Grade 2

Social Studies

Unit: 02 Lesson: 02

Lesson Synopsis:
This lesson focuses on the geographic concept of location. Students interpret maps to gather information and they locate places of significance, including Texas, on maps and globes.
TEKS:
2.5 / Geography. The student uses simple geographic tools such as maps and globes. The student is expected to:
2.5A / Interpret information on maps and globes using basic map elements such as title, orientation (north, south, east, west), and legend/map keys.
2.6 / Geography. The student understands the locations and characteristics of places and regions in the community, state, and nation. The student is expected to:
2.6A / Identify major landforms and bodies of water, including each of the continents and each of the oceans, on maps and globes.
2.6B / Locate places of significance, including the local community, Texas, the state capital, the U.S. capital, major cities in Texas, the coast of Texas, Canada, Mexico, and the United States on maps and globes.
Social Studies Skills TEKS:
2.18 / Social studies skills. The student applies critical-thinking skills to organize and use information acquired from a variety of valid sources, including electronic technology. The student is expected to:
2.18B / Obtain information about a topic using a variety of valid visual sources such as pictures, maps, electronic sources, literature, reference sources, and artifacts.
2.19 / Social studies skills. The student communicates in written, oral, and visual forms. The student is expected to:
2.19A / Express ideas orally based on knowledge and experiences.
Getting Ready for Instruction
Performance Indicator(s)
  • Identify the state of Texas on a map and a globe by pointing to it. Using basic map elements, orally tell at least two pieces of information that can be gained from looking at the map/globe. (2.5A, 2.6B, 2.18A) 3B, 3D

Key Understandings and Guiding Questions:
  • Los mapas y los globos terráqueos ayudan a las personas a entender la ubicación delugares
—¿Cómo las personas usan mapas y globos terráqueos para comprender la ubicación de lugares?
—¿Qué información podemos obtener de los mapas y globos terráqueos?
—¿Cuáles son los accidentes geográficos y masas de agua más importantes de la Tierra?
—¿Puedo ubicar lugares importantes en malas y globos terráqueos?
Vocabulary of Instruction:
  • mapa
  • ubicación
  • elemento del mapa
/
  • leyenda
  • globo
  • punto cardinal
/
  • orientación
  • costa

Materials:
  • Refer to the Notes for Teacher section for materials.

Attachments:
  • Handout: Reading Maps and Globes(1 per student)

Possible, Optional Resources:
  • None identified

Advance Preparation:
1.Become familiar with content and procedures for the lesson.
2.Refer to the Instructional Focus Document for specific content to include in the lesson.
3.Select appropriate sections of the textbook and other classroom materials that support the learning for this lesson.
4.Preview available resources and websites according to district guidelines.
5.Prepare materials and handouts as needed.
  • Prepare map and globe stations for Day 2.

Background Information:
Students will need much practice differentiating between their community, state and nation. This is a particularly difficult concept for students to grasp. It is essential that students get to touch maps and globes. It is recommended that students look at, refer to, and use maps during many parts of the instructional day to reinforce these skills. For example, students can use maps to locateplaces in stories they read, plot the home cities or states of authors, locate the countries of origin from different fairy tales, etc.Understanding their location in the world around them is a foundational skill that will be vital for student learning.
Getting Ready for Instruction Supplemental Planning Document
Instructors are encouraged to supplement and substitute resources, materials, and activities to differentiate instruction to address the needs of learners. The Exemplar Lessons are one approach to teaching and reaching the Performance Indicators and Specificity in the Instructional Focus Document for this unit. Instructors are encouraged to create original lessons using the Content Creator in the Tools Tab located at the top of the page. All originally authored lessons can be saved in the “My CSCOPE” Tab within the “My Content” area.
Instructional Procedures
Instructional Procedures / Notes for Teacher
ENGAGE – Where do we live? / Suggested Day 1 – 10 minutes
  1. Using a projectable map or a large class map, show students the United States, then Texas, then the local community/ town, then their school.
  1. Reverse the process, showing first the school, then the local community/town, then Texas, then the United States.
  1. Repeat the process three times and have the students name the location as it is shown.
  1. Model a sentence showing the relationship between the school, local community, Texas, and the United States. (e.g.,The school is in ______(town name). _____ (town name) is a community in Texas. Texas is a state that is part of the United States.) Use a concrete model as well as words.
  1. Demonstrate the idea by modeling putting graduated cups or other objects one inside the other.
  1. Invite student volunteers to use the graduated cups while repeating the sentence.
  1. The rest of the class repeats the sentence while the student volunteer acts it out.
  1. Repeat several more times.
/ Materials:
  • projectable map or class map of the United States
  • projectable map or class map of Texas
  • projectable map or class map of the local community or town
  • projectable map or class map of the school
  • graduated cups or other objects (Russian nesting dolls, etc.) that fit inside each other (4 objects to model how the school is in the town, which is in the state, which is in the country)
Purpose:
Students begin to learn about the location of their community, state, and nation.
TEKS:2.6B
Instructional Note:
Helping students grasp the abstract idea that the town is in the state (Texas) which is in the country (United States) is difficult. Pointing to the visual while modeling the sentence at the same time as usinga concrete model (such as cups in graduated sizes or Russian nesting dolls) can help.
EXPLORE –Where in the world am I? / Suggested Day 1(cont’d) – 20 minutes
  1. Display a map and a globe.
  1. Point out the elements of a map (title, orientation [north, south, east, west], and legend/map keys).
  1. Say:
  • Maps and globes help people understand the location of places. Theymodel where things are located.
  • A globe is a 3-dimensional representation of Earth. Maps are 2-dimensional representations of the world.
  • Today we are going to use maps and globes to look at locations. We can learn many things by reading and interpreting information from maps and globes.
  1. Set up stations that include a variety of maps on which students can locate the United States, Texas, and the local community, as well as the state capital, the U.S. capital, major cities in Texas, the coast of Texas, Canada, and Mexico. Suggestions include: floor maps, globes, map puzzles, map websites, atlases, and maps from the social studies textbook. Set up enough stations so pairs or groups of 4 can explore.
  1. In groups of four, students explore the maps and globes, locating the United States, Texas, and their community.
  1. Students also note other information they find on the maps, being ready to share with the class.
  1. Teacher circulates, ensuring correct information is being shared in student discussions, probing with questions, correcting or providing additional information as needed, and noting areas where further information will be required.
  1. Once students have had a chance to explore the maps, facilitate a brief discussion allowing students to share what they found and ask questions. Encourage students to use correct academic language to describe the location of places (examples: The capital of Texas is near the center of the state. Texas is part of the United States. The coast of Texas is the Gulf of Mexico. Canada is north of Texas and the United States.)
  2. Prompt students to look for specific places, including the local community, Texas, the state capital, the U.S. capital, major cities in Texas, the coast of Texas, Canada, Mexico, and the United States
  1. Begin a word wall for this lesson/unit by writing academic vocabulary words on the board, chart paper, or other means. (words could include: map, globe, city, coast, and any other academic vocabulary terms that arise during discussion.) Add to the list throughout the lesson and unit.
/ Materials:
  • chart paper
  • variety of maps (floor maps, globes, map puzzles, map websites, atlases, and maps from the social studies textbook)
  • globe(s)
Purpose:
Students are engaged in exploring maps, learning to read and interpret information from maps, and learning about the location of their community, state and nation.
TEKS:2.5A,2.6B
EXPLAIN – Map and Globe Partner Practice / Suggested Day 1(cont’d) – 5 minutes
  1. While still at their stations, students think for several seconds about what they have learned in the Explore section above.
  1. Students prepare to say a sentence that tells about what they learned and uses at least two of the vocabulary terms
  1. Group members take turns saying their sentences.

EXPLORE – Map and Globe Partner Practice / Suggested Day 1(cont’d) – 5 minutes
  1. While still at their stations, demonstrate and then help students orient maps so that North is “up.”
  1. Guide students to recall prior learning. (See Instructional Note.)
  1. Introduce students to the elements that a map needs (use TODAL: T = title, O = orientation, D = date, A = author, L = legend).
  1. Add terms to the word wall chart begun above (examples: title, orientation, direction, legend)
  1. Allow time for students to find the map elements and use academic language to identify them. (e.g., The legend on my map is in the bottom left corner. It gives the code to read the map. Rivers are blue lines on this map.)
/ Instructional Note:
In Kindergarten and Grade 1 students read and created maps and began to build geography skills related to ideas including maps, globes, direction, cardinal directions, location, and relative location.
EXPLAIN – Map and Globe Partner Practice / Suggested Day 1(cont’d) – 10 minutes
  1. Students return to their seats and sit in pairs.
  1. Distribute to each student the Handout: Reading Maps and Globes.
  1. Also distribute at least one map (or globe) per student.
  1. As the teacher gives directions, students use their map to find and identify what is described. (e.g.,Put your finger on the map’s legend. Put your finger on the Gulf of Mexico near the coast of Texas.)
  1. As students correctly identify elements of a map and significant locationsin the U.S., Texas, and their community, they put a checkmark in the left column of their handout.
  1. If desired and if time allows, students can quiz each other as well.
/ Materials:
  • variety of maps
  • globe(s)
Attachments:
  • Handout: Reading Maps and Globes
TEKS:2.5A, 2.6B
EXPLORE – Learning about continents and oceans / Suggested Day 2 – 15 minutes
  1. Post the question, What does a world map look like?
  1. Distribute a copy of a physical map of the world (without labels) to each student.
  1. Project the same map so all students can see it.
  1. In pairs, students briefly explore their map, noticing features, formulating questions, discussing what they see, etc.
  1. Teacher circulates, probing with questions, listening to discussions.
  1. Facilitate a discussion where students ask questions and share information from the map.
  1. List several of the student questions on the board (or chart paper).
  1. Model finding the map’s TODAL (title, orientation, date, author, and legend).
  1. Lead the discussion, modeling use of academic language, so students discover bodies of water (especially oceans) and landforms (continents, mountains, etc.).
  1. Students label each continent while teacher defines the term using words such as:
  2. Continents are large land masses. There are often many countries on a continent.
  1. Follow the same process with oceans.
  1. Teacher circulates, checking students’ maps as they work and listening to conversations about the map.
  1. Reinforce the learning from the previous Explore section by leading students to locate Texas, the United States, and North America.
  1. Students color North America their favorite color as a reminder that this is the continent on which we live.
/ Materials
  • chart paper
  • physical map of the world without labels (1 per student)
  • projectable version of the map of the world
TEKS: 2.6A
Instructional Notes:
Choose a map that will be easy for children to read and that shows major landforms and bodies of water, including each of the continents and each of the oceans (2.6A)
EXPLAIN – Map and Globe Partner Practice / Suggested Day 2(cont’d) – 5 minutes
  1. Students check their work against a partner’s map and share with their partner two things they learned about maps and globes. (Students should use at least three academic language terms during their discussion. Refer to the word wall or chart paper list.)
/ TEKS: 2.5A, 2.6A
ELABORATE / Suggested Day 2(cont’d) – 10 minutes
  1. Ask:
  • How have we used maps?
  1. Students share with their shoulder partner information about how they have used maps.
  1. Make the statement in the Key Understanding:
  • Maps and globes help people understand the location of places
  1. Ask Guiding Questions and facilitate a discussion to make sure students have gained the knowledge so they can answer them.
—How do people use maps and globes to understand the location of places?
—What information can we gain from maps and globes?
—What are the earth’s major landforms and bodies of water?
—Can I locate significant places on maps and globes?
  1. Allow students to talk to a partner about the questions, using appropriate academic vocabulary terms, before sharing with the class during a discussion of the learning.
/ TEKS: 2.5A, 2.6A, 2.6B
EVALUATE / Suggested Day 2 (cont’d) – 20 minutes
  • Identify the state of Texas on a map and a globe by pointing to it. Using basic map elements, orally tell at least two pieces of information that can be gained from looking at the map/globe. (2.5A, 2.6B, 2.18A) 3B, 3D
  1. Provide students with a globe and a different map than the ones they used above.
  1. Students individually identify the state of Texas on a map and a globe by pointing to it.
  1. Using the correct academic terms, students orally tell at least two pieces of information that can be gained from looking at the map/globe.
/ Materials:
  • map of the United States
  • globe
TEKS: 2.5A, 2.6B, 2.18B
Instructional Note:
The Evaluate part of the lesson could be accomplished, scored, and recorded during the Explain section above as students indicate their readiness. It could also be finished at another time of the day.

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