Grade 10 Social Studies

Unit 1: The Beginnings of Civilization

September/October
Andrea Dennis
N.B. Outcome:
The biological and environmental factors which shaped the early
development of humanity
Rational:
With the varying levels of students in this class, I intend to use simple
terms to explain the concepts surrounding this unit. The class will be
note based, but will also contain many hands on activities to help the
students engage in the material. I will use entrance & exit slips to
assess student comprehension throughout the unit, as well as a midway point quiz, and unit test at the end.
Week 1:
During the first week I will explain the concept of a historical timeline
and create one in the classroom that we will develop throughout the
course to track our progress. I will start introducing concepts around
the early development of humans and discussing how we have
physically evolved and developed over time.
Week 2:
In the second week I will discuss evolution and natural selection. We
will talk about Charles Darwins theory of evolution and how that is
relevant to what we are studying. We will also look at different types of
early humans and their distinct characteristics, tools, and technologies.
Week 3:
In the third week we will discuss migration patterns of early humans.
Starting in Africa, I will explain how and why humans travelled
throughout the world. We will discuss the land bridge theory. We will
also look at cave drawings to show how we have come to these
conclusions about daily life.
Mid-way through this week I will have a quiz to assess student
comprehension.
Week 4 (After October Break):
In the fourth week we will discuss the Neolithic revolution and the
significance of humans becoming food producers. The main focus of
this week will be to reflect on change over time. We will review key
events and ideas we have discussed and prepare for a test. We will do
this is small groups, to get the students discussing events.