Taught by Christy Keeler, Ph.D.
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Learning Centers
Objectives:
- Students identify available instructional materials for elementary-level social studies classrooms.
- Students make informed judgments about the quality of social studies materials for use in their individual classrooms.
- Students design learning centers for elementary-level classrooms that enhance social studies content learning.
- Computer with lecture slides
- Camera
- Materials for Box City (boxes, markers, masking tape, brown/blue/green butcher paper, scissors, instruction sheet)
- One laptop with National Geographic’s
GeoBee™
- One laptop with SeaWorld
Tycoon™or Broderbund’s Carmen
Sandiego through Time™
- One social studies board game (Monopoly
Junior) and directions for communism
and socialism
monopoly
- Two social studies puzzles (world, USA)
- Geographic location practice boards (USA, Africa), atlases,
wet erase markers, and wet/dry paper towels
- Geo-Battleship boards with wet erase markers and wet/dry
paper towels
and Geo-Battleship
lesson plan
- Conquering Cartography: Draw South America (example, practice sheets, and lesson plan)
- Contour map materials (printed cardstock topographical maps, double-sided foam tape, scissors, and lesson plan)
- Leapster with "Dora the Explorer" and "America Rocks" cartridges
- LeapPad with the introductory booklet
- Oregon Scientific SmartGlobe™
- Signs for each learning center
- Timer
Before class, arrange and set-up
all learning centers. Include marquees
with the name of each learning
center.
Sponge
Question/Opening (5
minutes)
- As students enter the room, display the following question on the board:
- "What activities are conducive to use in social studies learning centers?"
- Review daily objectives.
- Review daily outline.
Social
Studies Learning Centers
(55 minutes)
Briefly introduce students to
each of the learning centers and tell them we will be separating into
groups.
Call out numbers and ask students to get in groups with that number. For example, if the instructor yells “5,” then all students must arrange themselves in groups of six. Do this three times using “4,” “3, and “6.” Then call out “2.” Have each pair determine a team name (social studies themed) and write it on the board along with the names of their group members.
Describe each of the learning centers and assign teams (using their team names) to centers.
The centers and rotation schedule will include the following:
Call out numbers and ask students to get in groups with that number. For example, if the instructor yells “5,” then all students must arrange themselves in groups of six. Do this three times using “4,” “3, and “6.” Then call out “2.” Have each pair determine a team name (social studies themed) and write it on the board along with the names of their group members.
Describe each of the learning centers and assign teams (using their team names) to centers.
The centers and rotation schedule will include the following:
- Computer
Station: SeaWorld Tycoon
- Conquering Cartography: Draw South America
- Puzzles
- Computer Station: GeoBee
- Practice Boards (USA and Africa) and SmartGlobe™
- Leapster with "Dora the Explorer" and "America Rocks" cartridges
- Box
City: Two groups
- “Monopoly Junior”: Two groups (include communism and socialism directions)
- Make a contour map
Once students are assigned to
their groups, set the timer for 15 minutes. When it goes off, have
teams rotate learning stations. Continue for three cycles.
Discussion: Social Studies Learning Centers (10 minutes)
Encourage class discussion on the benefits of learning centers to social studies teaching/learning and the availability of materials for use in social studies learning centers.
Closing (5 minutes)
- Review daily objectives and outline.
- Assign readings and remind students to complete their reading synopses/syntheses.
Choose any three of the nine
learning
center options. Engage with each center for fifteen minutes, keeping a
log of the social studies content addressed at each center. Turn in a
copy of your completed log.
Homepage: Christy Keeler