1 Communities Communities for First Grade By: Lisa Pfander, Betsy Thoburn, Nicole Palmer, Andrea Wolfe, and Lindsay Burlas

2 Table Of Contents History 4 History Activities 5-6 History Websites 7 People in Societies 8 People in Societies Activities 9-10 People in Societies Websites 11 Geography 12 Geography Activities Geography Websites 15

3 Table Of Contents Cont. Economics 16 Economics Activities Economics Websites 19 Citizens Rights and Responsibilities 20 Citizens Rights etc. Activities Citizens Rights etc. Websites 23 Social Studies Skills and Methods 24 Social Studies etc. Activities Social Studies Et. Websites 27

4 History Chronology Daily Life Heritage

5 Activities Students visit a local historical site to learn more about the past of the community. Make a class time-line about events within the history of the community. Students interview a grandparent or elderly friend of the family that grew up in or near the community in order to learn more about the past of the community.

6 Activities Cont. Students create a Venn Diagram depicting past roles of men versus women. Students create mini-book from pre- printed pictures depicting things from the past and present, such as housing, transportation, farms, supermarkets, etc.

7 History Websites This Day in History In the Old Days: Senior Reading Buddies Community Learning Network Social Studies Games Community Learning Network

8 People In Societies CultureDiffusion

9 Activities Students visit a local art museum to learn about artists from the past within or near the community Teacher reads “World Holidays: A Watts Guide for Children” By Heather Moehn. This is an alphabet guide to customs around the world. Children draw a picture of something from our culture vs. one other communities culture.

10 Activities Cont. Students visit a local farm to learn more about food resources for people from the past within the community. Teacher reads “Dear Mr. Rosemwald” by Carol Boston Weatherford. This is about a community coming together to raise money for a needed school in the 1920’s. After reading, discuss how the community supports the schools today. Homework: With parents help students find an annual community event (from the newspaper or on-line)/ This should be cut out or printed and brought to class to make a poster of community events.

11 Websites The Internet Public Library Federal Resources for Educational ExcellenceFederal Resources for Educational Excellence Hot Chalks Lesson Plans Page Pearson Social Studies Library

12 Geography Location Places and Regions Human Environmental Interaction

13 Activities Students locate the United States, their state and community on a globe and world map. Students create a simple map of the location of their school in the community using symbols. Students create a collage of the physical features (lakes, streams, hills, mountains, or forests) and human features (park, traffic signs, houses,

14 Activities Cont. Students take a trip to their downtown and use a simple map and compass rose to locate key buildings or parks. Students use a map to locate a hidden treasure in their school or community.

15 Websites Go George Go A New Friend Map It My Community PLAY! Scholastic

16 Economics Scarcity and Resource Allocation Production, Distribution and Consumption Markets

17 Activities Students take a trip to the local apple orchard, pumpkin patch, or farm. Teacher reads The Big Green Pocket Book by Candice Ransome. Students identify goods and services consumed by the mother and daughter in the book. A local business owner visits the class and explains the goods and/or services they supply to the community.

18 Activities Cont. Students tour the downtown area of their community using a map and identify the buildings which relate to production, consumers, goods, and services. Teacher reads The Little Red Hen. Students learn how wheat is grown and processed by taking on the roles of the farmer, miller, and baker.

19 Websites Farming and the services of a Community The Big Green Pocket Book How Much is a Million? Goods & Services We are Consumers and Producers

20 Government Role of Government Rules and Laws

21 Activities A police officer will come into class and speak to the children. The police officer will talk to the students about safety and security. Students will go on a field trip to see local government buildings. Students will pick 5 community helpers. Then students will have a class vote on their favorite one.

22 Activities Cont. Students will discuss what happens when they violate classroom rules. They will then compare that to what happens if you violate community rules. Students will make a list of United States symbols that represent democracy and values that can be found in the community.

23 Websites Your Neighborhood Community Helpers at Your Service Joining Community Helpers Communities and Local Government Communities and What They Provide For you

24 Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities Participation Rights and Responsibilities

25 Activities Have students list three community helpers. Then have them list traits for each of those helpers that make them a good citizen. Talk to students about respect. Tell students that they should have respect for community helpers in authority. Have students define what it means to be trustworthy. Have them say why community helpers need to be trustworthy.

26 Activities Cont. Ask students what it means to be accountable for their own actions. Have them write down one community helper, and give an example of how that person is accountable for their own actions. Have the schools gym teacher come in and speak to the students about good sportsmanship.

27 Websites Rights of Citizens: Bill of Rights Citizenship Responsibilities of Citizens Teaching Guide: Citizenship Citizenship

28 Social Studies Skills and Methods Obtaining Information Thinking and Organizing Communicating Information Problem Solving

29 Activities Students will be given a timeline containing information about the community that they live in. In no specific order, with dates given, they will have to sequence the information given from beginning to end. This will help the students learn about their community and how to sequence the information given. Students will work together in groups of four, they will create a poster about a certain area in the community, I.E. School, library, park, police station, etc. They will present the poster to the class and talk about why they selected the place they did. Students will take a field trip to see a child’s play onstage in the community. During this field trip they will practice displaying courtesy and respect to others. They will do this by using manners, given their full attention to the speakers, and by showing respect to one another. Students will then return to the school and discuss how they showed courtesy and why it is important to do.

30 Activities cont. Student will be given three main topics/places in the community. The police station, fire department, and the library. They will be given subtopics to be placed underneath the main ideas. The topics will be illustrated and written out. This way they can visually see what they are looking for and practicing their reading. This activity will help students work on sorting and work on different things in the community. Students will look at the local community pamphlets about a child resource and obtain as much information as possible. They will present it to the class and explain if they would or would not like to use this resource and why. Teachers will provide appropriate pamphlets to the class.

31 Websites First-Grade Teacher Puts Children’s Focus on RespectFirst-Grade Teacher Puts Children’s Focus on Respect The First-Grade Teacher’s Wisdom Social Studies Skill Builders Social Studies In First Grade The Words You Speak