Atlas - Unit 1: Foundations in Social Studies

Wayne RESA

Unit PlannerSocial Studies 4

Wayne RESA – SS / Grade 4 / Social Studies / Social Studies 4 / Week 1 - Week 3

RESA, MAISA MC3 Units

Unit Abstract

In this unit students learn about four disciplines that are the focus of social studies: history, geography, government, and economics. They explore the questions studied by these different social scientists about people and places. Students begin the unit by using a familiar context, Michigan and its people, to review the questions historians ask. They then expand their lenses to those of geographers, political scientists, and economists to examine the United States. By exploring the focus of each social studies discipline, students construct questions to guide their study of the United States throughout the year. Overview Video

Unit 1: Foundations in Social Studies Word Document with Contextualized GLCEs
Fourth Grade SS Essential Understandings.doc
Link to Unit 1 Overview Video Clip

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Stage One - Desired Results

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Standards

Grade 4 Unit 1 Standards Covered

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Compelling Question

What types of lenses do social scientists use in investigating places and people?

Supporting Questions

What questions frame the social studies disciplines of history, geography, government and economics?
How are historians, geographers, political scientists, and economists similar and different in how they study people and places?

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Content (Key Concepts)

economics / economist

geography / geographer

government / political scientist

history / historian

Skills (Intellectual Processes)

Compare and Contrast

Identifying Perspectives

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Stage Two - Assessment Evidence

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Unit Assessment Tasks

MC3 Unit Assessment Grade 4 Unit 1.docx
MC3 Unit Assessment Grade 4 Unit 1.pdf
MC3 Unit Assessment Grade 4 Unit 1 Teacher Booklet.pdf
MC3 Unit Assessment Grade 4 Unit 1 Teacher Booklet.docx

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Stage Three - Learning Plan

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Lesson Plan Sequence

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Resources

Chart paper and Markers
Class set of magnifying glasses
Four Different Types of Eye Glasses or Hats (to represent the four disciplines)
Map of the United States
Overhead Projector or Document Camera and Projector

Additional Teacher Resources
Additional Student Resources

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Expectations/Standards

MI: Social Studies (2007)

4th Grade

History

H3 History of Michigan (Beyond Statehood)
Use historical thinking to understand the past.

4 – H3.0.1 Use historical inquiry questions to investigate the development of Michigan’s major economic activities (agriculture, mining, manufacturing, lumbering, tourism, technology, and research) from statehood to present. (C, E) What happened? When did it happen? Who was involved? How and why did it happen? How does it relate to other events or issues in the past, in the present, or in the future? What is its significance?

Geography

G1 The World in Spatial Terms
Use geographic representations to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective.

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K-4

4 – G1.0.1 Identify questions geographers ask in examining the United States (e.g., Where it is? What is it like there? How is it connected to other places?).

Civics & Government

C1 Purposes of Government
Explain why people create governments.

4 – C1.0.1 Identify questions political scientists ask in examining the United States (e.g., What does government do? What are the basic values and principles of American democracy? What is the relationship of the United States to other nations? What are the roles of the citizen in American democracy?).

Economics

E1 Market Economy
Use fundamental principles and concepts of economics to understand economic activity in a market economy.

4 – E1.0.1 Identify questions economists ask in examining the United States (e.g., What is produced? How is it produced? How much is produced? Who gets what is produced? What role does the government play in the economy?).

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