colorado explorer's diary€¦ · students will create a diary from the perspective of an...

Developed under a grant from Sun Microsystems, Inc. Open Gateways at Mountain ViewElementary School by Steve Gandy, Technology Coordinator - www.adams12.org/mtnview/TISS© 2003

Colorado Explorer'sDiary

Credits:Janet WalterAdams 12 Five Star Schools Technology Integration [email protected]

Linda Block-GandyAdams 12 Five Star Schools Science Teacher on Special [email protected]

Steve GandyTechnology CoordinatorMountain View Elementary SchoolBroomfield, [email protected]

VITAL INFORMATIONSubject Matter:Elementary, History, Language Arts (English), Social Studies, Technology

Grades:4

Software Application:StarOffice, MS Office, AppleWorks


LESSON DESCRIPTIONSummary:Students will create a diary from the perspective of an explorer related to Coloradohistory. The diary will include journal entries and maps documenting their journey.

State & National Standards:CO- Colorado Academic Standards• Subject : History• Standard 1: Students understand the chronological organization of history andknow how to organize events and people into major eras to identify and explainhistorical relationshipsChronological thinking is at the very heart of historical reasoning. It provides theframework for organizing historical thought; for determining the order in time ofhistorical developments; for determining how long they lasted; and for examiningthe various relationships among historical events. It also provides students with asense of their past, which is necessary for them to understand the present and seepossibilities for the future.• Expectation by Grade or Topic : Fourth Grade Suggested Expectation : construct time lines of significant historicaldevelopments in Colorado, identifying the dates at which each occurred, and placethem sequentially along a date line that marks at evenly spaced intervals the years,decades, and/or centuries of the time period under investigation Suggested Expectation : create a brief historical narrative that chronologicallyorganizes people and events in a select period of Colorado history Suggested Expectation : create time lines that show people and events insequence by years, decades, centuries Suggested Expectation : describe a cause and effect relationship in a sequence ofevents• Standard 2: Students know how to use the processes and resources ofhistorical inquiryThe study of history requires obtaining and deriving meaning from historicalinformation. It is essential that students of history be able to use the processes ofhistorical inquiry to formulate historical questions, identify patterns of events,analyze cause-and-effect relationships, and evaluate historical arguments in order tomake usable conclusions. In addition, the skills needed for evaluating historicalarguments are fundamental for understanding current social issues and policy.• Expectation by Grade or Topic : Fourth Grade Suggested Expectation : gather historical data from oral history, interviews,diaries, letters, newspapers, speeches, texts, maps, photographs, and artwork.(Topics may vary widely, but techniques for verifying information should beconstant.) Suggested Expectation : use available technology to obtain historical information Suggested Expectation : identify, analyze, and make generalizations about life inColorado history using primary sources including artifacts, diaries, letters,photographs, art, documents and newspaper archives Suggested Expectation : distinguish fact from fiction by comparing documentarysources addressing historical figures and events with fictionalized characters andevents of common eras. Suggested Expectation : summarize and sequence major events in Coloradohistory from 1876 to the present and locate significant places and events on a mapof the state.• Standard 3: Students understand that societies are diverse and havechanged over time


An understanding of the history of societies is indispensable to an understanding ofthe rest of history and to the understanding by individual students of their roles inthe societies in which they live. Students need to understand the interactions thatled to the diversity of societies and family and kinship groupings. They need tounderstand how contacts and exchanges between and among individuals, peoples,and cultures since earliest times have affected societies throughout history. Theyalso need to be able to identify and describe the cultural heritage of the UnitedStates.• Expectation by Grade or Topic : Fourth Grade Suggested Expectation : compare how and why people traveled to Colorado; andthe major trails (Santa Fe, Smoky Hill, Overland, etc.) which they used• Subject: Reading and Writing• Standard 2: Students write and speak for a variety of purposes and audiencesWriting and speaking are essential tools for learning, for success in the workplace,and for responsible citizenship. Developing a range of writing and speaking abilitiesrequires extensive study, practice, and thinking. Students need frequentopportunities to write and speak for different audiences and purposes, and they needto be able to communicate expressively, informatively, and analytically. Growth inwriting and speaking abilities occurs by applying skills to increasingly challengingcommunication tasks• Expectation by Grade or Topic : Fourth Grade Suggested Expectation : generate topics and develop ideas for a variety of writingand speaking purposes (for example, telling a story, publishing a class newsletter,writing a letter to an adult, writing or orally presenting a book report, creating andproducing a play, introducing a speaker or an event, narrating a presentation); Suggested Expectation : organize their writing; Suggested Expectation : chose vocabulary that communicates their messagesclearly and precisely; Suggested Expectation : revise and edit speech and writing; Suggested Expectation : create readable documents with legible handwriting orword processing at the appropriate time.• Standard 3: Students write and speakusing conventional grammar, usage, sentence structure, punctuation, capitalization,and spellingStudents need to know and be able to use standard English. Proficiency in thisstandard plays an important role in how the writer or speaker is understood andperceived. All skills in this standard are reinforced and practiced at all grade levelsand should be monitored by both the teacher and student to develop lifelong learningskills• Expectation by Grade or Topic : Fourth Grade Suggested Expectation : know and use correct subject/verb agreement; Suggested Expectation : know and use correct modifiers; Suggested Expectation : know and use correct capitalization, punctuation, andabbreviations; Suggested Expectation : spell frequently used words correctly using phonics rulesand exceptions.

Local Standards:INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY CONTINUUMStandard #2 Productivity Applications: Students use technology tools to enhancelearning, increase productivity, and promote creativity.2A.1.1 Begins using touch typing with home keys.


2A.2.1 Independently uses spell check and thesaurus.2A.3.1 Changes character formatting such as font color.2A.3.2 Utilizes different document layouts. (i.e. newsletter, etc.)2A.3.3 Changes document formatting such as: alignment, bulleted/numbered lists,borders, line spacing, margins, etc.2A.3.4 Inserts a graphic into a word-processed document.

Lesson Outcomes:Students will produce a diary with at least three journal entries. They will useformatting skills to bold and underline the date and be able to import a graphic.

Assessment:Final student product should be graded using the attached Diary Rubric.

Assessment/Rubrics:Attachments: 1. Diary Rubric

CLASSROOM & TIME MANAGEMENTStudent Prerequisites:Students need to have the research done on their events for the diary and be readyto word process them as journal pages.

Lesson Preparation:Class instruction in this period of Colorado history should be completed prior to thisactivity. The diary is a final product for students to demonstrate their understandingof concepts already taught in class.

Time Frame:2 class periods. 45 Min. per class.

Implementation Steps:Day 1:Explain the task to the students: They will be using their knowledge of importantevents from their study of Colorado history to construct a chronological diary fromthe perspective of an explorer. The events will be word processed in a diary format(date then paragraph with journal entry). A map will be imported and drawing toolsused to show the progress made between each journal entry.

Extension: Have the students use the Internet (see resources) to find and downloadappropriate graphics to enhance their diaries. Have them make note of the names ofthe files they download.

Day 2:Have them begin entering the dates and descriptions of events. Encourage them touse their formatting skills to enhance the readability of the final product with color,font, and highlighting choices. (i.e. They could color all the dates in blue and eventsin green.)


The graphics should probably be added last. You may need to review how to addgraphics that are not a part of the program’s clip art feature. Have them use thedrawing tools to mark the map showing the route traveled between each journalentry.

Printing is optional but probably desirable for evaluation and sharing.

RESOURCESLesson Resources:Links: 1. Grade 4 Internet Sites – www.adams12.org/mtnview/4thSites.htmlA clickable list of our pre-screened Internet resources for 4th grade. 2. Colorado Explorers -http://jeffcoweb.jeffco.k12.co.us/elem/parr/explorers/coloexpl.htmlParr Elementary School in Jefferson County created this list of links on ColoradoExplorers. 3. Colorado's Characters -http://jeffcoweb.jeffco.k12.co.us/elem/parr/explorers/coloexpl.htmlColorado Mall provides information in an easy manner for you to browse through theState Of Colorado. 4. Doing History - Keeping the Past - http://hewit.unco.edu/dohist/Step out of your world and into the past. Take a journey into Colorado's history inthe company of people who made that history.

STUDENT PRODUCT(S)Product(s) Description:A chronological list of dates and events with evidence of color coding and graphics asenhancements to create a visually appealing diary about the life of a ColoradoExplorer.

REFLECTIONComments:A variation would be to create a book format for the pages and bind them togetherto make a small diary.

http://jeffcoweb.jeffco.k12.co.us/elem/parr/explorers/coloexpl.html

http://jeffcoweb.jeffco.k12.co.us/elem/parr/explorers/coloexpl.html

http://hewit.unco.edu/dohist/

Category 1 2 3 4 Self ScoreTeacher Score

Historical Events

Historical events chosen are completely

unrelated to the content and not thought out. 5 or less events are

recorded.

Historical events chosen are somewhat

unrelated to the content and not well

thought out. 6 - 8 events are recorded.

Historical events chosen are

somewhat related to the content and thought out. 9 - 11

events are recorded.

Historical events chosen are related to the content and

well thought out. 12 or more events are

recorded.

Diary Layout

Historical events/times are

stated and the diary is incomplete. Text

cannot be read against

background. Font size and style are

not consistent.


stated and the diary is incomplete. Text is difficult to read

against background. Font size and style are

somewhat consistent.


stated and the diary is mostly complete. Text is fairly easy to

read against background. Font size and style are mostly consistent.


stated and the diary is complete. Text is

easy to read against

background. Font size and style are

consistent.

Mechanics

Many grammatical, spelling, or

punctuation errors.

A few grammatical spelling, or

punctuation errors.

Almost no grammatical,

spelling or punctuation errors

No grammatical, spelling or

punctuation errors.

Page Layout

Very little care was shown in the

design, layout and color of the diary

pages.

Diary pages shows poor design, layout

and color.

Diary pages shows design, layout and

color that is acceptable.

Diary pages shows design, layout and

color that is pleasing to the eye.

Explorer's Diary Rubric

Name:

colorado explorer's diary€¦ · students will create a diary from the perspective of an...

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