Unit Overview
This unit on the desert and the Southwestern United States is designed to be implemented in a third grade classroom. However, the lessons that it contains can be easily adapted for both younger and older students. The unit will consist of coherent lessons that will be taught over the course of three to four weeks. Part of this time will be devoted to experimentation with material and topics, while the other part will be devoted to research.
The students will be exposed to this topic using a variety of means. The lessons that I have included demonstrate the hands-on activities that are emphasized in this unit. In addition to actual experimentation, the students are also responsible for researching certain topics. Therefore, the focus is not placed on the teacher and lessons in this unit, but on the students and their active learning.
To aid in the presentation of this material, many daily activities will hold some activity related to the desert. For instance, the areas covered in centers will include desert-related activities such as using the computer disc that is included in the bibliography, and reading articles about the desert for comprehension. For problem solving, the students will answer reptile riddles.
Evaluation and assessment will be ongoing throughout the unit. The students will keep a journal of activities, experiments, and research, and this will be the main means of assessing their understanding and learning. The culminating activity, building the museum, will show the student's knowledge of their subject by placing them in the teaching position. Each student will be responsible for learning about and representing an aspect of the Southwestern United States and the desert environment.
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