Beyond-the-Basic Productivity Tools (BBPT)

Lesson Idea Name: Features of the United States

Content Area: Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 4th Grade

Content Standard Addressed:

SS4G1 Locate important physical and man-made features in the United States. a. Locate major physical
features of the United States: the Atlantic Coastal Plain, the Great Plains, the Continental Divide, the Gulf of
Mexico, the Mississippi River, and the Great Lakes.

Technology Standard Addressed: Digital Citizen b. engage in positive, safe, legal and ethical behavior when
using technology, including social interactions online or when using networked devices.

Selected Technology Tool:

URL(s) to support the lesson (if applicable):

https://kennesawstate16.padlet.org/mlewi178/featuresoftheus

Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy Level(s):

☒ Remembering ☒ Understanding ☐ Applying ☐ Analyzing ☐ Evaluating ☒ Creating

Levels of Technology Integration:

☐ Infusion Level: Students may work at a higher Bloom’s Level, but they do not have any “Voice or Choice”
during the activity and most of the decisions are made by the teacher.

☒ Integration Level: We would like to see ALL lessons/activities reach this level. The project is student-
driven. Students have “Voice and Choice” in the activities, selecting the topic of study and determining the
technology tool to demonstrate mastery of the standard. The teacher becomes more of a facilitator.
☐ Expansion Level: The projects created are shared outside of the classroom, publishing student work and
promoting authorship. This could be reached by showcasing the project on the school’s morning
newscast, posting the project to the classroom blog, or publishing via an outside source.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL):

This activity enhances the learning experience for students in the classroom by allowing students to
collaborate, comment on their peers’ work, and receive feedback from the teacher and other students. Padlet
allows for students to receive instructive feedback on the location of land features and landmarks required by
the fourth grade Social Studies standards. The first principal of the UDL wheel (Representation) is represented
in this activity. Students are learning the “WHAT,” and are doing so by using the learning strategy that works
best for them.
Lesson idea implementation:
The teacher will introduce the activity by showing the students an example along with directions on the
SMART Board. The teacher will explain that each landmark needs to be in the correct place, along with a
random fact about that landmark or land feature. The fact can be anything they previously know about that
area, or a new fact found on the internet. When the students are done creating their own Padlet, they need
to go onto a classmate’s link and click the thumbs up or thumbs down button representing whether they
agree or disagree with the information posted. If they disagree, a comment should be left stating what they
disagree with and why. The activity should take about 45 minutes to complete.

SBooker, 2020
 Beyond-the-Basic Productivity Tools (BBPT)
Students will be assessed on two things. They will be assessed on the accuracy of their facts and locations of
the land features and landmarks, and they will be assessed on whether or not they participated in providing
feedback to their peers. The final product will be used to differentiate learning by teaching students the
correct location of the landmarks, and by teaching the students new facts that they might not have known
about that particular landmark. I will extend student learning to a higher level by requiring my students to
provide feedback to their peers. This will force my students to research not only their own facts, but also the
facts of their peers to ensure accuracy. I will conclude the lesson by choosing one student’s work that I feel
did a fantastic job and showing it on the SMART Board to the class. We will go over the location of the
landmarks, as well as the facts that they provided. Students will receive feedback on a rubric. I will grade each
student’s work and hand back a graded rubric based on how well I feel they showed that they comprehended
the material being taught.
Reflective Practice:
I feel like the activities I created could impact student learning by enhancing collaboration within the
classroom. Students become uninterested a lot of times with individual work. This activity gives students the
opportunity to visually see the landmarks, learn new facts, and provide feedback to their peers based on what
they have learned so far. To further extend the lesson, I could require students to provide more facts on their
Padlet. They would need to do more research to find information about the newly learned landmarks. They
may need to learn the capitals of the states provided and be tested later on. Technology tools include a
computer, and internet access to Padlet.

SBooker, 2020