Students will build structures based on American coastal, mountain, or plain environments. Each group will receive an informational text about the geographic conditions within the location. Students will decide which building materials will work best within the environment.

This interactive map of Africa contains links to country maps which provide information such as, population, flag, language, capital, industry, and agriculture.

This interactive map of Asia contains links to country maps which provide information such as, population, flag, language, capital, industry, and agriculture.

This second chapter covers the geography standards for second grade. Now that students have a firm understanding of what a community is, we move into the study of communities by getting students into exploring maps. In Kindergarten and First grade we had teachers construct a classroom box. This activity was designed by Dr. Phil Gersmehl and his wife Carol and is based upon some of the work they did in Harlem New York. In this chapter we once again revisit the idea of a classroom in a box, and present to you here instructions for making your own.

Students identify a globe as a model of the Earth. They interact with maps and globes to locate land masses (continents) and oceans.

Students are given their "Global Folders" and the teacher explains to them how it will be used throughout this learning unit. The teacher introduces the global issue of: challenges children face in trying to go to school around the world. This lesson was taught to my dual language students in English during their social studies content time. All available resources are provided in English.This lesson was developed by Gabriela Bermingham as part of their completion of the North Carolina Global Educator Digital Badge program. This lesson plan has been vetted at the local and state level for standards alignment, Global Education focus, and content accuracy.            

Students will learn about organizations, campaigns and leaders who are making an effort to help children world-wide go to school and get educated. Such leaders include Michelle Obama with her program and Oprah Winfrey. The students will watch a video about an organization called "Transforming Education for Girls Project." Students will take a leadership role and begin to plan actions to improve conditions in the country of Guatemala by starting a fundraiser at the school level. The funds collected will be used to fund educational teaching materials and student learning resources. The fundraiser is supported by Teachers 2 Teachers Global, who will use the money collected to fund the classroom in which the teacher is connected with and is planning future interactive Skype lessons. (see Leson 6: Skype Lessons with Another Classroom).This lesson was developed by Gabriela Bermingham as part of their completion of the North Carolina Global Educator Digital Badge program. This lesson plan has been vetted at the local and state level for standards alignment, Global Education focus, and content accuracy.            

Students will learn about new friends: Manju from Nepal, Wadley from Haiti, and Jednel from Tanauan. Students learn how different natural disasters, such as earthquakes and typhoons, have destroyed schools in various parts of the world due to their catastrophic nature, leaving children struggling go to school and get an education. These are cross-curricular lessons that include the teachings of science, social studies and the language arts. These lessons were taught in English during social studies/science content time.This lesson was developed by Gabriela Bermingham as part of their completion of the North Carolina Global Educator Digital Badge program. This lesson plan has been vetted at the local and state level for standards alignment, Global Education focus, and content accuracy.            

Students will compare and contrast two or more versions of the same story (e.g., Cinderella stories) by different authors or from different cultures. The students will be able to understand how the cultures differ in food, language and arts through the two stories that are being compared and contrasted. Then, the students will use these tools that they know to help broaden and expand their cultural views by intergrating the folktales into the math, language arts and social studies curriculum.This lesson was developed by Lisa Bruet as part of their completion of the North Carolina Global Educator Digital Badge program. This lesson plan has been vetted at the local and state level for standards alignment, Global Education focus, and content accuracy.            

Students will collaborate with a group of students and select a Culture Project to complete together in school.  The group will choose, design and plan and implement what the groups roles will be and what materials are needed to complete the project.  The teacher should allow the students to work on projects in school so that equal participation is taking place and can be observed. The students may select the countries in the folktale unit to research or one of their own as long as the project goals are met and agreed upon by all members in the group.This lesson was developed by Lisa Bruet as part of their completion of the North Carolina Global Educator Digital Badge program. This lesson plan has been vetted at the local and state level for standards alignment, Global Education focus, and content accuracy.            

In this lesson, students will take action in their community by cleaning up the trash around their school and writing a reflection about how they feel after helping their school/community. This lesson was developed by Amy Smereka as part of their completion of the North Carolina Global Educator Digital Badge program. This lesson plan has been vetted at the local and state level for standards alignment, Global Education focus, and content accuracy.

In this lesson, students identify a globe as a model of the Earth. They interact with maps and globes to locate land masses (continents) and oceans.

This lesson will address the physical and human characteristics of the local community. Students will build geographic vocabulary as well as use map skills.

Students play a guessing game, using questions and maps, to identify the name of a city, state, country, or major physical feature in a continent of the teacher's choosing, or the United States.

This inquiry explores how communities develop and sustain themselves by examining the positive and negative impacts of development on community environments. In considering the idea that communities grow and change over time, students develop an argument with evidence that answers the compelling question "How do we shape our environment?"

ELL students will read a map key on a map of the country and use the key to highlight different features in the map key to answer the questions.

ELL students will read a map key on a map of a city and use the key to highlight different physical and human features in the map key to answer the questions.

Students locate themselves on a map. They explore spatial relationships among geographic features that are nested inside one another, such as countries within continents, states within countries, and cities within states.

Students analyze maps of places from neighborhood to world and then create maps for the locations of their own homes at multiple scales.

In this lesson, students learn the definition of a map legend, identify the symbols for cities, and locate specific cities on a United States map.