US: Midwest Region

Grade 5 / Social Studies

Common Core Standards:

Ohio Standards for Social Studies
Grade 5: Regions and People of the Western Hemisphere
Geography Strand
Places and Regions
5.G.PR.6. Regions can be determined using various criteria (e.g., landform, climate, population, cultural, or
economic).

Lesson Summary:
This lesson is designed to teach on the Midwest Region of the United States. The students will be able to
identify the twelve states and capitals that are associated with this region by their landforms. This lesson is
only one region of four regions that are required to fulfill the common core standard. Technology will aid the
students to learn the states and their capitals and the landform vocabulary words that are associated with this
region.
Estimated Duration:
This lesson is divided into four parts that will consist of four days. On the fifth day, there will be a short review
over the four parts ending with the lesson exam. Each class period will last 50 minutes for a total of 250
minutes for completion of the entire lesson.
Commentary:
Technology will play a big part in this lesson. In class discussion will involve the use of Emaze.com and the
Smartboard. Each days lessons will be available to the students on Emaze.com for further review and study.
Students will use their school provided clamshell computer for many activities, both in class and at home.
Daily use of computerized games will keep the students engaged and will create excitement in the classroom.
Since this lesson may bring a challenge, by having all students on computers at the same time, active learning

will be applied to the classroom. This will reduce the teachers time teaching and give more time for the
teacher to help the student with problems that will arise with the technology.

Instructional Procedures:
Day 1:
The class will begin with a 15 minute pre-assessment, covering the US Midwest Region states, capitals, and
landforms, which is teacher generated through Quizlet.com with the aid of their clamshell computer. The preassessment will be computer graded and will serve as a guideline to the students beginning knowledge of this
standard. Lesson 1 will follow by the use of Emaze.com, on the Smartboard, with a brief introduction of 15
minutes, discussing the states and capitals that are included in the region, explaining why this region is called
Americas Breadbasket because of farming and agriculture. Students will then spend the remainder of class
time (20 minutes) on an activity that will require the student to insert an image of the Midwest region to a
Word document and properly labeling the states and capitals by using text boxes. Students, who do not
complete this activity in class, can finish as part of their homework assignment. Students should also spend
homework time reviewing the states and capitals utilizing the in-class activity that the student created on their
clamshell computer.
Day 2:
The first 5 minutes of class will begin with a review of the Midwest regions states and capitals on the
Smartboard. Students will then login to ClassTools.net and spend 15 minutes playing to enhance learning.
Lesson 2 will follow by the use of Emaze.com, with a brief introduction of 15 minutes discussing the US
Midwest regions bodies of water. The Great Lakes will be discussed and how they were formed. The regions
bodies of water vocabulary words will also be discussed. In the remaining 15 minutes, the students will login
to ClassTools.net to gain additional help learning the Great Lakes and the bodies of water vocabulary words
for homework. The students will also spend time on the Day 1 in-class activity, aiding them in reviewing the
states and capitals for homework.
Day 3:
The first 5 minutes of class time will start with a review of the Midwest regions bodies of water on the
Smartboard. Students will then login to ClassTools.net and spend 15 minutes playing to enhance learning the
bodies of water vocabulary words. Lesson 3 will follow by the use of Emaze.com, on the Smartboard, with an
introduction of 15 minutes discussing the US Midwest regions geographic landforms vocabulary words. The
class will then watch a 15 minute video from National Geographic on the Smartboard, which briefly discusses
how some of these landforms are created and why we need to help preserve them. As homework, the students
will study geographic landforms vocabulary words on Classtools.net. Additional homework will include the
other online games that have been already introduced this week.
Day 4:
Todays class time on US Midwest region will be integrated with interdisciplinary connections. The first
content area will be math. Students will be divided into 5 to 6 groups that will work together to do a population
comparison between states. Students will choose two states within the Midwest region and answer the question

Does the largest populated state have the largest populated capital? Each student will decide what part of the
question they will research for the group. Students will be able to use their clamshell computers to find their
information, they will work together to solve the problem. Students will be given about 15 minutes to complete
their problem. Then the class will discuss the results.
The second content area will be language arts. By using a Venn diagram generator on ClassTools.net, students
will compare and contrast 2 different vocabulary words that are close in meaning. The students will remain in
their group and will be given the 2 words to use. After 15 minutes, the class will discuss their findings on the
Smartboard. This will help the students identify the differences and similarities between landforms.
The last 20 minutes, students will have time to practice their recognition of states and capitals and landform
vocabulary words for Day 5 post-assessment test on the US Midwest region, by playing the online games that
were created on ClassTools.net for this lesson.
Day 5:
A 10 minute class review on US Midwest region states and capitals, as well as, the regions landforms
vocabulary words will begin the class time on smart board. The rest of the class time will serve as the postassessment exam. The exams will be a written test using a printed test generated on Quizlet.com. The exam
will consist of four parts, each focusing on a specific lesson discussed during the week (i.e. states and capitals).
Tests will have 10- 12 multiple choice, true/false, and matching types of questions. Students will be given 10
minutes to complete each exam.
Pre-Assessment:
An in class pre-assessment quiz using quizlet.com will be done on day one of the US: Midwest Region lesson.
After the students completes the quiz, the students will then print their computer graded score to submit for
teacher evaluation. The teacher will evaluate all student quizzes to better help determine what the students
know and where the students had difficulty in the subject matter. The assessment will also serve as a gauge to
determine if 5 days is sufficient to teach this standard. This quiz is just an assessment and the students scores
will not be recorded.
Scoring Guidelines:
The pre-assessment quiz is graded by quizlet.com using percentage grading. However, the scores on
this quiz will not be recorded. This pre-assessment quiz only determines where the students beginning
knowledge level is in this standard. A target class score of 65-70 or higher is ideal. Class scores lower
than the target will require teacher to spend additional time in lessons. Additional work and activities,
both in class and at home, will be utilized to bring students to the standard level. Students who scored
above a 90 test score, will be given additional work to continue to challenge them.
Post-Assessment:
A written exam will complete the US: Midwest Region lesson on day five. The test on regional landforms will
consist of questions ranging from multiple-choice to word and definition match. States and capitals will be
tested by using a numbered regional map and students will identify both the state and its capital.
Scoring Guidelines:
The scoring criteria for the post-assessment will be percentage grading. The exams will consist of 50
questions, each worth 1 points for a possible score of 50 for all four exams.

Differentiated Instructional Support

Extra help for struggling students: Since active learning will be applied to this lesson, the teacher will have
time to spend with struggling students. The teacher will focus on areas that the student is unable to grasp.
Accelerated students may also be a help to struggling students if they desire to do so.
Altered lesson for accelerated students: An altered lesson for gifted or accelerated students is available for
an extra challenge to them. These students can research climate, population, culture or economic information
for each state and use that information to create a power point presentation. These students may also design
their own jeopardy style game at www.jeopardy.rocks. These students may have another technology based idea
in mind and are welcome to suggest it. These students are also welcome to help another classmate who may be
struggling.
Extension
Online Videos: Fun interactive online videos to help engage students on the US Midwest Region and its
landforms.
Mr. DeMaios Lesson on Landforms is taught by an interactive Voki that teaches students about landforms.
This is a fun website that can help get the student get hooked on learning the different types of landforms.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWTDmg8OI_Y
More short videos on the US Midwest States for extended learning.
The States of the Midwest https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqxXAlRSQnA
Introduction to US geography.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_EJssTbjqo&list=PL8fSH7NRQHgTx14SWxJDaDuIKYjBIPDei
Online Game Sites: Seterra Online and Sheppard Software are two great online geography game sites that
would be great for reinforcing memorization of the US Midwest Region states, capitals and landforms.
http://online.seterra.net/en/vgp/3138
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/web_games.htm
Online Information Resource: Ducksters.com for kids is a website that focuses on geography and will help
enhance knowledge on the US Midwest Region states, capitals and landforms.
http://www.ducksters.com/geography/us_states/us_geographical_regions.php
Online Pictures:
Pictures 4 Learning will help the student learn the US Midwest Region States vocabulary words. Student will
be able to choose a vocabulary word and see pictures that will help them learn through visualization.
http://pics4learning.com/index.php?view=sub&cat=Geography

Homework Options and Home Connections

Homework: Students should have no problem getting a high score on their post-assessment test as long as
they abide by daily homework assignments. Homework assignments for this week lessons, are all interactive

computer generated games. The student needs to put in enough homework time to feel comfortable in knowing
where the US Midwest Region States are located on a map and what their capitals are. Also, students will need
to know all definitions of all the landforms that are on the games.
www.quizlet.com
www.classtools.net
Home Connections: Parents can help their child at home by playing these interactive games with them to see
who gets the best score. This is a great way that parents can encourage their child to do their homework.

Interdisciplinary Connections
The first content area will be math. Students will be divided into 5 to 6 groups that will work together to do a
population comparison between states. Students will choose two states within the Midwest region and answer
the question Does the largest populated state have the largest populated capital? Each student will decide
what part of the question they will research for the group. Once students find their information, they will work
together to solve the problem. Students will be given about 15 minutes to complete their problem. Then the
class will discuss the results. Population comparison between the states can be linked to the lesson to
strengthen student learning.
The second content area will be language arts by using a Venn diagram to compare and contrast 2 different
vocabulary words that are close in meaning. Again the students will remain in their group and will be given
the 2 words to use. After 10 minutes the class will discuss their findings. This will help the students identify
the differences and similarities between landforms.

Materials and Resources:

For teachers

Smartboard, Projector, Laptop, Class printer, WiFi.

For students

School issued clamshell laptops.

Key Vocabulary
Bay, Channel, Continent, Glacier, Gulf, Hill, Lake, Marsh, Mountain, Oceans, Peninsula, Plain, River, Strait,
Tributary, Valleys, Waterfall.