Social Studies GradeThreeConcepts:
Students will know that:
Students will:
Students will:
Students may:
A personal identity The teacher may choose to begin the unit with each child creating a project that becomes a concrete representation of his/her identity within an expanding environment. Students often make an art folder at the beginning of the year. Combine the art folder project with this unit in social studies in the following way:
As an alternate project, compile a bulletin board display of concentric circles, with each child adding a pictorial representation to each concentric circle.
The class or individual students may wish to compile an anthology of poems and songs representative of each environment.
Naming Explore names, particularly names from cultures represented in your classroom. Learn about naming traditions in Indian cultures.
The entry "names" in most encyclopedias should provide information on naming traditions in a number of cultures. Many books have been written about ancestral names for specific cultures. Public libraries may provide assistance in locating such books.
In some Indian societies, children were given a temporary name at birth. When they were older they were given their permanent name. The Elder chose the name. The Elder observed the child and identified particular characteristics of that child's personality and then gave the child a name that would reflect those characteristics. Children were sometimes named after animals. As they grew up, they tried to observe the animal and take on the strengths of that animal. Naming children after elements in nature gave them a bond with nature.
The lives of the Indian peoples of Canada's northern forests were closely tied to the environment. In some societies, Indian children learned to understand and respect their relationship with others, nature, and the Creator, through the vision quest that they undertook when they were about twelve. They were told a story explaining how it came to be that animals give their lives for humans (below) in preparation for the vision quest. Each child had to go alone into the forest and stay there until he met a special friend or protector in the form of an animal.
How It Came to be That Animals Give Their Lives for Humans
At one time giant animals hunted people. A hero rescued his people by turning the hunters into the hunted. The hero taught the people how to track and capture animals and how to use them for food and clothing. Never again did the people have to go hungry or cold. After that time, animals gave their lives so that the people could live.
The Indian peoples expressed gratitude to the animals who gave them food, clothing, and shelter, and remembered to offer thanks to the spirit of each animal that supplied their needs.
Have students pick a favourite animal. Try to discover what positive features, skills, and feats are attractive about the animal. Assign themselves similar names. Discuss how one could live up to the qualities of that animal.
Family Use a resource like Canadian Families or Canadian Neighbours: How They Live. Read a story about a family to the students. Discuss in what ways the family in the story is similar to and different from the students' own families. Model how the information may be organized (web, chart, Venn diagram).
Read another story. Discuss similarities and differences. Have students working in groups to record information in the way it was modelled.
Note:
When comparing families, guide students to do so without being judgmental.Ask the students to find something to share with the class that depicts family life. It could be a story, song, poem, picture, or newspaper article.
- Emphasize relationships.
- Emphasize similarities more than differences.
- Make connections with reasons for differences.
Have students make a creation to represent their own families. This could include:
Consider how individual family members sometimes make sacrifices for the good
of the whole, and how the family works together as a team. Make analogies such
as:
A family is like a crew on an airliner because all members work together
to make a successful flight.
A family is like a because
Suggested Resources
(listed in other bibliographies and catalogues*)
* Please note: For the most appropriate resources, the teacher should consult the Bibliography for Elementary Social Studies. The resources listed below, and in each module, are listed in other bibliographies and may also be very useful.
* Abbreviations are used as follows: