Human Society and Its Environment

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

STAGE: ONE / CLASS: / TERM:
DURATION OF PROGRAM: TEN SESSIONS / UNIT TITLE: HOUSES THEN AND NOW
CONTENT STRANDS / UNIT DESCRIPTION
CHANGE AND CONTINUITY
SOCIAL SYSTEMS AND STRUCTURES / In this unit, the students will investigate how homes have changed over time. They will explore homes in their local environment and identify them as ‘old’ or ‘new’. The students will identify external and internal features of homes and discuss how they have changed. They will interview an older person to find out how and why homes have changed. They will link changes to homes, to changes in technologies and needs. The students will create a model of a street including both old and new homes. They will make a class big book which compares rooms within an old and new home. The students will also predict the gadgets they may find in a home in the future. They will make this gadget and role play its use.
This unit is 14 pages and includes some worksheets.
CHANGE AND CONTINUITY OUTCOMES / CULTURES OUTCOMES / ENVIRONMENTS OUTCOMES / SOCIAL SYSTEMS AND STRUCTURES OUTCOMES
CC S1.2 / SS S1.7

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

SESSION: ONE
OUTCOMES / INDICATORS / MODELLING / LEARNING EXPERIENCE
CC S1.2
SS S1.7 / The students may, for example:

• Recognise houses that may be old or new
  
• Use appropriate language to describe the age of different dwellings For example, This house looks old. It was built a long time ago.
  
• Recognise different types of dwellings
  
• Link different types of homes to people’s needs and wants
  

/ Prior to this session, gain parental permission for the students to take a walk around their suburb/town. Extra parental assistance would be an advantage.
Explain to the students that during this term they will explore the dwellings in which people live now, in the past and predict what they will look like in the future.
Take the students on a walk around their suburb or town to view different examples of homes. (Try to choose an area in which there is a variety of housing. E.g.: old, new, flats, townhouses, terraces, caravan park etc.)
As the students are viewing the houses, ask questions such as:

• Does this house look old or new? Why do you think that?
• Why do you think people live in homes?
• What type of dwelling would we call this building? E.g.: a block of flats
• Does this building look old or new? Why do you think that?
• Why do you think people live in flats?
• What features of the buildings can you see? E.g.: windows, doors, roof, chimney etc

Take photographs to refer to in later sessions. / Introduce the unit.
Walk around the suburb or town
Discuss different types of homes

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

SESSION: TWO
OUTCOMES / INDICATORS / MODELLING / LEARNING EXPERIENCE
CC S1.2
SS S1.7 / The students may, for example:

• Recognise houses that may be old or new
  
• Use appropriate language to describe the age of different dwellings For example, This house looks old. It was built a long time ago.
  
• Recognise different types of dwellings
  
• Link different types of homes to people’s needs and wants
  
• Describe the external features of a home
  
• Suggest that materials used in construction have changed over time

/ Prior to this session, ask the students to bring in a photo of their own home (if possible). If the students are unable to bring in a photo, they will still be able to do the task.
Review the previous session by showing the students the photographs of the dwellings they saw on their walk. Ask the students to recall the types of homes such as terraces, townhouses, flats etc. Discuss whether they thought the homes were old or new. Ask them to suggest ways that they could tell.
Discuss the reasons why some people may choose to live in certain dwellings. For example, a family may choose to live in a house because they need the space. A young person living on their own may choose to live in a flat because they don’t need the space.
As a group, brainstorm a list of external features that were evident on the homes. This list may include features such as doors, garages, windows, chimneys, roof, gutters, verandas etc.
Continued over the page. / Review previous session
Relate types of dwellings to needs
Brainstorm external features of homes

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

SESSION: TWO
OUTCOMES / INDICATORS / MODELLING / LEARNING EXPERIENCE
SS S1.7
CC S1.2 / The students may, for example:

• Link their own family’s needs to the home they live in
  
• Describe their own home in detail, using specific language eg: roof, windows, doors, gutters, bricks etc
  
• Suggest ways in which their own home has changed over time to accommodate a changing family

/ Explain to the students that they are going to sit with a partner and describe the features of their own home. Encourage them to use the terms brainstormed. The students refer to the photograph of their home that they have brought in. Encourage the students to talk about how their home suits the needs of their family. For instance, a new room may have been added as the family grew or it may have a “Granny flat” to accommodate a grandparent.
Explain to the students that they are going to paint a picture of their home. They label the picture using the terms brainstormed at the beginning of the session. / Describe own home to a partner
Paint a picture of their home

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

SESSION: THREE
OUTCOMES / INDICATORS / MODELLING / LEARNING EXPERIENCE
CC S1.2
SS S1.7 / The students may, for example:

• Identify the external differences between an old and new home
  
• Recognise that the changes in technology and materials have changed the way in which houses are built

/ Show the students two pictures. One of a modern home and the other of an old home. Ask the students to describe the differences they can see in the picture. Ask questions to assist them such as:

• Can you describe the materials used to build this house?
• What was used to construct the roof in each home?
• Can you describe the doors in each home? How are they the same/different?
• Can you describe the windows in each home? How are they the same/different?
• Can you see chimneys in the homes? What differences can you see?

Explain to the students that houses have changed, just like people change. Technology has improved the materials that can be used to build homes.
Explain to the students that they are going to record their observations about the two homes on a chart. Show the students the chart (see appendix) and fill it in by referring to the two photographs the students have explored.
Divide the students into groups of 4-5. Give each group a photo of an old home and a new home. Each group fills in the chart. / Describe the differences observed between an old and new home
Record external differences between an old and new home on a chart

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

SESSION: FOUR AND FIVE
OUTCOMES / INDICATORS / MODELLING / LEARNING EXPERIENCE
CC S1.2 / The students may, for example:

• Identify the features of old and new homes
  
• Recognise the differences between old and new homes and create a model of a home

/ Prior to this session, have the students bring in a variety of small – medium empty boxes. For example: cereal boxes, shoe boxes
Read the students a text related to different types of homes.
Explain to the students that they are going to create a model of a make believe street. This street will have a range of homes. Brainstorm the types of houses they have explored so far. These may include old, new, terraces, flats, single storey etc. Recall the features of homes that they have discussed in both old and new homes. Recall the types of materials used to build old and new homes.
Have each student plan the type of home he/she will make by making a sketch and labelling the external features.
The students use boxes, paints and craft materials to make their model home.
Display by assembling the homes to form a street. The students may add a label to identify the type of home. For example: This is an old terrace house. This is a new block of flats. / Shared reading of a text
Explanation of task.
Recall external features of old and new homes.
Sketch and label a home
Create a model of the home
Label and display homes

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

SESSION: SIX
OUTCOMES / INDICATORS / MODELLING / LEARNING EXPERIENCE
SS S1.7 / The students may, for example:

• Identify rooms within a house
  
• Discuss items which would be found in a specific room within a home

/ Show the students the photographs of the two homes used in Session Three.
Explain to the students that over the past few sessions, they have explored the difference between old and new homes from the outside. Explain that they are now going to explore the inside of homes.
As a class, brainstorm the rooms within a home.
Divide the students into small groups and allocate a room per group. Have the students brainstorm and list everything they would probably find within the room that they have been allocated. For example, in a laundry you would expect to find:

• Washing machine
• Dryer
• Iron
• Ironing board
• Sink/ tub

The students record their work on a large sheet of paper. Have the students decorate their work by finding pictures in magazines and gluing these onto the sheet and adding their own illustrations. This will be used for the class big book they will create in the next session. / Brainstorm rooms in a house
Small group work – brainstorm and record things found in a room

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

SESSION: SEVEN
OUTCOMES / INDICATORS / MODELLING / LEARNING EXPERIENCE
CC S1.2
SS S1.7 / The students may, for example:

• Discuss how rooms within a house have changed over time
  
• Recognise how different technologies have resulted in changes within the home For example, the development of computer technology may have meant that a study now contains a computer instead of a typewriter

/ Prior to this session, have the students ask an older person (a grandparent or elderly neighbour, relative or friend) to describe the room that they focused on in the previous session. For instance, if, in their small group, the students described the laundry, then this is the room that they would question the older person about. This should be done as part of their homework. See appendix for possible question sheet that the students could use.
Assemble the students into the small groups that they worked in the previous session. Explain to the students that they are to share with the other members of their group, what their interviewee reported about the particular room in the house.
Come together as a whole class and have a representative from each group report to the class what they found out about rooms in the past.
Explain to the students that they are going to create a class book called “Rooms in a House: Then and Now”. The work they did in the previous session will form some of the pages.
Provide each group with a new sheet of paper. Have the students record statements and pictures which show what the room may have looked like in the past.
Collect all of the sheets and create a class book. / Share results of the interview.
Create a class big book about rooms within a house – then and now

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

SESSION: EIGHT
OUTCOMES / INDICATORS / MODELLING / LEARNING EXPERIENCE
CC S1.2
SS S1.7 / The students may, for example:

• Recognise changes that have occurred within homes
  
• Predict changes in households which may occur in the future
  
• Attribute changes within homes to changing technology and needs
  

/ Remind the students that they have looked at how the rooms within a house have changed over time. Ask the students to suggest reasons why there have been changes. Lead them in a discussion identifying the change in needs and in technology as being responsible for the changes that have occurred.
Ask the students, “Do you think that rooms within our homes will always look the way that they do now? Why?”
Ask the students to suggest how rooms within our homes may change in the future. Encourage them to be specific about the types of equipment/ appliances or gadgets that may be found within the room.
Explain to the students that they are to record their predictions for the future of a room within the house. The students record their ideas on a sheet of paper. / Suggest reasons for changes in homes
Predict the rooms of the future
Record predictions

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

SESSION: NINE AND TEN
OUTCOMES / INDICATORS / MODELLING / LEARNING EXPERIENCE
CC S1.2
SS S1.7 / The students may, for example:

• Predict changes in households which may occur in the future
  
• Make a gadget or item which may be found in the home in the future
  
• Role play using a gadget or item which may be found in the home in the future

/ Prior to this session, have the students bring in a range of recyclable materials suitable for construction activities.
Ask the students to share their ideas that they recorded in the previous session.
Explain to the students that during this session they are going to construct something that they may find in their futuristic room. Allow the students an opportunity to think about and sketch their ideas before constructing it using a range of craft and recyclable materials.
In Session 10, have the students seated in a large circle with the item they made in the previous session. Explain to the students that they are all going to share their items by stepping into the centre of the circle and role playing using the item that they made. The other students guess what it is and where in the home it may be useful. / Share ideas from the previous session
Make a gadget or item which would be found in a household in the future
Role play using their futuristic gadget.

HUMAN SOCIETY AND ITS ENVIRONMENT

POSSIBLE ASSESSMENT STRATEGIES

• Outcomes based checklist
• Anecdotal records
• Collect and analyse one task
• Photographs
• Student self assessment

RESOURCES / WEB LINKS / EVALUATION

• A variety of factual texts about homes
• Stimulus pictures
• Note requesting permission to go for a walk around the local area
• Camera and film
• Photographs of homes
• Pictures of old and new homes
• Photocopied worksheets
• Paint, paper, glue
• Old magazines
• Construction material such as boxes

/

APPENDIX

External feature

/ Old home / New home / Possible reason for the difference
Main material used to build the home.
Description of the windows
Description of the doors
Description of the roof
Description of the chimney(s)

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 Primary Programs Plus

Dear ______,

In Human Society and Its Environment, my class is learning about homes. We are interested in finding out what a room in a house looked like a long time ago. Can you please help me by answering these questions?

My group is focusing on the ______.

1/ Did you have this room in the house you lived in a long time ago? ______

How big was the room?

When was the room used?

2/ What pieces of furniture were in this room?

What did they look like?

Is there one piece of furniture that you had in the room which has changed now? What is it?

How has it changed?

3/ What other things were in this room? For example, in a living room there may have been a wireless. What did they look like?

Thank you for helping me.

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 Primary Programs Plus