Unit Plan

(adapted)
YOUR NAME:
Emma Behlen

Develop a standards-based unit plan by aligning your resources with Wisconsins education initiatives to support the
diverse learning needs of the range of learners within your local context. This resource can be used to create a
process for developing lesson plans that outline essential elements of unit designstandards, high quality
instruction, and a balanced assessment system. A unit consists of a coherent series of lessons where concepts
and/or skills advance and deepen over time for all students.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Grade

Class

Length of Unit

10th

World Issues

3 lessons

Unit Title

Pay it Forward: Community Service

Learning
UNIT OVERVIEW

Students will interact in a positive way with their community by creating an action plan for the betterment of
our society. This service learning opportunity will give students a guideline, action planning, to follow when
making changes in their community to meet their civic responsibility.

UNIT STANDARDS

National Council for Social Studies Standards

D2.Civ.5.9-12. Evaluate citizens and institutions effectiveness in addressing social and political problems at
the local, state, tribal, national, and/or international level.
D2.Civ.9.9-12. Use appropriate deliberative processes in multiple settings.
D2.Civ.7.9-12. Apply civic virtues and democratic principles when working with others.
ELA Standards
3. Analyze in detail a series of events described in a text; determine whether earlier events caused later ones or
simply preceded them.
b. Work with peers to promote civil, democratic discussions and decision making, set clear goals and
deadlines, and establish individual roles as needed.
c. Propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that probe reasoning and evidence; ensure a
hearing for a full range of positions on a topic or issue; clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions; and
promote divergent and creative perspectives

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World Issues Unit Plan

UNIT OVERVIEW

Students will interact in a positive way with their community by creating an action plan for the betterment of
our society. This service learning opportunity will give students a guideline, action planning, to follow when
making changes in their community to meet their civic responsibility.

Common Core Mathematics Standards

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.IC.B.6 Evaluate reports based on data.

UNIT LEARNING TARGET(S)

(objectives)
What are your learning targets, behavioral objectives? How will you communicate that to students?

Students will exercise their civic duties by responding to problems in the community through action planning.
Students will collaborate with members of the local community by working on a project based on their
interests.
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

What are some of our responsibilities as citizens of our community, country and world?
How can we make a difference in our community, country and world?
What changes do we want to see in our community?

UNIT CONCEPTS AND ACADEMIC

VOCABULARY
Which general academic and domain-specific words deepen student understanding? Decide which words will be
included in teacher language, included in assessment language, known and used by all students, explicitly taught
and assessed in context, and used consistently throughout the school.

Academic Vocabulary
Action Planning
Resources
Civic Responsibility
Welfare
Civic Virtues
Potential Barriers
Outcome

DRAFT September 2013 Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction

World Issues Unit Plan

Page 3

ASSESSMENTS

Pre-assessments
Surveys
Formative Assessments
Discussion Board
First Draft Action Plan
Summative Assessments: Final Performance Tasks
Final Draft Action Plan
DIFFERENTIATION

Students will understand civic virtues and responsibility before the start of this lesson.
Students will be able to choose an area of their interest within the community that they would like to change.
This project will be heavily based on students choices and decisions. Students will connect and collaborate
with members of the local community.
DISCIPLINARY LITERACY (Text
Set)

Hyde, Catherine Ryan. Pay It Forward: A Novel. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999. Print.
Pay It Forward. Warner Bros., 2000.
Behlen, Emma. "Paying It Forward." Paying It Forward. Weebly, n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
http://missbehlenscommunityproject.weebly.com/
Williams, Jennifer, PHD. "Neglected, Abused or Abandoned Horses: How to Help." EQUUS Magazine Dec.
2014
"Neglect." Neglect. Midwest Horse Welfare Foundation, n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.

SEQUENCE OF LESSON PLANS

Day 1
Students will watch videos and complete survey form online.
Action Planning Lesson
Students will complete their own action plan for a problem in their community of their choosing.
Class will vote on best action plan. =
Students will respond to discussion questions throughout the unit.
Day 2
Tour of Midwest Horse Welfare Foundation.
Students will create a list of questions from their action plan for the tour guide.
Students will interview tour guide.
Students will create a revised action plan from interview.
DRAFT April 2013 Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction

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World Issues Unit Plan

DISCIPLINARY LITERACY (Text

Set)

Day 3
Visit Midwest Horse Welfare Foundation.
Students will put their second action plan into action.

DRAFT September 2013 Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction