My Family and Other Families, Now and Long Ago
Key concepts and themes: identity, culture, interdependence, places, regions, change, needs, wants, human systems, scarcity, technology,
citizenship, civic life, civic values, government and decision making.
Students will be able to:
- Recognize that families and different kinds of families exist in all communities
- List the roles and responsibilities of families.
- Explore how families are interdependent.
- Research how families lived in other places and at different times.
- Discover that families have a past and change over time and that some of
their beliefs, customs and traditions are based on the past.
- Find out ways family histories are passed on.
- Identify the events, people, problems, ideas, and cultural contributions that
make up the history of their community.
- Understand that communities are connected economically and
geographically.
- Demonstrate how cardinal directions and symbols can be used to locate
places and physical features on a map and globe.
- Explain how people depend on and modify their physical environment to meet
basic needs.
` K. Understand how scarcity means that people’s wants exceed their limited
resources.
- List ways (i.e., tools, technologies, community services and work) for people to meet their needs and wants.
- State that people can make economic decisions about earning money.
- Indicate knowledge of symbols of citizenship which includes respect for the United States flag, an understanding of its display and use, and reciting a pledge of allegiance.
- Convey how students, teachers, and staff are all citizens of the school community and have rights and responsibilities.
- Analyze why people form governments (to develop rules and laws to govern and protect themselves).
- Define key terms related to the study of government: democracy, power, citizenship, nation-state, and justice.
- Participate in problem solving, decision-making, and conflict resolution.
Sample of suggested performance-based activities:
- Read books about family differences.
- The students will list his/her responsibilities at home.
- Share family photographs.
- Explore families of long ago (i.e. pilgrims).
- Interview senior citizens to see what life was like in the past and how things are different today. Also, interview grandparents.
- Take a trip around the community and visit the local museum.
- Explore names of schools, streets, etc., that are named for important people in our community.
- Chart other communities that surround ours (include geographic features such as the Mohawk River).
- Draw pictures of our basic needs and discuss how needs are different than wants.
- Recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
- Visit the poll booths on Election Day.
- Write a big book on what is a good citizen.
- Role play a day without rules or laws.