Title of Unit: Our Government Title of Lesson: State Government Submitted By: Sandra CP, Greg W, Stacy I.

A. Summary of the Lesson Plan: This social studies lesson is designed for 3rd grade students to learn about our local government. This lesson uses the 3rd grade Houghton Mifflin Social Studies textbook, Communities. (Pages 234-239) B. Target Population: Grade Level: 3rd Grade Skill Level: Students at all learning levels Grouping: whole group reading & discussions, independent for activity and assessment

C. D. E. F. G.

Materials: Vocabulary & Study Guide (Unit Resources pg. 66)- 28 copies Skill and Strategy(graphic organizer 65 pg. 234) Houghton Mifflin 3rd grade social studies book: Communities (p. 234-239) Paper and pencils

H. Objectives: o NV State Social Studies Standards C13.3.2 Discuss that democracy involves voting, majority rule, and setting rules.

Student-Friendly Standards C13.3.2 I can discuss that voting and rules are all part of democracy.

I.

Procedure: 1. Refer to notes on TE 234- Get Set to Read. Explain the Study Guide students will complete as we read. Identify & discuss responsibilities of voting and parts of democracy. Introduce vocabulary (capitol, governor) 2. As a class, read pg. 234-237, stopping to ask questions as indicated in the margins of TE (pg. 235, 236) 3. Students should take notes and record information on their Study Guide while we read; they can continue working on their Study Guide when we finish reading. 4. Ask questions listed in the margins of the TE as an ongoing check for understanding. (TE 235) What do all governments have in common? (TE 235) What happens to a law in each branch of the government? (TE 236) On what might a governor spend the states tax money?

Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2013

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 1

Title of Unit: Our Government Title of Lesson: State Government Submitted By: Sandra CP, Greg W, Stacy I.

5. Level Practice: Group Discussion- Have students tell which branch of government they may like to work in and why. Students will use information learned from the textbook for this discussion. 6. Students will get in groups of four and play the role of being a governor. They will discuss and convince their group why they would be a great governor based on the information learned on the textbook. Students will then secretly vote for one person and we will review what points of view the student gave to convince the voters. 7. CLOSURE: Discuss the three statements on Review/Assess (TE 237)

J. Assessment: What will you use to measure student understanding? Students understanding will be measured by walking around the room, observing and listening to their speech on why they would be a great governor. Explain how you will know students understand the concepts from the lesson. By having students give a speech of why they would be a great governor students will be able to understand the purpose of voting which is a big component of democracy. K. Reflection: 1. Which part of the lesson do you think will be the easiest for you to teach? I think the easiest part to teach would be explaining the duties of a governor because students will get the opportunity to act out the role of a governor and be elected by their group as the winning governor. 2. Which part will be most challenging for you to teach? I think the most challenging part to teach would be the definitions if students dont have prior knowledge on the topic. 3. How will you follow up or extend this lesson? To extend this lesson I would have my students work on (pages 238-239) the fifty states and their capital city. As a class we will discuss our neighborhood states and discuss their capital city. As a class we will also discuss that every state has a capital city where it has representatives that were chosen by people by voting. 4. What will you do for students who dont grasp the concepts? For students that do not grasp the concepts I will work with them in small groups and use the re-teach mini-lesson on page 237, graphic organizer 5.
Nevada State College EDEL 453 - Spring 2013 Karen Powell- Instructor page 2

Title of Unit: Our Government Title of Lesson: State Government Submitted By: Sandra CP, Greg W, Stacy I.

5. Which part of the lesson, if any, do you think might need to change? I like the way this lesson plan is composed I would not change anything. The only changes I made was to include a little bit of role playing so students can understand the purpose of a governor and the importance of votes. 6. When you were writing this lesson plan, what was the most difficult part? Not only for this lesson plan but for all I believe the most difficult part is choosing the adequate assessment. For this lesson, I had students role play what type of governor they would be by giving a short speech and their group would vote. The teacher walked around the room observing, listening and assisting student with this activity. By doing so the teacher was able to understand if students understood the concept or what they were struggling with so they could be assisted.

Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2013

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 3

Title of Unit: Our Government Title of Lesson: State Government Submitted By: Sandra CP, Greg W, Stacy I.

Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2013

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 4