A Thematic Unit for 5th
grade Social Studies
Created By: Melissa Hurd
"Completed as part of the
requirements for El Ed 4050 Fall Semester, 1999
Jay Monson, course instructor,
USU"
Objectives
Objectives:
Materials:
Introduction:
Begin by letting students write
down what they know about early explorers. The object of
this is to see how much information students know about
early explorers and exploration to America. Discuss as a
class a few things from their lists.
Procedures:
Show the laser disc presentation
"Land of Opportunity", a National Geographic Society
resource. Afterwards, discuss with the class how European
countries viewed the New America and why there was so
much competition among countries.
Walk over to the classroom world
map. Pin point and briefly discuss the three major
countries involved. (Spain, France, England). Pass out
individual student maps. Students will need their crayons
at this point. Instruct them to locate and color Spain
blue, France red, and England green.
Next display the timeline chart,
showing the 16 explorers that we will be studying over
the next several days. (*The explorers are listed at the
bottom).
Start with number one and briefly
tell about this explorer and the year he sailed. (This
information was taken from the resource listed at the
bottom). Point out on the world map which country he
represented and the route he took. Have the students then
retrace the route on their own map, starting from the
explorer's country to his ending destination. (Have them
use the same color of crayon as the country he
represents). Use the above step to describe all 16
explorers. It would be wise to have a world map on an
overhead to demonstrate the routes for each explorer.
This is a helpful visual aid.
Assessment:
Pretest of prior knowledge
Walk around the room checking and
monitoring student's papers (maps)
Ask questions throughout
discussions
* Lief Ericson, Marco Polo,
Christopher Columbus, Vasco da Gama, John Cabot, Ponce de
Leon, Vasco Nunez de Balboa, Ferdinand Magellan, Hernando
Cortes, Jacques Cartier, Hernando de Soto, Francisco
Coronado, Sir Francis Drake, Samuel de Champlain, Henry
Hudson, Robert La Salle.
Early
Explorers of America
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