China Tour Lesson Plan by Lindsay D

China Tour Lesson Plan by Lindsay D'Agostini

Objectives:

* The students will select pertinent information from a variety of sources.

* The students will compare information on a topic drawn from two or

more sources; to recognize agreement or disagreement.

* The students will use computer programs: to write a paragraph/report;

to simulate situations impractical to reproduce in the classroom.

* The students will estimate, then compute distances between places

studies.

* The students will compare distances in kilometers to places under

study.

* The students will use two or more maps to gather information about the

same area.

* The students will make a regional map to show a variety of features.

* The students will distinguish between work that can be done most

effectively by individuals and that which calls for group effort.

Materials:

Paper, pencils, poster board, markers, scissors, glue, pipe cleaner, paint, atlases, world map(s), globe(s), access to the internet and power point, computers, printer, Microsoft Encarta, LCD projector and overhead screen, China Tour assignment and rubric, and map checklist

Anticipatory set:

Have the LCD projector connected with your computer screen so that all the kids can see what is going on from the computer. Use Microsoft Encarta (2003) and key in the word China on the search page. Click on “geography” and then on “interactive flyby of China”. As a class, experience the flyby as it takes you through China’s contours, its vegetation, and its cities and rivers. Have a discussion with the students about the ten major places in China to visit. Brainstorm a list of tourist attractions in China and write it on the board.

Procedure:

Our class is going on a trip through China. We fly to Beijing from Canada where our trip begins. Money and time is no issue here, so the students can plan on traveling any way they want and seeing whatever sites they want. There will be ten groups of three people each. Each group will cover a leg of the journey. The ten legs of the journey are, Beijing to Shanghai, Shanghai to Xiamen, Xiamen to Guilin, Guilin to X’ian, X’ian to Chengdu, Chengdu to Kunming, Kunming to Lhasa, Lhasa to Dunhuang, Dunhuang to Shenyang, and Shenyang to Beijing.

Each group will pick their leg randomly from a hat. The students will have to create a map of China, showing the two cities we will be traveling to, rivers and other physical features in the area, tourist sites along the way, and the actual path we travel. The students will have to compute the distance that they are traveling in kilometers and explain what we will be doing along the way. The students must research the first city of the journey and tell us what tourist attractions we will be going to while in the city. On our trip to the next city, the students will explain at least three different tourist attractions we can do on our way. The students will also be responsible for finding out ways that we travel to these sites. This will be put together in the form of a PowerPoint presentation.

The resources the students can use are, two websites, at least two maps, one or more books, and other multi media if needed. One of the websites the students can use as a resource is http://www.chinatour.com/attraction/attraction.htm. This is an excellent website that will provide the students with some background on the city they are doing and some important links. This project will take approximately two weeks to complete and the students will be given the first week and half of the second week to research and complete their PowerPoint presentation.

The students will be presenting on the last two social classes of the week in appropriate order. This is a big project and so students will have to use their time effectively and figure out how they are going to go about finding out the information needed. The teacher will provide guidance to groups that are stuck or need help. If several of the groups are having problems, the teacher will do mini lessons about the topic at hand to get the students going again. If students are finished early, they can work on learning center activities.

Closing:

Once the research is completed, the students will present their PowerPoint presentations in the last two classes of the two weeks. The students will then be able to see all their hard work and effort into a sequential and circular journey throughout China. A question and answer period and discussion will be done at the end of the last class about the information presented in the presentations.

Assessment:

The students’ map will be assessed with the map checklist. The students’ presentation will be evaluated according to the China tour rubric. The teacher will monitor the group work for specific incidents and will check for understanding at the end of the last lesson with a question and answer period and discussion with the class.

Modifications:

Special needs students will participate in group work but will have specific, and small tasks set up by the teacher. The students will be included in four person groups and will receive a group mark.

Resources:

China Tour.Com. Access China Tours, 2003.

http://www.chinatour.com/attraction/attraction.htm

Encarta Premium Suite. Microsoft, 2003.

China Tour Project

Our class has won an international award for being the most brilliant grade six class in the world and our prize is a free tour of China. We are visiting ten cities and tourist attractions along the way. You will be part of a group of three students who will get to randomly choose a part of our Chinese journey. The ten legs of the tour are:

-Beijing to Shanghai,

-Shanghai to Xiamen,

-Xiamen to Guilin,

-Guilin to X’ian,

-X’ian to Chengdu,

-Chengdu to Kunming,

-Kunming to Lhasa,

-Lhasa to Dunhuang,

-Dunhuang to Shenyang,

-and Shenyang to Beijing.

This assignment has two major components to it:

1. A Map of China on poster board;

2. A PowerPoint presentation about your leg of the China tour.

Map:

Your group will have to complete a map of China on poster board. Make it big, exciting to look at, and informational. Your map must have all of these components:

-the two cities your leg of the journey will cover in the appropriate

locations

-the rivers or other physical features that your journey will go over

-at least three different tourist attractions we will stop on along the

way to the second city and

their approximate locations

-the total distance traveled in your leg of the tour in kilometers

-a map legend so that your map is easily understandable

-a title

PowerPoint presentation:

Your group will have to complete a PowerPoint presentation of your part of the tour of China. You will have to provide factual information, a time frame for the journey, and how we will travel from place to place. Your presentation must include:

-visual stimulations: at least one map, and other visual aids like

pictures of tourist sites and the

cities that are part of your leg of the tour

-at least three tourist attraction sites in your city or one extremely

detailed attraction site

-at least three tourist attraction sites along the way to the next city

and what to do in these

sites

-methods of traveling to these places

-the distances needed to travel to these places

-a bibliography for the resources that you used

Your map will be marked according to the China map checklist and your presentation will be marked according to the China tour rubric. Have fun and make your trip a memorable one!

China Map Checklist

The map on poster board contains:

o the two cities your leg of the journey will cover in the appropriate

locations

o the rivers or other physical features that your journey will go over

o at least three different tourist attractions we will stop in along the way

to the second city and their approximate locations

o the total distance traveled in your leg of the tour in kilometers

o a map legend so that your map is easily understandable

o a title

The map appearance is:

o visually appealing

o clear, concise, and easily understandable

o fun to look at

o creative and interesting

China Tour Rubric

PowerPoint Presentation

Content

5 All the requirements for the content are met. All the topics relate to

the social studies unit.

4 Most of the requirements for the content are met. Most of the topics

relate to the social studies unit.

3 Some of the requirements for the content are met. Some of the topics

relate to the social studies unit.

2 The writing has connections to the requirements for the content.

There is effort for relating topics to the social studies unit.

1 Content requirements are not met. There is no relation of the topics

to the social studies unit.

Originality of thought/Creativity

5 The writing is fun to read, presents different perspectives on an

issue, and is well thought out.

4 The writing is enjoyable to read, presents perspectives on an issue

and is thought out.

3 The writing is okay to read and some thinking about the writing is

present.

2 The content is there but the writing is purely informational.

1 The writing does not make sense and is not easily readable.

Writing Mechanics

3 The writing is clear of spelling errors, grammatical errors.

2 The writing is mostly clear of spelling errors, grammatical errors.

1 The writing seems as though it has not been proof read.

Visual Appearance

2 The visual aids meet all the requirements and the overall appearance

is excellent.

1 The visual aids meet most of the requirements and the overall

appearance is good.

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