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Lesson Plan II
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Lesson Plan II

Teacher: Miss Abtahi
Subject Area: Social Studies
Grade Level: 3rd
Unit Title:  Organizational Tools
Lesson Title: Timeline Fun

Objectives (Write 2-5 objectives stating expected learner outcomes.)
  • Read a timeline (3) 4.12
  • Discuss various Presidents of the United States (3) 4.13
  • Create timelines that show people and events in sequence using days, weeks, months, years, decades, and centuries (3)                     4.14

ISTE NETS-S Standards Addressed (Identify 2-5 standards this lesson addresses.):

  • Students develop positive attitudes toward technology uses that support lifelong learning, collaboration,      personal                 pursuits, and productivity.  2(c)
  • Students use technology tools to enhance learning, increase productivity, and promote creativity.  3(a)
  • Students use technology to locate, evaluate, and collect information from a variety of sources.  5(a)

Needed Materials:
  • Children’s CD “Celebrate America”
  • Pre-made timeline
  • At least five computers with internet access
  • An additional computer to open Timeliner 4.0
  • Timeliner 4.0
  • Worksheet “Your Day”

Procedure
             
               Sponge Activity: “Celebrate America” will be playing as the students enter the room.  James Madison, James Polk,                        Abraham Lincoln, William McKinley, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Lyndon Johnson, Richard                      Nixon, and George W. Bush will be written in random order on the board.  (Note:  These Presidents are those who have                  served during the United State’s involvement in a war.  This is not the focus of the lesson plan, but simply a method I used                  to select which Presidents to include in the research information.)

              Tell students the daily outline and objectives

              Anticipatory Set:
  • Does it help to organize your homework, belongings, etc?  Why?
  • When your homework, notebook, or room is organized, is it easier to remember where these items were placed?
  • Can you think of a way to organize different ideas/facts we have already learned?
  • Does anyone know who these individuals are?
  • Is there a way to organize their names in a meaningful, organized manner?

              Lecture:  Explain to students timelines are used to organize people and events in chronological order.  They are an                           important tool in studying and remembering historical events and people.  Additionally, they are able to express important                   milestones, sequentially, in anyone’s life.  They are traditionally presented horizontally or vertically.  As an example, present               the students with a “mini” timeline displaying several important events in your life.  Emphasize that each date may be                           supplemented with a picture or drawing to add more meaning to the information.  Timelines may either be handwritten or                   computer processed. If not already mentioned or discussed within the anticipatory set, explain that the names written on the               board are Presidents of the past and present.  They are one of the many sets of information that can be organized in                           chronological order.  Be sure to either remind or acknowledge that George W. Bush is the current President.

              Activity:  Students will be separated into five groups and assigned two Presidents from the list written on the board.  They               are to research their President’s term on the classroom computers using kid friendly search engines, such as                                       www.askjeeveskids.com or www.yahooligans.com.  The program, Timeliner 4.0, will be opened on the teacher’s monitor.                The groups will report their findings, along with typing their President’s name and term into the computer processed                           timeline, with the teacher’s assistance if needed.  The instructor will then print the timeline and post it on the front board.                    The class will then discuss how they discovered their findings, if it was easy or difficult, and if they enjoyed looking up                         information via the internet instead of an encyclopedia or book.      

              Review:   As “Celebrate America” is lightly played in the background, students will copy the timeline into their social studies note book.

Closure: Similar to creating timelines to record the sequence of historical events and figures, as a class we will develop our own classroom timeline, recording important events and milestones as they occur throughout the school year.   
  • Review outline
  • Review objectives
  • Assessment:  Students will be given a worksheet to organize information to make a timeline of their day.  From this, they will be given the choice of either creating their timeline on a poster board or with Timeliner 4.0.   
  • Provide a “teaser” for tomorrow’s lesson:  We will begin developing our classroom’s timeline, discussing prior     events we would like to include and continue to add information throughout the school year.




©2005 Sara Abtahi