PURPOSE:
The purpose of this lesson is to give students a general overview about how maps are made and used, how specific information can be derived from them, and how a student can gain personal information about their surroundings from examining them.

CONNECTION TO THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC STANDARDS:
No. 1 How to use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective. In this lesson plan, students will create a map of the classroom to locate specific places.
No. 3 How to analyze the spatial organization of people, places, and environments on the Earth's surface. Students will understand how to distinguish the spatial concept of location and how places and features are distributed spatially across the earth's surface.
No. 5 That people create region's to interpret Earth's complexity. Students will analyze a map about different regions of the United States and answer questions over it.
No. 14 How human actions modify the physical environment. Students will work with a website on endangered animals. Through this website activity they will learn the effects that people have on animals and their environment.

OBJECTIVES:
1. To make a map of their classroom, identifying major characteristics within the classroom and understanding the terms cartography and legend.
2. To successfully learn to manipulate their way around websites, and see how they can incorporate useful information into a lesson plan.
3. To identify the seven continents on the earth.
4. To understand in which continent, country, state, and city they live.
5. To identify their own school on a map of their city
6. To understand the concepts of extinction and endangered animals.
7. To learn to use the Internet for geography related information.

OVERVIEW OF PRESENTATION:
This lesson plan consist of material that can be utilized for five hours of classroom time with the student, or as it has been organized, into five, separate class periods. This lesson will provide students with an overview about maps and how they can be used in their everyday life. Students will construct as a group their own map of their classroom, and identify key terms such as legend and cartography.
The lesson also includes two activities that involve the student's use of the Internet. The first activity allows the students to answer specific questions about different features on different maps. The second Internet activity also involves students interpreting a map.
However, this site integrates science with geography by incorporating endangered animal into its format of information. The other activities in this lesson will also help students to identify different features of maps, such as political and geographical features.

PERIOD 1
10 min. Sponge Activity: Have students write in their journals about their home and where they live. Ask them to include
specific information about their surroundings such as: what their house looks like, trees by their house, sidewalks, streets, etc. Students can also be encouraged to draw pictures in their journals about what they are writing.

10 min.Opening: The teacher should introduce today's lesson by telling the students that today they are going to be
cartographers. After asking the students if they know what the term means, explain to them that cartography means, "the science of making maps." Also inform the students about how maps are useful in giving out important information about our surroundings and our world. Next discuss that a legend is what displays the information on maps. Finally, tell the students that today they are going to make a map of their classroom.

40 min.Guided Practice: With teacher assistance, students as a whole-class will construct a map of their classroom. The teacher should have a large piece of white paper that is visible to all the students. The students will also have a smaller piece of paper which they will record the information that they and their teacher discuss as a group. Students need to locate specific areas of importance in the classroom, such as the teacher's desk, each individual students desk, where the books are kept, the door, time-out, or any other area that is of importance. The teacher and students will also come up with a legend, or code that helps them identify or decode the objects on their map. After the group has completed their map, have each student mark their specific location in the classroom on the map.

Evaluation: Students will be assessed on:
-their participation in the group discussion
-their ability to find their specific location on the map.

PERIOD 2
10 min.Sponge Activity: Have a picture of the United States of America ready for the students to color. The directions on the worksheet will read: Color the state you live in with a red crayon, and color the other states different colors of your choice.

50 min.Guided Practice: With this Internet activity the teacher needs to guide the students as a group through the specified worksheet (see Appendix). The teacher will log-on for National Geographic:
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ngs/maps/atlas/index.html

The teacher and students will go through the worksheet and answer questions as they use this website. Students will be asked to click on N. America, then the United States, and last on Texas.

Evaluation: Students will be assessed on the following criteria:

Good Fair Poor

1. Completion of worksheet_______________

2. Participation________________________

3. Ability to use Internet________________

4. Attitude in class____________________

PERIOD 3
10 min.Opening: The teacher should explain to students that today they are going to look at different types of maps with different types of information. Describe the three different maps that will be at each station. Make sure the students know that they will be answering questions from a worksheet that will coincide with each map (see Appendix) The teacher will then divide the students up into three groups and place them at a beginning station.

30 min. Independent Practice:

15 min.Station 1: This station should have a map of the United States. It will be a map which shows all the different locations of Chevrolet assembly plants in the United States. Students will answer questions on the worksheet (see Appendix).

15 min. Station 2: This station will have a map of Texas. The map will show where the industries of wholesale trade, mining, services, construction, and retail trade are in Texas. Students will answer questions on worksheet (see Appendix).

15 min. Station 3: This will be a map of Abilene Independent School District. It will have the locations of all the
different schools on it. Students will be expected to locate the school at which they attend. (see Appendix)

10 min. Evaluation: The teacher should ask the students as a whole class what they learned about from each map.
Talk about how the map of the United States gave out information about where different car assemble factories were located by using a picture of a car. Then discuss that the map of Texas gave out information about the different
industries. Last discuss with the students how they were able to find out where their school was by looking at the
map of Abilene. The teacher should assess the students on the following criteria.

Good Fair Poor

1. Student's participation_______________

2. Completion of worksheets______________

PERIOD 4
10 min. Sponge Activity: Have students write in their journals about what they think it means when an animal is endangered.

10 min. Opening: The teacher should discuss how in the last period everyone discovered that they could gather different types of information from different maps. The teacher should review over the different information they learned from each map. Then introduce the lesson for today by stating, "Today we will be using a map on the Internet to discuss which animals are endangered on different continents." Go on to explain what endangered and extinct mean, and how human involvement with animals and the environment has contributed to the harm of these animals. There will be reinforcement provided on the worksheet (see Appendix).

40 min. Independent Practice: Students should be familiar with the Internet at this point. Teachers and students need to be in a computer lab where each child (or groups of two or three) has access to a computer. The teacher will help the children go to this URL: http://www.sprint.com/epatrol/ep-endangered.html

This is a website of the different continents. On each continent there is a star for the children to click on. It will bring up several pictures for students to click on. The student will click on the each picture to find out which animals are endangered on that particular continent. The student will follow this procedure for each continent and answer the questions on the worksheet (see Appendix). The teacher needs to be available to help the students with any questions or difficulties they might have with this activity.

Evaluation: Students will be graded on their completion of the worksheet.

PERIOD 5
5 min. Sponge Activity: Have a map of Texas out for the students with directions that read: Circle the city you live
in with a red crayon. Color the rest of the picture any color you like.

10 min. Guided Practice: The teacher needs to have a map of the world, the United States, and Texas posted up
somewhere that is visible to all the students. Discuss the following concepts with the students:

- The number of large land masses or continents that are on the map (7)

- Have students identify which country on the continent of North America they live in (United States)

- Have students identify which state they live in (Texas)

- Have students identify which city they live in (Abilene)

30 min. Independent Practice: Divide the students into small groups.

Each group should have a map of the United State for each child and an encyclopedia, atlas, or any other
source you may wish for them to use. Students will work together to find the names of the 50 states
and fill them in on their worksheet.

Evaluation:

Yes No

1. Completion________

2. Cooperation with groups________

15 min. Closure: Discuss everything that the students have learned in the past five class periods. Review the following concepts:

1. Cartography is the science of making maps.

2. Maps provide us with useful information about our surroundings.

3. A legend help us to read or decode the information on maps.

4. A map can help us find out where we are in this world.

5. The terms "endangered animal" and "extinct," and how we as humans have affected these animals.

6. There are seven continents on this earth.

7. That students understand which continent, country, state, and city they live in.

MATERIALS
Period 1:
Large white sheet of paper for teacher
White paper for each individual students
Pencils, erasers, crayons

Period 2:
Crayons (remember students need red)
Pencils for worksheet
Computer Lab

Period 3:
Pencils
Red crayons
Maps for each station

Period 4:
Computer Lab
Pencils

Period 5:
Crayons (remember students need red)
Maps- World, United States, and Texas
Encyclopedia, atlas, etc.

APPENDIX

Table of Contents

Period 1:
1.Example of classroom map

Period 2:
1.A map of the United States with the individual states marked for the s sponge activity
2.Internet worksheet

Period 3:
1.Map of the United States that displays the different locations of Chevrolet Assembly plants and worksheet that
coincides (for station 1)
2.Map of Texas that displays the different industries and worksheet that coincides (for station 2)
3.Map of Abilene Independent School District that shows where the different schools are located with instructions
for students to follow (for station 3)
4.Worksheet for stations

Period 4:
1.Internet worksheet for endangered animals

Period 5:
1. Map of Texas with different cities for the sponge activity
2. Map of United States with all fifty states marked, but not named for independent practice
3. Maps of the world, the United States, and Texas that have clearly marked places.

Period 2 Internet Worksheet

Location: National Geographic: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ngs/maps/atlas/index.html

1. Identify the number of large land masses, or continents you see on the world map. ______ ( answer: 7 )

2. Click on North America and answer the following questions.

A. What are the three largest countries on the continent of North America?

___________________________________(answers: Canada, Mexico, and the United States)

3. Click on the United States and answer the following questions:

A.Which two states are not connected the other state?_________________________(answers: Alaska and

Hawaii)

B.Name the two mountain ranges in the United States.________________________

(answers: Rocky Mountains and Appalachian Mountains)

C.What city has a big circle with a star inside it by its name? What do you think is important or unique about

this city?_____________________________________ (answer: Washington, D.C.)

4. Click on Texas and answer the following:

A.Name the capitol of Texas._____________ (answer: Austin)

B.Find the flag and draw it betlow, color in the right colors below.

Period 3 Map Stations Worksheet

Station 1

1.What information is represented on this map?_____________________________________________

(Answer: Chevrolet assembly plant location)

2.How is the information represented on the map?___________________________________________

(Answer: with pictures of automobiles)

Station 2

1.What information is represented here on this map?________________________________________

(Answer: different industries located in Texas)

2.Name one industry that is represented on this map._______________________________________

(Answers: mining, wholesale trade, retail trade, services, or construction)

Station 3

1. Find the school which your attend on the worksheet and circle it with a red crayon.

Period 4 Internet Worksheet for Endangered Animals

"Endangered Animals are animals that need our help. For one reason or

another they are having trouble staying alive in their natural homes...Unless something is done very soon to help
these animals, many of them will die out. They will become extinct (X-tinked)...People are the reason so many
animals are endangered today... As people take what they want from nature, the animals are often left without the
things that they must have to stay alive." - Zoobooks, 1983

Location: Endangered Alert: http://www.sprint.com/epatrol/ep-endangered.html

Answer the following questions:

1. What are the endangered animals in Europe? _______________________________________

(Answers: Musk Ox, Polar Bear, Beaver)

2. What are the endangered animals in Asia? _________________________________________

(Answer: Humpback Whale)

3. What are the endangered animals in Africa? _______________________________________

(Answers: Cheetah, Giraffe, Zebra)

4. What are the endangered animals in South America? ________________________________

(Answers: Jaguar, Parrots, Squirrel, Monkey, Sloth)

5. What are the endangered animals in Antarctica? ____________________________________

(Answers: Killer Whale, Penguin)

6. What are the endangered animals in Australia? _____________________________________

(Answers: Frilled Lizard, Sugar Glider, Koala)

7. What are the endangered animals in North America? ________________________________

(Answers: American alligator, Cougar or Puma, Bald Eagle, Bison)

8. What does endangered mean? ___________________________________________________

9. What does extinct mean? ______________________________________________________

***BONUS*** What was your favorite animal you saw on this activity? _________________

EXTENSIONS:
This lesson plan integrate science with geography by using the Internet activity with the endangered animals.
Students get to practice using a map while they learn about different animals at the same time. Other elements
that could be modified to relate to history are the activities that deals with maps of Texas. Texas history could
be integrated very easily by incorporating the history into the use of the maps. Students could also look at map
to see how Texas has changed over the years. Also students can be informed about Texas' state bird, motto, and
flower.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
1.Bednarz, Sarah Witham, et. al. Geography For Life: National Geographic Standards. 1994. Washington, D. C.:
National Geographic Research and Exploration, 1994.

2.E Patrol Foundation. "Endangered Alert": http://www.sprint.com/epatrol/ep-endangered.html (11 Apr. 1997).

3.National Geographic Society. "Map Machine Atlas."
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ngs/maps/atlas/index.html (17 Apr. 1997).

4.Rubenstien, James M., An Introduction to Human Geography. 5th ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1996.

5.Sevaly, Karen. Maps: The World and United States. Riverside: Teacher's Friend Publications, Inc., 1991.

6.Wexo, John Bonnet. Zoobooks: Endangered Animals. San Diego: Frye & Smith, 1983.

Created April 21, 1997