Finding Valuable Resources

As with most inquiry activities, resources are invaluable tools for developing learning engagements and provocations that meet the goals of the curriculum and ensure that students interact with concepts and Big Ideas. We found that good photographs helped us to develop meaningful provocations early in the unit that ALSO helped us to introduce unit vocabulary. A resource series that we found useful was the Hands-On Social Studies: an inquiry approach. The photos made available on the CD were relevant to our unit. We also did Creative Commons searches for photos.

Picture books were very important and supported the French vocabulary significantly. At times, the picture books would be read in English and the French vocabulary introduced as we read together. The resources below are not exhaustive, just examples that we felt were important inclusions when sharing our unit.

*picture books(see below for a list of titles)

*hands on inquiry books: see below

*textbooks:

*virtual museum:

*artifacts: blocks, globes, thermometers, photos of unusual homes, maps

*museums - Guelph Civic Museum / Tour called: "City Tour" "

*primary sources - guest speaker, Guilhem Kirby (artist)

Ontario Curricula:

The Ontario Curriculum, Social Studies, Grades 1-6; History and Geography, Grades 7-8, 2013 (revised)

The Ontario Curriculum: French as a Second Language: Core, Grades 4–8; Extended, Grades 4–8; Immersion, Grades 1–8, 2013

The Ontario Curriculum Grades 1-8: Mathematics, 2005 (revised)

The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 1-8: The Arts, 2009 (revised)

Growing success: Assessment, evaluation and reporting in Ontario’s schools: Covering grades 1 to 12. (2010). Toronto, ON: Ministry of Education.

Teacher Resources:

Communautés Urbaines et Rurales By Elliott

Hands-on Social Studies-An Inquiry Approach Grade 2 and 3. (Portage & Main Press, 2014) Each book contains a CD with a wealth of excellent photographs.

Living and Working in Ontario Social Studies Grade 3 Nelson

Picture Books:

One Well-The Story of Water on Earth by Rochelle Strauss

Homes Around the World by Max Moore

Wild Ideas Let Nature Inspire your Thinking by Elin Kelsey

On a Beam of Light: The Story of Albert Einstein, by Jennifer Berne

What Do You Do With An Idea, by Kobi Yamada

Maps by Aleksandra Mizielinska and Daniel Mizielinska

If the World Were aVillage by David Smith

Material World- A Global Family Portrait by Peter Menzel

Walk this World by Lotta Nieminen

Animals at Home by David Lock

Homes Around the World by Bobbie Kalman

Iggy Peck Architect by Andrea Beaty

Home by Carson Ellis

How to Build Your Own Country by Valerie Wyatt

Imagine a Place by Sarah Thomson

Around the World-Home by Kate Petty

Homes by Moira Butterfield

Take Shelter at Home around the World by Nikki Tate and Dani Tate-Stratton

Houses and Homes by Ann Morris

Professional Readings:

Tools for Teaching Conceptual Understanding, Elementary: Harnessing Natural Curiosity for Learning that Transfers (Concept-based Curriculum and Instruction Series) 1st Edition (Julie Stern, Nathalie Lauriault and Krista Ferraro, 2017)

Concept-Based Curriculum and Instruction for the Thinking Classroom (Erickson, Lanning, & French, 2017, 2nd ed.)

Transitioning to Concept-Based Curriculum and Instruction (Erickson & Lanning, 2014)

Designing a Concept-Based Curriculum for English Language Arts (Lanning, 2013)

Stirring the Head, Heart and Soul (Erickson, 2008, 3rd ed.)

Making Thinking Visible: How to Promote Engagement, Understanding, and Independence for All Learners (Ritchhart, Church, & Morrison, 2011)

Tools for teaching conceptual understanding, secondary. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.Stern, J., Ferraro, K., & Mohnkern, J. (2016).