Instruction and Assessment: Curriculum Unit: Asia  > Student Text Analysis

Curriculum Unit: East Asia
Course: Seventh-Grade Geography

Goals and Objectives

Overview/Purpose: The purpose of this unit is to expose students to the geography and culture of East Asia which includes the countries of China, Japan, N. Korea, S. Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and the South East Island countries. The unit provides for the examination of the physical, economic, political, and cultural geography of these countries emphasizing learning of foundational skills and knowledge through group and individual activities.

Goals: Through selected learning materials, students will:

  1. Explore the physical, economic, political, cultural and historical geography of selected countries or regions.
  2. Explore and appreciate the similarities and differences of selected Asian cultures.
  3. Identify and locate selected physical features of a region or place on a map or globe.
  4. Seek and be motivated to learn more through individual research.
  5. Improve academic understanding and/or performance through cooperative learning groups.
  6. Demonstrate acceptable social skills during group activities.

Objectives: (Conforms to both ASD Seventh Grade Social Studies Frameworks: 1996 and the National Geography Standards)

As a result of this unit, students will:    (ASD 1A-D, and NGS 4B, 9A, 12B)

  1. Examine the cultural geography of selected areas or nations.
  2. Examine cultural similarities and differences existing within selected regions.
  3. Examine various elements of selected cultures to understand the ways in which cultures meet basic needs, celebrate, communicate, etc.

    (ASD 2A-C, 2E, and NGS 4A, 4B)
  4. Use basic geographic terms such as bay, plateau, strait and peninsula to describe the physical characteristics of the earth.
  5. Understand the natural processes that are part of global systems, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, climate and weather.
  6. Identify and compare cultural characteristics of a place.
  7. Understand how population growth and population density are human characteristics of places.

    (ASD 3A, 3B, and NGS 5A, 5C)
  8. Understand that regions are areas that possess common characteristics.
  9. Recognize that regional boundaries change as criteria are changed.

    (ASD 4A and NGS 15A, 15B)
  10. Recognize how physical features, climate, and vegetation affect population development.

    (ASD 5A, 5C, and NGS 13B)
  11. Understand patterns of population distribution, ideas, and change resulting from movement.
  12. Understand barriers to movement: Cultural, Economic, or Political.|

    (ASD 6L, 6Q, and NGS 1A-B)
  13. Understand the difference between a city, country, continent, and region and use these names to label specific places on earth.
  14. Identify and name land forms and water forms on a map.

Assessments: Assessments of goals and objectives will be defined on individual lesson plans.

Lesson Plans: Available Online

Introduction to Unit

Question and Answer Game

Map Labeling

Physical Geography of Asia Word-Find

China on a Globe

Lesson Plans: Available upon request

Asia Map Quiz
Emergence of China
Confucius
Journey to the Center of the Earth (Interdisciplinary Lesson)
Pacific Ring of Fire (Hyperstudio Presentation)
Chinese Cinderella Comparison/Contrast
Culture Find
Hong Kong (video)
Freehand Map [Japan-Koreas]
Japan-Korea Comparison
Education in Japan
Economics in Japan
Korean Cinderella Comparison/Contrast

Evidence Rationale Statement

Curriculum Unit: East Asia

The curriculum unit designed for my student teaching classroom accurately portrays the instructional resources used, organization and deliverance of instruction, and the assessment strategies incorporated into the lessons. This unit also demonstrates the wide variety of instructional tools and resources utilized for instruction. Instruction was based on the continuing evaluations of student learning characteristics and the reflections made on instructional effectiveness gleaned from criterion-referenced assessments.

The HyperStudio presentation included with this unit illustrates one type of technology I found to be very beneficial for classroom use. Students that are absent on the day of presentation could easily come to the classroom at a mutually agreed time to view the material they had missed. Actual participation in this activity is much more preferable than the assignment of make-up work for both student and teacher.

Evidence meets standards: Instruction and Assessment 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.5, 5.6, & 5.8

The curriculum unit also illustrates my ability to utilize both independent and collaborative learning activities. The host teacher's classroom was not set up for group activities, however, I was able to manage with some ingenuity in seating placements for grouping. These activities also show my philosophical preference for group interaction. Homework assignments and make-up work indicate strategies for engaging students in assuming responsibility for their own learning.

Evidence meets standards: Learning Environment 6.2, 6.4, 6.5, 6.6 & 6.7

Philosophy 1.2

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© 2000 by Barbara L. Wilt (Schoolmarm). All written material is protected by United States copyright laws and is not to be reproduced by any means without documented reference & credit provided to the author. The only exclusion applies to Lesson Plans & Classroom materials which are freely available for use by all without restrictions.