Division of School Improvement - Model Curriculum Units

CURRICULUM

The Wild Wild West

THE WILD WILD WEST

5^th grade

5 lessons

Students explore the Wild West as they research, evaluate, compare and contrast, and ultimately make a judgment about life in that time period.

Students use strategies to evaluate, question, organize, discover patterns, restate, summarize, reflect

This unit consists of five lessons. Through the research process, students learn how to evaluate various non-fiction texts, develop questions to help guide research, organize ideas and information, and discover patterns, structures, and relationships. Using the writing process, students restate main idea, summarize, reflect on their beliefs and discoveries, and continue practicing formal and informal writing.

Handouts including graphic organizers

Formative and Summative Assessment

Glossary

Unit Plan: Lessons

To Go West or Not to Go West, That is the Question	Word	HTML (with links to documents)
You Be The Judge	Word	HTML (with links to documents)
Researching the Past	Word	HTML (with links to documents)
Cattle Drive Research	Word	HTML (with links to documents)
Cattle Drive	Word	HTML (with links to documents)

Essential Questions:

What skills and strategies are most useful when conducting research?

Why is research important?

Why is nonfiction text more important than fiction text when doing research?

Summative Assessment and Scoring Guides:

Summative Assessment

Summative Assessment Scoring Guide

PREVIOUS LEARNING	TARGETED LEARNING	FUTURE LEARNING
R3C Use details from text to: Retell main ideas Organize a sequence of events Identify cause and effect Draw conclusions Compare/contrast texts Make predictions Make inferences Distinguish between fact and opinion Identify and interpret author’s purpose Make inferences about problems and solutions	R3C Use details from text to: Restate main idea and supporting details Sequence events Identify and explain cause and effect Compare and contrast Make predictions Make inferences Evaluate the accuracy of the information Identify and interpret author’s purpose Make inferences about problems and solutions	R3C Use details from text to: Paraphrase author’s stated ideas Sequence events Identify and explain cause and effect Compare/contrast details Make predictions Make inferences Evaluate the accuracy of the information Identify and interpret author’s purpose, slant and bias Identify problem solving processes and explain the effectiveness of solutions Respond to two or more sources
	W3D Write a summary/retell main idea of written texts	W3D Write summaries of text from magazines, newspapers, and/or informational articles
IL1A Formulate and research keywords and questions to establish a focus and purpose for inquiry	IL1A Develop research questions in order to establish a focus and purpose for a project	IL1A Develop questions and statements of purpose to guide research
IL1B Locate and use various resources to acquire information on keywords and questions	IL1B Locate and use various resources to acquire information and answer questions to guide research	IL1B Locate and use multiple resources to Acquire information Answer questions Support purpose
IL1C Identify relevant information and record main ideas and important details in own words	IL1C Use a specified note-taking format to record relevant information	IL1C Record relevant information using a variety of note-taking and organizational strategies
IL1D Informally give credit for others’ ideas, images and information founding various resources	IL1D Give credit to other’s ideas, images, and information by listing sources used in research	IL1D Define “plagiarism” and document research sources