COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERSHIP

INQUIRY LESSON
Candidate:
Yessenia Flores

Date:
May 1, 2015

Lesson Title:
Becoming America
Duration: 2 days, 1 hour sessions
Type of Lesson: Inquiry
Subject Matter: Social Studies
Lesson Content Description:

Grade Level: 5th

Students will use pictures and their prior knowledge to understand the
causes of the American Revolution
(This lesson is used as an introduction to thematic unit for the
American Revolution)
Content Standard:
5.0 Students explain the causes of the American Revolution
Lesson Objective: Students will be able to recall and understand the
reasons for the American Revolution
Assessment:
Formative: Observations
Summative: Using the given pictures, students will be able to identify
the pictures and explain or provide information about what the picture
means
Technology: overhead projector displaying driving question, This
land is your land song on youtube, powerpoint of images used for
groups
Materials:
This Land is your land music with lyrics on youtube,
large butcher paper,
paper for individual groups, images of the following:
Important figures in the Ame. Rev., different acts depicted in
pictures (ex: Townsend act) Boston Tea party, The declaration of
indep., different wars or important battles, any pictures of topics
that may be covered in Ame. Revolution

INTO
Teacher will play This land is your land for students.
Teacher will ask class what the song means
Teacher will then display driving question on overhead How did
the United States become our land?
THROUGH
Day 1
Students will be broken into groups (smaller groups of 4-5). In
their group students will brainstorm on a large sheet of paper of
how America became our land.
Students may draw pictures, list people, talk about wars etc. to
get point across
Teacher will walk around to listen to the students conversations
and make sure they remain on topic
Teacher will then have groups share their information on how
America came to be.
Teacher will write on a large sheet of paper students responses
After all responses have been collected, teacher will go over
probable explanations and answers people have in common
Day 2
Teacher will go over information from the lesson before
In the same groups students were in the day before, teacher will
hand each of the groups a series of images (images for groups
are different, or there may be repetition if needed)
Using the images student will write down 3-5 facts of what they
think is happening in the image.
Students will number off 1-5 or 1-4 depending on how many in
group. All the students in the same number will be rotating
(Round Robin Strategy). Ex: the #3 from each group will take the
images used in their group and go onto a new group. The new
group will then discuss what they think is going on in the images.
The #3 person will then share what previous group came up with
Teacher can allow 5 minutes for each person to rotate until every
group has seen all images or allow the rotation to happen 3
times
Teacher will pull up each image at a time, and have the groups
with corresponding image to share what they have.
Teacher will once again write down students information on the
other half of the same butcher paper
After each image teacher will let students know what the image
was about

After all images have been discussed teacher and students will
compare and contrast the information given. Does the
information match from the lesson before? Are there
similarities and differences?

BEYOND
Students will write in one paragraph on what they are most
exciting about learning about the American Revolution and what
they dont understand or know