Unit Plan: Understanding Symbolism in Social Studies

Lesson Plan for Tuesday Grade: 1st Social Studies Strand: Civics

Submitted By: Patty Medeiros

EDEL 453: Teaching Elementary School Social Science Nevada State College Spring 2014 Instructor: Karen Powell

Lesson Plan for Tuesday

B. Summary of the Lesson Plan:

Strand: Civics

submitted by: Patty Medeiros

This social studies lesson is designed for 1st grade students to understand the flag is a symbol of a nations people and its ideals. This lesson uses strategies from Integrating Language Arts and Social Studies (p. 171-178). C. Basic Information: Grade Level: 1st grade Time to Complete this Lesson: approximately 50 minutes Groupings: Whole class discussions, partner groups for activity and assessment

D. Materials: American Flag (if one is not already displayed in the classroom) Nevada State Flag F is for Flag by Wendy Cheyette Lewison Books with state flags for student resources Index cards with the name of a different state printed on each, one per partner group (do not include Nevada) State flag symbols and meanings for the chosen states (can be printed from www.enchantedlearning.com) Example of a completed page for the Class Book of United States Flags (using Nevada) following the provided example: Heavy duty white construction paper (to be used for pages of a book) Markers/ colored pencils

E. Objectives: o NV State Social Studies Standards o C13.1.5 Name a traditional U.S. patriotic activity, holiday, or symbol. C13.1.5A Develop an awareness of traditional U.S. and Nevada patriotic activities, holidays, and symbols. C13.1.5 I can identify the flag of the United States of America. C13.1.5 I can identify the flag for the state of Nevada. C13.1.5A I can explain how a flag is a symbol of its nation.

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Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2014

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 2

Lesson Plan for Tuesday

F. Vocabulary

Strand: Civics

submitted by: Patty Medeiros

flag a piece of cloth with a special design that is used as a symbol or for signaling. nation an organized body of people under a single government. symbol something that stands for something else.

G. Procedure: 1. Display the American Flag in front of the class and discuss why they think our country has a flag and what they think it means. Have the students think about the designs on the flag; the stars and the stripes, and the different colors. Where are some places students have seen the American Flag being flown? Introduce vocabulary (flag, nation, symbol).

2. Read aloud F is for Flag by Wendy Cheyette Lewison using think-aloud strategy. Discuss symbolism and unity. Ask students to describe other flags they may have seen. Where did they see these flags? What were some of the symbols on these other flags? What do they think the symbols stood for? Display and discuss the Nevada State Flag. Do students know what the flag is? Have they seen it anywhere else? What are the symbols they see on the Nevada flag? What do they think the symbols stand for? o Battle Born in the upper left corner indicates Nevada became a state during the American Civil War; the sprays of sagebrush beneath Nevada are the state flower; the silver star represents the rich mineral wealth of Nevada.

Explain to students that along with the American Flag, each state also has a state flag to stand for their unity as a state. Explain that the state flags have different symbols that represent each state. Assign each group a different state using the index cards previously prepared. Distribute the required materials to each group: one reference book, one large sheet of white construction paper, and markers or colored pencils. Discuss the activity students will participate in: o o Each partner group of students will be responsible for illustrating a page for the Class Book of United States Flags. The page will follow the same format as the displayed example for the state of Nevada; the first letter of the state they are assigned will be written at the top of the page in large, neat letters, beneath it will be the whole name of the state in large, neat letters, and beneath the state name will be a colored illustration of the states flag.
EDEL 453 - Spring 2014 Karen Powell- Instructor page 3

3. Group students in partner groups of 2.

Nevada State College

Lesson Plan for Tuesday

o o

Strand: Civics

submitted by: Patty Medeiros

The partner groups will use the resource books to find the state and the flag they have been assigned. Once complete, each groups state flag will be bound together in alphabetical order in the Class Book of United States Flags to be used as a read-aloud or resource book.

H. Assessment: What will you use to measure student understanding? On the back of the index card the students were given, the students will work with their partner to identify and write the symbols they found on their state flag, as well as what they infer the symbols mean. Explain how you will know students understand the concepts from the lesson. The students will have correctly identified at least most of the symbols found on their state flag with reasonable meanings behind the identified symbols. I. Closure: Give each partner group the printed copy of the symbols and meanings for their state flag and have them compare it with the information they wrote on their index card. Have students use the printed copies to write the correct symbols and meanings on the back of their state flag using their best penmanship. At a later time, the students should share their state flag with the whole class and explain the symbols and their meanings.

J. Reflection: 1. Which part of the lesson do you think will be the easiest for you to teach? I think the easiest part of teaching this lesson will be activating student schema and background knowledge for a more concrete foundation of understanding. Most students should be at least somewhat familiar with the American Flag by the first grade, especially with the pledge of allegiance being recited daily. 2. Which part will be most challenging for you to teach? I think the most challenging part of teaching this lesson will be helping students understand symbols and how they are used to represent the different items or concepts on the flags. For this reason I am using the read aloud of F is for Flag to help activate students schema and help students make personal connections. 3. How will you follow up or extend this lesson? Beyond reading the completed class book aloud, I would like to further extend the lesson by having students create a Family flag using symbols, colors, and words to represent their family. The students should include a written paragraph to explain their choice of symbols, colors, and words that were used on their flags.
Nevada State College EDEL 453 - Spring 2014 Karen Powell- Instructor page 4

Lesson Plan for Tuesday

Strand: Civics

submitted by: Patty Medeiros

4. What can you do for students who dont grasp the concepts? While partner groups are working together on their projects, I can meet with students who are having difficulty with the concepts. I think symbolism may be the most confusing aspect of this lesson and to help students understand this concept a few pictures may be printed out prior to the lesson to help struggling students. Symbolism may become clearer to students using familiar images and concepts such as showing a picture of McDonalds famous golden arches. Most students will identify the yellow M sign with that of the fast-food restaurant (an example of symbolism). Another example might include a picture of the boy that is shown on the front of the mens restroom door and the girl that is shown on the front of the womens restroom door. Students should be able to quickly identify these symbols. 5. Which part of the lesson, if any, do you think might need to change? At this point I do not think any part of the lesson might need to change. It seems to be within the allotted time frame, aligns with the Nevada State Social Studies Standards, and appears to be an engaging lesson with an activity students should enjoy while they are learning. 6. When you were writing this lesson plan, what was the most difficult part? I struggled the most with trying to keep the steps simple while still giving enough information so that a teacher (or sub) would be able to pick up this lesson and start working with the students right away without confusion. 7. Explain the strategy from Integrating Language Arts & Social Studies that you included in this lesson plan. The strategy I included from Integrating Language Arts & Social Studies was Understanding Global Symbols; Analysis of Flag Symbolism. In this strategy students are examining and studying flag symbols from flags of other countries and then creating a page for a class book on flags. Since my lesson is for 1st grade I changed it so that students are working with state flags instead.

Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2014

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 5