5th Grade Social Studies Unit 1

Big Idea:

Become reacquainted with reading maps and be able to locate the major landforms of the United States.

Student Expectations:

Priority TEKS

5.6(A) [Readiness] Apply geographic tools, including grid systems, legends, symbols, scales, and compass roses, to construct and interpret maps

5.6(B) [Supporting] Translate geographic data into a variety of formats such as raw data to graphs and maps.

5.7(A) [Readiness] Describe a variety of regions in the United States such as political, population, and economic regions that result from patterns of human activity;

5.7(B) [Supporting] Describe a variety of regions in the United States such as landform, climate, and vegetation regions that result from physical characteristics such as the Great Plains, Rocky Mountains, and Coastal Plains;

5.7(D) [Supporting] Locate on a map important physical features such as the Rocky Mountains, Mississippi River, and Great Plains.

Focus TEKS

5.23(D) [Supporting] predict how future scientific discoveries and technological innovations could affect society in the United States.

Ongoing TEKS

5.7(C) [Supporting] Locate on a map important political features such as the ten largest urban areas in the United States, the 50 states and their capitals, and regions such as the Northeast, the Midwest, and the Southwest

5.24(A) [Tools to Know] Differentiate between, locate, and use valid primary and secondary sources such as computer software; interviews; biographies; oral, print, and visual material; documents; and artifacts to acquire information about the United States;

5.24(B) [Ways to Show] Analyze information by sequencing, categorizing, identifying cause-and-effect relationships, comparing, contrasting, finding the main idea, summarizing, making generalizations and predictions, and drawing inferences and conclusions;

5.24(C) [Ways to Show] Organize and interpret information in outlines, reports, databases, and visuals, including graphs, charts, timelines, and maps;

Student Learning Targets:

• I will identify man-made and natural landmarks in the United States
• I will use map features such as a compass rose, a grid, the title, the key, and scale
• I will write to explain why maps & globes are useful.

Essential Questions:

• How are the Appalachian Mountains different from the Rockies?
• Where is the Mississippi River?
• What are the features of the coastal plains and how do they differ from the Great Plains?
• How do you use a map grid?

Extra Information:

Adopted Textbook: American Legacy, Studies Weekly

District Grading Policy

Texas Gateway Online Resource Center