Ledyard Public Schools

Social Studies Curriculum

Unit 2: Neighborhoods

FOCUS QUESTIONS

FQ1 :What does your neighborhood look like? (EQ 3)

Identify various houses, apartments, condos in your neighborhood

Illustrate your home (bedroom)

S9; PS4 Observe and describe how places and regions are identified, defined and bounded.

S9; PS5 Locate places within their own and nearby communities in Connecticut.

S12; PS3 Use maps, globes, graphs, models, computer programs and texts as appropriate.

FQ2:What places and people help your neighborhood? (EQ3)

Identify community helpers/resources

Post Office Library Bank

S6; PS2 Identify the rights of citizens in a democratic society and explain why certain responsibilities are important to themselves, their families, community, state and nation.

S7; PS 3 Define and describe government in terms of people and groups who apply and enforce rules and law.

FQ3: How do neighborhoods change to meet family needs? (EQ2,3)

Adding community resource i.e., homes, schools, businesses

S5; PS5 Apply the process of how leaders are selected and how people monitor and influence decisions of their government.

S9; PS2 Explain how human and processes shape places.

S9; PS3 Provide reasons why and describe how places and regions change and are connected.

S7; PS5 Identify what governments can and cannot do.

S11; PS1 Explain the patterns, distributions and relocations of people

S13; PS5 Identify alternative uses of resources found in their home, school or neighborhood.

NOTES TO TEACHER:

1. Refer to Unit 1 for internet sites, which can provide literature to support this unit.

RESOURCES:

Provided resources:

Town of Ledyard map
A Mathematical and Historical Tour of Ledyard (Teacher reference)
My Apartment (Unit 2, FQ1,3)
Where Do I Live? (Unit 2, FQ1,3)
My House is Your House (Unit 2, FQ1)
At the Post Office (Unit 2, FQ2)
Dad Lost His Job (Unit 2, FQ3)
Community Helpers (Unit 2, FQ2)
Community Helpers Activities (Unit 2, FQ2)
Who works in Your Neighborhood (poster) (Unit 2, FQ2)
Let's Go to the Fair (Unit 2, FQ2,3)
Let's Go to the Aquarium (Unit 2, FQ2,3)
Let's Go to the Museum (Unit 2, FQ2,3)
Let's Go to the Zoo (Unit 2, FQ2,3)

RECOMMENDED ACTIVITIES:

Put my House on the Map - Using a copy of the town of Ledyard map, have students put a pin, post it, etc. on the map where their house is located and identify landmarks - stores, schools, parks, etc.

Take a walking tour of immediate neighborhood around school, take pictures of buildings or locations which are important to the community and build a collage. Use index cards to describe each location.

Community Helpers' Luncheon - Invite members of the community to attend a series of luncheons where they can discuss how they positively impact the community.

Create Community Helper Puppets - role-play events where these individuals can assist you and ways you can elicit their help or assistance.

Interview a Helper - Each child generates a list of questions then interviews one helper shares responses with the class

Shoebox neighborhood -Paint or decorate each shoebox to illustrate an important building in the neighborhood, create a 3D map using the shoeboxes.

ASSESSMENTS:

Essential Questions
Focus questions
Performance Tasks
Tests/quizzes
Teacher observations