Standard Course of Study :: Social Studies — Grade 3

K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

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Aligned lesson plans

Traveling on the Mayflower: Students will participate in a role-play to understand the experiences of Pilgrims on the Mayflower.; Format: lesson plan (grade 2–3 English Language Development, Social Studies, and Theater Arts Education); By Ellen Douglas and Melissa Park.

Resources on the web

Which direction should I go?: In this lesson from Xpeditions, students review and practice their knowledge of compass directions. They will do several brief exercises to practice using directions in their community and on maps, and they will conclude by creating a treasure hunt for... (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3 Social Studies); Provided by: Xpeditions

What we can learn from maps: In this Xpeditions lesson, students examine different types of maps. They look at marine maps and maps of their state's agricultural pattern to learn how maps can be used to provide information about a variety of activities, distributions, and geographical... (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3–4 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

What is geography?: Students work in groups to analyze a website to locate information about a particular country or region, and then create presentations showing how the geographic concepts described in the themes can be used to help solve environmental problems. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

There's no place like home: This Xpeditions lesson uses children's literature and maps to explore reasons for past and present settlement. Students give various reasons people in the past or present have chosen to settle and live in different regions of the United States. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Regional foods: In this Xpeditions lesson, students explore the culture of different regions by learning about differences in foods and recipes. They create maps of the United States and the world based on what they have learned about various regions through Internet research. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 2–3 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Pioneer America: Journey west: In this ARTSEDGE lesson, students learn about the early pioneers in America and their motivations for moving West. They discover what life was like for these explorers and list items necessary for westward travel during the mid-1800s. Students also create... (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade K–3 Social Studies); Provided by: The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

Nomads: Where Boundaries Move: In this Xpeditions lesson, students explore nomadic pastoralism. Focusing on Central Asia, students investigate the way humans have adapted to regions that do not sustain communities through agriculture and the influence this has both on how they live and... (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 4 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Locator booth: Mapping South America: In this lesson, from Xpeditions, students visit the Locator Booth exhibit in National Geographic's Xpedition Hall and consider conditions to find position of places. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Introduction to Latitude and Longitude: This Xpeditions lesson introduces students to latitude and longitude. They look at lines of latitude and longitude on a United States map and discuss the reasons why these lines are helpful. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Immigrating to America: In this ARTSEDGE lesson, students learn about what it was like for new immigrants to come through Ellis Island at the turn of the century. Through first-hand accounts, students discover where the immigrants were from, the reasons they fled their homelands,... (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade K–4 Social Studies); Provided by: The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

Geotourism: Friendly destinations: In this Xpeditions lesson, students learn about a partnership between the government of Honduras and the National Geographic Society to highlight the concept of geotourism and its benefits. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3 and 5 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Genealogical atlases: This Xpeditions lesson asks students to interview their parents or other relatives about what it was like where they grew up. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Expedition to the poles: Students pretend they've just returned from a year in the Arctic or Antarctic and look at web sites about these regions and expeditions. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Crack the code: Students use latitude and longitude to crack the code to find out where thieves are taking the loot. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3–5 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Boundary ballads: Students identify the boundaries that are “singing” odd geographical songs. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3–7 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

Be a geography detective: In this Xpeditions lesson, students become geography detectives, learning about geography and the relationship human beings have with the land. (Learn more); Format: lesson plan (grade 3 Social Studies); Provided by: National Geographic

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