Grade 5 - Early Civilizations

Lesson Seven - Environment & Daily Life

Description
The teacher models how to make connections between the environment and lifestyle by discussing the relationship between Canada's location and climate, and the lifestyle of Canadians.

Expectations
- identify and compare the ways in which people in various early civilizations met their physical and social needs, including how they interacted with and used the natural environment;
– explain how two or more early civilizations shaped and used the environment to meet their physical needs for food, homes, clothing, and health (e.g., use of irrigation in agriculture in Egypt, planting of olive groves and orchards in Greece, use of bamboo for homes in China, pottery making in Mesopotamia, growing of maize by Mayans, use of cedar trees by Haida people);
– use media works, oral presentations, written notes and descriptions, drawings, tables, charts, maps, and graphs to communicate information about early communities;

Discussion/Mini-Lesson:
1. Post a chart with the headings: Climate, Landforms, Activities, Clothing.
2. As a class, discuss the various seasons. Enter this information in the right column of the chart. Make sure the students address all of the seasons.
3. As a class, discuss what activities students do during each season. Note these on the chart in the appropriate place. Repeat for the types of clothing students wear in each season.
4. Ask students questions such as: "Why don’t you wear a snowsuit in the summer?" "Why don't you swim at the beach in the winter?"
5. Hand out atlases to the class and have students find a topographical map of Ontario.
6. Discuss what the lines are on the map and what they stand for. Remind students that these lines, called contour lines, get closer together when the land is more sloped or elevated, and further apart when the slope of the land is less noticeable. For example, a mountain would be illustrated on a map with many contour lines placed close together, while a hill would be shown by fewer contour lines placed farther apart.
7. Tell students to look at the map and identify the type of land found in your region of the
province. Discuss.
8. Ask: "How do you think the types of landforms in our area affect the kinds of activities we do?" Get the
8. Ask: "How do you think the types of landforms in our area affect the kinds of activities we do?" Get the discussion started by referring to recreational activities such as cross-country or downhill skiing.
9. Refer students to a world map. Tell them to look at the proximity of their local area to the equator. Ask: "How do you think the location of our community in relation to the equator has affected the way we live?" Relate this discussion back to Lesson 6: Mapping. Discuss.


Learning Log/Journal:
10. Ask them to: “Discuss how the environment affects our lives.” Have students complete a Retell, Relate, Reflect style response to this question in their Learning Logs.  Retell: Describe the environment, climate, and landforms in our community.  Relate: Summarize how the environment, climate, and landforms in our community affect the way we live.  Reflect: Knowing what you know about how environment, climate, and landforms affect the way you live, what conclusions can you draw about the effects of these things on people in ancient communities?

Adaptations
To accommodate for the needs of students with learning difficulties, in this lesson the following accommodations could be incorporated into the lesson plan:
* check in with the student regularly;
* provide preferential seating as necessary to assist with focussing and maintaining attention. The front of the class may be beneficial;
* use visual aids, demonstrations, simulations, and manipulatives to ensure that students understand concepts presented;
* make use of overheads and keep each overhead for later review by the student;
* provide a copy of peer or teacher notes to allow student to focus on listening;
* provide opportunities to ‘pair - share' or activity breaks to assist the student's ability to focus on instruction.


Assessment
- use the Learning Log Rubric to assess student responses

Assessment Strategies
- Learning Log


Assessment Recording Devices

- Rubric

Resources
Atlases - class set
The Atlas of the Bible Lands: People, Daily Life and Traditions -
Andrea Due
chart paper or blackboard

Notes to Teacher
This lesson is done as a whole class. The focus is always be on the effect of environment on the lives of students in order to help them understand the relationship between environment and its effect on daily activities. Gather posters from the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Recreation that show different activities and landforms to support your lesson.