Concept Mapping: Week 10

 For years, the school district I work at does a Thanksgiving Group presentation with third graders, along with a feast of foods from the first Thanksgiving.  It is a very big deal that all the third graders participate in.  We begin at least 2 weeks in advance by mixing the kids up among all the third grade teachers into various groups.  Each group is assigned to a specific teacher that they work with three days per week for 30-45 minute sessions.  The groups that are listed on the map above are the five groups they are split up into.  Under each of the five groups, I created a couple questions for the kids to see that we are trying to find answers to.  Although each child will only be working in one of the groups, I still like to show the third grade as a whole all the topics we will be learning about, even if it is not the group they are assigned to.  Regardless of the group they are in, they will still hear all the presentations from other groups (presented in basic powerpoints, with pictures, visuals, etc) and have to listen for 4-5 facts from each group to record on paper to hand in for a Social Studies grade.  I think this map will be a great way for the kids to see all the groups and what the main questions are that we are asking them to find. 

When all the research and group work is complete, we get together as a whole class to share all of our presentations and visuals, we eat a Thanksgiving Feast together (we usually have 4-5 turkey's made, cornbread, our own whipped butter that the kids help make with the hand churn, corn, popcorn, cucumbers, venison, fish - all the foods from the first Thanksgiving).  All the teachers from the school are invited to the feast, where the kids are dressed as with pilgrims or Indians.  It is a very big deal and a great way to celebrate right before Thanksgiving break!  We then wrap the day up by playing some of the games one of the groups came up with as a whole group.  It is a great (and stressful for teachers) tradition that is worth all the time that gets put into it!