Project Map 

 
Grade: Second Grade  
 
Project Title: New York City: Then & Now 
 
Essential Questions (3 or so Big Ideas):  
1. How does the geography of New York City different between the boroughs? 
2. How has New York City changed over time, and what caused those changes?  
3. How can we see history in the present? 
 
Concepts (understandings under each essential questions):  
4. Essential Question 1: How does the geography of New York City different 
between the boroughs? 
Concepts: 
1. Landmarks 
2. Transportation and access 
3. Parks and green space 
4. "Melting Pot" culture & diversity  
 
Essential Question 2: How has New York City changed over time and what 
contributed to those changes? 
Concepts: 
1. The Brooklyn Bridge and High Line transportation and invention 
2. Lenape and colonialization 
3. Immigration and Ellis Island  
 
Essential Question 3: How can we see history in the present? 
Concepts: 
1. Artifacts and landmarks 
2. Cultural impacts forming neighborhoods  
 
 
Skills (what will the children be able to do- they can go under each concept, but 
may be better to collect across the year as they build their understandings) 

2017-2018 
 Project Map 
Mapping, note-taking, highlighting, construction, synthesizing information into 
sentences 
 
Activities/Enrichment Connections:  
● Classroom collage/building a mural 
● Block building/construction of landmarks and identifying features 
● Art projects redesigning the city, landmarks, transportation 
● Visual timeline of the High Line 
● Scaled Staten Island Ferries 
● Student written play 
 
Resources (websites, materials, etc.): 
● New York Historical Society 
● Blocks 
● Urban Park Rangers 
● PBS.org 
● National Park Service 
● Staten Island Zoo 
● Transit Museum 
 
Literature Connections: 
Immigration & 
5 Boroughs  Brooklyn Bridge  High Line  Statue of Liberty  Lenape 
Ellis Island 

- Larry Gets  - 21  - The  - Her Right  - Watch  - Rainbow 

Lost in  Elephants  Curious  Foot  the Stars  Crow 
NYC  - You  Garden  - The Story of  Come   
- I Live in  Wouldn’t  - High  the Statue  Out 
Brooklyn  Want to  Line  of Liberty  - America, 
- Uptown  Work on  website  - The Copper  My New 
- The Way  The  Lady  Home 
Downtown  Brooklyn   
- The Secret  Bridge 
Subway.  - Where is 
- Little Elliot  the 
Big City  Brooklyn 
- Nana in  Bridge? 
the City 
- Flying Over 
Brooklyn 

2017-2018 
 Project Map 
- Prewritten 
Nonfiction 
pages & 
articles 
 
 
Community Connections (Field trips, expert visitors, etc.):  
● Lenape trip to Prospect Park 
● Staten Island Children's Museum/Zoo 
● High Line 
● Classroom visit from Urban Park Ranger 
● Ellis Island 
● Classroom parents & family immigration? 
● Transit Museum 
 
Culmination (Celebration): 
● Play 
● Nonfiction book celebration on one of the boroughs, public opinion, travel 
agent 
● Immigration potluck 
 

2017-2018