Essential Question Lesson Plan Template
Title
The Seasons
Grade: 1-2
Subject: The season of the year
Overview
1. Students will identify observable attributes of people, places,
things, and events in order to compare their similarities and
differences as they relate to the seasons.
2. Students will associate the seasons with calendar months.
3. Students will identify the holidays that occur during each
season.
Essential
Question
Subsidiary
Questions
4. Students will know activities appropriate for each season.
Why are the seasons important in your life?
1 .How are seasons related to the calendar months?
2. How are temperature variations related to the seasons?
3. How do the seasons affect food availability?
Connection to
Standards
4. How do the seasons affect the way you dress?
Subject Matter Standard

Earth Science

Reading Comprehension

Word Analysis, Fluency, and Systematic Vocabulary
Development

Listening and Speaking Strategies

Writing Strategies

Written and Oral English Language Conventions

Measurement and Geometry
Technology Standard
 Basic operations and concepts
 Social, ethical, and human issues
 Technology research tools
Assessment
Create a calendar showing the different holidays and arranged
by Seasons.
Multiple Choice teacher made test
California Seasons and Holiday’s Brochure-showing typical
foods, activities and clothing for each season.
Activities/Tasks Day 1
Procedures
We start with a general overview of the season’s unit activities
and projects. Then we move on to small circle discussion as to
how the seasons come about. Using a globe of the world and a
big yellow chair that symbolizes the sun I demonstrate the
process that make the different seasons possible. After we go
over new vocabulary: Orbit, rotation, axis, revolution,
hemisphere, seasons, spring, summer, fall, winter. Next, the
student’s take turns coming up to the front of the class and
showing the class how the placement of the globe in relation to
the sun would look like during their favorite season. After we
moved to the carpet and we read half of the book Cloudy with a
Chance of Meatballs a story that takes place during the winter
season and a storm of food forces the citizens to move out of
the town of Chewandswallow. I ended the lesson by giving the
students a handout to take home to their parents. This handout
gave the students some general information on what to expect
for the next few weeks and some specific instructions regarding
their final project along with a copy of the rubrics that will be
used to grade their work. It also, includes information on the
upcoming seasons celebration, which will mark the end of our
unit. As well as giving the parents advance notice of events to
come and the need for their assistance.
The Seasons
A SEASON is what we call one of the four periods of the year. Every season spring, summer, fall and winter lasts approximately three months
and each brings a change in temperature, weather and either makes daylight last more or less depending on the season.
Another name for the four seasons is the climatic seasons due to the differences in temperature and the weather changes that
come with each season.
There are two things that cause the change in seasons:
1.
The earth’s orbit (how the earth travels around the sun)
2.
The tilt of the earth’s axis (at an angle of 23.4 degrees).
It takes the earth one year to travel around the sun (complete 1 orbit)
It completes one rotation around its axis every 24 hours.
When the North Pole turns toward the sun, the Northern Hemisphere gets the most sunlight and it is summer there. When the
pole moves away from the sun, the Northern Hemisphere gets the least sunlight and it is winter.
Equinox= Latin for equal night and it is one of the days when the sun is directly
above the equator. When this happens the days and the nights are almost the same
length everywhere on Earth, usually March 19, 20, or 21 and September 22 or 23.
The March one means the beginning of Spring and the September one is the
beginning of Fall.
The distance between the Earth and the Sun is the shortest in January.
Solstice= When the sun is at either the northernmost or the southernmost position from the earth. One occurs in June 20, 21,
or 22 which marks the beginning of summer and it is considered the longest day of the year. The other occurs on December 21
or 22 and it marks the beginning of winter and it is considered the shortest day of the year.
Not all parts of the world have 4 seasons. Some places like the tropics have very little changes in temperature, but the
amount of rain goes up and down so they either have a wet season or a dry season. Other places such as Alaska have either a
light season or a dark season. In these regions the sun shines almost all of the summer and hardly ever comes out during the
winter.
Day 2
We began our lesson by reading the second half of Cloudy with
a Chance of Meatballs. We talked about the different scenes in
the book specifically the different types of weather. After, the
children return to their desks and write about the book and what
they think it would be like if it rained food here in San Diego.
They need to tell me how do they think the townspeople felt
having to buy food from a store and saving it in a refrigerator
after they were used to going outside to get it. Last, thing they
needed to tell me is if there had been a time when they had to
move and how did they feel about it?
Next, using their Insights book we look at the seasons by
comparing their cycle to that of the time clock. (Which they have
been studying) We talked about how the seasons move in a
rightward direction just like the regular clock and how the
seasons start with spring and end with winter. After the children
ended the lesson by making their own seasonal clock. They first
trace the circle in a rightward direction with their favorite color
and they color the pictures inside the circle. Next, they match
the names of the seasons to the pictures and last they place Mr.
Running Bear between two seasons facing the correct direction
in order to get to the next season.
Day 3
Our lesson begins with a new song about the seasons. Then we
move on to our Insights book and the children work on a
season’s worksheet, which shows pictures of the 4 seasons for
the students to color, sort and label. Next, I introduce the
months of the year according to the seasons:
Spring
March
April
May
Summer
June
July
August
Fall
September
October
November
Winter
December
January
February
Using the overhead we went over the different months related to
the season and reviewed the different holidays that happen
each month. We also went over two new concepts: Equinox and
Solstice. In addition I give the students a handout, which
explains these concepts in simple terms. They will eventually
use this information in their presentations and they will be tested
on the material at the end of the week. Their homework is to go
home and share the information with 3 adults in preparation for
their quiz.
Day 4
Our lesson begins with the season’s song. Then we move on to
our Insights book and the children work on 2 season’s
worksheets, On the first sheet they match pictures of the
seasons to the name of the season and to the appropriately
dressed character that matches each season. The second one
asks them to match children dress in different seasonal clothing
to different temperatures represented by a thermometer in both
Celsius and Fahrenheit temperatures. After they children finish
their seatwork we move on to the carpet where I will read
January Brings the Snow: A Book of the Months. After a brief
discussion about the book the students go back to their desk
and do a reading response in their journals. Next, we review for
the upcoming quiz by going over the questions they will have to
answer and where the answers can be found in their journals
and in the handout that they took home to share with 3 adults.
Day 5
We begin by Reading Frog and Toad all Year. We take a few
minutes to relate the story to our projects and then we move
right on to our quiz.
1. The two things that cause our change in seasons are:
a) Changes in the environment and the sun’s rays
b) The earth’s orbit and the tilt of its axis
c) The earth’s rotations and revolutions
d) Rainfall and temperatures
2. How many season are in one year?
a) 1
b) 3
c) 4
d) 2
3. It takes 24 hours for the earth to make a single?
a) Rotation
b) Circle
c) Revolution
d) Orbit
4. When the earth travels once around the sun, we call this a ?
a) Rotation
b) Season
c) Revolution
d) Axis
5. My favorite season is _____________________ because_______________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Next, we began to work on our calendar project. The students
received a package, which contained color-coded pages that
matched their handout about the months and the seasons. They
also received 12 blank calendar pages with only the name of
the month on them and an illustration and a sheet with random
holidays. Their task was to match the calendar months to the
color –coded paper and paste then on. Next, they had to sort
the holidays and place in the right months. The last step is to
put the numbers inside the calendar and finish their illustrations
by coloring and adding any other pictures.
Day 6
Students begin work on their brochure by going on to the
internet in search of information.
Teacher selected web pages:
The Seasons -www.d70.k12.il.us/adler/1stseason.htm
The story behind our seasons - www.edhelper.com
Next, they record their findings in their journals and illustrate.
After reviewing the information the students move to the carpet
were they would look through magazines for pictures that will
help illustrate their brochure. While the students work the
teacher walks around answering any questions and monitoring
their work. The lesson for Day 6 ends with all of the students
working in circle to create a brainstorming map of catchy
phrases that could be used to catch the readers’ interest. Before
going home the teacher gives the students a parent letter which
lets the parent know what season their child will be for the
celebration and the kind of food donation that would be required
for Friday’s party.
Day 7-9
The class continues to work on the brochure project this time
the brainstorming ideas are directed toward the types of
descriptive words the students would need to use in their
brochures in order to make the visitors want to come visit
California. Another chart was made about foods and activities
for each season. All of these items were recorded in the
student’s journal for them to use while creating their brochure.
The format for their writing is described and modeled as well as
sample sentences.
The students are placed in groups of five per season to create
their brochures. Teacher walks around answering questions and
monitoring progress.
On Day 9 the students take turns using the rubrics to grade one
another. Then they go back to their groups and make final
corrections based on their peers grading. (teacher monitors and
makes comments and corrections as needed).
Day 10
Season’s Celebration!
The four groups take turns presenting their brochure and talking
to the class about how they are dressed and why and also
about the different foods they brought to the celebration and
why.
Samples of
Student Work
Teacher
Commentary
Reflection
Seasons clock
Calendar separated by season and showing holidays
California season’s brochure
What problems do you anticipate with this lesson?
The limited internet resources will one of the major difficulties as far
as coordination of this lesson. The next big issue will be time
management as 1st and 2nd graders are slow in the area of written
production. The last area of concern is making the vocabulary
accessible as the terms are not common and the concepts are complex.
How will this lesson fit into your overall curriculum planning?
This lesson fits well into the overall curriculum as it provides real life
practice for calendar and temperature both of which will serve as preCAT6 review. It also involves reading comprehension as well as
compare and contrast in the area of writing. This is a very broad
subject that allows for many different activities and it also provides the
student with much needed practice of all of the skills mentioned as
well as expansion of their vocabulary and science knowledge.