Summary Lesson: Settlement Factors Involving Water
Materials:
- Computer to bring up YouTube video on
- Students’ Social Studies Journals
- Large clasp envelopes for cube foldables
- Assorted colored paper for summative assessment work
Objective: The student will synthesize their knowledge about water features by justifying their reasoning for wanting to settle in Virginia in the 1700’s.
- Have the students watch the YouTube video “Matildaville” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GS-tGYCIWzQ) to follow up the previous day’s lesson on settlements that formed along the rivers of Virginia in the late 1700’s.
- Ask them to take notes while they watch the clip so that they can use this information to help them in their next task, the essay.
- At the end of the clip, have a class discussion about Matildaville and why it was built. Tell them think about what crops the settlers there might have grown to eat and trade, and what animals they may have used for.
- Ask students to imagine that they are living in the 1785, and have heard great things from people in the community who have traveled to Virginia. Tell them that based on these experiences, the students have decided that they want to move to Virginia too, but must convince their families in order to move. Have the students use the information they have learned from the entire unit to write a persuasive essay that cite all the reasons that moving to Virginia would be a great improvement from where they are now (spatial).
Key Questions:
- How did the flow of the rivers affect the settlement of the state of Virginia?
- Based on what we have learned about bodies of water, what factors might influence your decision to move to Virginia, and why?
SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT (STUDENT CHOICE ACTIVITY):
- Students will attach their essay, as well as a choice of 3 other items (unit formative assessments, pictures, vocabulary words, facts, maps, etc.) pertaining to the unit to the cube to create a final product that demonstrates their complete learning of the unit.
References:
http://vastudies.pwnet.org/pdf/Water_Features.pdf