Taylor Dewey

Unit Plan

STAGE 1 IDENTIFY DESIRED RESULTS

Social Studies Grade 2

Big Idea: Students will learn that communities change over time. They will learn about
all the different factors that occur when communities grow larger or when they become
smaller. Students will also learn about the history of the Lake Orion community and
how it has changed over time.

Established Goals:
2- H2.0.1 Demonstrate the chronological thinking by distinguishing among years and
decades using a timeline of local community events.
2- H2.0.2 Explain why descriptions of the same event in the local community can be
different.
2- H2.0.3 Use an example to describe the role of the individual in creating history.
2- H2.0.4 Describe changes in the local community over time (e.g., types of businesses,
architecture and landscape, jobs, transportation, population).
2- H2.0.5 Identify a problem in a communitys past and describe how it was resolved.
2- H2.0.6 Construct a historical narrative about the history of the local community from a
variety of sources (e.g., data gathered from local residents, artifacts, photographs).

Transfer: Students will be able to apply their understanding to their own community
and how its changed over the years.

Enduring Understandings:
Students will understand that:
1. Over time, communities change in ways of population, businesses, landscape,
jobs and transportation.
2. Theres a difference between a historical fact and a historical interpretation and
what this difference is.

3. Their own local school community (mostly Lake Orion) has changed from the
past.
Essential Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Explain the difference between historical facts and historical interpretations.

How has the community of Lake Orion changed from years back to now?
What are some of the causes in community changes?
What was a problem in Lake Orions community and how is it now resolved?

Students will know

1.
2.
3.
4.

How communities change over time and what factors play into these changes.
How their own local community has changed over the years.
How a timeline works and how to construct their own.
How history in general is started and who started Lake Orion.

Students will be skilled at

1. Constructing their own timelines.
2. Discussing how communities grow and change over time, including their local
community of Lake Orion.
Stage 2 Collecting Diverse Evidence from Assessments

Performance Task: There will be a couple of worksheets that students have to

complete that will show and reflect on their learning. A couple examples are The Little
House assignment and The Then and Now worksheet. These will be assignments
that are turned in and graded. Although theres not really a right or wrong answer, you
can still get a good idea if the student understood the material by what they wrote down
for an answer. If they wrote something completely off topic or something that doesnt
make sense, you know that they didnt understand the lesson. If they wrote something
that includes topics, ideas or places youve talked about as a class, you know that they
have a good idea of the material.

Other evidence: By playing the tug of war game, it was also easy to see who could
give valid reasons behind their thinking. A couple students were a little off topic and
that shows that they didnt understand the question or arent sure why communities
grow and change over time. Also the packet that the students will be completing during

the field trip will be an overall recap on the entire unit we have been studying over two
weeks so it will be good to look at those to see who was on topic, listening and
understanding during the field trip and those that werent. A couple ways that I will preassess before teaching the new lesson will be having students tell me what weve
learned in the previous lessons. I will ask engaging questions to see if theyre able to
answer them. This will give be a good idea of who understands the material and who is
having a more difficult time with it.

Stage 3 Curriculum Map and Lesson Design

*In second grade, they teach social studies on a MWF/T-TR week schedule. My
calendar reflects on this.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 14th- How Communities Grow and Change

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16th- How Communities Grow and Change Over Time
MONDAY, OCTOBER 20th- The First Settlers of Lake Orion
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22ND- Timeline of Lake Orion
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24TH-The Legend of the Dragon
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 28TH- Lake Orions History- Then and Now
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29TH- Field Trip

Day 1
Grade: 2nd grade
Subject: Social Studies
Title: How communities change and grow
Objectives:

2- H2.0.4 Describe changes in the local community over time (e.g., types of
businesses, architecture and landscape, jobs, transportation, population).

Time Frame: 35 minutes

Resources: The Little House, worksheet, pencil

Environment: The children will be up on the front carpet listening to the story and then
after the story is done, they will go back to their desks to begin working on the
worksheet.
Introduction: I will be asking children if anybody has an idea of how communities
could change or grow over time or if anyone has an idea of what that means. This will
tap into their prior knowledge to see what they already know.
Instructional Steps: After asking children what they knew about communities
changing and growing, I will tell them we were going to read a book called The Little
House and that they will have to pay attention to how the community changed.
Throughout the book, I will occasionally pause and ask questions to see what they were
noticing and thinking. After the story is over, I will have a worksheet for them. It is
called Step Inside the Little House. This was a visible thinking routine that I found and
tried out. It has the students pretend they were the house and they have to answer
certain questions. The questions were what do you care about, what do you
know/understand, what questions do you have and what do you see or notice?
Differentiation: Although each student is working on the same assignment, they have
to think about it and look at it whichever way affects them. They will be asked to really
think about the questions and how this applies to them if they were the house. This
way, each student will have different answers since it is more directed towards them
instead of being told what to write.

Day 2
Title: How communities change and grow over time
Objectives: 2- H2.0.4 Describe changes in the local community over time (e.g., types
of businesses, architecture and landscape, jobs, transportation, population).
Time Frame: 40 minutes
Resources: Window, sticky notes, large sheet of paper
Environment: The children will be on the front carpet while listening to the story and
then will be sent back to their seats afterward to fill out their sticky note and then asked
to come back up to the front carpet again to perform the activity.
Introduction: After reading the story Window, students will be playing a tug of war
game. They will be asked the question if its okay that communities change and grow
over time.
Instructional Steps: I will start the lesson by reading the book Window. While
reading, I will periodically stop to ask the students engaging questions that lead the
lesson. After the story is over, I will tell the students that we are playing a tug of war
game on paper. Each student will be given a sticky note and have to answer the

question of Is it okay that communities grow and change over time? If they think the
answer is yes, they have to answer why they think this on the sticky note and then place
their sticky note on the yes side of the paper. If the student thinks no, they have to
write why and place their sticky note on the no side of the paper. From here, I will
have three follow up questions. They are What if nice houses had to be torn down to
build new buildings?, What if a hospital needed to be built to save lives? What if the
people didnt want to move? The purpose of these questions is to have the students
see the other side of the question. Based on discussion from these questions, students
can then change their answer if theyd like.
Differentiation: Each student is able to take their own stand on how they feel about
the issue. Just like in the previous lesson, although all the students are participating in
the same activity, theyre able to relate and connect to it more by putting how they feel
about the issue. The purpose of asking the additional questions is to see if their
thinking changed. Some students might change their thinking while others dont and
that is okay. The whole point of this lesson is to see how each student feels about the
topic and then in general, how the class writes similar and different answers. There is
no right or wrong answer or choice on this assignment

Day 3
Title: Lake Orions History- The First Settlers
Objectives:

2- H2.0.3 Use an example to describe the role of the individual in creating

history.

Time Frame: 40 minutes

Resources: A Little History Book about Lake Orion, thinking journals, glue, scissors,
pencil, worksheet
Environment: The students will be pulled up to the front carpet while reading A Little
History Book about Lake Orion. After the book is read and are given a model of the
assignment they have to complete, they will be asked to go back to their desks to work
on the assignment. This will be an optional partner assignment though so if they want
to work with a partner on the carpet, they are allowed to. It is their choice.
Introduction: Students will learn about the important settlers and families that first
came to Lake Orion and how this made an impact on Lake Orion and the people of
Lake Orion today. Students will also learn about the other important people that made
our city what it is today.
Instructional Steps: The lesson will start off by recapping how communities grow and
change over time and what types of things change. From here, the book, A Little

History Book about Lake Orion, will be introduced to the students and then I will begin
to read the book to them stopping periodically to talk about the important things. I will
really try to focus on the people that created Lake Orion and how they are important.
Once the book is finished, I will model the assignment that the students will be
completing. They will have a worksheet with 4 different people on it. On the left side of
the sheet it will say, Who? Did What? and What role do they play in Lake Orions
history? Students will be given a copy of the book to use as a reference if they cant
remember during the read aloud of the book.
Differentiation: This activity will be an optional partner one so that gives students an
opportunity to work with someone else instead of it being a mandatory individual
assignment. This gives students a choice if they work better with a partner or if they
work better by themselves. Also, theres a couple different things each student can
write under the Did what and What role do they play in Lake Orions history? This
allows for a differentiated lesson since theyre not told what exactly they have to write.

Day 4
Title: Lake Orions History- A Timeline of Lake Orion
Objectives:

2- H2.0.1 Demonstrate the chronological thinking by distinguishing among years

and decades using a timeline of local community events.
2- H2.0.5 Identify a problem in a communitys past and describe how it was
resolved.

Time Frame: 30 minutes

Resources: A Little History Book about Lake Orion, glue, scissors, worksheet
Environment: Students will be called up to the front carpet during this lesson. This will
be a whole group activity that we will all be doing together.
Introduction: Students are going to be learning about timelines and how events
happen in a certain order. We will be looking at Lake Orions history specifically starting
around the 1830s and how its led into the city of Lake Orion today. Students will be
constructing their own timeline of Lake Orions history.
Instructional Steps: A recap of what the students have been learning will first take
place and then an introduction of timelines will be taught. From here, I will review the
book A Little History Book about Lake Orion. As I am referencing the book, the
students are going to be cutting and gluing the strips of events that happened in Lake
Orions history in the order they occurred. I wont really be focusing on the specific
years these events happened but more along the lines of how these events happened
in a certain order to make up the city of Lake Orion today. The students are also going

to learn about a problem in Lake Orion and how it was resolved. As we are reading,
theres a part in the story that discusses a train that ran across Lake Orion and how it
caused problems since it ran right next to a church. This was a problem because
people would be in service and they wouldnt be able to hear when the train went by.
We then had a discussion on how the problem was resolved by moving the church to a
new location. Once all the events are glued in, there will be a short wrap up discussion
of timelines and how they help us see what events happened and in what order.
Differentiation: With this being an activity that has a specific order to it, its not very
differentiated. I will try to make it beneficial to the students however by doing it whole
group. This way, we can all work on it together and make sure that every student is on
the same page when learning about timelines. It is also a more hands-on activity for
those types of learners since they have to cut out the strips and glue them in. Its not
just a basic worksheet that they will have to write answers on so I think that will make it
more differentiated.

Day 5
Title: Lake Orions History- The Legend of the Dragon
Objectives:

2- H2.0.2 Explain why descriptions of the same event in the local community can
be different.
2- H2.0.5 Identify a problem in a communitys past and describe how it was
resolved.

Time Frame: 20 minutes

Resources: A Little History Book about Lake Orion, poem, markers, picture of Lake
Orion, dragon
Environment: Students will be called up to the front carpet during this lesson. The first
part of the lesson will take place at the front carpet for a whole group discussion and
then students will be sent back to their seats to begin working on their activity.
Introduction: Students will be learning about Lake Orions history and how at one
point in history, there was a story going around that someone saw a dragon in Lake
Orions lake one night.
Instructional Steps: A recap of what the students have been learning will first take
place and then I will begin the lesson on the legend of the dragon. I will first start the
lesson by reading a page from A Little History Book about Lake Orion. This page
describes how students pulled a prank by making a dragon and putting it in the lake of
Lake Orion. I will then teach the students that this is how the Lake Orion Dragons came
about and how the dragon is the mascot of Lake Orion. After this discussion, I will pass

out a poem called Dragon to each student. I will read the poem to them as they follow
along. Then, each student will be given a picture of Lake Orion and a cut out of a
dragon. Theres a slot in the lake, where they can put their popsicle stick dragon in and
show that theres a dragon in the lake. The students will be asked to color the dragon,
glue the poem on the page and then when they take the page home, they can repeat
the legend of the dragon story to their families.
Differentiation: This lesson is more of a fun activity for the students. There isnt much
information behind it so this makes the differentiated instruction a little more difficult. By
having the students take their papers and dragons home however, this will allow them
to repeat the story of the legend of the dragon again which is good.

Day 6
Title: Lake Orions History- Then and Now
Objectives:

2- H2.0.6 Construct a historical narrative about the history of the local community
from a variety of sources (e.g., data gathered from local residents, artifacts,
photographs).

Time Frame: 25 minutes

Resources: Newspapers, photographs and worksheet
Environment: Students will be called up to the front carpet to begin this lesson. There
will be a whole group discussion and then students will be sent back to their seats to
complete the worksheet.
Introduction: Students will be learning about Lake Orions history and will be shown
photographs of Lake Orion then and Lake Orion now.
Instructional Steps: A recap of what the students have been learning will first take
place and then I will begin the new lesson. As a class we are going to be looking at old
newspapers from a long time ago. Then I will show the students pictures of what Lake
Orion looked like years ago and the same area of what Lake Orion looks like now.
From here, students will have a discussion of whats changed and why we think it has
changed. Student will then be given instructions on the worksheet they have to
complete. There will be another then and now picture of Lake Orion. They have to
write down what they see in the then section, what they see in the now section and
then a spot that says explain. This explain section is a little vague but it was meant
to be that way. I want to see what the students have noticed and if they can explain this
change.

Differentiation: Just like the other lessons that have worksheets, each student is
working on the same worksheet but its differentiated because they get to choose what
they notice and this might be different from the person next to them. Also with the
explain part, they have to explain why they think this. Every student will have to think
for themselves and write down what theyre thinking.

Day 7
Title: Field Trip on Lake Orions History
Objectives:

2- H2.0.2 Explain why descriptions of the same event in the local community can
be different.
2- H2.0.3 Use an example to describe the role of the individual in creating
history.
2- H2.0.4 Describe changes in the local community over time (e.g., types of
businesses, architecture and landscape, jobs, transportation, population).
2- H2.0.5 Identify a problem in a communitys past and describe how it was
resolved.

Time Frame: 4 hours (9AM to 1 PM)

Resources: School bus, packet and pencil
Environment: Students will be taking a field trip on a school bus.
Introduction: Students will be learning about Lake Orions history by taking a tour of
Lake Orion and how things have changed from then to now.
Instructional Steps: This is a fun wrap-up day that will allow the students the
opportunity to see things in person and hear about how they have changed over the
years. We will have a tour guide that has lived in Lake Orion for over 50 years that will
talk all about the changes in Lake Orions community. The students will each be given
a packet and pencil and during the tour, theyre going to have to answer questions on
the packet. There are a few places we will be stopping at as well where the students
can get off the bus to get a closer look at things. After the tour, we are stopping at
Friendship Park to have lunch and play for a little bit before returning to school.
Differentiation: This is a good way for students to see some of the buildings and
places that we will be talking about in person. If some of the students are more of a
hands-on or visual learner then they will really enjoy this field trip but I think all the
students will enjoy it overall.

Reflection

Overall, the students seemed to respond really well to the unit that I taught.
Although we talked a lot about how communities grow and change, I think it made it
much more meaningful to the students by talking about how Lake Orions community
has changed and tying that in the unit. The students were able to relate to it, since they
know where a lot of the places we talked about are and what they look like. They were
really intrigued when I showed them pictures of what it sued to look like before it
changed.
The learning progress of the students toward the objectives seemed to go
smoothly as well. I felt like one of the lessons I taught was a little bit of a stretch to the
objective but besides that, every benchmark was hit and in a way that was most
meaningful to the students.
One modification I would make before teaching again would be the lesson on the
settlers and how history was made. The students didnt get much time to work on this
assignment due to it being the end of the school day. Next time, I would either give
them more working time and less instruction or find another activity that they could
complete a little faster. I felt like some of the students were rushed to finish and I didnt
want that happening. I like when they take their time and really think and put effort into
the activity.