Trip Entry: Animal Tracks

Animal tracks are imprints left behind in snow, dirt, mud, or other ground surfaces that an animal walks across.  Animal tracks are used by hunters, their prey, and by naturalists to identify animals living in a given area.  Books are commonly used to identify animal tracks, which may look different based on the weight of a particular animal.  Tracks can be fossilized over millions of years. It is for this reason we are able to see fossilized dinosaur tracks in some types of rock formations.  We are able to identify animals even if we never see them. Some animal prints are easy to identify. The most common animal print is the white-tailed deer. Animal prints are all around us as we observe them in nature and look for patterns.  (Content) 

 

Before reading "Big Tracks, Little Tracks" by Millicent E. Selsam, have the students tell what questions a detective asks him/herself while trying to solve a mystery. (Who, what, when, where, why) (DOK 1) While reading the story, ask the students to determine what a "nature detective" might be and where he/she would find clues? (CC.8.5.6-8.D) (DOK 2) Have students compare tracks of different animals and classify them by how many "toes" they have. Determine the author's purpose and describe how it affects their reading of the selection. (CC.8.5.6-8.F) (DOK 3) Show the you.tube movie "Raccoon in the Ripe Corn" (Reading Rainbow) and have students create their own animal tracks using the rubber stampers. (Amazon.com) (CC.8.5.6-8.G) Students will share their designs with the class and determine what type of animal made the tracks. (DOK 4) (Creative Idea) 

Domains: 1a, 1b, 1d, 2a, 2b, 2c, 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d 

Trip Entry: Maple Sugar

Trees are very important to us and have many uses. Trees provide oxygen for us to breath. Trees are also natural resources that are used for many thinks like lumber, heat sources, and paper. Some trees are a source of  food as well. One of the sweetest things that comes from trees is maple syrup.  There are several types of maple trees but the best syrup comes from the sugar maple tree. The legend about how maple syrup was discovered was that a Native American chief hit his tomahawk into a tree and water came out. His wife took the water home to boil food in it thinking it was plain water. It was not! It was maple syrup water. Today maple syrup is a wonderful, flavorful natural resource. A tree should be at least 50 years old before you can tap it for sugar water. There are only a few months out of the year when maple syrup can be tapped from the trees.  A hole is put into the tree and a tap is then slid into the maple tree with a bucket underneath to catch the sugar water.  Once the sugar water is collected it can be made into several things.  It can be boiled to make syrup. Spotza can also a be made by swirling the syrup in cold water, which makes a taffy.  After mixing up the syrup for a time, maple sugar can also be made.  The darker the syrup is, the better the flavor of the syrup.  (Content)

Make stirred sugar following the directions from the Somerset Historical Society. As the syrup begins to boil, have students tell what they observe is happening to the liquid. (DOK 1) (CC.8.5.6-8.G) Boil the syrup until it reaches 245 degrees. Have students observe the thermometer as the temperature of the syrup rises.  What is the cause/effect the hot syrup has on the thermometer? (DOK 2) (CC.1.5.2.A) Pour the remaining syrup into a bowl and begin stirring. Sugar crystals should begin to form as it cools. Have students compare the appearance of the syrup from a liquid to granulated sugar. (DOK 3) (CC.8.6.6-8.F) Students will then create "recipes" for which they could use their maple sugar and share them with the class. (DOK 4) (Creative Idea)

Domains: 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 2a, 2b, 2c, 3a, 3b

Entry #6 Sacagawea

In this second grade lesson, I am focusing on Sacagawea because she has become an important part of the Lewis and Clark legend, as she is a symbol of women's worth and independence.  Sacagawea was born into the Shoshone tribe in what is now modern-day Idaho.  As a child, she had many different names but in time she became known as "bird woman".  "Sakaga" means bird and "wea" means woman and thus her name was Sacagawea.  She was kidnapped by Hidatsa warriors as a child and given in marriage as a teen to a French Canadian fur trapper.  Sacagawea was pregnant with her first child when the Corps of Discovery arrived in her village to spend the winter months.  Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark hired Sacagawea and her husband, Charbonneau, as interpreters when they realized she spoke Shoshone.  Sacagawea saved the expedition on many occasions and after their return home she gave her son (Little Pomp) over to Captain Clark to care for as his own and she eventually died not long thereafter.  (Content)
Ask students to recall previous knowledge of Lewis and Clark's expedition and tell what they know about Sacagwea. (DOK 1)  Read to the students Sacagawea by Lise Erdrich and have them summarize the major events in the story.  (CC 8.5.6.G) Students should be able to describe the effect that Sacagawea had on the expedition and what her major role was to its success.  (CC 8.5.6-8.C) (DOK 2)  Have students determine the author's purpose for the story and how it affects their ideas of Sacagawea with details and examples.  (DOK 3)  (CC 8.6.6.A) Students will research what the meaning of their own name is and design a picture using illustrations to represent it.  Just as Sacagawea means "bird woman", the students will be able to make a connection and report to the class their designs and findings.   (DOK 4) (Creative Idea)

Domains: 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 2a, 2c, 2d, 3a, 3b, 3c

Entry #5 Thomas Jefferson

This is a humorous lesson for my second graders which includes facts about Thomas Jefferson who was superbly educated and learned responsibility, good manners, and to be generous.  Thomas Jefferson wanted a government that would interfere as little as possible with people's lives.  People liked him as he cut taxes, reduced the size of the military, and balanced the budget.  He looked for the good in people and appealed to the best interests of the men and women of the country.  One group of Massachusetts Baptists liked him so much they decided to make a cheese for him.  Their minister, John Leland, told everyone in town who liked the president to donate one day's worth of milk.  They mixed up the curds and pressed the cheese in a huge cider press.  When the cheese had dried, it weighed more than 1,600 pounds.  Leland and his neighbors hoisted the cheese onto a sled and he made the 3 week journey to Washington by himself.  When he arrived in Washington, he borrowed 4 horses and a wagon and delivered the cheese straight to the White House.  President Jefferson loved the gift and he stored the cheese in the East Wing for more than a year while people came from all over to admire it.  The cheese was called the "mammoth cheese" and was known to everyone.  Finally, on July 4, 1802,  President Jefferson decided it was time to eat and share the cheese with all his friends and fellow politicians. (Content)
Discuss with students and identify qualities that make a good citizen and qualities that make a good president.  (DOK 1) Have students work with a partner to list these qualities that we want to see in others.  Before reading the story A Big Cheese for the White House: The True Tale of a Tremendous Cheddar by Candace Fleming, ask students to predict what happened in the story by looking at the front cover.  (DOK 2)  (CC 8.5.6-8.D-G) After reading the story, discuss what qualities Thomas Jefferson had as a president and what was the effect they had on the townspeople of Massachusetts.  (DOK 3) What was the author's purpose for writing this story? (CC 8.5.6-8.F) Why did the townspeople feel they wanted to make and send a gift to the president?  Were they grateful to Jefferson and wanted to show their generosity?  Have students apply these qualities and create a gift that they would have given to Jefferson if they were living in that time period.  How would the gift be special to the president and represent something of their individuality?  (DOK 4) (Creative Idea)

Domains: 1a, 1b, 1c, 2a, 2b, 2d, 3a, 3b, 3c

Entry #4 Meriwether Lewis and William Clark

This is a second grade lesson that introduces students to the story of Lewis and Clark.  President Jefferson asked Meriwether Lewis to be his secretary.  Jefferson wanted Lewis around so he could train him for an exploring mission.  The president was filled with curiosity about the West.  He wanted to know about its land and its plants and animals.  He wanted to know about the Indians who lived there.  The West was very unknown in 1803 and Lewis was a careful observer who loved the land as much as Jefferson.  Lewis learned how to survive in the wilderness and learned the ways of the Indians as a captain in the Virginia militia.  William Clark was to be his partner in command and together they set out on a very difficult expedition.  They went all the way from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean and back exploring the land that the United States had just bought from France-the territory of Louisiana.  The two men took soldiers, scouts, and boatmen with them on their journey.  One of the most valued members of the group was Sacagawea, a Native American woman, married to one of the scouts.  Without her help, Lewis and Clark's mission would have been far more difficult for she knew which nuts and berries to eat, and how to cook and stew meat.  She also knew how to communicate with the Native Americans they encountered on their travels.  Lewis and Clark created maps, explored rivers, collected and documented plants, captured and drew animals such as buffalo, bears, and jack rabbits.  Jefferson wanted Lewis and Clark to establish relationships with the Indians and  prepare for trade with them. 
(Content)

Read the story Lewis and Clark: A Prairie Dog for the President which introduces the students to the story of Lewis and Clark and provides them with facts along with humor to tell this historic event.  One of the main parts of the story is how the two men captured, named, and shipped a prairie dog to President Jefferson to satisfy his requests for presents.  Have the students recall facts about the story and answer questions.  (DOK 1) (CC 1.2.2.B, 8.5.6.B) Provide students with a map of the United States depicting the route of Lewis and Clark's expedition.  Ask them questions about the different regions of the map including the 13 colonies (which was previously learned).  The students will create and design their own map and graph the route through the West.  (DOK 2)  Have students compare/differentiate with details and examples how traveling through the West at that time might have been.  (DOK 3)  Have students analyze, describe, and discuss some of the things Lewis and Clark might have encountered including animals or various weather conditions.  (CC 8.6.6.B) (DOK 4) Have them apply these ideas to their map including the geography of the land such as the mountains and rivers.  (Creative Idea)

Domains: 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 2b, 2c, 2d, 3a, 3b, 3c

Entry #3 Francis Scott Key

This is a lesson for my second graders in which we study the history of the American flag and touch upon Francis Scott Key.  Francis Scott Key was a lawyer who had taken a ship to the British in order to see the release of a prisoner of war before the attack on Fort McHenry.  He went through with the mission but the British would not let him leave.  Key spent the night watching the bombing of the fort and discovered the next morning that the defenders had prevailed and the squadron was withdrawing.  The large American flag was being flown and Key was so moved that he wrote a poem which was later set to a tune.  Initially titled "The Defense of Fort McHenry", the song was renamed "The Star-Spangled Banner" and is now our national anthem. (Content)
Read the book The Star-Spangled Banner illustrated by Peter Spier and show the students how the pictures represent each line of the poem/song.  Have the students recall the sequence of events at Fort McHenry while looking at pictures. Discuss what the American flag means and why it has 50 stars and 13 stripes. (DOK 1)  (CC 1.2.2.B) Show the students a sample of the flag during this time period and compare/contrast how it has changed.  (DOK 3) Have the students discuss the cause/effect of Key seeing the American flag the next morning. (DOK 2) (CC 8.6.6.A) The students will draw conclusions as to how Key felt as he witnessed the battle and wrote the words to the poem.  (DOK 3) (CC 1.5.2.A)  Have students design a picture depicting one of Key's lines in The Star-Spangled Banner.  The student's picture must be a representation of what was occuring at Fort McHenry.  (DOK 4)  (Creative Idea)

Domains: 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 2a, 2b, 2c, 2c, 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d

Entry #2 General Perry Benson

This lesson is a story about the events that occured during the defense of a town called St. Michaels in the War of 1812.  The book called The Town that Fooled the British is a story about St. Michaels, a town of many shipbuilders.  Their skillfully crafted ships were feared by even the British Navy who were seeking to destroy the town and its warships. The British were planning to target the town and were already traveling up the Chesapeake Bay.  General Perry Benson played a major role in defending the town.  He had fought in the Revolutionary War along side George Washington.  The people of St. Michaels, under the direction of General Benson, had tricked the British who were firing at them by turning out all the lights in the town and hanging lanterns high in the tree branches.  The British had nothing to aim at except the dim lights in the trees and completely overshot the town of St. Michaels.  Not a single home or ship was lost in the battle.  St. Michaels became the "town that fooled the British" for their great efforts under the General's leadership.  (Content)
My students and I would re-enact this battle by going to the woods outside our school and hanging lanterns (that the students would make) in the trees.  Some of the students would be the British and some would be the townspeople of St. Michaels.  I would read them the story The Town that Fooled the British and show them the pictures so they could have a better understanding.  We would re-enact this several times so every student would get a chance to play a different part.  (Creative Idea)
As a whole class we would discuss the War of 1812 and how it was a war for independence as was the Revolutionary War.  We would also discuss the story of The Town that Fooled the British which was a fictional story but the facts surrounding the defense of the town were real.  (8.1.6.b) We would identify which parts of the story are fictional and which parts are facts of history. (DOK 1)  We would also discuss the cause and effect of the efforts of the townspeople and General Benson during the battle. (8.3.6.d, 8.4.6.d) (DOK 2) Then, we would determine the author's purpose of this story and how it affects our interest in the war itself.  (DOK 3) We would end with the students applying the concept of "working together" as the townspeople and General Benson did during the battle and connecting this to situations at home or school. (DOK 4)
Domains: 1a, 1b, 2a, 2e, 3a, 3b, 3c