LESSON PLAN OUTLINE

JMU Elementary Education Program

Kelsey Mercadante
Mrs. Lowery, Paul Munro Elementary School, 1st Grade
Date: Thurs. September 24th, 2015. Time: 2:05-2:30

A. TITLE OF LESSON: Communities Diversity

B. CONTEXT OF LESSON
During this lesson, students will learn about the diversity in our classroom through sharing
what country their ancestors are from (ethnic origin). We will locate the countries that each
students family comes from. Students will also share any traditions or customs they practice.
C. UNWRAPPING THE VIRGINIA STANDARDS OF LEARNING
1. Grade Level and Content Area:
First Grade: Social Studies
2. Standard and Indicators:
S.S: SOL 1.12 - The student will recognize that communities in
Virginia
c) include people who have diverse ethnic origins, customs, and
traditions, who make contributions to their communities, and who are
united as Americans by common principles.
Blooms Taxonomy
Levels:
Understand
D. LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Understand

Know

Do

U1: Communities in Virginia

include people with different
ethnic origins, customs, and
traditions.

K1: Diverse: different, or

showing variety.
K2: Ethnic: cultural, or
something that comes from
another country.

D1: Summarize their familys

ethnic origin, traditions, and
customs.
D2: Discuss the diversity that
is present in our class.

E. ASSESSING LEARNING
I will assess students through observation and their participation in the activity. Each student
will share any information they have about their familys ethnic origin, traditions, or customs.
Students will then participate in discussion about the diversity present in our classroom.

F. MATERIALS NEEDED
1. Any information that parents send to school with their child that relates to ethnic origins,
traditions, and customs they can share with the rest of the class.
2. Map of the World (pull-down map)
3. Sticky, Post-it Notes
4. Book: Children Around the World
5. Chopsticks
G. PROCEDURE
Prep:

Prepare and collect all materials

Send note home a week before the date of this lesson to each of the students parents that
notifies them about this lesson. Tell parents to write down what country their ancestors
came from, and any traditions or customs they would like their child to share with the
class. Tell them to feel free to have their child bring any objects that relates to their
family origin or traditions to school with them on the date of this lesson, for them to
share.

Engage:
Review:
o What does diversity mean? (Different)
o What does ethnic origin mean? (Country where your ancestors/family are from)
o What does customs or tradition mean? (A way of doing things, the handing down
of information that you practice). Ex. Different Christmas traditions. (stockings)
Implementation:
Today, we are going to learn about how diverse we are as a class.
I sent home a note to each of you asking about your ethnic origin and any traditions or
customs your family may practice. Today, you are each going to share with the class, any
information you may have relating to this topic.
Tell students to get out any information, or objects that they may have to help share their
ethnic origin/traditions.
Pull Popsicle sticks to see who will share first.
As students share what country their ancestors are from, write their name on a sticky note
and stick it in the country that they are from on the large world map in the classroom.
When students share ask:
o What country are your ancestors from?
o Do you have any traditions you would like to share? Describe them.
o Do you have any customs? Describe them.
o If they have an object, have them describe what it is, and how it is used in their
family.
Closure:
After each student has shared, have a discussion about our class diversity. Take a look at
all of the sticky notes on the world map and look at where everyones family comes from.
Summarize how this activity made us see how communities, like ours, in Virginia include
people of many ethnic origins who come from different places around the world.

If theres still time at the end of class, show students some children from the book,
Children Around the World.

H. DIFFERENTIATION
Students were able to choose what to bring into the classroom that related to their country
of origin, or family tradition, to share with the class.
I. WHAT COULD GO WRONG WITH THIS LESSON AND WHAT WILL YOU DO
ABOUT IT?

Students may not seem to be engaged

o I will quickly engage students by asking them a question about the activity. I will ask
them a question about diversity.
Even after sending a note home to parent a week before, and reminding parents a night or two
before, students parents may still not give their child any information on their familys ethnic
origin or any traditions/customs they may have.
o Any child who does not have anything to share, I could read some childrens
traditions/culture in the book, Children Around the World, and I could have the
students who did not share go up to the map and place a sticky note on the country of
origin where the child in the book is from. This will allow these students to still
participate in the activity. Everyone will learn from each other during this lesson.
Students may talk when another classmate is sharing.
o I will remind students to be quiet while their classmates share. I may have to move
some students around the run area as they sit to move apart some students.