Postcards from Africa! Learning about African Countries

Subject Area(s):

• K-12: Technology
• Social Studies(general)
• K-12: Language Arts

Grade Level(s):

• 5th-6th Grade

Description:

Fifth and sixth grade students will use information skills to research a country in Africa. They will gain an understanding of various aspects of that country. Students will use the information they learned to write a postcard to a friend. This postcard will give their friend information about one aspect of the country.

Goals & Objectives:

Instructional Goals:

• Students will locate African countries on a map of Africa.
• Students will use the internet to research an African Country.
• Students will gain an understanding of various aspects of a country’s culture.
• Students will design a postcard about an African country.
• Students will present what they learned to the class.

Learning Objectives: 

• Students will shade in and label four African countries on a blank map of Africa.
• Students will successfully access at least two suggested websites that contain information about their chosen country.
• Students will fill in a labeled table with information about an African country’s culture.
• Students will write about and illustrate one aspect of an African country to create a postcard.
• Students will orally share the aspect of the country that they chose to focus on. 

Motivational Goals:

• Generate student interest in the research process.
• Build students’ confidence in their ability to locate resources.
• Promote students’ confidence in their ability to use information skills.
• Motivate students to continue to use information skills after the lesson.

Materials:

Large map of Africa

Class Set of Blank Maps of Africa

Crayons

Handout (attached in Supporting Files)

Rubric (attached in Supporting Files)

Smartboard

Computers

Web Sites

http://geography.about.com/library/maps/blrafrica.htm

http://africa.mrdonn.org/mali.html

http://cybersleuth-kids.com/sleuth/Geography/Africa/Mali/index.htm

http://cybersleuth-kids.com/cgi-bin/search/hyperseek.cgi?Terms=tanzania&submit=Go

http://cybersleuth-kids.com/cgi-bin/search/hyperseek.cgi?Terms=somalia&submit=Go

http://cybersleuth-kids.com/cgi-bin/search/hyperseek.cgi?Terms=zimbabwe&submit=Go

http://www.afro.com/children/discover/discover.html

http://www.uiowa.edu/~africart/toc/countries.html

http://www.hmnet.com/africa/1africa.html

Procedures:

Introduction

1.When students enter the media center a blank map of

Africa will be at each student’s seat.

2.  A large map of Africa will be displayed for all to see.

3.  Students will be asked the name of the continent.  They will

be told that the continent consists of many countries.

4.  Students will share anything that they already know about Africa

and/or specific countries in Africa.

5.  It will be explained that the class will be broken up into four

sections and each section will be taking a “trip” to a different African

Country.  While there, they will find out information about that country

Body

1.  Students will be shown the word Tanzania.  They will be

told that Tanzania is a country in Africa. 

2. LMS will point out the location of Tanzania on the large map

and ask students to shade it in on their own map.

3.LMS will proceed to point out three other African countries

(Mali, Zimbabwe, and Somalia) and students will locate and shade

in each country.

4.  A handout of a table will be distributed.  Each table on the handout

will be broken into six categories (food, clothing, houses,

languages/religions, customs/leisure, and animals/plants).  Students

will research their assigned country and find out at least two

pieces of information about each category on the table.
They will work with a partner to do their research.

5.  LMS will do a brief walkthrough on the smartboard of the

websites that students will do their research on.

6.  Four sections will be established and partners will be formed.

7.  Students will move to the computers to start their research.

8.  When time is up students will be called back together to share

any interesting pieces of information that they found.

9.  LMS will summarize the lesson and explain their task for the

Next session.

Day 2

1.  LMS will review the previous session.

2.  Handouts will be re-distributed.

3.  Students will use the information that they gathered during the

last class session to write a postcard about one aspect of the country

that they researched.

4.  LMS will model choosing one aspect such as food, and writing

information about it on a postcard.  Students will be expected to draw

the postcard illustration as well.

5.  Each student will work on his or her own postcard.

Conclusion

1.  When time is up, students will gather in the meeting area. 

Each student will share the information written as well as the

postcard illustration.

2. Students will be given the opportunity to ask questions and

make comments.

Assessment:

� Students' blank maps will demonstrate their ability to locate and identify African countries on a map.

� Observations will be used to determine students' ability to use the internet to conduct research on their assigned country.

� Completed handout will show students' understanding of an African country's culture.

� Students' completed postcard will be evidence that they understood the lesson's task.

Supporting Files:

• Lesson_10_Handout.doc
  
• Lesson_10_Rubric.doc
  

Standards:

National Information Literacy Standards (K-12)

Accesses information efficiently and effectively.

• Recognizes the need for information.
• Identifies a variety of potential sources of information.
• Develops and uses successful strategies for locating information.

Evaluates information critically and competently.

• Selects information appropriate to the problem or question at hand.

Uses information accurately and creatively

• Organizes information for practical application.
• Produces and communicates information and ideas in appropriate formats

Participates effectively in groups to pursue and generate information.

• Shares knowledge and information with others.
• Subject: K-12: Technology

National Content Standards (K-12)

• Understands the nature and operation of systems
• Subject: K-12: Language Arts

Writing

• Gathers and uses information for research purposes

Reading

• Uses reading skills and strategies to understand and interpret a variety of informational texts