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Rivers and Streams

by Andrea Hunter

Stage 1 -- Desired Results

Content Standards:

Social Studies

1.  Places and Regions:  students understand how distinct physical and human characteristics shape places and regions.

K-3 Benchmark: Use physical and human characteristics to compare and contrast places and regions locally and globally.

Indicator: #3 Show how the physical and human characteristics of a place/region determine the uniqueness of a place/region.

2.  Environment and Society:  Students demonstrate stewardship of Earth's resources through the understanding of society and the physical environment.

K-3 Benchmark: Explain how people depend on, adapt to, and modify the physical environment in their community, and demonstrate stewardship of a local environment.

Indicator:  #3 Describe how people change the physical environment.
                  #4  Create and implement a plan to sustain and preserve a local environment.

Science

Content Standard: Domain II.  What We Know Today About the World Around Us

Strand: Historical Perspectives

Benchmark:  Malama I Ka Aina (sustainability) Students make decisions needed to sustain life on Earth now and for the future generations by considering the limited resources and fragile environmental conditions.

Content Standard:  Domain II. What We Know Today About the World Around Us

Strand:  Organisms and Development

Benchmark:  Interdependence:  Students describe, analyze, and give examples of how organisms are dependent on one another and their environments

Understanding(s): 
Students will understand that:
1.  Places included physical characteristics
2.  Places may include human characteristics
3.  Places are unique
4.  Regions include unifying characteristics
5.  How physical and human processes together shape a place
6.  How and why regions change
7.  How he/she can take care of a place
8.  How he/she can teach others about a place

Essential Question(s):
1. How does physical and human attributes effect a place or region?
2. How does the appearance or disappearance of a physical attribute effect a place?
3. How does the appearance or disappearance of a human attribute effect a place?

Students will know:
That rivers and streams are important to people, plants, and animals.
That there are similarities and differences between the uses of water from past to present
That people can use, change, and save water
The rivers and streams on Molokai
That water flows from the mountain to the sea

Stage 2 -- Assessment Evidence

Students will be able to:
1.  Ask geographic questions about places and regions
2.  Use a variety of resources to acquire geographic information (listen to read alouds, listen to guest speakers, field trip, video)
3.  Organize information using journal, tally sheet, pictures
4.  Analyze information by interpreting information obtained from photographs, articles, guest speaker field trip
5.  Answer geographic questions by developing, applying, concluding, and making connections of geographic information
6.  Present the findings through a variety of ways:  Journal, slide show, postcard introduction, Geography Night; journals, BINGO game

Performance Task(s):
Students will create a journal  that includes a variety of information pertaining to rivers and streams.  The journal will be broken into seven categories: water cycle, river system, native Hawaiian uses, field trip pictures, comments, explanations, and assessment.  Students will use journals as an informational guide to prepare adults for BINGO game.

Other Evidence(s):
Student word definitions for BINGO game
Student postcard entry
Class discussions
Drawings and labeling of journal entries
Written description of journal entry

Self Assessment:
Use of rubric
Self Assess journal entries
Self Assess postcard
Self Assess how parent took test
Self Assess information learned from guest speakers

Stage 3 -- Learning Plan

How are rivers and streams used, changed, and saved?  Why are rivers/streams important to people on Molokai?  What can be done to help save rivers and streams?  Wai is the Hawaiian word for water.  Wealth used to be determined by the amount of water a person had.  Water flows from the mountain to the sea: `ahupua`a.  The water within a stream has different functions depending on its location, top of the mountain or at the sea.  Not only is water important to humans, but animals and plants also need clean water to survive.  Loi patches depend on the water that collect in the stream.  O`opu also need fresh water so that they can swim back up the stream to lay their eggs.  Hinanas need clean water to get back into the ocean.

In this lesson, students will prepare the necessary materials to implement stewardship of a local environment during Family Geography Night.  Students will work with partners to write definitions for words that relate to water, rivers, and streams.  They will then make a BINGO playing card to be used for assessment.

1.  Journals
2.  Resource books
3.  Classroom supplies:  index cards, glue, paper

Writing Definitions:
1.  Explain the purpose of activity
2.  Have students suggest important words for rivers, streams, and water.  List words on chart paper.  Have students go through class wall charts and journals to add anymore words
3.  Have students brainstorm places where they can find definitions for words
4.  Have students get with a partner.  Distribute words evenly between student pairs.
5.  Pass out necessary supplies
6.  While students are working in groups, ask questions about written definitions.  Are they complete or is there important information missing?  Will someone listening to the definition know which word is being described?
7.  When students have completed definitions, have students read out loud definition to another group.  Is the definition clear enough to know what water word is described?  Is there any information missing that needs to be added?
8.  Go through definitions as a class.  Groups read their definitions and other students suggest which word on the brainstorming chart matches.  Are there any comments or concerns about a definition?  Do any of them need to be changed?
9.  Students make BINGO cards.  Students randomly choose words from chart and mix them up on the BINGO card paper.

Geography Night:
1.  Selected students present standards addressed and "I Can Statements"
2.  Selected students give overview of the unit
3.  Selected students explain the activity of adults learning from students' journals
4.  Selected pair with an adult and teach him/her everything about water, rivers, and streams.  Students are to use journal that he/she has created and go through the word bank, written descriptions, and drawings for each topic
5.  Students explain BINGO game and pass out supplies
6.  Students take turns reading definitions.  While parents mark playing cards, students select parents to suggest answers.

List of water words for BINGO game
Sample Bingo Card
Word banks for journal entries
Sample journal rubric
Sample journal