Goals & Objectives
Goal
Students will understand the relationship between the geography of medieval Europe and its people.
Objectives
Students will research the relationship between an aspect of the geography of a portion of Europe and its people.
Students will work in productive groups to combine their findings and create a poster detailing the relationship between the geography of a portion of medieval Europe and its people.
Students will understand the relationship between the geography of medieval Europe and its people.
Objectives
Students will research the relationship between an aspect of the geography of a portion of Europe and its people.
Students will work in productive groups to combine their findings and create a poster detailing the relationship between the geography of a portion of medieval Europe and its people.
California State Content and Common Core Standards
7.6 Students analyze the geographic, political, economic, religious, and social
structures of the civilizations of Medieval Europe.
1. Study the geography of the Europe and the Eurasian land mass, including its location, topography, waterways, vegetation, and climate and their relationship to ways of life in Medieval Europe.
Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies
7. Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question), drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.
structures of the civilizations of Medieval Europe.
1. Study the geography of the Europe and the Eurasian land mass, including its location, topography, waterways, vegetation, and climate and their relationship to ways of life in Medieval Europe.
Writing Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies
7. Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question), drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.
Lesson Introduction
Day one- Students will participate in a power write. Each student will take two minutes to write down all the words they associate with the medieval period. Students will then be asked to share their words with the class. Words that will be particularly relevant for this lesson will be written on the board.
Day two- Students will participate in a whip around. Each student will share the most interesting thing they learned while doing research the day before with the rest of the class.
Day three- Students will write out three things they hope to see on their posters and share them with their group. This will transition into the student engagement for day three which is planning out their posters and creating a mock up.
Day four- Each student will write a Cinquain about their region. Students will then share their cinquain with their groups. While students are working on the introduction the teacher will circulate and check the student mockups completed the day before. The teacher will provide verbal feedback, scaffolding, and encouragement.
Day five- Each student will each tell one of their group members why they think their group member will do a good job during the presentation. This should help students stay calm before their presentations.
Day two- Students will participate in a whip around. Each student will share the most interesting thing they learned while doing research the day before with the rest of the class.
Day three- Students will write out three things they hope to see on their posters and share them with their group. This will transition into the student engagement for day three which is planning out their posters and creating a mock up.
Day four- Each student will write a Cinquain about their region. Students will then share their cinquain with their groups. While students are working on the introduction the teacher will circulate and check the student mockups completed the day before. The teacher will provide verbal feedback, scaffolding, and encouragement.
Day five- Each student will each tell one of their group members why they think their group member will do a good job during the presentation. This should help students stay calm before their presentations.
Vocabulary
After the lesson introduction on day one the teacher will lead the class in defining the following words. Students will write the words, the definition, and a mnemonic in their vocabulary notebooks.
· Europe
· Topography
· Vegetation
· Waterways
· Climate
· Europe
· Topography
· Vegetation
· Waterways
· Climate
Content Delivery
Day one- The teacher will explain the project students will be working on for the remainder of the week and pass out the poster checklist. The students will be working together on a poster designed to answer the question ‘What affect did the geography of this specific region have on the people who lived there and vice versa?’ The teacher will divide students into groups and give each group a portion of Europe to focus on. Groups regions will include.
· The British Isles
· Italy
· France/Land of the Franks
· Germany
· Nordic Countries
· The Iberian Peninsula
Groups will then decide on the roles the individual members will play. Roles for individual members include.
· Location and relationship with neighbors
· Topography
· Waterways and oceans
· Vegetation and agriculture
· Climate
Each student will research his or her topic in the group’s region. Each student will create a list of at least five facts they discover which will later be used when planning the poster.
Day two- Students will continue their research and complete their lists.
Day three- Students will share their lists with their group members and decide which facts should be included on their posters. Each student must contribute something to the poster. While they are comparing lists the teacher will circulate and check the lists.
Day four-The groups will finalize the information appearing on their posters.
Day five- Students and invited parents will each listen to their classmates presentations about other parts of Europe. If there is extra time after the presentations students will participate in a gallery walk of the posters.
· The British Isles
· Italy
· France/Land of the Franks
· Germany
· Nordic Countries
· The Iberian Peninsula
Groups will then decide on the roles the individual members will play. Roles for individual members include.
· Location and relationship with neighbors
· Topography
· Waterways and oceans
· Vegetation and agriculture
· Climate
Each student will research his or her topic in the group’s region. Each student will create a list of at least five facts they discover which will later be used when planning the poster.
Day two- Students will continue their research and complete their lists.
Day three- Students will share their lists with their group members and decide which facts should be included on their posters. Each student must contribute something to the poster. While they are comparing lists the teacher will circulate and check the lists.
Day four-The groups will finalize the information appearing on their posters.
Day five- Students and invited parents will each listen to their classmates presentations about other parts of Europe. If there is extra time after the presentations students will participate in a gallery walk of the posters.
Student Engagement
Day one- Students will begin their research and start their fact lists. Students will use their textbooks, a selection of books from the school library, and Sweet Search to gather facts. The teacher will circulate to provide scaffolding.
Day two- Students will finish their research, complete their fact lists, and rank their finding from most to least important. If it is necessary students can continue this portion of the assignment at home.
Day three- The groups will work together to create a mockup of their poster using the poster checklist as a guide. Each student must contribute to the poster.
Day four- Students will create their final poster and prepare for their presentation.
Day five- Each group will present their poster to the class and invited parents and explain how the geography of their region affected how people lived and how the way people lived affected the environment.
Day two- Students will finish their research, complete their fact lists, and rank their finding from most to least important. If it is necessary students can continue this portion of the assignment at home.
Day three- The groups will work together to create a mockup of their poster using the poster checklist as a guide. Each student must contribute to the poster.
Day four- Students will create their final poster and prepare for their presentation.
Day five- Each group will present their poster to the class and invited parents and explain how the geography of their region affected how people lived and how the way people lived affected the environment.
Lesson Closure
Day one- Students will participate in a think-pair-share. They will answer the question ‘What do I hope to learn from this project?’
Day two- Students will participate in a whip around. Each student will explain which resource they used for their research is their favorite and why.
Day three- students will participate in a whip around. Each student will compliment one of their group members for their contribution to the project so far.
Day four- Each group will practice their presentation at least once. Each student will provide another in their group with verbal feedback on their performance.
Day five- Students will participate in a whip around. Each student will describe their favorite thing about another group’s poster.
Day two- Students will participate in a whip around. Each student will explain which resource they used for their research is their favorite and why.
Day three- students will participate in a whip around. Each student will compliment one of their group members for their contribution to the project so far.
Day four- Each group will practice their presentation at least once. Each student will provide another in their group with verbal feedback on their performance.
Day five- Students will participate in a whip around. Each student will describe their favorite thing about another group’s poster.
Assessment
Entry Level/Informal- The teacher will use the first day’s lesson introduction to gauge students’ prior knowledge about the medieval period. Any major concepts the teacher feels are missing can be added to the list of vocabulary words for this lesson. Since this project is designed to be the first lesson in a unit on medieval Europe it is not expected that the students will have a large amount of knowledge on the topic.
Formative/Informal- By the end of day two each student should have a list of at least five facts they learned during their research. During the course of day three the teacher will check each student’s work to ensure they completed the assignment. Students will receive a check, check minus, or check plus for this assignment. The teacher will make a note of the students who did not complete the work to ensure their group will not be penalized on the final poster for a single member’s actions.
Formative/Informal- By the end of day three each group should have a small mockup of their final poster on a piece of paper and have confirmed what information they want to place on it. The teacher will examine the mockups at the beginning of day four and offer the groups verbal feedback and encouragement.
Summative/Formal- On day five the groups will present their posters to the whole class and a group of parents. The teacher will grade the posters and presentations using a check list that the students were provided at the start of the lesson. Students will also turn in their fact lists and poster mockups at this time. Students will receive their completed checklists and their other assignments back the following week.
Formative/Informal- By the end of day two each student should have a list of at least five facts they learned during their research. During the course of day three the teacher will check each student’s work to ensure they completed the assignment. Students will receive a check, check minus, or check plus for this assignment. The teacher will make a note of the students who did not complete the work to ensure their group will not be penalized on the final poster for a single member’s actions.
Formative/Informal- By the end of day three each group should have a small mockup of their final poster on a piece of paper and have confirmed what information they want to place on it. The teacher will examine the mockups at the beginning of day four and offer the groups verbal feedback and encouragement.
Summative/Formal- On day five the groups will present their posters to the whole class and a group of parents. The teacher will grade the posters and presentations using a check list that the students were provided at the start of the lesson. Students will also turn in their fact lists and poster mockups at this time. Students will receive their completed checklists and their other assignments back the following week.
Accommodations for English Learners, Striving Readers and Students with Special Needs
Groups will be assigned before the class to be as heterogeneous as possible. Each group with an ELL will contain at least one bilingual student if numbers allow. Each group will also contain one strong reader to assist the others. The teacher will circulate during research times and when students are working on their posters to provide whatever scaffolding is necessary.