This Land is Your Land

By Woody Guthrie

Bookshare: Margaret Fagan

Grade: 1st-3rd grade
Materials: ​This Land is Your Land​ by Woody Guthrie, Ukuleles,

Objectives​:
● S. will listen to and sing ​This Land is Your Land​ as it is read to them
○ S. will learn about various regions of the United States
● S. will answer questions pertaining to the book and relate the book to their lives
● S. will think about the concept of sharing where they live and what it means to them to
appreciate your neighbors
● S. will discuss controversial topics like what it means to share the United States today
and how/why people are being turned away to live here.
○ S. will discuss what it means to let be kind to people who do have the same
views or lifestyles as your own
● S. will Sing ​This Land is Your Land ​with a steady beat and accurate rhythms

Procedure:

● Before reading, t. Asks:

○ Do you have a special place that makes you feel happy? Think about it and keep
in your head)
■ Where is this special place?
■ If you shared this place, would it make someone else happy?
○ Everyone has their own special places that make them feel happy and we all can
share these places to make others happy
● TEACH SONG
○ S. sit in circle
○ T. asks s. To pat a steady beat
○ T. sings “This Land is Your Land” Chorus
○ S. learn chorus by traditional rote style
○ T. begins singing and has students sing along as a class
○ T. reads book, has students sing every time the chorus appears
○
● While reading:
○ I saw above me the endless sky
■ Where does it look like he is? Why do you say so?
○ No Trespassing
■ Why do you think the sign said “No Trespassing”, did it stop the main
character from continuing?
○ Steeple
 ■ What are these people waiting for? Would you want to live here?
■ Why do you think the author asked if “this land was made for you and
me”?
○ Freedom highway
■ Is this the same place as the area from before?
■ What makes it different?
■ What do you think happened here?
■ Does this look familiar to you?
● After Reading:
○ What changes did you see as the man in the story walked from one end of the
country to the other?
■ Was every experience happy?
○ Which place did you like the best and why?
○ Turn and Talk: The words, “This land is your land, this land is my land” is said
many times in this book, why do think he did this? What do you think they mean?
○ Class discussion on what they mean
■ Discussion of possible meaning that America is not made for “you and
me”
● Class sing “This Land is your Land”