Unit Plan: Down on Unit Plan: Down on the Farmthe Farm

Unit Plan: Down on Unit Plan: Down on the Farmthe Farm

Tiffany ClineTiffany Cline

Unit Plan SummaryIn this unit students will be engaged in a variety of rigorous activities that

will help them explore the farm as it relates to everyday living. Students will be crating bubble maps to brainstorm animals and

people on the farm. Students will explore how the farm is essential to humans by providing us with food. Students will classify and sort

animals. This unit will identify the characteristics and structures, life cycles, and environments of animals.

Standards and Objectives

Social Studies4. Identify the interdependence of economics (self/family). (C, G, E)a. Classify primary land uses (e.g., farming, livestock, fishing, residential,

recreation, etc.).

b. State the goods and services provided by family producers.

c. State the division of labor within the classroom/home environment (e.g., making an art project, using an assembly line, classroom and community helpers, etc

Science3. Understand characteristics, structures, life cycles, and environments of

organisms.

a. Group animals by their physical features

Projects for this Unit• Class Book• PowerPoint Presentations• Collages• Posters

Curriculum-Framing Questions

• Essential QuestionWhat makes the farm a wonderful place to live?

• Unit Question• How does the farm help our lives?• Which animals are more important on the farm?

• Content Question• Identify several farm animals?• Who works or live on the farm?• What sound does a __________ make?

Assessments

Questioning will be used throughout the unit. Students will complete KWL Chart. Numerous journal writing samples, class books, graphs will help the teacher monitor students’ progress. Teacher will utilize project rubrics to assess the final project of the unit.

Assessment ProceduresBefore Learning

Bubble Maps

KWL Charts

Graphs

Read Aloud

Questioning

Assessment Procedures

Questioning

Checklist

PowerPoint

Collages

Poster Board

Poster Boards

Class Book

Animal Sorts

During Learning

After Project Work is Complete

Project Rubric

Questioning KWL Chart

Student Conferences

Whole Group Discussion

After Work

Instructional Procedure• Week 1• Before reading stories teacher will ask children what they already know about farms. (KWL Chart)• Teacher will read classic farm story The Big Red Barn by Margaret Wise Brown• Teacher will provide a farm theme word list to each student and introduce the word wall words.• Teacher will provide students with blank sheets of paper and drawing materials of their favorite farm animal. .• Students will write the name of their animal on the page.• Teacher and students will create a Favorite Farm Animal Graph• Teacher and students will analyze data from graph• Teacher will teach students the lyrics of “The Farmer in the Dell”• Week2• Discuss the role of the illustrator of a book• Brainstorm some different ways illustrators create/compose pictures.• Read Aloud Wake Up, Big Barn b y Suzanne Chitwood• Discuss the pictures in the story. How are the made? (Collage)• Create a farm collage• Print out the Farm Themed Felt Board printable in color and prepare them as Felt Board characters.  (If you do not have a felt board, you could

prepare tack them on a bulletin board instead). • Read Old MacDonald Had a Farm by Child's Play (or simply sing the song with the kids)

  as the various characters come up in the story, hang up the appropriate felt board piece.  Hand out the Barn shapes booklets and have the children compose their own "In the barn there was a _____" Book.  If the children cannot print, hand out the pages that just require images be drawn

• Week 3• Set up three stations in the classroom: • Station 1:  10 all different items • Station 2:  5 sets of 2 identical items • Station 3:  2 sets of 5 identical items • Station 4:  10 the entire same item

  Items could be: plastic farm animals, eggs, silk plants or vegetables (depending on what you have available).  • If you don't have any of these available, you could print out farm animal coloring pages and hang the appropriate number of those at the stations.    • Divide your class into four groups.  Have each group visit a different station.  Have the children talk about what they see at the station.  Have them

print their findings on a sheet of paper.  For students that require interventions, simply allow them to discuss what they are seeing. 

• Come together as a classroom.  Using the whiteboard, discuss with the class what they discovered at each station.

Accommodations for Differentiated Instruction

Special Need Students

•Provide teacher/peer assistance as needed for assignments.•Provide accommodations/ modifications

•Allow students to work in groups

Accommodations for Nonnative Speakers

Nonnative Speakers will work in conjunction with the ELL teacher for translation and explanation of concepts addressed in this unit.

Accommodations for Gifted/Talented Students

Gifted and Talented students will serve as experts on topics and engage in other topic related assignments.

Students will also serve as peer tutors.

Internet Resourceswww.edhelper.com

www.mde.k12.ms.uswww.kidzone.com

* See works cited page for additional resources.

Connection to the Real Word

Upon completion of this unit students will take a trip to a local

farm in the area!