Lesson
Overview:Building
on the lessons where classroom teachers have established classroom
routines and rules, teachers will work with students to create understanding
of the concepts of rights, responsibility and leadership. Students
will use teacher-given examples to model how they can show responsibility
and leadership within the classroom commons.
Note
to teacher: This lesson can be taught in any third grade
classroom that follows the New York State Social Studies Standards.
If you use the Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES Integrated Social
Studies English Language Arts Curriculum, it should be used at the
beginning of the school year as it is not tied to a specific SSELA
lesson.
Number
of class periods: 2
Standards
New
York State
ELA
1.1, 1.2, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1
Education
for Sustainability Core Content and Performance Indicators
Responsible
Local/Global Citizenship
B2
Demonstrate individual and collective respect for themselves
and the commons.
B6
Demonstrate their awareness of human choices and their consequences,
using their own choices as exemplars.
Healthy
Commons
E1
Define “The Commons” in their own words and in relation
to their own experience. Distinguish between public, private
and common and provide examples of how the latter can overlap
with the first two.
E3 Identify several examples of commons in their school, town
and in our world and explain how those commons function—i.e.,
the rules for access and use and who or what enforces them.
Overarching
Question:
How
are we all going to live well within the means of nature?
Essential
Question(s) for Unit:
How
do our choices and actions affect the sustainability of communities?
Guiding
Questions:
What
actions demonstrate responsible behavior?
How can individuals show leadership within the classroom?
What rights do we each have in our classroom community?
Resources/materials
for this lesson:
Classroom
rules chart
Scenario
charts - number to be decided upon by teacher based upon class size
Hoberman,
Mary Ann. Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow. New York, NY: Little,
Brown & Company, 2007. Based on the true story of the Chicago
Fire. This is a humorous account of the events that followed Mrs.
O’Leary’s cow kicking over a bucket and illustrates the
impact of our actions.
Pearson,
Emily and and Fumi Kosaka. Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary
Deed. Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith, 2002. When Mary decides to pick
blueberries for her neighbor it begins a chain reaction of good deeds
that eventually come back to Mary.
Stone,
Rosetta. Because A Little Bug Went Ka-CHOO! New York, NY: Beginner
Books, 1975. The mere sneeze of a bug causes a chain reaction involving
a variety of community characters.
Activities/Procedures:
Day
1
1.
The classroom teacher should review already established classroom
rules and routines. Post the Essential Question for the Unit:
How is every individual responsible for the health and well
being of the community? Discuss what this might mean.
2. On chart paper, brainstorm student ideas for the definition
of:
community
rights
responsibilities
leadership
3.
Post the classroom definitions on a lesson word wall (see glossary).
4. Discuss the terms community, rights, responsibilities and
leadership as they connect to the classroom rules.
5.
Direct the students to turn-and-talk to share one right and
responsibility they have in other places in the school (ex.
lunch room, recess, specials).
Day
2
1. Use one of the Read-Alouds under Resources
to review the vocabulary introduced yesterday with students,
and have the students interpret the terms their own words.
2. Add these new vocabulary words to the vocabulary
list and unpack their meaning with the students:
commons
consequences
3.
Discuss the classroom as a commons, and identify the features
that make it a commons.
4. Display the following typical classroom scenario on a flip
chart:
"Joe
sees a pencil lying on the floor. What can be done?"
5.
Model through a “think aloud” the possible solutions
to this scenario. These solutions should include both good and
bad choices.
6.
Record the responses on the chart paper.
7.
Create multiple centers with a prepared scenario chart at each
center.
Possible
scenarios for the charts include:
Someone
pushed in front of Emma on line. What can be done?
Jake
can’t concentrate on his work because the student next to
him is talking. What can be done?
Mike’s
partner doesn’t understand the assignment. What can be done?
Someone
bumps into Liz’s lunch tray and it falls on the floor. What
can be done?
Jimmy
finds a dollar on the bus floor. What can be done?
Nancy
and her friend were playing basketball and another student bounces
it away and starts playing with it. What can be done?
Julie
asks to jump rope with a group of girls and they tell her no. What
can be done?
8. Assign
a student group to each center and instruct them to record their responses
to each scenario.
9. Rotate
groups to each center, and when complete, gather students in meeting
area.
10.
Review the model chart and sort the responsible and less responsible
choices into categories. Talk about the positive or negative consequences
of each choice. Mark or highlight each category with a different color.
11.
Send each student group to a work area with one chart from the centers.
Instruct them to sort their responses and mark them in the same way
as the model.
12.
Call all groups back to a meeting area. Have each group share its
chart and explain its choices. Hang all charts in the classroom.
13.
Students should complete the “Commons Worksheet” (included).
