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Overview:
The idea for this lesson plan was inspired by Jessica Sweeney of Sandpiper Elementary in Sunrise, Florida, who received a teacher grant from the National Geographic Education Foundation in support of a year-long project called People and Places Around Me.
In this lesson, students will explore the concept of culture. They will learn about interesting aspects of their state's culture, including arts, recreation, folklore, and cultural diversity. Finally, students will design thematic maps showing some of the most interesting cultural features of their state.
Connections to the Curriculum:
Geography, U.S. history
Connections to the National Geography Standards:
Standard 4: "The physical and human characteristics of places"
Standard 10: "The characteristics, distribution, and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics"
Time:
Two to three hours
Materials Required:
- Computer with Internet access
- Blank outline maps of their state (available at the Xpeditions atlas)
- Pens or pencils (for writing)
- Crayons or colored pencils
Objectives:
Students will
- discuss cultural features of their state;
- use Web sites and other resources to find out about the culture of their state;
- list the things they learn at these resources; and
- create thematic maps showing at least six interesting cultural features of their state.
Geographic Skills:
Acquiring Geographic Information
Organizing Geographic Information
Analyzing Geographic Information
S u g g e s t e d P r o c e d u r e
Opening:
Ask students to contribute words that describe their state. Even if they are unfamiliar with their state outside of their town or immediate area, encourage them to guess. If any students have traveled to other parts of the state, have them describe the things they saw, heard, and learned on their explorations. In particular, what are the people like? What types of things do people like to do? Do people come from a variety of countries or cultures?
Ask students if they know what the word "culture" means. Explain that this word has several meanings, but that the culture you are talking about refers to the entire way of life shared by a group of people. You may want to have students use a dictionary to explore different definitions of culture. Which one fits most closely with this lesson?
Provide examples of things that count as culture, such as music, art, things people do for fun (recreation), religion, languages, stories and folklore, types of houses…anything that has to do with how people live. Tell the class that they will be focusing on their state's culture in this lesson.
Development:
Choose one or more of the following Web sites to share with your students. Each site contains information about individual states:
American Folklore: State Folktales
Explore the States
FactFinder Kids' Corner: Fun State Facts
FirstGov for Kids: State Websites
Postcards From America
Stately Knowledge
Your state also probably has its own Web site, which can be found at http://www.state.[your state's two-letter abbreviation here].us. For example, New York's Web site is located at http://www.state.ny.us.
Have students look at pictures and read text from the Web sites. Also bring in additional resources about the state, such as recordings of regional music, samples of local food, and videos of different parts of the state. Students should focus on cultural aspects of the state, such as music, art, recreation, diversity/multiculturalism, folklore, and festivals. One good way to organize this part of the lesson would be to set up "stations" where small groups could spend time; there could be one or more computer stations, one station with books about the state, one with pictures or samples of food, etc.
As students go through the sites and look at the other resources you have brought into the classroom, have them list at least ten things they learn about the people and culture of the state (e.g., what they do, who they are, and where they live). As an option, students may also draw pictures of the things they see on the Web pages to create a small "state scrapbook."
Closing:
Ask students to describe the most interesting things they have learned about their state.
Suggested Student Assessment:
Give each student or pair of students a blank outline map of their state (available at the Xpeditions atlas).
Ask students to fill in their maps with some of the things they've learned about and listed. They should draw pictures and write text describing the pictures. If the maps are too small to write in, students may write in the margins or on another piece of paper. Each map should include at least six of the things students have listed.
Extending the Lesson:
- To learn about world cultures, have students explore National Geographic's student activity, Lizzie's Morning.
- Help students design and paint or draw a state mural. The mural should show some of the things they've learned about in this lesson. Make the mural on rolled butcher paper, and display it in the classroom or hallway.
- Have students redesign their state's license plate, showing some of the things they have learned.
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