begin my unit as it will help to gain the students interest in the topic
as it can seem confusing at first but this will assist their understanding as they realise the importance of maps. Students will then begin their investigation
process through the mapping of their home as this will assist students to begin to make connections within their learning. Students will then look at a map of
the school and will focus on compass direction. They will investigate all the required components for a map before going on a town walk to discover what you
might find in a town and where things are located. They will finally be given the opportunity to create one of their own maps of the school in the form of a
treasure hunt where they will have to use everything they have learnt over the weeks to create sensible instructions. Some of the key sub areas that students
will work through include; the importance of maps, understanding scale, how to interpret a key, reading grid references and reading and creating directions for
mapping. Throughout this unit students will be immersed in a range of learning tasks and formats including fieldwork, ICT, a guest speaker, teamwork, critical
thinking and problem solving while beginning to build their knowledge around the concept of mapping.
This unit of work can be combined with a maths unit on location to ensure students are given the greatest opportunity at success as they can begin to make
connections between the two.

Humanities discipline: Geography

Level: 3/4
Victorian Curriculum statement: Interpret maps and other geographical data and information to develop identifications, descriptions, explanations and
conclusions, using geographical terminology including simple grid references, compass direction and distance (VCGGC076)

List of Victorian Curriculum interdisciplinary content: Maths, Visual Arts, English

Please note this template is an adaptation from Understanding by Design ASCD Grant Wiggins, Jay McTighe. Source UbDQuikvue1005.pdf
Stage 1 Desired Results
YOUR BIG PICTURE LEARNING GOALS: TRANSFER After completing this unit of inquiry students will be able to independently use their learning to

Students will be able to understand and

Students will be able to use their new sense of direction and will assist in their everyday lives of following
create a map of their own with directional
directions to gain success.
instructions.
MEANING The teacher helps students construct meaning (ie come to an understanding) of important ideas and process:
After completing this unit students will understand

The importance of mapping within jobs and everyday life ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS:
Why we use/need maps What do we use maps for?
How to read a map including; orientation, legend, scale Who might need maps for their job?
Maps will have a range of scales which effects the overall What sorts of things might you need
size of the map; home, school, town, country to know in order to read a map?
How to construct a map, choosing the correct scale

ACQUISITION After completing this unit students will know Students will be skilled at: (Skills)
(Knowledge)
The meaning of an orientation, legend and scale Critical thinking
How to read grid references Teamwork and collaboration
Not all maps will have the same scale Following step by step instructions

Stage 2 Evidence
EVALUATIVE CRITERIA (Refer to Stage ASSESSMENT EVIDENCE (Throughout this unit how will students be able to demonstrate (perform) to you how they are
1 Acquisition (Knowledge and Skills) progressing towards reaching the units learning goals? What will students be able to do to show they understand and have
learned?)
Knowledge: PERFORMANCE BASED TASK(s):
Students will work in small groups to create a treasure hunt map with all the required components, along with a set of
instructional clues. They must then swap these with another group and discover whether these instructions worked/
didnt work and provide feedback to the group and as a class.
Other evidence gathered to reflect student learning (e.g. formative and/or summative measures)?
Observation and note taking of students participation within groups and activities; are they engaged and working as
Skills: part of a team?
A checklist will be used to determine overall success (see appendix 1)
Stage 3 Learning Plan summary of key learning events
Session Five Es Present sequence of learning events as snapshots: Brief resources and materials:
no.
phase:
1. Engage Hold a discussion with students as to why we use maps in everyday life, who uses them and
the importance to understand directions in every aspect of our lives
What sorts of things can we look for on a map that helps us to know where we are or we
want to go?
Students to create an initial mind map from the class discussion and can build on the ideas as
well as adding in any questions or queries they might have about maps
A member from the local fire brigade will then visit the class to discuss why they use maps
and how they play vital role within the CFA. They will then share with the class the fire safety
plan and why it is laid out that way as well as what the fire fighters do once all the students
and teachers have evacuated
Students will have the opportunity to ask any questions at the end of the presentation
2 Explain To gauge students attention they will first create a floor plan/ map of their own home as this http://splash.abc.net.au
brings in prior knowledge /home#!/media/103220
Students will watch the short video clip as an introduction which shows an outline of some of /drawing-a-floor-plan
the things students need to include for importance
The class will discuss things they need to include on our maps of our homes and make a class
list
They will then draw a floor plan of their own home using rulers and pencils
There will opportunity for students to share their plans
3 Explain/ Moving on from their homes, students will be introduced to the orientation component of a Whiteboard
Explore map (North, South, East, West) Birds eye view maps
As a class we will work through some examples on the whiteboard of finding their way from
point A to point B on a grid e.g. one square north, 2 squares west
They will then investigate a birds eye view maps of the school and add in pathways to the
exits
Students must find a partner and describe to one another how to exit their map and find out
if the instructions were correct
Students are encouraged to use location vocabulary not; up, down, to the side
4 Explore Introduce grid lines and grid references and the importance of these Rainforest Map:
Why and how do we use them? Using previous knowledge from lesson 3 http://splash.abc.net.au/res/i/L
 ABC Splash activity: Students practice following the grid instruction using the program to find 350/li_001_gv_006/index.html
all the sites on the map
Once they have had some time to practice, students are given a range of maps and must find
the places that are at the listed grid references for each
They students can share with the class some of their findings and new knowledge
5 Explore Using a range of different maps students look at the differences in the scales and discuss why map of school, town
these might be different and country with scale
They investigate the school, their town and the country and why these might each have a included
different scale of measurement as well as what a realistic scale should be for each
Students are given a range of labelled pieces of grid from 3 different maps (school, town,
country) and must use communication skills to work out which map they belong to and then
put the puzzle pieces together
6 Explore Discuss what a key is and why it is important for people reading maps Maps without keys
What sorts of things might need to go in a key?
Students are given maps with missing keys and they must investigate the maps and figure out
some common places and things that would be needed for the key
Students work in small groups to add in the key to their map
Share with the class what they think is important and essential for a key for their particular
map
7 Explore Prior to the excursion, students must work out the best route to take, using grid references maps of the town
to reach all the main places in Maffra
They will work in small groups to converse and collaborate a suitable route
Maps of the town will be provided for the students and they must use all of their prior
knowledge to come up with instructions
8 Engage/ Excursion into town (approx 7 stops) to investigate what is in their own town and why? Notepads
Explore/ (post office, police station, fire station, shops, doctors, sporting grounds, cafes) map
Evaluate
Why are the sites in these specific places?
Students can make notes along the way to bring back to class
9 Explore Make treasure hunt in groups (Plan)
Students will spend the following 2 lessons working in small groups to create a treasure hunt
within the school
They will use this initial lesson to plan out what they are going to do and get all of their ideas
down on paper
 Their maps must include all previous learnt knowledge such as; orientation, scale and key as
well as using location language within their instructions
They can trial their draft instructions to ensure the treasure hunt works
10 Explore Make treasure hunt in groups (create) Poster paper
Students can complete their treasure hunt on poster paper with typed up instructions/clues
for easy to read access
11 Explore/ Students will swap their finished maps with another group all group maps
Evaluate They must follow the instructions of the map given to them to find the treasure at the end
Students can make some notes as they go in regards to the success of the maps
12 Evaluate Reflection/ Feedback/ what Ive learnt/ what I would like to know for the future
Students share how well the maps were constructed that they were given
How did they work as a team to follow the map/steps?
What knowledge do they think they have gained from this unit of work?
What else would they have liked to have been involved in within this unit?
Reference and Resources list:

Geography - Curriculum - Victorian Curriculum. (2016). Victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au. Retrieved 3 June 2017, from http://victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au/the-
humanities/geography/curriculum/f-10#level=3-4

Miles, D., & Ward, M. (2008). Geography it's essential (1st ed.). Camberwell West, Vic: Geography Teacher's Association of Victoria.

Years F4 | Inquiry and skills | Year F4 | Overview | GeogSpace. Geogspace.edu.au. Retrieved 4 June 2017, from http://www.geogspace.edu.au/core-units/f-4/inquiry-and-
skills/year-f-4/s-overview.html

Critically Evaluative Reflection on Unit Planning Process:

This plan was somewhat familiar as my current way of planning uses components of the UbD and I have seen samples of others plans that implement parts of
this also. It was a challenge to plan it this way as it is not a format I regularly use however I think it is a useful tool for the initial stage of planning as it
provides the planner with a clear idea of the expectations of the unit as well as what the teacher wants the students to achieve from completing the unit. It
clearly sets the direction for the teacher as well as the students and not only provides students with opportunities to develop specific areas of knowledge but
certain skills can be worked with and developed. One of the weaknesses of this plan for me is that within stage 1 it requires a lot of goal setting and
expectations and I feel that there may be pressure to meet the desired outcomes and gain certain skills whereas different students may gain a wider range of
knowledge and each may take something different from the lesson.
I find the use of the 5Es helpful as it sets the scene and the mode for that particular lesson or group of lessons. I currently use the 5Es within my planning
however I set the whole structure up for each and every lesson with most of, if not all the Es. There will always be a whole class engage component followed
by an explanation then students will have the opportunity to explore and elaborate on their learning and evaluate at the end. I think the 5E model works well
for this UbD planning process but I find my method easier to follow by implementing it in a more compact manner.
Paragraph on how your pedagogy addressed the chosen discipline:
I have chosen geography as it allows students to make clear connections between things that happen in the real world and themselves within the classroom.
They no longer just see how they fit into their family, friendship group or class but rather how they as one single person, can have an impact on the whole
world. Students begin to see their surroundings and gain a deeper understanding of the meaning behind things such as why buildings were chosen to be built
in particular spot. Some students do not even have much of an idea what is located in their own home town let alone the country. Children have an
abundance of knowledge that they just dont know how valuable it is quite yet and an education in geography can bring out this knowledge and help it to be
developed into something more that they can use for the future (Miles & Ward, 2008).
Inquiry learning within geography gives students the opportunity to investigate the world around them and research the area they find relevant to
themselves. Students need to critically think and use decision making skills in regards to what types of data they would like to collect and the process they
will use to collect it. Once collected they must use analysis skills to decipher what they have found and where they will go next. They gain communication
skills that help to build up their teamwork. Drawing maps and using directional language are essential to the study of geography and are all covered within
the Victorian Curriculum (GeogSpace F-4, n.d.).
Appendix 1: Assessment Checklist
Lesson 1 Lesson 2 etc.
Student Name Working in a group Communication Overall Working in a group Communication Overall
Skills Understanding Skills Understanding

Non Satisfactory: NS
Satisfactory: S
Competent: C

Further Notes:
Social Education Lesson Plan
Name: Kate Troy - 30126805 Unit Title: Maps
This is lesson 1 of my sequence of 12

Level Humanities discipline(s) What other disciplinary

content is integrated in
3/4 Geography: Mapping, Location, Map Features this lesson?
Maths: Following and creating grid references
Art: To be able to design a
as well as scale
reasonable map
English: Practicing their
procedural text skills by
designing instructions

Lesson overview: Brief summary of the story of this lesson in your own words

Hold a discussion with students as to why we use maps in everyday life, who
uses them and the importance to understand directions in every aspect of our
lives
What sorts of things can we look for on a map that helps us to know where we are
or we want to go?
Students to create an initial mind map from the class discussion and can build on
the ideas as well as adding in any questions or queries they might have about
maps
A member from the local fire brigade will then visit the class to discuss why they
use maps and how they play vital role within the CFA. They will then share with
the class the fire safety plan and why it is laid out that way as well as what the fire
fighters do once all the students and teachers have evacuated
Students will have the opportunity to ask any questions at the end of the
presentation
Victorian Curriculum statement that is developed in this lesson plan
Interpret maps and other geographical data and information to develop identifications,
descriptions, explanations and conclusions, using geographical terminology including
simple grid references, compass direction and distance (VCGGC076)
Discuss which of the Five Es is focused in in this lesson and how it is expressed.
Engage: Students are first introduced to the idea of mapping followed by a guest speaker
from the CFA. This will excite students and hopefully ignite a urge inside of them to want
to learn more around the topic of mapping once they understand the purpose. Most
students will enjoy the guest speaker as they wear a special uniform and have a special
job which excites most children.
Your key educational objectives for this lesson:
Knowledge - Why do we/ other people use map?
- What do maps tell us?
Skills How do we read maps?
Values I would hope that students will see the importance of maps and grasp an
understanding for the use of maps and how they can help them in everyday life. They will
also need to use their questioning skills to clarify any misunderstanding or concerns they
may have around the area of mapping.
Action The use of the guest speaker who will take them to a range of points around the
school

List of materials and resources needed for this lesson (their correct references will
be included in your unit plan reference and resource list):

Guest Speaker
School emergency map
Notebooks

Time Sequence and procedure Useful focus questions Resource

allowed use

10 mins Group introduction: A discussion of - Why do we use maps whiteboard

the reason we use maps and the - What do we know
importance of these. about maps?
Make a mind map on the board - Why are maps
important?
10 mins Development: Students copy the - What would you like to Humanities
mind map into their books adding in know about maps? books
 any new information and any
questions they may have.
25 mins Body of lesson: Guest speaker from School
fire brigade will discuss with students emergency
how they use maps and why they are map
important in the CFA. They will show
students the exits for the school and
how you can find these on a map.
5 mins Drawing things together: Students - prompting questions or notebooks
can then ask any mapping questions sentence staters to
students may have. assist students who may
Students can take notes. have forgotten their
questions
10 mins Closing procedure: Students can - What did the fireman Mind maps
add to their mind map of new talk about?
knowledge they have gained and - What is something you
further wonderings. have learnt from his
visit?
My plans for the format and style I will use to assess objectives set for this lesson.
I will use the assessment checklist to map students progress throughout the unit. It
covers areas of; working well with others, communication skills and overall understanding
of the topic area.
I will observe students and possibly provide them with prompting questions to gauge their
thinking.