Massachusetts Our Cities and Towns

Grade 3

Geography

Overarching Question: How do maps and globes help us better understand Massachusetts?

Essential Questions:

· How do maps help us learn about New England?

· How do maps help us locate major Massachusetts geographic features?

· How do maps help us learn about our own community?

Enduring Understandings	MA History/ Social Studies Framework (2003)	SAMPLE Assessments AND Learning Experiences
Maps are useful tools Maps can be used to learn about our town, state, country, and world Maps are representations of geographic information Massachusetts maps have changed throughout history to reflect changes in population and use of land.	Learning Standards: Use cardinal directions, map scales, legends, and titles to locate places on contemporary maps of New England, Massachusetts, and the local community. Describe the difference between a contemporary map of their city or town and the map of their city or town in the 18^th, 19^th, or early 20^th century. On a map of the United States, locate the New England states and the Atlantic Ocean. On a map of Massachusetts, locate major cities and towns, Cape Ann, Cape Cod, the Connecticut River, the Merrimack River, the Charles River, and the Berkshire hills On a map of Massachusetts, locate the class’s home town or city and its local geographic features and landmarks.	Resource: Massachusetts Our Home (Gibbs- Smith Publisher 2002) ¨ Geography Lessons pgs 15 – 45 ¨ Teacher’s Resource Book pgs 13 - 29 Make brochures describing features of various regions of Massachusetts Identify regions of Massachusetts. Label a map of Massachusetts with rivers, cities, and landforms Draw the outline of Massachusetts from memory. Compare/contrast historic and contemporary maps of Massachusetts. (pg 45 Massachusetts Our Home) Write a poem about various places in Massachusetts. Write a letter to someone about places to visit in Massachusetts Make an alphabet book about Massachusetts Make a map of the inside/outside of your school.