Marisa Strunk, Southeast Unit Plan

Grade: 4th
Subject: Social Studies Cultures

Background Information:

Research southeast culture

Compare and contrast different cultures

Write letter

Use art to create a visual representation

Integration of Learning Outcomes:

Students will be able to define what culture is.

Students will be able to create a poster working with their classmates.

Students will be able to write a letter and discuss their individual culture.

Standards:
Standard - 8.4.4.C Explain how continuity and change in world history have influenced personal
development and identity.
CC.1.4: Writing: Students write for different purposes and audiences. Students write clear and
focused text to convey a well-defined perspective and appropriate content.
NCSS Theme # 1 Culture

Anticipatory Set:

Teacher generates background knowledge during a class discussion by asking students:

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What is culture?

Why is culture important?

What are the different things included in culture?

Students respond verbally

Teacher and students will come up with a classroom definition of culture and sub
categories of culture.

Marisa Strunk, Southeast Unit Plan

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Language (accent, dialect, specific word use), customs/traditions, values/religion,

clothing, food, government

Procedures:

Teacher will have previously shown part of a video documentary to the class showing that
different regions have unique cultural aspects - https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=S4Prt2nrm0s
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Teacher will separate students into 6 different groups of 2 or 3 students per groups
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This gives students background knowledge to understand what they will be

researching during this activity

Each group will be assigned a category of culture (language, customs/traditions,

values/religion, clothing, food, government)

Students will research their specific category using an IPad (language, customs/traditions,
values/religion, clothing, food, government) and record their information on a graphic
organizer.
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Students will be given the following websites to use to research:

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/

https://www.interexchange.org/american-culture/southeast/

http://americanfood.about.com/od/southeastgulfcoast/

http://herpackinglist.com/2013/05/southeast-usa-road-trip-packing-list/

https://www.usa.gov/

After having 15 minutes to research, each group will create a poster displaying the
information that they learned about a certain aspect of southern culture

Students will briefly present their poster to the class (2-3 min)

After presenting, each student will be given a letter from someone that lives in the
southeast region explaining what their culture is like.

Students will write a letter responding about their personal culture in proper format. If
they do not complete this assignment in class, they will have to finish it for homework.

Differentiation:

Marisa Strunk, Southeast Unit Plan

ELL students will be given visual aids with their letter or with it written in their own
language. They will be given the opportunity to write their letter in their own language.

Students who have a lower reading level will be given a modified letter that is easier for
them to understand.

To guide students when researching, teacher will assign specific websites to use.

Closure:

Exit slip
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Students will jot down on a piece of paper two new things they learned today
about southeast culture and hand it in at the end of class.

Formative/Summative Assessment:

Formative Teacher will assess students understanding of southeast culture and

participation through checking the correctness of each groups posters and reading the
exit slip that is completed and handed in at the end of the lesson.

Materials/Equipment:

Paper

Poster paper

Markers

Pencils

Websites for research:

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/

https://www.interexchange.org/american-culture/southeast/

http://americanfood.about.com/od/southeastgulfcoast/

http://herpackinglist.com/2013/05/southeast-usa-road-trip-packing-list/

https://www.usa.gov/

Technology:

IPads

Smartboard

Marisa Strunk, Southeast Unit Plan

Reflection on Planning:

When planning this lesson, I had to take into consideration the importance of culture,
individually and as a whole. It is important for students to learn more about other cultures
as well as share their personal thoughts and experiences. I chose to separate them into
specific groups so that the entire class could get a better idea of different aspects of
southeast culture rather than everyone researching the same thing. The posters are
important for students to use arts and crafts to convey information and can be kept as
visual aids to refer to in the future. The only concern I have with this lesson is having
enough time to complete each part especially the response letter.

Content Outline:
Things teacher needs to know to teach the lesson:

Definition of culture

Aspects of southeast culture

Examples of all types of cultures

Appropriate websites for exploration

Student capabilities in order to group them accordingly

Accommodations for individual students

Time management

Connections with someone or a resource in the southeast in order to obtain student letters

Students need to know:

How to research appropriately

How to record important facts

How to create an informative poster

How to read and write a letter

How to work together in a group