Katy Emerick

EDUG 863
Lesson #3
PS 81
AUSTRALIA
Description of the class: Grade 3 General Education
28 Students, 1 IEP, 2 ELLS
New York State Standards for Social Studies:
Standard 3: Geography
Students will use a variety of intellectual skills to demonstrate their
understanding of the geography of the interdependent world in which
we livelocal, national, and global- including the distribution of people,
places, and environments over Earths surface.
Common Core Learning Standards:
CCLS College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Reading
Key Ideas and Details
1.) Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make
logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or
speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.
Objectives/Goals: Students should be able to:
- Compare life in the Australian outback to live in an Australian city
- Identify parts of a text to help cite and explain answer
Activity:
Opening and Motivational Hook:
- Show students a map of Australia. Ask students if they know
what country that is and where it is located on the world map.
Have students come up and circle on smart board and ask the
class is they agree or disagree.
- Ask students what they know about Australia
- Tell them we are going to learn a little more about Australias city
and outback
- Have students reflect on prior knowledge in grade 2 when they
learned about urban and rural
Work Session:
- Hand students article on Australia. Read together city and outback
section with students.
- Use graphic organizer and ask students to go back in the text to find
ways that city life and outback life are different

- Use the RACE strategy to answer question What is life like in the
city/outback in Australia?/ How do children go to school in the
outback?
Come up with it together with students and write on the board in
paragraph form.
- On their own, ask students to answer the following prompt and use
the RACES strategy:
Give 1 or 2 ways of how living in a city in Australia is different
from living in the outback.
- Remind students that they need 1 examples, which means they need
1 body paragraph and 3 paragraphs total.
- Remind students that they need 2 examples, which means they need
2 body paragraph and 4 paragraphs total.

Assessment:
- How students respond to writing prompt
Differentiation:
- Each student will give 1 or 2 examples, based on level.

Sources:
Continents: Australia By Heinemann Raintree
Australia, By Shirley W. Gray

Name: _____________________________________________

AUSTRALIA

Gd-day, mate. Welcome to Australia! You might hear this greeting if

you visit Australia. Australia lies south of the equator in the southern half
of the world. Americans call it the land down under because it is located
down-under the equator. In fact, the word Australia comes from the Latin
word australis, which means southern. Australia is the sixth largest
country in the world. And it is the only country that is also a continent. A
continent is one of the earths seven great landmasses. Australia is made up
of six states and two territories. Canberra is its capital city.

CITIES IN AUSTRALIA
Many Australians live in
cities along the coasts. Many
people live in homes that have
lawns and gardens. With such
warm weather, Australians like to
spend their time outdoors.
Sydney and Melbourne are the
largest cities in Australia. These
cities are now important centers for art, theater and music. Hotels and
skyscrapers tower above the busy city streets.
Perth is the largest city on Australias west coast. The city and its
suburbs are known for its beautiful beaches and parks. Perth is also a
popular place for yachting. Most Australians live in cities along the coasts.
Some people live close to the city center. But many peoples homes are in the
suburbs surrounding the cities.

AUSTRALIAN OUTBACK
Away from the cities, the bare land of the Australian outback
stretches for thousands of miles through the center of Australia. It got its
name because it is the out back of the Great Dividing Range. The outback
has three deserts and several small mountain areas.
Cattle and sheep farmers
live on ranches. Few people live in
the outback because it is dry,
rugged land and hard to reach.
Town and neighbors are usually
very far apart. Many children in
the outback learn their school lessons by listening to a radio or using a
computer. Some doctors must fly in airplanes to see their patients.

Name: ______________________________________________

Writing Prompt: Give 1 example of how living in a city in Australia is

different from living in the outback. Remember to use the RACES
Strategy!
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Name: ___________________________________________

Writing Prompt: Give 2 examples of how living in a city in Australia is

different from living in the outback. Remember to use the RACES
Strategy!
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Name: __________________________________________
How is going to school in the outback different from the way we
go to school? Remember to use the RACES Strategy!
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