UNIT LESSON PLAN: European Exploration in North America

Erin Neighbors​, Shannon Burge,​ ​Breana Crocker, ​Rebecca Haskey

Subject & Audience: ​3rd Grade Social Studies

Module​: 1 (contributed by ​Erin Neighbors and Rebecca Haskey​)

Outcome: Standards for the 21st Century Learner:

● Students will become familiar with what it
means to be an explorer. They will be able to
explain reasons why these men chose to
branch out and explore and also what
obstacles these explorers would have come
in contact during their explorations.
Georgia Performance Standard: ​SS3H2 Describe
European exploration in North America.​ ​a. Describe
the reasons for and obstacles to the exploration of
North America.
● B. CREATE/INQUIRE: Learners engage with
new knowledge by following a process that
includes: 1. Using evidence to investigate
questions. 2. Devising and implementing a
plan to fill knowledge gaps. 3. Generating
products that illustrate learning.
● THINK/EXPLORE: Learners develop and
satisfy personal curiosity by: 1. Reading
widely and deeply in multiple formats and
write and create for a variety of purposes. 2.
Reflecting and questioning assumptions and
possible misconceptions. 3. Engaging in
inquiry

ISTE Standards for Students:

● 7B: Students use collaborative technologies
to work with others, including peers, experts
or community members, to examine issues
and problems from multiple viewpoints.
● 7C: Students contribute constructively to
project teams, assuming various roles and
responsibilities to work effectively toward a
common goal.

Warm-Up: ​Teacher will show the Studies Weekly video to present an overview of what exploration is and
why explorers ventured to faraway lands. The video does not mention specific explores but is a great
conversation starter. KidBlog formative assessment will be completed.

Lesson: ​PBS Education’s section on explorers will be introduced to immerse students in the adventures of
two explorers addressed in the standards--Christopher Columbus and John Cabot. The teacher will lead the
class through exploring the module on Columbus including watching embedded videos and exploring tagged
places at each location along his voyage. Students will explore the Cabot module in pairs in the computer
lab.

Assessment:
Formative Assessment: Immediately after the warm-up, the teacher will ask students to use KidBlog to
answer the following questions: 1. Do they know an explorer; if so, what do they know about them (Ex.
Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492)? ​ ​2. What were some challenges that they may have faced?
(Remind students that things were much different when these explorers were alive) 3. Have you ever
explored an unfamiliar place? What new things did you find or learn? This will give the teacher an
understanding of whether or not students have any prior knowledge and engage them in thinking like an
explorer. As they learn about explorers in the following modules, they will realize that some explorers were
not much older than them!
Exit Ticket: ​Using KidBlog, each student will respond to the following questions. 1. In your own words, why
did Columbus and Cabot decide to become explorers? 2. What is one obstacle that each faced? 3. How did
PBS Education’s Google Earth module on explorers help you understand their journeys?

Digital Resources Used:

Resource:​ ​Kidblog
Resource:​ ​Studies Weekly video:​ ​Age of Exploration
Resource: ​PBS Education’s ​Explorers: Age of Encounter​ in collaboration with Google Earth

UNIT LESSON PLAN: European Exploration in North America

Erin Neighbors, Shannon Burge,​ Breana Crocker​, Rebecca Haskey

Subject & Audience: ​3rd Grade Social Studies

Module​: 2 (contributed by Breana Crocker)

Outcome: Standards for the 21st Century Learner:

● Students will ​describe​ the accomplishments
of Vasco Núñez de Balboa and the impact he
made during his explorations
● Demonstrate​ how the accomplishments of the
above changed circumstances within their
country and/or around the world.
● B. CREATE/INQUIRE: Learners engage with
new knowledge by following a process that
includes: 1. Using evidence to investigate
questions. 2. Devising and implementing a
plan to fill knowledge gaps. 3. Generating
products that illustrate learning.

Georgia Performance Standard: ​SS3H2 Describe ● C. SHARE/INQUIRE: Learners adapt,

European exploration in North America. b. Describe
the accomplishments of: John Cabot (England),
Vasco Núñez de Balboa (Spain)​, Hernando de
Soto (Spain), Christopher Columbus (Spain), Henry
Hudson (The Netherlands), and Jacques Cartier
(France).
● D. GROW/COLLABORATE: Learners actively
communicate, and exchange learning
products with others in a cycle that includes:
1. Interacting with content presented by
others. 2. Providing constructive feedback. 3.
Acting on feedback to improve. 4. Sharing
products with an authentic audience
participate with others in learning situations
by: 1. Actively contributing to group
discussions. 2. Recognizing learning as a
social responsibility.

ISTE Standards for Students:

● 5B: Students collect data or identify relevant

data sets, use digital tools to analyze them,
and represent data in various ways to
facilitate problem-solving and
decision-making.
● 6B: Students create original works or
responsibly repurpose or remix digital
resources into new creations.
● 7B: Students use collaborative technologies
to work with others, including peers, experts
or community members, to examine issues
and problems from multiple viewpoints.
● 7C: Students contribute constructively to
project teams, assuming various roles and
 responsibilities to work effectively toward a
common goal.

Warm-Up: ​Students will complete a quick introduction ​Socrative ​quiz to see what they know about the
explorer (where is he from, which country he explored, which ocean he was the first person to explore,
identifying Spain on a map, identifying Panama on a map, and identifying both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans
on a map). The teacher will allot five minutes for students to get signed in and finish the quiz. Once everyone is
done, the teacher will look at the data provided by Socrative and discuss the correct answers.

Lesson:
The teacher will then have students read multiple biographies and interesting facts about de Balboa using
different resources (listed below). Once students have read about de Balboa, a class discussion will begin.
Students will discuss with a partner and decide on one accomplishment or impact de Balboa would have had
on Panama, the other countries he explored, and his finding of the Pacific Ocean. After the students have at
least one example (give 3 minutes to discuss), the teacher will lead a whole class discussion about these
accomplishments and impacts. While discussing, the students will have a notes form that they will write these
down on. Possible accomplishments and impacts are: A ​ ccomplishments​: first to explore eastern Pacific Ocean,
conquered Panama, building Spanish colonies
Impact and how he changed Panama:​ diseases brought to the natives, language becoming, Spanish in
Panama, destroying land and the people.

Once students have an understanding of who de Balboa is and his accomplishments/impacts, the teacher will
then give the students a world map. Students will be required to label ​Spain, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela,
Hispaniola (current day Haiti & Dominican Republic), Atlantic Ocean, ​and ​Pacific Ocean ​by using an online
Atlas or Map. With a pencil, students will draft what they believe to be the correct path de Balboa and his team
made from memory, starting with Spain and making his way to Panama and the Pacific Ocean. They will then
find a partner to check each other’s work. When they feel like they have it correct, they will confirm with the
teacher.

After confirmation, the teacher will give each team of students a cut out of each continent, 5 white paper
squares, and a poster-sized piece of blue butcher paper. Teams will tape or glue their continents on the blue
paper and label the same points as before (​Spain, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Hispaniola (current day
Haiti & Dominican Republic), Atlantic Ocean, ​and ​Pacific Ocean)​ . On the white paper squares, students will
hand write 5 “posts” in current day language (like something they would see on Twitter or Facebook) of things
they would say while being near one of the places.

Assessment:​ There will be two assessments at the end of this module. First, students will retake the original
Socrative​ quiz as a formative assessment. Then, a summative assessment in which students will use the
Stop Motion Studio ​application to recreate de Balboa’s journey to conquer Panama. The teacher will grade
this with a rubric, which will include things like if they students labeled the countries and oceans correctly, their
creativity and ability to write the 5 “posts”, and correct path. Students will be required to send their video to the
teacher to be uploaded into a teacher curated YouTube account, where the students will then be able to watch
the videos as a class from the projector (presenting will not be a requirement by all, unless students choose to
do so).

Digital Resources Used:

● History Channel Biography

● Biography Site
 ● Explorers Site​ ​(read the biography and the PPT from the first link)
● The Mariner’s Museum Biography
● de Balboa Facts
● Google Search Engine for examples or help for his travels
● YouTube Application or Website
● Stop Motion Studio App
● Socrative App or Website

Materials & Resources Needed:

● iPad or tablet for Stop Motion Studio App
● Computer or tablet for Socrative
● All handouts from teacher

UNIT LESSON PLAN: European Exploration in North America

Erin Neighbors, Shannon Burge, ​Breana Crocker​, Rebecca Haskey

Subject & Audience: ​3rd Grade Social Studies

Module​: 3 (contributed by Breana Crocker)

Outcome: Standards for the 21st Century Learner:

● Students will ​describe​ the accomplishments
of Christopher Columbus and the impact he
made during his explorations
● Students will ​organize​ important events from
Christopher Columbus’ life into an interactive
timeline.
● Students will ​analyze t​ eacher-curated digital
resources based on Christopher Columbus.
Georgia Performance Standard: ​SS3H2 Describe
European exploration in North America. b. Describe
the accomplishments of: John Cabot (England),
Vasco Núñez de Balboa (Spain), Hernando de Soto
(Spain), ​Christopher Columbus (Spain)​, Henry
Hudson (The Netherlands), and Jacques Cartier
(France).
● B. CREATE/ENGAGE: Learners use valid
information and reasoned conclusions to
make ethical decisions in the creation of
knowledge by: 1. Ethically using and
reproducing others’ work. 2. Acknowledging
authorship and demonstrating respect for the
intellectual property of others. 3. Including
elements in personal-knowledge products
that allow others to credit content
appropriately.
● D. GROW/COLLABORATE: Learners actively
participate with others in learning situations
by: 1. Actively contributing to group
discussions. 2. Recognizing learning as a
social responsibility.

● B. CREATE/INQUIRE: Learners engage with

new knowledge by following a process that
includes: 1. Using evidence to investigate
questions. 2. Devising and implementing a
plan to fill knowledge gaps. 3. Generating
products that illustrate learning.

● A. THINK/COLLABORATE: Learners identify

collaborative opportunities by: 1.
Demonstrating their desire to broaden and
deepen understandings. 2. Developing new
 understandings through engagement in a
learning group. 3. Deciding to solve problems
informed by group interaction.

ISTE Standards for Students:

● 3B: Students evaluate the accuracy,

perspective, credibility and relevance of
information, media, data or other resources.
● 4D: Students exhibit a tolerance for
ambiguity, perseverance and the capacity to
work with open-ended problems.
● 6B: Students create original works or
responsibly repurpose or remix digital
resources into new creations.
● 7B: Students use collaborative technologies
to work with others, including peers, experts
or community members, to examine issues
and problems from multiple viewpoints.
● 7C: Students contribute constructively to
project teams, assuming various roles and
responsibilities to work effectively toward a
common goal.

Warm-Up:
The teacher will have a premade ​Nearpod ​presentation to introduce ideas and information surrounding
Christopher Columbus. Because of its interactive capabilities, students will open the Nearpod and complete
a short quiz to see what they already know or have heard about Christopher Columbus. The teacher will then
lead a discussion after reviewing the (instant) results.

Lesson:
The teacher will lead a presentation with the Nearpod app. This presentation will include necessary
information about Columbus, his life, and his explorations. Also included will be interactive slides with videos
about Columbus, interactive maps, and photos of maps. Students will be required, on one of the slides, to
identify ​Spain, Portugal, China (for his original route ideas), Hispaniola, South America, North America,
Central America, Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean​.

Part of the slides will also have a handout to accompany the information. This handout will examine the
places, events, and times that Columbus visited specific places. The children will match the dates with
events in his life. This will be a precursor to the digital timeline they will create later as an assessment.

Assessments (3):
Formative​: Students will have a collaborative discussion using ​Padlet​. The teacher will pose the topic
“​Describe​ the accomplishments of Christopher Columbus and the impact (​good or bad) ​he made during his
explorations.” Each student must have at least one example of each to receive credit.

Formative:​ Students will analyze documents from ​Newsela ​and use critical thinking to decide who gave
correct accounts of the discovery of the Americas, Christopher Columbus or Bartolome de las Casas. After
reading the articles, the students will answer the following:
1.) What are the similarities and differences between the two accounts?
2.) Who do you think is more reliable? Why?
These will be answered on a handout given by the teacher. Question one will be a T Chart and question two
should be in an ACES paragraph (**ACES is a standard of writing to mirror how students should be writing
for GMAS**)

Summative: ​Students will get in groups of two for this activity. They will collaborate and use ​Timeline JS ​to
create a timeline of Columbus’ adventures. In their presentation, they must add pictures (ethically found and
cited) and a short two to three sentence blurb about what he did at these points in his life. It should include a
minimum of 10 events (maximum of 15), each with an accompanying photo and blurb. It will be graded by
rubric, including meeting minimum requirements and ethically finding photos to use.

Digital Resources Used:

● Timeline JS
● Nearpod --created by teacher, all facts included from sites such as…
○ https://www.ducksters.com/biography/explorers/christopher_columbus.php
○ https://kids.kiddle.co/Christopher_Columbus
○ https://kidskonnect.com/people/christopher-columbus/
○ http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/famouspeople/christopher_columbus/
○ http://mrnussbaum.com/columbus/
○ https://exploration.marinersmuseum.org/subject/christopher-columbus/
○ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aF_unlvjccA
● Padlet
● Newsela (teacher will choose Lexile level)

Materials & Resources Needed:

● Device (iPad, tablet, or computer) for Timeline JS, Nearpod, and Padlet
● All handouts from teacher

UNIT LESSON PLAN: European Exploration in North America

Erin Neighbors​, Shannon Burge, Breana Crocker, Rebecca Haskey

Subject & Audience: ​3rd Grade Social Studies

Module​: 4A (contributed by Erin Neighbors)

Outcome: Standards for the 21st Century Learner:

● Demonstrate how the accomplishments of the
above changed circumstances within their
country and/or around the world.
Georgia Performance Standard: ​SS3H2 Describe
European exploration in North America. b. Describe
the accomplishments of: ​John Cabot (England)​,
Vasco Núñez de Balboa (Spain), Hernando de Soto
(Spain), Christopher Columbus (Spain), Henry
Hudson (The Netherlands), and Jacques Cartier
(France).
● B. CREATE/INQUIRE: Learners engage with
new knowledge by following a process that
includes: 1. Using evidence to investigate
questions. 2. Devising and implementing a
plan to fill knowledge gaps. 3. Generating
products that illustrate learning.
ISTE Standards for Students:
● 6b: Students create original works or
responsibly repurpose or remix digital
resources into new creations
● 7C: Students contribute constructively to
 project teams, assuming various roles and
responsibilities to work effectively toward a
common goal.

Warm-Up:​ Teacher will go over the first few slides in the powerpoint, and have students answer questions
about what obstacles that the explorers might have been presented with and also a prediction of what impact
they think that these explorers had.

Lesson: ​Students will divide up into four small groups. They will watch the short introduction video on John
Cabot. After watching the short clip, students will discuss their thoughts and then independently continue
researching John Cabot. Students will have a passport of John Cabot in which they will use to collect
important information. Students will then collaborate with their group and come up with the facts they think
are most important- and then post them on Kidblog.

They will then repeat the above process, this time studying Henry Hudson- again watching a few short clips
and gathering information based on the powerpoint and videos, and again filling out their passports and
uploading important information on KidBlog.

Assessment: ​Students will either pick John Cabot OR Henry Hudson to cover. (If students are unable to
split evenly, the teacher will assign a person to a group). As a group, students will review their notes and can
used information that they have posted as well as information other students have posted to KidBlog.
Students will use either STORYBIRD, INKLEWRITE, or BLABBERIZE to summarize and present to other
students sharing what they learned.

Digital Resources Used:

Resource: ​Interactive Map
Resource: ​John Cabot Video
Resource: ​Explorer Powerpoints
Resource: ​Storybird
Resource: ​Kidblog
Resource: ​InkleWrite
Resource: ​Blabberize
Resource: ​John Cabot Impact

UNIT LESSON PLAN: European Exploration in North America

Erin Neighbors​, Shannon Burge, Breana Crocker, Rebecca Haskey

Subject & Audience: ​3rd Grade Social Studies

Module​: 4B (contributed by Erin Neighbors)

Outcome: Standards for the 21st Century Learner:

● Demonstrate how the accomplishments of the
above changed circumstances within their
country and/or around the world.
Georgia Performance Standard: ​SS3H2 Describe
European exploration in North America. b. Describe
the accomplishments of: John Cabot (England),
Vasco Núñez de Balboa (Spain), Hernando de Soto
(Spain), Christopher Columbus (Spain), ​Henry
Hudson (The Netherlands)​, and Jacques Cartier
● B. CREATE/INQUIRE: Learners engage with
new knowledge by following a process that
includes: 1. Using evidence to investigate
questions. 2. Devising and implementing a
plan to fill knowledge gaps. 3. Generating
products that illustrate learning.
ISTE Standards for Students:
● 6b: Students create original works or
responsibly repurpose or remix digital
(France). resources into new creations
● 7C: Students contribute constructively to
project teams, assuming various roles and
responsibilities to work effectively toward a
common goal.

Warm-Up:​ Teacher will go over the first few slides in the powerpoint, and have students answer questions
about what obstacles that the explorers might have been presented with and also a prediction of what impact
they think that these explorers had.

Lesson: ​Students will divide up into four small groups. They will watch the short introduction video on John
Cabot. After watching the short clip, students will discuss their thoughts and then independently continue
researching Henry Hudson. Students will have a passport of Henry Hudson in which they will use to collect
important information. Students will then collaborate with their group and come up with the facts they think
are most important- and then post them on Kidblog.

They will then repeat the above process, this time studying Henry Hudson- again watching a few short clips
and gathering information based on the powerpoint and videos, and again filling out their passports and
uploading important information on KidBlog.

Assessment: ​Students will either pick John Cabot OR Henry Hudson to cover. (If students are unable to
split evenly, the teacher will assign a person to a group). As a group, students will review their notes and can
used information that they have posted as well as information other students have posted to KidBlog.
Students will use either STORYBIRD, INKLEWRITE, or BLABBERIZE to summarize and present to other
students sharing what they learned.

Digital Resources Used:

Resource: ​Interactive Map
Resource: ​Henry Hudson Video
Resource: ​Explorer Powerpoints
Resource: ​Storybird
Resource: ​Kidblog
Resource: ​InkleWrite
Resource: ​Blabberize
Resource: ​Henry Hudson Impact

UNIT LESSON PLAN: European Exploration in North America

Erin Neighbors, Shannon Burge, Breana Crocker, ​Rebecca Haskey

Subject & Audience: ​3rd Grade Social Studies

Module​: 5 (contributed by Rebecca Haskey)

Outcome: Standards for the 21st Century Learner:

● Students will be able to analyze a variety of
teacher-curated digital resources on
explorers and assess the accuracy and
credibility of each.
● Students will describe the accomplishments
of Hernando de Soto (Spain)
Georgia Performance Standard: ​SS3H2 Describe
● THINK/COLLABORATE: ​Learners identify
collaborative opportunities by: 1.
Demonstrating their desire to broaden and
deepen understandings. 2. Developing new
understandings through engagement in a
learning group. 3. Deciding to solve problems
informed by group interaction.
● THINK/CURATE:​ Learners act on an
European exploration in North America. b. Describe
the accomplishments of: John Cabot (England),
Vasco Núñez de Balboa (Spain), ​Hernando de Soto
(Spain)​, Christopher Columbus (Spain), Henry
Hudson (The Netherlands), and Jacques Cartier
(France).
information need by: 1. Determining the need
to gather information. 2. Identifying possible
sources of information. 3. Making critical
choices about information sources to use.
ISTE Standards for Students:
● Standard 3b: Students evaluate the accuracy,
perspective, credibility and relevance of
information, media, data or other resources

Warm-Up: ​Teacher leads quick discussion about the types of resources that students have used to research
European explorers up to this point. These would mainly have been online resources provided to the
students and information found through keyword searches. Teacher plays Common Sense Media’s video on
how to spot fake news. Teacher asks students how they decide which websites to use in school and how
they know if information is accurate. Brief discussion is facilitated with student observations being
documented by the teacher. YouTube video on REAL method of evaluating websites is played.

Lesson: ​As a whole group, the REAL method is used to examine All About Explorers website starting with
the entry for Christopher Columbus and including the about section and the blog. Students will use the
timelines they created in an earlier module to assess accuracy as the passage is read.

Students will be split into groups to analyze the Hernando de Soto entry on All About Explorers. Each group
will be assigned 2 online reference sources to consult. These resources have been vetted by the teacher or
school librarian and include e-books and web-based

Formative Assessment:
Post responses as a group in our teacher-created padlet:
1. What three inventions mentioned in the article on de Soto give you clues that this article contains
incorrect information?
2. Based on your assigned references, list three things you found out about each that lead you to
believe they are reliable sources of information. Be sure to tell us which resource you were assigned.

Summative Assessment:
“The Real Story” is the theme of this Flipgrid assignment. Students will pair up to create Flipgrid responses
using a teacher-created script template. Student one will speak on the incorrect fact identified in the All
About Explorers article. Student two will tell what really happened. Each student will briefly describe one of
the resources used. The incorrect facts will be assigned so that each group covers a different part of de
Soto’s life.

Digital Resources Used:

Resource:​ Common Sense Media’s ​5 Ways to Spot Fake News
Resource:​ YouTube video on ​How to Evaluate Websites
Resource:​ ​All About Explorers ​website
Resource:​ Britannica School Elementary ​Explorers at a Glance
Resource:​ Mariners’ Museum ​The Ages of Exploration
Resource:​ Studies Weekly on ​Hernando de Soto
Resource:​ Checkerboard Biographies series by ABDO, e-book on ​Hernando de Soto
Resource:​ PBS World Explorers ​Hernando de Soto
Resource: ​Padlet
Resource: ​Flipgrid
UNIT LESSON PLAN: European Exploration in North America
Erin Neighbors, ​Shannon Burge​, Breana Crocker, Rebecca Haskey

Subject & Audience: ​3rd Grade Social Studies

Module​: 6 (contributed by Shannon Burge)

Outcome: Standards for the 21st Century Learner:

● Students will be able to describe the
contributions Jacques Cartier from France
made during his explorations.
● Students will create original works about the
accomplishments and contributions of Cartier.
Georgia Performance Standard: ​SS3H2 Describe
European exploration in North America. b. Describe
the accomplishments of: John Cabot (England),
Vasco Núñez de Balboa (Spain), Hernando de Soto
(Spain), Christopher Columbus (Spain), Henry
Hudson (The Netherlands), and ​Jacques Cartier
(France)​.
● A. THINK/COLLABORATE: Learners identify
collaborative opportunities by: 1.
Demonstrating their desire to broaden and
deepen understandings. 2. Developing new
understandings through engagement in a
learning group. 3. Deciding to solve problems
informed by group interaction.
● B. CREATE/INQUIRE: Learners engage with
new knowledge by following a process that
includes: 1. Using evidence to investigate
questions. 2. Devising and implementing a
plan to fill knowledge gaps. 3. Generating
products that illustrate learning.

ISTE Standards for Students:

● 3A: Students plan and employ effective

research strategies to locate information and
other resources for their intellectual or
creative pursuits.
● 4B: Students select and use digital tools to
plan and manage a design process that
considers design constraints and calculated
risks.
● Standard 6B: Students create original works
or responsibly repurpose or remix digital
resources into new creations

Prior to the warm-up, students will complete a diagnostic assessment created in Kahoot.
Warm-Up:
The teacher will ask students to tell what they know about France. Students will write these on the Padlet
site created and assigned by the teacher. She will next ask what they know about Canada and have
students write them on Padlet, as well. She will guide students to discuss the language of both countries (if
they did not talk about it already). Are there any similarities in the two countries? Has anyone ever traveled
to either country? The teacher will introduce the last explorer (Jacques Cartier) the students will learn about.
She will ask if they know what country he is from. They will then use desk maps to:
1. Locate France
2. Locate Canada
3. The St. Lawrence River
Using dry erase markers, they will circle the two countries. They will trace the St. Lawrence River.
Lesson:
Students will complete the research chart as they research using the links provided.
Assessment​:
Students will create an original work on ​https://www.makebeliefscomix.com/​ , Tellagami
https://tellagami.com/​ , FlipGrid ​https://flipgrid.com/​ or Chatterpix (app). They will include the contributions
Jacques Cartier made referring back to the research chart they completed during the lesson. The students
will have a rubric to use as a guide while creating their presentations. The teacher will use this same rubric
for the assessment score.

Digital Resources Used:

http://easyscienceforkids.com/all-about-jacques-cartier/
https://safeshare.tv/x/ss5b458c0bc60ed#
https://www.biography.com/people/jacques-cartier-9240128
https://www.makebeliefscomix.com/
Tellagami ​https://tellagami.com/
FlipGrid ​https://flipgrid.com/
Chatterpix (app)
Kahoot ​https://kahoot.com/
Padlet ​www.padlet.com

UNIT LESSON PLAN: European Exploration in North America

Erin Neighbors, Shannon Burge,​ Breana Crocker,​ Rebecca Haskey

Subject & Audience: ​3rd Grade Social Studies

Module​: 7 (contributed by Breana Crocker)

Outcome: Standards for the 21st Century Learner:

● Students will ​describe​ how cooperation and
conflict affected the lives of both explorers
and American Indians.
● Students will ​investigate​ what would have
happened without the explorers and
demonstrate this through a computational
thinking map.
Georgia Performance Standard: ​SS3H2 Describe
European exploration in North America.​ ​c. Describe
examples of cooperation and conflict between
European explorers and American Indians.
● B. CREATE/INQUIRE: Learners engage with
new knowledge by following a process that
includes: 1. Using evidence to investigate
questions. 2. Devising and implementing a
plan to fill knowledge gaps. 3. Generating
products that illustrate learning.
● A. THINK/COLLABORATE: Learners identify
collaborative opportunities by: 1.
Demonstrating their desire to broaden and
deepen understandings. 2. Developing new
understandings through engagement in a
learning group. 3. Deciding to solve problems
informed by group interaction.

ISTE Standards for Students:

● 2B: Students engage in positive, safe, legal

and ethical behavior when using technology,
including social interactions online or when
using networked devices.
 ● 5B: Students collect data or identify relevant
data sets, use digital tools to analyze them,
and represent data in various ways to
facilitate problem-solving and
decision-making.
● 5C: Students break problems into component
parts, extract key information, and develop
descriptive models to understand complex
systems or facilitate problem-solving.
● 6B: Students create original works or
responsibly repurpose or remix digital
resources into new creations.

Warm-Up:
Students will complete an introduction review quiz using ​Socrative. ​The quiz will include map questions and
specific questions about the explorers they have learned so far (all from part B of the standard). Teacher will
have discussion and resolve any confusion before continuing with the lesson.

Lesson:
The teacher will prompt students through verbal discussion to explain the definitions of cooperation and
conflict and will use real life examples that the students can relate to. Then students will complete the
formative assessment with Padlet (explained below).

The teacher will assign an explorer to each student at random. She will then give direction on how to
investigate what ​would have happened without the explorers. This will be a critical thinking activity and will
be graded as the last summative grade for this unit before the unit test. As part of the lesson, the teacher will
introduce the idea of computational thinking, give real life examples, let students practice with an example,
and then explain how they will use computational thinking maps to analyze their given explorer. See
assessment directions below.

**The teacher will also provide a ​Kahoot​ with important questions from the test that the students can play in
class. This will accompany a paper study guide.**

Assessment:

Formative: ​Students will be given a link to the teacher-created ​Flipgrid​. Students will discuss and describe
examples of how the explorers and American Indians cooperated with each other and how they affected
each others lives. Students must choose two explorers and the natives they conquered to speak about AND
must reply to at least one classmates’ ideas.

Summative 1: ​The teacher will give directions on what computational thinking maps in the lesson. Students
will go to ​Popplet ​on a computer and create an account. With Popplet, they will create a CT map about their
given explorer. They ​investigate what would have happened without the explorers and demonstrate this in
their computational thinking map. It will be graded via rubric.

Summative 2:
Teacher will assign a unit test.

Digital Resources Used:

● Flipgrid
● Popplet
 ● Socrative
● Kahoot
● Videos teacher may get ideas from or use as clips for supplemental information:
○ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdxImAhWbjw
○ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n880FHTeJPA
○ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntVu7n84HF0
○ https://www.esperanzahs.net/apps/video/watch.jsp?v=117791

Materials & Resources Needed:

● Device (iPad, tablet, or computer) for Flipgrid, Popplet, and Socrative
● All handouts from teacher