Nicole Breuninger

MGP335
May 19, 2015
Volcanoes 4th Grade
A. Lesson plan overview and description
1. Expected duration: 2 hours or 2 class periods
2. Social Sciences: geography and history
3. Concepts (Big Ideas): Where most volcanoes form and examples of
major earthquakes in the American West
4. Vocabulary: volcano, lava, crater, divergent boundaries, convergent
boundaries
5. Skills: Map reading skills, geographic skills, reading skills,
comprehension skills, writing skills
6. Broad Goals of Lesson: Students will be able to understand the
formation of volcanoes around the Ring of Fire and be able to create a
brochure based on documented verbal retellings of the Mt. St. Helens
eruption.
B. Content Outline
C. Big Changes (from textbook)
1. Fiery Mountains
a. Volcano: a mountain formed when erupted lava cools
and hardens onto Earths surface
b. Lava: melted rock
c. Crater: a bowl-shaped area formed at the volcanos top
d. Most volcanos found in the west border the Pacific
ocean
i. Mauna Loa, Hawaii
ii. Mount Rainier, Washington
iii. Mount Hood, Oregon
e. Divergent boundaries: where new crust is generated
as the plates pull away from each other.
f. Convergent boundaries: where crust is destroyed as
one plate dives under another.
C. Standards
1. PDE SAS Standards
Geography: 7.Geography. 1. Basic Geographic Literacy. 4 th
grade. A: Describe how common geographic tools are used to
organize and interpret information about people, places, and
environment.; 7.Geography. 4.Interactions Between People and
the Environment. 4th grade. A: Identify the effect of the physical
systems on people within a community.
History: 8.History. 1. Historical Analysis and Skills
Development. 4th grade. B: Distinguish between fact and
opinion from multiple points of view, and primary sources as
related to historical events.
2. NCSS Themes and Subthemes
II Time, Continuity, & Change: c. Compare and contrast
different stories or accounts about past events, people, places,

or situations, identifying how they contribute to our

understanding of the past; d. Identify and use various sources
for reconstructing the past, such as documents, letters, diaries,
maps, textbooks, photos, and others;
III People, Places & Environments: b. Interpret, use, and
distinguish various representations of the earth, such as maps,
globes, and photographs; e.
Locate and distinguish among
varying landforms and geographic features, such as mountains,
plateaus, islands, and oceans; i. Explore ways that the earths
physical features have changed over time in the local region and
beyond and how these changes may be connected to one
another; j. Observe and speculate about social and economic
effects of environmental changes and crises resulting from
phenomena such as floods, storms, and drought;
VIII Science, Technology, & Science: a. Identify and
describe examples in which science and technology have
changed the lives of people, such as in homemaking, childcare,
work, transportation, and communication

D. Lesson Objectives
After watching a documentary on the eruption of Mt. St. Helens, all
students will be able to illustrate and compose a travel brochure using at
least 4 facts from the film or supplementary materials.
E. Teaching Procedures
1. Anticipatory Set/Introduction
Teacher will show short video introducing volcanoes
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgktM2luLok)
2. Lesson Input
Teacher will pass out Ring of Fire Info handout to students and
review the ring of fire with students
Teacher will tell students to sit in front of the smart board
Teacher will bring up National Geographics volcanoes simulator
(http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/natura
l-disasters/forces-of-nature/)
Teacher will read Labs 1-3
On Lab 4 teacher will read only about composite volcanoes
Teacher will pause and go over divergent and convergent
boundaries
1. Divergent boundaries: where new crust is generated as
the plates pull away from each other
2. Convergent boundaries: where crust is destroyed as
one plate dives under another
Teacher will then go to Lab 6 and create a composite volcano
explosion
Teacher will then go to Case Studies 4 and read about Mt. St.
Helens

Teacher will play two short clips then go over each picture at the
bottom
Teacher will ask students what they observe in the images
Have students return to their seats and pass out the Volcano
Worksheet with a quick fill in the blank
Collect when students are finished to make sure students know
the parts of the volcano
Have students take out their notebooks and a writing utensil
Have students come back up to the front and sit in front of the
smart board while teacher brings up documentary on Mt. St.
Helens (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ifohb8_2WhE)
Before starting the video tell students of the assignment they
will be completing after watching the film
Tell students to take notes on the destruction the volcano
caused and to take notes on the regrowth that has occurred
Students will be responsible for creating a brochure to bring
people back to Mt. St. Helens today
Students will watch 0:00 to 6:54, 7:55 to 37:40
After completing film have students return to their seats
3. Independent Practice
Once students have returned to their seats pass out the
directions for the brochure project
Students will be responsible for creating a brochure about
traveling to Mt. St. Helens
The front page will include a catchy title and drawing of the
mountain
The inside will include facts and drawing with captions
explaining the recovery process Mt. St. Helens has gone through
since the eruption.
The back should be a quick retelling with either words or images
of what happened the day Mt. St. Helens erupted
Students will be required to use at least 4 facts from either the
film or the interactive volcano website
After students have completed brochures have them present as
if they were selling the class a first class ticket to visit the site.
4. Differentiation
I will differentiate my lesson when I have real students in front of
me
5. Closure
Students will be handed exit cards and will have to provide two
facts they learned after the lesson and two items they would like to
learn more about
F. Teacher and Student Resources and Evaluation of Resources
A. Student Reading Resources:
Ring of Fire Info Handout

 Volcano Worksheet
B. Teacher Resources for Lesson Design:
Internet Resources:
Intro to Volcanoes
National Geographic Volcano Simulator
Documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Ifohb8_2WhE
Ring of Fire Info
Image Resources:
Volcano Worksheet Image
Textbook:
Harcourt Social Studies States and Regions: Chapter 12
Exploring the West
C. Evaluation of Teacher Resources Used for Lesson Planning Design
Resource Title or
Website Address

Intro to
Volcanoes

Influence:
Significant
Influence (SI) or
Minor Influence
(MI) in informing
your thinking,
decisions about
the lesson plan

SI

3+
Characteristics
suggesting that
the source is a
quality resource,
reliable material

Accessibility
Access for
teachers or
others

Overall Rating
and Suggestions
for current,
future use of
resource

-engaging
video to open
lesson
-accurate
information
-striking
visuals
-accurate
image to
create
worksheet
from
-easy to create
fill in the blank

-very
accessible

-would use
again; good to
open lesson
with
B

Volcano
Worksheet
Image

MI

-accessible

National
Geographic
Volcano
Simulator

SI

-incredibly
interactive
-excellent
information on
volcanoes
-easy to read
for students

-very
accessible

Ring of Fire
Info

MI

-nice visual for

students

-accessible

-might use
again but not
necessary for
overall lesson
-easy way to
make a
worksheet
C
-would use
again since it
is crucial for
students in
learning about
volcanoes and
introducing
the further
lesson
A+
-would use
again for a

-summary of
ring of fire
-grade level
reading

Mt. St.
Helens 30th
Anniversary
Special

SI

Harcourt
Social Studies
States and
Regions:
Chapter 12
Exploring the
West

MI

-detailed
documentary
of before and
after
-primary
source
interviews
-many
engaging
visuals
-critical details
on explosion
and recovery
-Provides basic
definitions
-Very short
passage on
what could be
more in depth
information
-Vague

-very
accessible

Accessible for
this class;
unknown for
regular
teacher

quick
summary of
Ring of Fire
only if it had
not been
covered in
science
already
C+
-would use
again; very
important
documentary
on a recent
major eruption
filled with
excellent
information
A+

Skipped
entirely for
students and
briefly viewed
to see where
my lesson
should go.
Would not use
again
F

G. Formative and Summative Assessment of Students

Formative: Collection of Volcano worksheet to check for
completion and number of answers correct; make note of those
who are actively taking notes during the documentary; collection
of exit cards at end of lesson
Summative: Completion of brochure graded with a rubric;
rubric attached
For the formative assessment I found that for this lesson students need to be
actively paying attention to the material. For this I used a quick labeling
worksheet and watching them take notes during the presentation. After the
lesson is over checking the exit cards will also lead to figuring out if my
students were paying attention or not. With this information I could tweak my
lesson to engage these students. For the summative assessment I went with
a performance graded assessment with the creation of a brochure. With a
handout of directions the students should be able to create an engaging

brochure on why to visit Mt. St. Helens along with the information explained
in the directions. Upon completion students should have used at least 4 facts
from previous resources. If they have succeeded with this then I know they
are where I want them to be at the end of the lesson.
H. Technology/Materials/Equipment
Computer with internet access
Drawing materials
Paper
Ring of Fire handout
Volcano worksheet
Notebooks
Writing utensil
I. Reflection on Planning
After completing the earthquake lesson I was thinking the volcano
lesson would be just as fun. In some ways I was right and in others not
so much. Finding information that was grade level appropriate on
volcanoes was not the easiest task. For starters the lessons all
including building a volcano or used terms too advanced for this
primarily social studies lesson. With bits and pieces from around the
web I was able to create a good lesson to introduce volcanoes and
hopefully get my students brains moving on the subject. When I found
the documentary on Mt. St. Helens I was beyond thrilled. I watched it
over two times to make sure the content was usable. Even though it is
a long documentary it is perfect for what I want the students to learn.
It shows in depth the explosion and the aftermath along with including
really good interviews. From my last lesson the information came from
primary sources written about the time with some grainy photographs
and short clips. This on the other hand was a full HD documentary of
the time with great information in every area. Going from one lesson to
the other is also a great way to show primary sources in different
lights. Overall I think this lesson would be successful if implemented in
a real classroom.