Sandbox Landforms

UPDATED 12 June 2019

Name: Ms Parker Cohort: CGC1PB

Lesson Plan
Lesson Title: Sandbox Landforms Date: Tuesday November 19 2019

Grade Level: 9 (Applied) Subject/Strand: Geography/Interactions in the Physical

Environment

Topic: Landforms Length of Period: 75min

Lesson Plan Description --

Students will get the opportunity to interact with the Augmented Reality Sandbox with the aims of understanding
topographic representations and different landforms.

STEP 1: CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS

Ontario Curriculum Overall Expectations Ontario Curriculum Specific Expectations

B3. The Characteristics of Canada’s Natural
Environment: describe various characteristics of
the natural environment and the spatial
distribution of physical features in Canada, and
explain the role of physical processes,
phenomena, and events in shaping them
A1. Geographic Inquiry: use the geographic
inquiry process and the concepts of geographic
thinking when investigating issues relating to
Canadian geography.
B3.1 explain how various characteristics of Canada’s natural
environment (e.g., landforms, such as mountains and hills;
drainage basins; bodies of water) can be used to divide the
country into different physical regions
A1.4 interpret and analyse data and information relevant to their
investigations, using various tools, strategies, and approaches
appropriate for geographic inquiry

Learning Goals Success Criteria

Discuss with learners: What will I be learning Discuss with learners: How will I demonstrate what I have
today? learned?

We are learning about different landforms across
Canada
We are learning about topographic maps and
their usages
We are learning about weather processes and
how they impact landforms
I can describe the different landform regions of Canada
I can read a topographic map and explain ways that they may be
useful.
I can explain how weather can impact landform processes.

STEP 2: ASSESSMENT

Indicate purpose of the assessment : [ ] FOR [ x] AS [ ] OF

Indicate Achievement Chart categories being assessed

[ x] Knowledge and Understanding [ ] Thinking [ x ] Application [ ] Communication

Indicate Learning Skills/Work Habits:

[ ] responsibility, [ ] organization, [ ] independent work, [ x] collaboration, [ x] initiative, [ ] self-regulation
Indicate Assessment Mode: Indicate Assessment Strategy : Build in Indicate Assessment Tool:
Performance the sandbox Observation

STEP 3: CONSIDERATIONS FOR PLANNING

Prior Learning: What prior experiences, knowledge and skills do the learners bring with them to this learning
experience?
Mapping skills grade 7/ 8 Geography, intro to landform regions

IEP program implications: Accommodations, Modifications --

Half the class will be at the sandbox at a time.

Differentiation --
Visual - satellite photos and topo representations
Auditory - explanation of instructions and topographic lines
Kinesthetic - students will get to build their own models of landforms

Content students will learn about topographic maps and landforms

Process experientially in the sandbox
Product building in the sandbox
Environment classroom and computer lab

Resources and Materials & Technology Integration --

Augmented Reality Sandbox
Topographic maps and satellite images

Three Part Lesson

Indicate Instructional Strategy -- small group

Minds on: Motivational Hook/engagement /Introduction (approximately 10-20%)

Half of the class: Prompting Questions and Possible Learner

Intro to the Sandbox: Responses:
- How to build landforms - What do different landforms look like in
- How to make it rain, watersheds real life? What might they look like from
above (satellite images)? What would
Half of the class: these landforms look like on a
Graphic Organizer - themes of Logos topographic map?
- students will get organizer with different themes that make
a good logo

Action: During /Working on it (approximately 60%)

Sandbox: Prompting Questions and Possible Responses:

Students will have satellite photos of different landforms, as well as - How does water move down the
topographic representations of those landforms different landforms? What can this tell
- mountains us about landform regions?
- canyons
- plains
- alpine lakes
- rivers
Students will build landforms from the different landform regions of
Canada
Classroom: Students will fill out their graphic organiser and start to
design their logos for their culminating

after 30 minutes, students will switch rooms.

Consolidation & Connection (Reflect and Connect) (approximately 10 - 20%)

Sandbox: students will present what they have built in the sandbox Prompting Questions:
and their learnings about the interconnections between landforms, - What happened to the topographic lines
weather processes, and topographic representations. as you built landforms? What happened
to the water when it rained?

Extension Activities --

Students will have time to work on their culminating activity.

Next Steps --

Students will minecraft their own landforms in their minecraft simulation of their community

My Lesson Reflection -

We had good attendance this day so we actually had ¼ of the class come next door to where the sandbox was set up on
a rotation. The smaller group sizes provided more opportunity for student interaction with the sandbox, so keeping the
group sizes below 10 was good. We explored landform regions and how they are represented on topographic maps.
Students looked at satellite photos as well as their topographic representations and then were able to build these
different landforms in the sandbox and see the topographic lines represented. As the students built landforms, the
topographic lines would recalibrate and draw the new topographic lines. This provided a great opportunity for students
to make connections - by actually interacting with and seeing topographic lines represented on a 3D structure they
were able to grasp the concept of topographic lines, and also to visualize what landforms we have been talking about in
class may look like represented on a map. Students also really enjoyed “making it rain” and exploring where the water
would flow and accumulate based on the topography. Overall, this is a great tool for giving students the opportunity to
work hands on with theoretical concepts. In the future, I would plan to incorporate this lesson by building up to it in a
better sequence of learning, so that students may make the connections between the ideas they learn in class, and the
actual application of the sandbox. Students worked well in the other room designing their logos for their culminating
activity when they were not working with the sandbox.