Social Studies Lesson

Urban vs Rural

Objective 1.1.5.3
Lesson 13: Urban and Rural: What does it mean?
Objective: Students will be able to distinguish between urban and rural characteristics.
Key Questions: What does urban mean? What does rural mean?
Learning Activities:
-Concept attainment lesson (at carpet)
-Create a T-chart. Place urban rural pictures face down on the chart, keeping
urban cards on one side and rural on the other. Alternating sides, reveal one card
at a time. Students task is to identify what each side of the T Chart represents
(don’t reveal answer). Ask them to keep thinking in their head. (This exercise is
to enable students to sort and compare things found in rural versus urban
environments). After revealing all the cards, ask students to give a thumbs
up/thumbs down/sideways to indicate if they know what each side represents.
Think/Pair Share their guesses. Have students share what they think they could
add to side A and/or B. After students have guessed discuss characteristics of
urban and rural making a list. Guide students to come up with a definition of
urban and rural.
-Another way to do this is give students an envelope with pictures and have them
sort it into two categories without telling them what the categories are. This may
be too difficult for students but would be interesting to try perhaps before doing it
as a class.
-Make a graph of students who live in urban areas and those who live in rural
areas. Invite students to share what it is like in either area.
-Explain instructions for what students will do independently: Cut out pictures of
magazines and students put it in urban/rural category. Having students find and cut out
pictures will get students actively thinking about what are urban characteristics, what can
I look for etc., rather than just looking at a worksheet and categorizing the images.
Students will be doing more thinking this way.
Transition to desks: by color
-As students are working I will circulate and ask, “How do you know this is
urban…rural? What does urban mean? What does rural mean? This will be a way of
formatively assessing students as well.
Closure: Give riddle: Am I rural or urban? How do you know?

Formative assessment: Observe whether students are cutting and pasting pictures that represent
urban/rural. Questioning.

Differentiation:
For motivating L, helping him focus, and reducing his anxiety I may give him the option of
doing a worksheet with urban/rural pictures on it already. This way he will not get distracted
looking through the magazine, and he won’t get too anxious trying to find pictures.
To keep students going I will also tell students that they need to have a minimum of 3 pictures
under each category before the end of class.