Marquette University

Lesson Plan Template (REVISED 8/15/13)

Social Studies Toolkit Lesson 5
Thanksgiving

16 December 2015
Social Studies/Grade 4/60 minutes

Section A. Lesson Preparation

Objectives/Learner Outcomes and Assessments (formal and informal)
1. This day will be spent organizing the students final project. This is the beginning of their
summative assessment where they will put everything they learned in this unit towards a
student action project. Students will use their research skills to find an organization they
can donate imperishable foods that are commonly seen at Thanksgiving meals today.
2. The success after the food drive will determine the success of this lesson.
Standards Addressed
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.4.6
With some guidance and support from adults, use technology to produce and publish
writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate sufficient
command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of page in a single sitting.
Materials/Resources/Technology List all materials/resources/technology needed to support
instructional procedures in this lesson.
Computer
Poster boards
Markers
Paper
Section B: Introduction to Lesson
Purpose How will you state the purpose of the lesson?
The purpose of this lesson is to learn the importance of giving back to the community.
Now that we have learned all about the first Thanksgiving we can make a difference in
the communitys Thanksgiving celebration.
Prior learning Some students will have volunteered at food shelters of for their
churches in the past so they can use their knowledge of those agencies to share with the
class. They will use what they talked about the food eaten at different Thanksgiving
meals to plan what they want the classmates to collect.
Connections to personal/cultural/community assets This day and the completion of this
project will be directly be connected to their lives and the community, for they are giving
back to those in need so they can enjoy their Thanksgiving and not worry about putting
food on the table.
Section C: Content/Procedures/Sequence (Include estimated time for each activity)

Content outline
1. Project Introduction

Instructional strategies/learning tasks/sequence of

activities (include what you and the students will be doing
that supports diverse student needs)
1. I will introduce the project to begin the class. I
will tell them that instead of having a formal
assessment with a test or essay, they will be
engaging in a Thanksgiving food drive. It is their
responsibility to pick an organization or church,
etc., to donate the food to at the end of the drive.
They will also be responsible for creating
advertisements and getting their community
involved in the drive. In the end they will sort the
food and with my help transport it to the
designated organization.

2. Partner Research time

2. Students can get in their own groups of two. Using

computers they will find out which organization
they want the food to go to at the end of the drive
before Thanksgiving.

3. Class presentation and

voting

3. Pairs or groups will present the organization of

their choice to the class and then each student will
have two votes for their two favorite organizations
excluding their own.

4. Generate Advertisement
Ideas

4. Once the class has picked an organization we will

brainstorm different advertising methods of
getting the school on board and even reaching out
to families and community members. If students
are having trouble coming up with ideas I will
help them by suggesting posters, drafting emails,
making an announcement at the end of the day
announcements, or going from house to house in
their neighborhoods to collect food.

5. Generate a list of foods

5. As a class students will suggest any nonperishable

foods they want to collect for the drive. I will
mention that it is possible for us to do a turkey
drop off on the final day of the drive. Turkeys can
be collected in a bin outside of the school to stay
cold until they get to their respective destination.

6. Create advertisements

6. Students will break off into groups and work on

different advertisements to go throughout the
school. One group will generate an email to send
to the organization letting them know their plan.
Some will create posters. Some will work on
getting an announcement into the afternoon
announcements.

7. Exit Slip

7. Students will complete the day by filling out an

exit slip. Their exit slip will ask them What do
you hope to get out of this project? and Why is
it important to help families in need?

Section D: Closure
Summary of lesson How will you bring the lesson to a close? (One-two statements that
you will say at the end of the lesson)
You all have done an awesome job at getting this project started. Each day you will
continue to advertise your project by reaching out to individuals in the school and in your
community and collect food. Your homework is to get in touch with any extended family
members or friends or neighbors and collect any of the foods we added to the list. This
project will really help families in need and its awesome that we are able to make a
difference.
Assignment The assignment will be to keep collecting food and spreading the word
about their project.

Section E: Self-Assessment and Reflection (To be completed only if and after you teach the
lesson)
1. Was the lesson successful? What DATA or EVIDENCE support your conclusions?
2. Based on your conclusion above about what your students know and are able to do
(individually and collectively), what next steps in instruction are you planning?
a. For the class as a whole:
b. For individuals with specific learning needs within the class