TRANSPORTATION

Jane Talley
K-2 Resource Classroom
Geography

     PURPOSE:
My Students will know the many different ways there are to travel.
My students will know where some of the transportation originated from in our world.

    CONNECTION TO THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHY STANDARDS:
No. 1- Knows and understands how to use maps, globes and other graphical tools to acquire, process and report information.  I chose this national standard for the simple reason that it applies to the transportation unit and any unit having to do with Geography.  This standard applies to the unit in that the students will be using maps and globes to find different areas and regions of our world.
No. 3- Knows how to analyze spatial organization.  This standard also applies to any aspect of geography.  Spatial organization is an important part of geography.
No. 5- Knows and understands that people define regions and use them to interpret the worlds changing complexity.  This standard also applies to any aspect of geography.  When mentioning transportation this standard is very important because of the world is a very complex place and without traveling it there is no way of knowing what is out there.

    APPLICABLE TO TEXAS ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS:
Grade K
The students understand the concept of location.
The student is expected to:
Use terms including over, under, near, far, left, right to describe relative location.
The student understands the physical and human characteristics of the environment.
The student is expected to:
Identify the physical characteristics of places, such as, land forms, bodies of water, natural resources, and weather.

Grade 1
The student understands the relative location of places.
The student is expected to:
Locate places of significance on  maps and globes, such as, land forms, bodies of water, natural resources, and weather.
The student understands various physical and human characteristics of the environment.
The student is expected to:
Identify the physical characteristics of places, such as, land forms, bodies of water, natural resources, and weather.

Grade 2
The student uses simple geographic tools such as maps, globes, and photographs.
The student is expected to:
Use symbols, find locations, and determine directions on maps and globes.
The student understands the location and characteristics of places and regions.
Identify major land forms and bodies of water, including continents and oceans, on maps and globes.
Compare information from different sources about places and regions.

    OBJECTIVES LIST:
Students will demonstrate their ability:
1.  To describe the three basic modes of transportation.
2.  To describe the different modes of transportation in the earlier years.
3.  To compare and contrast the differences between trains and airplanes.
4.  To describe the different sights and sounds of travel.

    OVERVIEW OF PRESENTATION:
In this lesson there are so many parts that are important for all children to know.  This two week lesson will give a wonderful learning experience in the different aspects of transportation.  The children in the classroom will feel comfortable in talking about transportation and all the factors that make up transportation.  Transportation is a very important part in our society's everyday life.

* Make sure and have as many books set up in the classroom that are available on the topic of transportation for the students in your classroom to read whenever there is extra time.

* Before this lesson is taught have the children take home the parent letter (ex: page a) to have their parents sign for the participation in transportation.  This will prepare the parents for any upcoming questions about the subject and help open the lines of communication between the students and their parents.

* Before the activities are started explain to the children the Right Reading Track.  This is an activity that will get the children interested in reading books about transportation.  Any book that the child reads while the teacher is talking about transportation can be recorded on a train car (ex: page b).  These train cars will be displayed around the room.  Once the train cars have reached around the room completely the children can have a small coke party or any kind of party that suits your classroom.

* Introduce the field trip that the class will be taking to Automobile Museum at the end of the unit. No permission slip needed, it is in the letter sent to the parents at the beginning of the unit.  Send the parents a reminder letter (ex: page c) that their children are going on a field trip to the Automobile Museum.

DAY ONE

1.  Sponge Activity
 The first day of the sponge activity has to be explained to the students.  First of all, have a scene from the community on the bulletin board.  This scene should be something like a gas station (ex: page d).  Cut out areas kind of like doors where the students can pull back the door and do the small activity that is behind the little door.  As the children come in everyday have one of them open a door and choose an activity for the teacher to read to the class.  An example of the activities are listed on page e.  Have enough activities that each student in the class can read an activity whenever the teacher asks.

2.  Opening
 In the first 10 to 15 minutes of the class time the students will share the activity to the class that was taken from the gas station on the bulletin board.

3.  Guided Practice
 The first lesson that should be taught is the lesson about the four basic modes of transportation.  These basic modes are: LAND, SEA, and AIR.  The teacher needs to have a bulletin board or a felt board set up in the classroom that displays these three categories (ex: page f).  Give the children in the class an old magazine.  Tell the children to cut out as many modes of transportation that they can find in the magazine.  When the teacher has given the students about ten to fifteen minutes to do so, the children then need to come up to the board and place their cars, trucks, etc. in the appropriate place on the bulletin board.  Let the class help each other.

4.  Independent Practice
MATH-  When all of the students have placed their pictures on the board, then have them help you (the teacher) tally how many different kinds of transportation were placed on the bulletin board.  This will be a great lesson for the students in aiding them in their math skills and teaching them how to tally.

DAY TWO

1.  Sponge Activity
 The sponge activity should not have to be explained to the students by now.  First of all, have a scene from the community on the bulletin board.  This scene should be something like a gas station (ex: page d).  Cut out areas kind of like doors where the students can pull back the door and do the small activity that is behind the little door.  As the children come in everyday have one of them open a door and choose an activity for the teacher to read to the class.  An example of the activities are listed on page e.  Have enough activities that each student in the class can read an activity whenever the teacher asks.

2.  Opening
 In the first 10 to 15 minutes of the class time the students will share the activity to the class that was taken from the gas station on the bulletin board.

3.&4.  Guided Practice/Independent Practice
 SOCIAL STUDIES-  On the second day the teacher will talk about the early history of transportation.  The children will be split up into groups of three or four children depending on the size of the classroom.  The children will then be given a group of people such as, canoe, covered wagon, stage coach, and rowing ships.  This is assuming that these cultures have been talked about in the class already.  When the teacher has handed the children the topic, the children have to go into the library for library day and find as many books about their topic as they can.  When the students have found the information, have each student in the group draw a picture and color it of the group's mode of transportation.  These works of art will be displayed on a bulletin board in the classroom so it can be talked about in later days of the transportation lesson.  When the art has been displayed on the board have each group of students present their mode of transportation to the class.  This will help with the skills of presenting and the skills of organizing information into a report as a group.

DAY THREE

1.  Sponge Activity
 The sponge activity should not have to be explained to the students by now.  First of all, have a scene from the community on the bulletin board.  This scene should be something like a gas station (ex: page d).  Cut out areas kind of like doors where the students can pull back the door and do the small activity that is behind the little door.  As the children come in everyday have one of them open a door and choose an activity for the teacher to read to the class.  An example of the activities are listed on page e.  Have enough activities that each student in the class can read an activity whenever the teacher asks.

2.  Opening
 In the first 10 to 15 minutes of the class time the students will share the activity to the class that was taken from the gas station on the bulletin board.

3.  Guided Practice
 READING-  The teacher will read the story The Little Engine that Could, by Watty Piper aloud to the class.  When the story is over, ask the children to tell you the events in the story.  Ask the students to describe the different engines in the story.  Ask them to tell you about what all the engines were carrying, and where the engines were going.

4.  Independent Practice
 Have the students go back to their desks and talk to their neighbor about the story and see if they can retell it to each other.  Give the children about five to ten minutes to discuss the events in the story.  When the time is up have the children write and illustrate their own stories about little engine and other modes of transportation that he might have seen on his journey.  When the children have finished their stories (which may take more than one period to finish) display them in the classroom.

DAY FOUR

1.  Sponge Activity
 The sponge activity should not have to be explained to the students by now.  First of all, have a scene from the community on the bulletin board.  This scene should be something like a gas station (ex: page d).  Cut out areas kind of like doors where the students can pull back the door and do the small activity that is behind the little door.  As the children come in everyday have one of them open a door and choose an activity for the teacher to read to the class.  An example of the activities are listed on page e.  Have enough activities that each student in the class can read an activity whenever the teacher asks.

2.  Opening
 In the first 10 to 15 minutes of the class time the students will share the activity to the class that was taken from the gas station on the bulletin board.

3.& 4.  Guided Practice/ Independent Practice
 Read the book, Cars and Trucks by J. Fletcher.  Talk about the many similarities and differences between cars and trucks.  Make an enlargement of page g.  Laminate this page so you can use it over and over.  Talk about the similarities and differences between cars and trucks and have the children tell you all the similarities and differences and where to write them on the board.   The similarities should be written where the car and truck intersect each other.  The differences should be written in the according picture of the automobile.  This activity should take the class twenty to thirty minutes to finish.

5.  Evaluation/ Assessment/ Feedback
 Hand out page h to the class.  Have the students work individually on each question.  In my classroom I will read the questions aloud to the students.
If some of the students in my class cannot write then I will have them draw a picture according to what the question is asking.

DAY FIVE

1.  Sponge Activity
 The sponge activity should not have to be explained to the students by now.  First of all, have a scene from the community on the bulletin board.  This scene should be something like a gas station (ex: page d).  Cut out areas kind of like doors where the students can pull back the door and do the small activity that is behind the little door.  As the children come in everyday have one of them open a door and choose an activity for the teacher to read to the class.  An example of the activities are listed on page e.  Have enough activities that each student in the class can read an activity whenever the teacher asks.

2.  Opening
 In the first 10 to 15 minutes of the class time the students will share the activity to the class that was taken from the gas station on the bulletin board.

3.  Guided Practice
 ART-  With any art activity make sure there is plenty of space for the students to spread out in the room.  Place at an art table these materials: all different shapes cut out of colorful construction paper, glue, tissue paper cut into small 2x2 squares, and large pieces of construction paper for the background of their artwork.

4.  Independence Practice
 Have each child make their own "dream town" out of the materials that you have given them.  Tell them that they can do anything they want without using any scissors.  This makes the children use their imagination and there creative juices start flowing.

DAY SIX

1.  Sponge Activity
 The sponge activity should not have to be explained to the students by now.  First of all, have a scene from the community on the bulletin board.  This scene should be something like a gas station (ex: page d).  Cut out areas kind of like doors where the students can pull back the door and do the small activity that is behind the little door.  As the children come in everyday have one of them open a door and choose an activity for the teacher to read to the class.  An example of the activities are listed on page e.  Have enough activities that each student in the class can read an activity whenever the teacher asks.

2.  Opening
 In the first 10 to 15 minutes of the class time the students will share the activity to the class that was taken from the gas station on the bulletin board.

3.  Guided Practice
 Talk about the field trip that the students will be taking the following day.  Ask them questions about the things that they will see at the museum.  Talk about the rules of the museum and the rules of the school.
 For the last lesson before the field trip have the students work on the New Odessy Globe in their library or even in your classroom.  Have the students work in threes so more can go at a time.  Have the students record the mileage between on place to another.  The teacher should pick the places to find on the globe.  One handout example on page i.  The students at this pint of using the globe should be familiar with it.

DAY SEVEN

1.  Sponge Activity
 The sponge activity should not have to be explained to the students by now.  First of all, have a scene from the community on the bulletin board.  This scene should be something like a gas station (ex: page d).  Cut out areas kind of like doors where the students can pull back the door and do the small activity that is behind the little door.  As the children come in everyday have one of them open a door and choose an activity for the teacher to read to the class.  An example of the activities are listed on page e.  Have enough activities that each student in the class can read an activity whenever the teacher asks.

2.  Opening
 In the first 10 to 15 minutes of the class time the students will share the activity to the class that was taken from the gas station on the bulletin board.

3.  Guided Practice
 Have the students break into groups of two or three depending on the size of your classroom.  This activity will be in the computer lab so make sure you have reserved it ahead of time so there are plenty of computers for all the students in your classroom.
 Have the students sit down at the computer and pull up the web site, http://cityguide.lycos.com/.  This site is a site that has everything there is to know about any city, state, or country on the globe.  It would be best to do this lesson on your LCD screen if this is available to you at your school.  This way the students can follow the teacher and not get lost on the internet.
 Hand out the sheet ex: page j and have the students work on these worksheets together in their groups.  The teacher will have to read each question to the class and maybe explain.  The teacher can have many different locations for the students to find or she can have them all research the same places.

DAY EIGHT

1.  Sponge Activity
 Get the children talking about the many different types of transportation there is that the class has talked about in the last two weeks.  Remind the students that they are going on the field trip to the automobile museum.  Talk about the different thing that they might see at the museum.

2.  Opening
 In the first ten to fifteen minutes of the class hand out the worksheet page k.  Have the students work on the page while you take up their permission slips and get ready to go on the field trip.

3., 4., &5.  Guided Practice/Independence/Closure
 FIELD TRIP DAY-  There are many places that children can go for a field trip that relates to transportation.  There is the car dealership, the fire station, a boat dock (if you are lucky enough to live by any water source), or an automobile museum.  I chose the automobile museum (if there happens to be one in your town).  This is a wonderful place for the children to explore and see all the different types of automobiles there are in and before their life time.
 When the students get back from the museum write thank you note to the museum for writing practice and politeness.

    MATERIALS:
For bulletin boards:
butcher paper
opaque projector (if this is not available in your school you can copy the image on an overhead sheet and place it on the overhead projector.)

For the children:
old magazines
scissors
pencils
crayons
construction paper
glue
tissue paper (2x2 squares)

For the teacher:
The Little that Could by Watty Piper
Cars and Trucks by J. Fletcher

    APPENDIX:
Listed according to the letter in bottom right hand corner:
a.  This is the note that will be sent to the parents the week before the unit is started.
b.  This is an example of the train car that can be used for the Right Reading Track activity.
c.  This is the reminder not to send to the parents before taking the children on the field trip at the end of the unit.
d.  This is an example of the bulletin board that the teacher can use for the students to look for the activity behind the doors on the board.
e.  This is an example of the activities that are placed behind the doors of the gas station.
f.   This is an example of the bulletin board for the grouping activity for the students on the first day.
g.  This is an example of the board for the teacher to blow up to show the similarities and differences between cars and trucks.
h.  This is an example of an assessment of the students knowledge of what the class has been talking about for the past four days.
i.  This is an example of the New Odessy Globe activity.
j.  This is an example of an internet worksheet for the students  to do in groups of two or three on internet day.
k.  This is an example of the worksheet that can be used for the grouping activity.

    EXTENSIONS:
Any of these lessons can be followed by letting the children read books about transportation.

If there is any time left in the class have another student pick an activity from the gas station board.  Have the students do these activities as they would if it was at the beginning of the class time.

Fuller, Mel.  Transportation: Grade 1-2.  Instructional Fair, Inc.

Piper, Watty The Little Engine that Could

Schultz, Danielle & Fabian, Melinda.  Terrific Topics: Transportation Grade K-1.  Carson-Dellosa Publishing Co. 1996.

Snider, Jeffrey M. City Guide.  1998.  http://cityguide.lycos.com/  April 14, 1998 - This is a web site that links to what ever city, state, or country is typed into the find spot.  Excellent for reports for any type of History or Geography class.

U. S. Department of Education.  Helping Your Child Learn Geography.  1998. http://www.ed.gov/pubs/parents/Geography  April 14, 1998  - This web site is consisted of many pages about Geography and how to teach it to your children.

The New Odessy Globe - So much FUN!  This allows anytime to point to one place and the globe will tell the population, the climate, the time, or the distance from one place to another.
 

                                                                                                                                        DATE_________________

Dear Parents,

Next Monday will be the first day of our unit over transportation.  We are all excited about the fun we are going to have learning across the curriculum with this unit.  Each day, ask your child what went on at school that day.
Emphasize questions about transportation such as:

 What do you think the word transportation means?
 What are the three categories that all transportation falls under?
 What forms of transportation do we use the most?
 What transportation experience would you like to have?
 Have you read a special book about transportation?

We are creating a transportation environment in our classroom.  We would appreciate your help in gathering objects of display.  Books and recordings related to transportation would help in gathering objects for display.  Please identify them so they can be returned to the rightful owner.

If you have a career or hobby related to transportation, or a special trip with pictures that you would like to share with the class, we would love to be able to borrow them or have you come and visit.  The children always seem to enjoy when their parents come to the classroom.  If you can help in any way please check the box that pertains to the activity that you can help with.

All the parents need to check the box that says my child can go on the field trip on the last day of the unit, and sign your name at the bottom of the form.
 

I can do one or more of the following:

     Read a book about transportation to the class.

     Bake vehicle shaped cookies or donate food for the end of the unit party.

     Go on a field trip with the class.

      Listen to the children read their stories.

     Bring items related to transportation for display.

      Share a transportation experience with the children in the class.

      Yes, my child _____________ can go on the field trip to the Automobile Museum.
   Parent Signature_______________________ a

 Parent Reminder

Dear Parents,

             I just want to remind all of you that our class will be going to

the Automobile Museum this Friday at 10:00 am.  I know our class

will have a wonderful time and be so excited to tell you all about it

when they see you on Friday afternoon.
 

                                                                                           Thank You Again,

                                                                                           Teacher's Name
 c

f

---

 Name ____________________    TRANSPORTATION ASSESSMENT

1.  What are the three basic modes of transportation?

            1.

            2.

            3.
 

2.  Name two different kinds of cars.

            1.

            2.
 

3.  What is the fastest mode of transportation?
 
 
 

4.  Are some trains faster than others?
 
 

5.  What are two of the differences between cars and trucks?

            1.

            2.

 h

1.  How many miles is there from Egypt to China?
 
 
 
 

2.  How many miles is there from the top of Canada to the bottom of Africa?
 
 
 
 

3.  How many miles is there from the top of Greenland to the left tip of Australia?
 
 
 
 

4.  What time is it in Scandinavia?
 
 
 
 

5.  What time is it in New York City right now?
 
 

 i

First, click on the country that is needed.  In this case it is South America.

Second, click on the state that is needed.  In this case it is Brazil.

Third, click on the name of the city Belem on the right side of the page.

Forth, answer the following questions:

1.  What is a Bumba-meu-boi?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

2.  Click on "Belem".
Next, click on "tourist spots".
Then, click on "Historical and Cultural Attractions".
Then, click on "Historical Sites".
Now, write down two places from this page.
 
 
 
 
 

 j