General InformationGrade: 1
Program: International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program Subject: Transdisciplinary Social Studies and Science Weeks: 5 Time: 50 minutes daily Unit OverviewThis cross-curricular science and social studies unit on 'explorers' falls under the International Baccalaureate (IB) transdisciplinary theme of ‘Where We Are in Time and Place.' It is an inquiry into the journeys, discoveries and explorations of humankind from local and global perspectives. It also addresses the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) crosscutting concepts of stability and change.
The central idea of this unit is that ‘people have always been explorers and continue to be curious about our world.’ This links heavily with the line of inquiry that ‘the earth changes over time.’ The first step to understanding why humans continue to explore is to explain that our earth is frequently changing. Students who attend this international school have a strong foundation in travel and have witnessed a variety of places, cultures and landscapes. In this unit, students will take the role of explorers, using tools to make and record observations and data in regards to changing landforms and biodiversity. Students will collect and analyze information using it to build an understanding of landforms, erosion, qualities of explorers, and places people explore. They will also research early explorers, their motives for exploring and personal qualities. This unit gives students an opportunity to learn about the world, landscapes and geographical terms. They will also learn about how exploration has changed the world as we know it. Merill’s (2002) first principals of instruction will be applied to develop the design of the unit. The unit will also incorporate Kolb’s (2015) theory of experiential learning and Alridge’s beliefs on simulations and gaming on learning pedagogy. |
Explorers | Overview |