SBE Planning Process for American Symbols
Length of Unit: 15 days (approximately)
1st: What should students know and be able to do?
Objectives:
SOL 1.11
The student will recognize the symbols and traditional practices that honor and foster patriotism in
the United States by:
a) identifying the American flag, bald eagle, Washington Monument, and Statue of Liberty;
b) demonstrating respect for the American flag by learning about the Pledge of Allegiance .
Essential Questions:
?
?
What are some patriotic symbols and traditions of the United States?
How do citizens demonstrate respect for the American flag and the United States?
Essential Understanding:
*
*
The United States has patriotic symbols and traditions.
Patriotic symbols and traditions honor the people and the history of the United States.
Essential Knowledge:
Terms to know
* symbol: A picture or thing that stands for something else
* tradition: A custom or belief that happens over a long period of time
*patriotic: Showing respect for and love of country
*American flag: A flag representing the United States
Patriotic symbols of the United States
* American flag
* bald eagle
* Washington Monument
* Statue of Liberty
Citizens say the Pledge of Allegiance to demonstrate respect for the American flag and the United
States.
Essential Skills
* Identify and explain symbols.
*Gather, classify, and interpret information
2nd: How will I, and they, know when they are successful?
*Successfully completing worksheets, writings, and end of unit assessment.
*Observations and discussions.
* Technology Assignments
3rd: What learning experiences will facilitate their success?
Day1: Give Pre-assessmentRead aloud multiple choice assessment to the class as a whole group.
Monitor individual students to ensure understanding of the questions and that the student is
completing the assignment.
Discuss terms: what is a symbol? What does it mean to be patriotic?
View “What is a symbol?” PowerPoint. J:\American Symbols\What is a symbol
powerpoint.ppt
Day 2: Begin the 1st American Symbol- The American Flag
Begin our virtual field trip PowerPoint.
Today we will take a virtual field trip to an American Flag factory located in Southwestern
Virginia. J:\Virtual Field Trip - American symbols\americansymbolsVFT.ppt. View the first
3 slides only and then slide 7 on the factory. Discuss the pictures.
Begin writing assignment for unit- United States Passport
Fill out name, give students their school pictures, All About me.
Day 3: Continue American FlagWhat do you remember about the American Flag?
View PowerPoint on American Flag- J:\American Symbols\The American Flag.ppt. Discuss
the slides as they are viewed.
Discuss that the flag:
Has 13 red and white stripes that stand for the 13 original colonies. There are 7 red stripes
and 6 white stripes.
Has 50 white stars that represent all the states. The stars are on a background of blue.
The red stands for bravery; the white for purity; the blue for justice.
Nicknamed “Old Glory”
Look at different versions of the American flag and how it has changed over time.
Worksheet on American flag and begin art project on flag.
Begin art project- students will be given a piece of red and white construction paper. They
will use a ripping technique to rip the red paper and glue onto the white paper to form the
red stripes of the flag. Make sure that students make 7 red stripes. Then students will then
use blue and white crayons to make the blue background and white stars.
Day 4: Continue American Flag
Read non-fiction book on the flag.
Write about the flag in student passport. Give at least 3 facts and draw a picture of the flag
using correct colors.
Worksheet
Finish art project.
Day 5: Begin 2nd American Symbol- Bald EagleView virtual field trip PowerPoint- slides 1 to 3 and click on eagles nest to view eagle slides.
Begin discussion on the Bald Eagle- Why do you think the eagle is a symbol of our country?
Tell the students that the bald eagle stands for strength, courage, and freedom.
View and discuss PowerPoint on the American Bald Eagle- J:\American Symbols\The Bald
Eagle.ppt
Day 6: Continue Bald EagleDiscuss what we learned about the bald eagle? **Who didn’t want the bald eagle as our
national bird? And what did he think our national bird should be?
Talk about the attributes of the bald eagle while looking at pictures- strong, powerful beak,
very good eyesight, eats fish and other small animals, white feathers on his head which is
why he is called bald.
Worksheet on the bald eagle.
Begin art project for the bald eagle- students will create the bald eagle using rip art.
**go to http://www.wvec.com/marketplace/microsite-content/eagle-cam.html to view a live web cam
of the American Bald Eagle in Norfolk, VA.
Day 7: Continue Bald EagleFor morning work students will make a bald eagle puppet using a small, brown paper bag.
On the back of the bag, they will write 3 things that a bald eagle would say to describe
himself.
View eagle cam.
Read non-fiction book on the bald eagle and view small video clip- J:\American
Symbols\bald eagle.asf
Have students share their bald eagle puppets and what they would say if they were an eagle.
Write in passport about the bald eagle and draw a picture.
Finish art project.
Day 8: Begin 3rd American Symbol- Statue of Liberty**give students copy of poem used in Language Arts- “ Lady Liberty”
View virtual field trip PowerPoint slides 1 to 3 and 4.
Begin discussion on Statue of Liberty and look at pictures of the statue: she was a gift from
France, she is made out of copper, she stands in a harbor in New York city, her crown has 7
points to represent the 7 seas or continents, she holds a torch in her right hand to light the
way for people coming into the harbor and a book in her left to represent that everyone can
learn.
Go to http://www.kidzworld.com/article/2512-statue-of-liberty-fun-facts to talk about more
fun facts on Lady Liberty.
Day 9: Continue the Statue of Liberty
Continue discussing facts about the Statue of Liberty.
Start Science Inquiry- Why is the Statue of Liberty green? ..\..\29sci.pdf
Students will write down in their science journal the question, materials, and their
predictions.
Complete worksheet
Begin writing in passport
Day 10: Continue with Statue of Liberty
Finish writing in passport
Finish science inquiry- write down their conclusions
Start and finish art project- students will cut and glue a pattern of the Statue of Liberty onto
construction paper.
They will paint the pattern using green paint.
Day 11: Begin 4th American Symbol- The Washington MonumentView virtual field trip slides 1 to 3 and 5 & 6.
Begin discussion on Washington Monument-view and discuss PowerPoint J:\American
Symbols\The Washington Monument.ppt
Talk about key characteristics of the monument- built to honor George Washington, stands
in Washington, D.C., why are the flags surrounding it?, why is it different colors?
Complete worksheet
Day 12: Continue the Washington MonumentRead nonfiction book on Washington Monument
Complete passport writing and draw picture
Start art project of Washington Monument- students will use white rectangles to create the
monument and a triangle on top to represent the pyramid shape.
Day 13-14: Begin Review
Finish any incomplete work- passport writings, art projects, worksheets
View Brain pop video on American Symbolshttp://www.brainpopjr.com/socialstudies/citizenship/ussymbols/
Complete American Symbols worksheet packet that covers all 4 symbols.
More review activities using the Smart Board:
J:\American Symbols\American flag and bald eagle vortex.notebook
J:\American Symbols\American symbol quiz.notebook
J:\American Symbols\american symbol vortex.notebook
Day 15: Final AssessmentRead aloud multiple choice assessment to the class as a whole group. Monitor students to
ensure they are answering questions as they are read aloud.
Complete a replica of the Washington Monument using toothpicks and gumdrops.
**Throughout the unit, students will be completing numerous worksheets on American Symbols. They
will also go to the computer after Day 12 and create a PowerPoint on American Symbols with the
technology teacher. Students will also create a document on their favorite symbol using the computer
software program PIXIE. The students will write what their favorite symbol is and why it is their
favorite using the facts that they learned. Then they will create a picture of the symbol.