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ChapterChapter 7 -Brazil the Brazil.
Unit Essential Question(s):
How do the five themes of geography help us understand cultural differences? How do Brazil’s geography, climate, and natural resources affect the way people live?
[TW6]Multidimensional task with differentiation, autonomy, individual grouping, and grading of different assignments. Motivation should be higher for this activity. This activity would be considered an assessment of learning. It is a constructivist type of activity as well because the students are demonstrating what they have learned in a variety (choice) of ways.
[TW7]Social interaction and review.
Talking to the Text prompts:
A question I have is...
I agree/disagree with...
Something important is...
A connection I have is...
Aha, now I see...
The big picture is...
I can vizualize...
Reflection
The unit I have chosen is part of the South America section, focusing on Brazil. In the first two days the students are asked to do an activator to get them to start thinking about what they will be learning and activating prior knowledge. This helps them and assists me with determining what the students already know about the subject. To complete what’s in your head, students are given one minute to write down everything that they know about, what they think of, or words that go along with the particular word we are learning about. Students then share their ideas with partners and I take some volunteers to share with the class. I really like this activator. It is different than what I may have done in the past, such as just start the lesson.

Chapter 7 -Brazil
Key Learning: The five themes of geography can be used to understand the geographical and cultural aspects of the Brazil.
Unit Essential Question(s):
How do the five themes of geography help us understand cultural differences? How do Brazil’s geography, climate, and natural resources affect the way people live?
Concept:
Concept:
Concept:
Chapter Atlas
History of Brazil
Brazil Today
Lesson Essential Questions:
Lesson Essential Questions:
Lesson Essential Questions:
Why is the Amazon River Brazil’s most famous physical feature?
How does Brazil’s climate help shape ecosystems?
How did Portuguese settlement affect Brazil’s cultures?
Did the exports from Brazil benefit all the people in the colony?
Would you help protect Brazil’s rain forest?
Vocabulary:
Vocabulary:
Vocabulary:
Amazon Basin
savanna
canopy
favela
Brazil wood
export economy
coup
Ethanol
market economy
social services
Tracey Willet
Unit Plan
Brazil
PA State Standards: These are for the whole unit.
7.1.6.B Describe and locate places and regions as defined by physical and human features.
7.2.6.A Describe the characteristics of places and regions
7.4.6.A Describe and explain the effects of the physical systems on people within regions.
7.4.6.B Describe and explain the effects of people on the physical systems within regions.
8.4.6.A Explain the social, political, cultural, and economic contributions of individuals and groups to world history.
8.4.6.B Identify and explain the importance of historical documents, artifacts, and sites which are critical to world history.
8.4.6.C Explain how continuity and change have impacted world history.
Belief systems and religions
8.4.6.D Examine patterns of conflict and cooperation among groups and organizations that impacted the development of the history of the world.
Commerce and industry
Technology
Politics and government
Physical and human geography
Social organization
7.3.6.A Describe the human characteristics of places and regions using the following criteria: Population, Culture , Settlement, Economic activities, Political activities.
6.4.6.C Explain how multinational corporations contribute to economic interdependence.
Tracey Willet
Cur 503 Spring 13
Unit Plan
Day one and two:
Essential Questions:
Why is the Amazon River Brazil’s most famous physical feature?
How does Brazil’s climate help shape ecosystems?
Activator: What’s in your head? (Brazil[TW1] )
Teaching Strategies:
Chapter walk pgs 308-319, write one prediction (about what you will learn in Chapter 7), one observation, and one connection
Preview and discussion[TW2] of key terms for Section 1 (Chapter Atlas)
Complete Talking to the Text using pages 308-315[TW3]
Summarizing Activity: Something new I learned today is… and Sharing Shape [TW4]
Lesson plan for the end of the chapter (2 days)- approximately one week later:
Essential Questions:
How do the five themes of geography help us understand cultural differences?
How do Brazil’s geography, climate, and natural resources affect the way people live?
Activator: Dear Ms. Willet note: What have you learned about the geography, climate, and natural resources of Brazil? (4-5 sentences[TW5] )
Teaching Strategies: Choice project[TW6] : I AM poem (Brazil), Cinquain Poem, 3 Haikus (one for each of the 3 sections), Acrostic (BRAZIL IS), or draw a sketch for new flag for Brazil including aspects of geography, climate, natural resources, history, and people of Brazil.
Summarizing Activity: Sharing Shape [TW7] (sharing projects)
[TW1]Students have approximately one minute to write down anything they know, think they know, or think of when they see or hear the word Brazil. A type of brainstorming that requires students to activate prior knowledge. Allows teacher to assess what students already know.
[TW2]This preview allows students to preview and discuss the key terms in the section. Discussion involves the meaning of the word from the book and what the students can relate it to in their lives or what they learned before.
[TW3]Talking to the Text is a metacognition activity. The students read a section and respond to prompts that help them monitor their understanding (Talking to the Text prompts included at end of Unit Plan). I believe that this is a monitoring process as well because it requires students to self-question, possibly reread, and paraphrase at times.
[TW4]Class gets into a circle and share what they have learned and discussions occur. Students do not raise hands and they can respectfully disagree, agree, or add on to another student’s comments. This provides for social interaction. It is a constructivist type of activity because students must always explain why or how they came to the answers they have. The “something new I learned today” is a form of rehearsal for the students.
[TW5]This functions as a summary or review of what has been learned. It is a type of metacognition.
[TW6]Multidimensional task with differentiation, autonomy, individual grouping, and grading of different assignments. Motivation should be higher for this activity. This activity would be considered an assessment of learning. It is a constructivist type of activity as well because the students are demonstrating what they have learned in a variety (choice) of ways.
[TW7]Social interaction and review.
Reflection
The unit I have chosen is part of the South America section, focusing on Brazil. In the first two days the students are asked to do an activator to get them to start thinking about what they will be learning and activating prior knowledge. This helps them and assists me with determining what the students already know about the subject. To complete what’s in your head, students are given one minute to write down everything that they know about, what they think of, or words that go along with the particular word we are learning about. Students then share their ideas with partners and I take some volunteers to share with the class. I really like this activator. It is different than what I may have done in the past, such as just start the lesson.
At the beginning of every section the class spends time going over any key terms they may come across in their reading. The purpose of this is to preview vocabulary, give the opportunity for rehearsal, and to build on any prior knowledge. Students will pronounce the term and give the definition from the book. As a class there is discussion about what it means, comparisons, and how it relates to the United States. In the past I may have just pointed out the key terms and had students read them and their meanings. The discussion helps to reinforce the meaning.
After the key term introduction the students complete an activity called Talking to the Text, a metacognitive activity. Students read a section of the book which integrates reading into social studies (Schunk, pg. 77). As the students read they are to be writing to some prompts that require them to think about what they have learned and help them to self- regulate and helps with comprehension monitoring. After the activity, students share their prompts with their partners then the class gets into the “sharing shape” and has a discussion (with me as a facilitator) about what they have learned. Students are encouraged to add to another’s comments, disagree (respectfully), and agree. It is important for students to explain why they have a particular thought or where in the book it came from, following a constructivist point of view. The sharing shape also serves as a means of social interaction. “Activities that provide social interactions are useful. Learning that others have different points of view can help children become less ego-centric” (Schunk, 2012, pg. 240). This allows for a rehearsal of what was learned, and very importantly, the students enjoy the sharing shape and are very motivated.

Students are participating in metacognitive types of activities almost daily in my classroom. These activities lend themselves well to self-regulation. I believe that rehearsal plays a big role in students learning about social studies. Before each new section the class reviews the vocabulary terms. The definition directly from the book is read and we discuss what it means, if we have seen it before, and examples of it. Summarizing is a practice I like students to use often, whether it a verbal or written summary. Stop and Draw and a Talking to the Text activity require elaboration and comprehension. In Talking to the Text students read a given part of the text and they respond to prompts about what they read. I give students graphic organizers to complete activities and take notes, which is organization. MVP/VIP (Most Valuable Point/Very Important Point) is an activity that encompasses comprehension, monitoring, and rehearsal. The students read a particular section and must determine 3 very important points and the most valuable point. They then paraphrase each of those points. After paraphrasing, the students must write a 25 word abstract (summary) of section they just read. Students share their mvp, vips, and abstracts with partners. After sharing they work with their partners to write a brand new abstract.
All of the work previously mentioned is important, but I believe that using affective learning techniques is just as important, if not more so. Students who have a good self-efficacy, are in a positive environment, and have good attitudes will perform much better. My expectation is that these will be evident in my classroom every day. I consistently walk around the room and look at student’s work and give them feedback so they know what they are doing well and what can be improved. I am the most important model to my students when they are in my classroom for the 50 minutes and I make sure they are able to learn from me, not only in the way I explain or show work to them, but also how I treat them and what is important to me. We have many class discussions I call Sharing Shape in which the students summarize and reflect on what they have learned, and they are allowed to carry on the discussion with me as a facilitator only. They love this time.
Revelations:
Reading the text by Schunk was really interesting for me. I constantly reflected on my teaching practices as I read through the chapters. Sometimes I was a little overwhelmed by some of the scientific terms, but overall it was very informative. I could put theory behind a lot of my practices. I believe that as a good educator, one does things knowing it is the right thing to do, but he/she doesn’t always know the why.
One revelation was something that I mentioned in my learning log for chapter 9. I was interesting in the statement, “Establishing a classroom environment that builds self-efficacy is conducive to improving writing” (Schunk, 2012, pg. 439). I know that building self-efficacy is important in many respects, but I never thought about it improving writing. I will continue to have my classes share their writing and have discussions about it. I will also continue to put at least one comment that is positive on my students writing rubrics. My classroom environment is very positive to begin with so I hope that what I am doing is helpful to my students.
Another kind of revelation I had was that I believe I follow mostly the constructivist view in my teaching. I had thought about it before in some of my other in which I studied different theories, but I now feel like that is what I subscribe to most.
Lastly, this class has improved my self-efficacy. As previously mentioned, I reflected on my work as I read through every page of the text and I feel good being able to put theories behind my practice. I also enjoyed sharing and getting ideas on the discussion board and receiving comments from peers.

The statement, “If you want to understand how to become more skillful in an area, closely study someone who performs that skill well,” is of utmost importance in my classes. I model activities and sometimes pair students so that one is learning from the other. I understand that the modeling isn’t a guarantee that the students are going to learn the material or how to do something but they will at least see what needs to be completed and how.
My students complete some type of metacognitive activity almost daily. One of my favorites is Stop and Draw. Students read a subsection then draw a picture that will help them remember what it was about. In the partner and class discussions, after the reading and drawing time, the students must explain WHY they drew a particular picture. I believe Stop and Draw covers the finding main idea, forming associations or images, and organizing material parts of metacognition. The students are also engaged and motivated to do this because it is fun and they are communicating with their classmates.
very interactive.
Module #4 Learning Logs
Ch #8
Ch #8
“Motivation and learning can affect one another” (Schunk, 2012, pg. 356). In my opinion, this statement cannot be more true. This chapter covered the history, models, and theories of motivation very extensively. The main points that I was able to retain were that as teachers, we need to be doing everything in our power to keep students motivated so they can possibly learn better. We need to be giving feedback, both positive and constructive, considering a student’s personal life, ability level, and self-efficacy, help students set reasonable goals, and hold high expectations. In the process of all of this, we are going to hit some road blocks and unmotivated students.
One bit of information that I never considered was that students may be going through a reactive depression, which could attribute to learned helplessness (Schunk, 2012). I feel like I deal with learned helplessness rather frequently. Many of my learning support students have a lower self-efficacy and motivation. I work very hard to squash these types of attitudes in my classroom. I often scaffold students and give them frequent feedback about their class work. I will not tolerate anyone telling me they “can’t” do something. I tell them they are all capable but they may be having some trouble doing a specific activity. I try to build their self confidence. “Students who are confident of their learning abilities and feel self-worthy display greater interest and motivation in school, which enhances achievement” (Schunk, 2012, pg. 385). The relationship I build with my students is noticeable when one enters my room. Most students are putting forth a lot of effort on their work. I think that by differentiating activities I enable students to hold themselves in higher esteem because they can all feel like they have accomplished something.
Ch #9
I found this chapter very interesting. I found the statement, “Children develop theories about their competence relative to their peers” (Schunk, 2012, pg. 430) very interesting. I knew that students constantly compared themselves to each other and that peer pressure played a big part in children’s learning and motivation, but this really put it in perspective. I try to help my students form a good self-identity by trying to find something good to tell students about their work even when they do something wrong or the answer is incorrect. I like to validate their thi nking and keep them from a having a bad self image. I feel that I am a model to the students so I behave in a manner that will help them to know how to behave in my classroom and in life. I model respect, as well as the activities that the students are expected to accomplish in my class.
I also teach a writing class once a day and I feel very good about how I structure my classes after reading this chapter. The students are given a prompt to write to every day. After about 20 minutes of writing I will have random students share what they have written. The class then shares about 2-3 things that are really good about the writing and 1-2 things that “could be improved on if there was more time to work on it.” I have seen this be a terrific experience for the students and the kids are so excited to share their work. I see how true, “Establishing a classroom environment that builds self-efficacy is conducive to improving writing” (Schunk, 2012, pg. 439.

Multimedia is used in my classroom often and I am working on adding more hypermedia. I learned how to use Activotes and have used them to play games with my students. I also have used my Wiki from time to time to have the students do activities. Our school uses a program called Compass Learning which is very interactive.
Module #4 Learning Logs
Ch #8
Ch #8
“Motivation and learning can affect one another” (Schunk, 2012, pg. 356). In my opinion, this statement cannot be more true. This chapter covered the history, models, and theories of motivation very extensively. The main points that I was able to retain were that as teachers, we need to be doing everything in our power to keep students motivated so they can possibly learn better. We need to be giving feedback, both positive and constructive, considering a student’s personal life, ability level, and self-efficacy, help students set reasonable goals, and hold high expectations. In the process of all of this, we are going to hit some road blocks and unmotivated students.
One bit of information that I never considered was that students may be going through a reactive depression, which could attribute to learned helplessness (Schunk, 2012). I feel like I deal with learned helplessness rather frequently. Many of my learning support students have a lower self-efficacy and motivation. I work very hard to squash these types of attitudes in my classroom. I often scaffold students and give them frequent feedback about their class work. I will not tolerate anyone telling me they “can’t” do something. I tell them they are all capable but they may be having some trouble doing a specific activity. I try to build their self confidence. “Students who are confident of their learning abilities and feel self-worthy display greater interest and motivation in school, which enhances achievement” (Schunk, 2012, pg. 385). The relationship I build with my students is noticeable when one enters my room. Most students are putting forth a lot of effort on their work. I think that by differentiating activities I enable students to hold themselves in higher esteem because they can all feel like they have accomplished something.

Module #4 Discussion Responses
Students are participating in metacognitive types of activities almost daily in my classroom. These activities lend themselves well to self-regulation. I believe that rehearsal plays a big role in students learning about social studies. Before each new section the class reviews the vocabulary terms. The definition directly from the book is read and we discuss what it means, if we have seen it before, and examples of it. Summarizing is a practice I like students to use often, whether it a verbal or written summary. Stop and Draw and a Talking to the Text activity require elaboration and comprehension. In Talking to the Text students read a given part of the text and they respond to prompts about what they read. I give students graphic organizers to complete activities and take notes, which is organization. MVP/VIP (Most Valuable Point/Very Important Point) is an activity that encompasses comprehension, monitoring, and rehearsal. The students read a particular section and must determine 3 very important points and the most valuable point. They then paraphrase each of those points. After paraphrasing, the students must write a 25 word abstract (summary) of section they just read. Students share their mvp, vips, and abstracts with partners. After sharing they work with their partners to write a brand new abstract.
this time.

Overall, this activity was a great success and I will do something similar in the future. The students enjoyed it, it gave them the opportunity to review their material, there was student choice so they had ownership, and I was able to see which students understood the material.
“Constructivist environments should create rich experiences that encourage learning” (Schunck, 2012, pg. 261). I envision a constructivist teacher’s classroom looking and sounding something like this: As one walks in, he/she will see the teacher walking around the room stopping, discussing, and questioning students to assess whether they understand the material and to reflect on the activity. The students will probably sitting in small groups discussing information, explaining the how and why of their work, questioning each other, or sharing opinions and thoughts. Students would be actively engaged what they are doing and all members would be involved in the conversation in some way. Metacognition, or thinking about thinking, could be addressed by having students explain their thoughts and answers either during partner, group, or classroom discussions or in assessments. This type of classroom may not be as quiet as other classrooms, but the students are engaged in learning from discussions with others and thinking about the what, how, and why of what they are learning.
Module #4 Discussion Responses
Students are participating in metacognitive types of activities almost daily in my classroom. These activities lend themselves well to self-regulation. I believe that rehearsal plays a big role in students learning about social studies. Before each new section the class reviews the vocabulary terms. The definition directly from the book is read and we discuss what it means, if we have seen it before, and examples of it. Summarizing is a practice I like students to use often, whether it a verbal or written summary. Stop and Draw and a Talking to the Text activity require elaboration and comprehension. In Talking to the Text students read a given part of the text and they respond to prompts about what they read. I give students graphic organizers to complete activities and take notes, which is organization. MVP/VIP (Most Valuable Point/Very Important Point) is an activity that encompasses comprehension, monitoring, and rehearsal. The students read a particular section and must determine 3 very important points and the most valuable point. They then paraphrase each of those points. After paraphrasing, the students must write a 25 word abstract (summary) of section they just read. Students share their mvp, vips, and abstracts with partners. After sharing they work with their partners to write a brand new abstract.
All of the work previously mentioned is important, but I believe that using affective learning techniques is just as important, if not more so. Students who have a good self-efficacy, are in a positive environment, and have good attitudes will perform much better. My expectation is that these will be evident in my classroom every day. I consistently walk around the room and look at student’s work and give them feedback so they know what they are doing well and what can be improved. I am the most important model to my students when they are in my classroom for the 50 minutes and I make sure they are able to learn from me, not only in the way I explain or show work to them, but also how I treat them and what is important to me. We have many class discussions I call Sharing Shape in which the students summarize and reflect on what they have learned, and they are allowed to carry on the discussion with me as a facilitator only. They love this time.

Learning Log #2 Ch #5
Something that I found particularly interesting in chapter 5 was the statement, “Attention is a necessary prerequisite of learning” (Schunk, 2012, pg. 172). I see this in my classroom every day. I try very hard to make the activities in my class interesting. I have often had students tell me that they do not like social studies but they like being in my class so I must be doing something correct. Table 5.1 on pg. 174 explains things that I strive for. I often use timers, count downs, and certain signals during sharing shape time (a class discussion) that helps students know when to move on to a different topic in the discussion on their own. I move around my classroom to make sure that students are completing activities correctly and understand the assignments. I am very animated in my teaching, using gestures and vocal intonation changes to keep students’ attention. By changing activities on a daily basis I keep my students from becoming too bored. Most of the class work in my room encourages the students to be responsible for their own learning.
learn it.
The preview of vocabulary at the beginning of the chapter also allows me to encourage elaboration because the class discusses what the word is, what it means, if it was learned in a previous chapter, and what is already known about the word.
Module #3 Learning Logs
I believe I have a constructivist type of learning environment occurring in my class. I, of course, can’t have a totally constructivist approach. All learning in social studies revolves around the five themes of geography and the culture, history, government, and economy of the World. Students are often asked their opinion and point of view and they are used as discussion points in the classroom. Activities often revolve around metacognitive skills requiring students to explain their thoughts and answers.
I constantly reflect on what I am teaching and how. Sometimes I change how I teach from one class to the next because something didn’t work in the first class or because I know the students in the next class. I have a level of personal knowledge, professional knowledge, and I plan and assess before and after every lesson (pg. 273). Constant reflection and change, as well as attending classes and in-services to improve my teaching skills, are part of my routine as a teacher.
Learning Log Ch #7
This chapter had me evaluating my teaching. I kept questioning myself and my teaching and how I can possibly problem solving strategies into my lessons. I revisited certain lessons and tried to determine if I have any problem solving in my lessons. I use strategies such as brain storming and giving clues that help students develop problem-solving skills. I also give students an activator question at the beginning of most lessons to get them thinking.
I believe it is very important to teach students to problem solve and to transfer their learning from one day, class, or subject to another or from school to home. My team works hard to use the same terminology, graphic organizers to aid in transfer. I also encourage students to make connections in my class so that they can “see” how our class and what we study relates to the real world. I am very pleased with how the students offer and share ideas that connect to other classes and their lives outside of school.
The statement, “If you want to understand how to become more skillful in an area, closely study someone who performs that skill well,” is of utmost importance in my classes. I model activities and sometimes pair students so that one is learning from the other. I understand that the modeling isn’t a guarantee that the students are going to learn the material or how to do something but they will at least see what needs to be completed and how.
My students complete some type of metacognitive activity almost daily. One of my favorites is Stop and Draw. Students read a subsection then draw a picture that will help them remember what it was about. In the partner and class discussions, after the reading and drawing time, the students must explain WHY they drew a particular picture. I believe Stop and Draw covers the finding main idea, forming associations or images, and organizing material parts of metacognition. The students are also engaged and motivated to do this because it is fun and they are communicating with their classmates.
Multimedia is used in my classroom often and I am working on adding more hypermedia. I learned how to use Activotes and have used them to play games with my students. I also have used my Wiki from time to time to have the students do activities. Our school uses a program called Compass Learning which is very interactive.
Module #4 Learning Logs