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A Trip to the Caribbean
Subject Area:
Social Studies
Grade Level(s):
6
Duration of Activity:
Five, 50-minute class periods
Description of Activity:
This will be the culminating activity for a class unit on Caribbean island countries. Students will use the World Wide Web to research information about the culture of these countries including the religion, types of food, climate, business and industry, and typical clothing of the people in the area. They will take imaginary trips to the island of their choice, gather data and images about those countries from the World Wide Web, and create photo albums using the photo album template in Microsoft PowerPoint. The albums will be presented to the class and put on display for all students to review.
Objectives:
- Students will familiarize themselves with the Caribbean people by studying the culture of the area including the religion, food, climate, business and industry, clothing, and everyday way of life in that area.
- Students will research in depth the culture of one of the Caribbean nations.
- Students will create photo albums about these countries using the information and images they have collected from the World Wide Web and share them with their classmates.
Materials/Equipment:
- Computers with Internet access
- Diskettes or the ability to save projects to computer hard drives or a shared network drive
- Handout 1: Web Searches—Background
- Handout 2: Caribbean Island Research Guide
- Handout 3: Creating a Photo Album in PowerPoint XP
- Handout 4: Creating a Photo Album in PowerPoint 2000 (Optional handout for use with computers that do not have XP software)
- Handout 5: Rubric for Assessment of Caribbean Island Photo Album
Prerequisites (skills or background needed):
- Completion of a class unit on Caribbean nations
- Basic computer and keyboarding skills
- Basic knowledge of how to use Microsoft PowerPoint or other presentation software
- Ability to create a folder and save graphic images from the World Wide Web to a computer hard drive or a shared network drive
- Basic word-processing skills
Procedure
Teacher Component:
The teacher will
- download and install on each computer the photo album template from Microsoft’s Web site if Office XP is not installed on the computers. (The template is built into the Office XP version of this software.) The template can be downloaded for use with Office 2000 from Microsoft’s online template gallery at http://office.microsoft.com/downloads/2000/album.aspx.
- make arrangements for the use of a mobile laptop lab or computer lab for the duration of this activity.
- bookmark Web sites with general information on the Caribbean for the students to use in conducting their research. [See Using Favorites/Bookmarks in the K-12 Classroom.]
- give each student Handout 1: Web Searches—Background, which provides tips for conducting searches for information on the World Wide Web.
- review background information about the Caribbean area to prepare students for conducting their research using the textbook and other sources. A complete list of the islands of the Caribbean area can be found at: PlanetRider Travel Directory /
http://www.planetrider.com/travel-guide.cfm/Destinations/Caribbean/Islands/
- assign students islands to research. Depending on the availability of computers, this project can be conducted by students individually or in groups of two to three.
- save Handout 2: Caribbean Island Research Guide as a template file on a shared drive or to each computer so that students can record their research findings electronically. Provide the students with hard copies of Handout 2 initially and review the type of information for which they should look.
- review Handout 3: Creating a Photo Album in PowerPoint XP (or the optional handout, Handout 4) with the class.
- review Handout 5: Rubric for Assessment of Caribbean Island Photo Album.
- demonstrate creating and naming a new folder on the computer. Remind students that all images downloaded from the Web should be saved in this folder as well as their Handout 2: Caribbean Island Research Guide information files and their photo album files. Also remind the students that citations should be provided for all images and information included in their photo albums.
- allow time for the students to work on their projects and to discuss them in class when they are completed. Completed photo albums should contain at minimum of five slides: (1) title page, (2-4) three album pages with photographs or other graphic images, and (5) reference page.
- assess the projects using Handout 5: Rubric for Assessment of Caribbean Island Photo Album.
Student Activities:
The student will
- review Handout 1: Web Searches—Background with the teacher to discover tips for conducting searches for information on the World Wide Web.
- review background information about the Caribbean area as a class in preparation for conducting research using the textbook and other sources. A complete list of the islands of the Caribbean area can be found at: PlanetRider Travel Directory /
http://www.planetrider.com/travel-guide.cfm/Destinations/Caribbean/Islands/
- volunteer or be assigned to research a Caribbean island individually or in groups as the teacher decides.
- use the electronic template file for Handout 2: Caribbean Island Research Guide to make notes for text to be included in the photo album. Students will be reminded to include the complete and accurate URL for all factual information and graphics retrieved from the World Wide Web.
- review Handout 3: Creating a Photo Album in PowerPoint XP (or the optional handout, Handout 4) as a class. Ask questions about any information on the handout that is not clear.
- review Handout 5: Rubric for Assessment of Caribbean Island Photo Album with the class. Ask questions about any information on the handout that is not clear before beginning the assignment.
- create and name a new folder on the computer. Save all images and the notes on Handout 2 in this folder as well as the Microsoft PowerPoint photo album files.
- work on the projects during the time allowed in class.
- discuss the completed album with the class and submit it to the teacher for assessment according to Handout 5: Rubric for Assessment of Caribbean Island Photo Album.
Accommodations:
- Students with less computer experience or those with special needs may be paired with a student with greater computer skills.
- If presentation software is not available, the assignment can be modified and created using word-processing or desktop publishing software.
Extension Activities:
- Students can build on their research by finding out about the language and cultural traditions of people in the Caribbean and creating a small booklet entitled "A Brief Insight into the Culture of the Caribbean" using word-processing software.
- Students can work individually or in small groups to create travel brochures about the different islands in the Caribbean using desktop publishing or word-processing software.
- Students can work individually or in small groups to create posters about the different islands in the Caribbean using desktop publishing, presentation, word-processing, or other available software.
- A class Caribbean festival could be held. The class could create invitations, bulletin board materials, and classroom decorations using various types of computer software. Recipes from the Caribbean area could be located online and prepared by the students as part of the festival.
- The students could research the different crops grown and eaten in the Caribbean countries and discuss in detail how the islands’ climate affects the crops that are grown. The students could also discuss conditions that may cause the weather to differ from one island to another.
Integration:
- Social Studies
- Technology
- Language Arts
Assessments:
- Handout 3: Rubric for Assessment of Caribbean Island Photo Album
URLs:
Curriculum Frameworks
Mississippi:
Sixth Grade
- Apply spatial and ecological perspectives to people, places, and environment using social studies tools (e.g., timelines, maps, globes, resources, graphs, a compass, technology, primary and secondary sources, charts, etc.). (C, H, E)
- Analyze the human characteristics of places in the Western Hemisphere (e.g., homes, clothing, religion, language, literature, the arts, traditions, beliefs, behavior patterns and other cultural characteristics).
- Analyze the physical characteristics of places in the Western Hemisphere (e.g., climate, resources etc.).
National Educational Technology Standards (NETS):
- Apply productivity/multimedia tools and peripherals to support personal productivity, group collaboration, and learning throughout the curriculum. (3,6)
- Exhibit legal and ethical behaviors when using information and technology,
and discuss the consequences of misuse. (2)
- Select and use appropriate tools and technology resources to accomplish a
variety of tasks and solve problems.
TerraNova:
26 Geographic Perspectives (Level 11-21/22)
Demonstrate an understanding of concepts and process skills related to the study of the world’s people, places, and environments, and their interactions over time.
Construct answers, use geographic tools, and create solutions or products using inquiry skills and knowledge related to geographic perspectives.
Link and Feedback to Author(s):
Yaminoh Childress, South Delta Middle School, Anguilla, MS
ms_yaminoh@hotmail.com
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