Purpose: Where in the world do people live? What kind of pets do people have in different places in the world? How can we locate a specific place in this world?

My school has adopted a geography focus for the school. One of the programs that we use is the National Geographic Kids Network program. My second grade class uses the Hello unit, which is an introductory unit to learn some of the program features. In order for it to make sense to my class, there are many geoeraphic concepts that they need to be exposed to.

In this lesson, students will gain the skills and concepts needed to make sense of the National Geographic Kids Network Hello unit. Using resources, they will be able to distinguish urban, suburban and rural living regions, learn about pets common to different regions of the world, learn how to read and interpret data from graphs and charts, learn how to locate a place in the world using global addresses and make some educated guesses about the kinds of pets people in different regions of the world may have.

Objectives:
Hawaii State Content and Performance Standards:
Geography: Explain, use, and apply concepts of communities, cities, states, countries, continents, and oceans.

Use geographic tools and resources to explain the relationship between the physical and human environments.

Identify and describe geographic characteristics of home, school, and community as one

Geographic Standards:
The geographically informed person knows and understands:
Standard 1: How to use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective
Standard 3: How to analyze the spatial organization of people, places and environments on earth's surface
Standard 4: The physical and human characteristics of places Standard 5: That people create regions to interpret earth's complexity Standard 12: The processes, patterns, and functions of human settlement

Geographic Skills:
Ask geographic questions
Acquire geographic information
Organize geographic information
Analyze geographic information
Answer geographic questions

Geographic Themes: Location, Place, Human Environment Interaction, Regions

Lesson can be used with a unit on: Self and Family, Endangered Plants and Animals of the World, Pets

Materials Needed:
pictures of places in urban, suburban and rural settings
maps of the world
National Geographic Kids Network Hello program
Pet poster
Balloon.
glue,
newspaper,
paint
Chart paper,
felt pens
Journals

Procedure:

1. Make a paper mache model of the world with an inflated balloon, Chinese glue, newspaper layers, and acrylic paint. After the shape is dried and painted, label strips of 1/4 inch paper with the words "Equator," "Prime Meridian," and "International Dateline." Place these reference points onto the globe model. Color, cut out, and glue on the 7 continents of the world. Label the 4 oceans of the world. This model helps students to visualize the concept of parallels of latitude and meridians of longitude. Use poster "Where Do We Live?" to reinforce this concept. develop a compass rose and label with directions.

2. Have students look at pictures of urban, suburban and rural places and divide them into 3 groups. divide these pictures into three groups. Begin to formulate a meaning for the words rural, suburban and urban.

3. What is a pet? Web student's prior knowledge and try to get a definition for the term "pet" and differentiate it from an "animal." What kind of things determine what kind of pets live in urban, rural or suburban areas? What kinds of pets would be found in different parts of the world?

4. Have students locate the countries that have the global addresses on Worksheet #1. Match these addresses with the pictures of pets from different parts of the world in "Pets and Places" chart. Categorize the pets into urban, suburban or rural area pets. Students should apply concepts from their pet definitions with this activity. Students should apply their definitions of "rural," "urban," and "suburban" to this activity, too.

5. As teammates from the National Geographic Kids Network send their community letters of introduction, divide students into groups to compare their own community with their teammates' community. Students can research that region of the world and begin to make some predictions of the kinds of pets that the students in the teams may have. Discuss what was same or different about their own school and their teammates' school. Discuss if their teammates' school was in different climates and regions and if this added to the differences in the kinds of pets or animals from the region.

6. Compile a table of information for all teams that send data. Use this pet data to make further generalizations and comparisons with pets that the students in the class may have. Were there any surprises in the kinds of pets that all teams had together? Were there any animals or pets that were the same? Were there any pets or animals that you expected in all types of regions? What did you learn about pets and animals around the world?

7. Assessment should include journal entries which reflect understanding of some of the key concepts of this lesson.

Sample Rubric for Assessment:
Global Addresses:
4 - Student is able to locate with accuracy, places in the world when given the latitude and longitude of a location.

3 - Student is able to locate in close proximity to a place in the world if they are given the latitude and longitude of a location.

2 - Student has some difficulty with locating places in the world when given the latitude and longitude of a location.

1 - Student is unable to locate places in the world when given the latitude and longitude of a location.

Urban, Suburban and Rural:
4 - Student is able to differentiate pictures of places as urban, suburban and rural; and can express what makes these regions different from each other.

3 - Student is able to differentiate pictures of places as urban, suburban and rural; and can express some qualities that make these regions different from each other.

2 - Student has difficulty telling the differences of pictures of urban, suburban and rural areas; and has difficulty with expressing what makes these regions different.

1 - Student is unable to tell the difference between urban, suburban and rural areas; and cannot express the difference between these areas.

Making Predictions and Conclusions:
4 - Student makes predictions and conclusions based on specific pieces of information or observations about pets and animals living in different regions that were studied. The conclusions make sense and show an understanding of the concepts studied.

3 - Student makes predictions and conclusions based on specific pieces of informatiion or observatiions about pets and animals living in different regions that were studied. The conclusions show some understanding of the concepts presented.

2 - Student makes some predictions and conclusions based on specific pieces of information but some of these do not always make sense.

1 - Student does not make predictions and conclusions that make sense based on the pieces of information presented.

Extensions:

1. Continue e-mail correspondences with teammates developed in this program and write to them about further questions that were derived from the focus on pets and animals of the region.
2. Study different kinds of graphs and how they can help us display the pet informtaion.
3. Students can research animals of interest from different parts of the world.
4. Books of interest:
   Material World - A Global Family Portrait - by Peter Menzel
   Homes Around the World - by Bobbie Kalman
   Maps andGlobes - by Jack Knowlton