Dr. Michael Kester-Haynes

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 18 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Midyear Inquiry Project — Our Community Atlas

Students investigate their community using maps, photos, texts, and interviews, then create an evidence-based class atlas that highlights local geography, traditions, and human–environment interaction.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 17 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Maps Around the World

Students learn continents and oceans, compare political and physical maps, use titles, legends, and directions, and evaluate which maps are most reliable for answering questions.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 16 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Caring for Our Environment

Students explore how people impact the environment and create evidence-based conservation messages to promote reducing waste and protecting land, water, and air.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 15 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Human-Made Features and Transportation

Students explore roads, bridges, and tunnels to learn how transportation routes support travel, trade, and the natural, human, and capital resources behind local industries.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 14 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Urban, Suburban, and Rural Regions

Students compare urban, suburban, and rural communities and learn how people adapt, modify, and care for their environments in each region.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 13 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Weather, Climate, and Where We Live

Students compare climates and explore how people adapt, modify, and protect their environment through daily choices, structures, and stewardship.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 12 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Landforms and Waterways

Students explore landforms and waterways, how they shape communities, and how people adapt, modify, and protect their environment.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 11 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Using Cardinal and Intermediate Directions

Students use all eight directions to read and create maps, locate landforms and waterways, and explain how geography shapes human activities.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 10 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Reading Maps and Legends

Students learn map basics—titles, legends, symbols, and directions—to locate places, read routes, and create simple maps of familiar areas.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 9 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Our Community Then and Now

Students compare past and present using photos, maps, and stories to learn community history and create simple “Then and Now” comparisons.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 8 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Sharing What We Learn

Grade 3 students turn community research into short, evidence-based presentations—posters, slides, or PSAs—using clear claims, source citations, and simple action ideas to inform and inspire change.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 7 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Gathering and Sorting Information

Help Grade 3 students gather and sort information from photos, maps, and texts while learning to spot facts, opinions, perspectives, and choose relevant community sources.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 6 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Asking Good Questions About Our World

Build inquiry skills as Grade 3 students craft compelling questions about their community and use diverse sources—maps, charts, photos, texts, and interviews—to explore answers and think like young social scientists.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 5 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Community Symbols and Traditions

Explore how Grade 3 students connect local and national symbols and community traditions to shared values like freedom, service, and pride while learning the history and people these commemorations honor.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 4 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Citizens Who Make a Difference

Empower Grade 3 students to become change-makers by studying real citizens who improved their communities and completing a simple class service project that builds responsible citizenship through respect, inclusion, and care for shared spaces.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 3 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Local Government and Leaders

Explore how Grade 3 students learn about local government by identifying leaders like the mayor and city council, matching departments to public services, and practicing responsible citizenship through real-world connections and community-focused activities.

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Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 2 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Why Rules and Laws Matter

Explore how rules and laws support fairness, safety, and the common good as Grade 3 students compare school rules with community laws, analyze real-world sources, and practice responsible citizenship through pledges and shared-space routines.

Parent Tips

Parent Tips: Focus & Impulse Control—A Home–School Game Plan

Build your child’s focus and impulse control with a simple, aligned home–school plan that uses shared cues, movement breaks, visual timers, and self-monitoring to turn energy into productive routines and consistent wins.

Grade 3 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 1 (Grade 3 Social Studies): Our Classroom Community

Build a strong Grade 3 classroom community with a civics-focused unit where students learn how rules, fairness, safety, and civic participation help everyone work together, using class meetings, voting, and inquiry to practice responsible citizenship.

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6-8 Lesson Plans

Lesson Plan (Grades 6-8): Podcast Panel on Themes - Exploring Literature Through Audio Discussion

Engage grades 6–8 students in a dynamic “Podcast Panel” project where they analyze a text’s theme through expert roles, conduct focused research, script and record polished segments, and produce a collaborative literary analysis podcast.

Grade 4 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 36 (Grade 4 Social Studies): Cumulative Synthesis & Exhibition

Showcase yearlong learning by curating maps, timelines, civic projects, and economic displays in a polished State Story Exhibition that highlights geography, history, government, and interdependence through clear, evidence-based explanations.

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Grade 4 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 35 (Grade 4 Social Studies): Our State in the Nation

Explore how state government, public services, and trade connect our state to the nation, while students practice respectful civic participation through simple class decisions.

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Grade 4 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 34 (Grade 4 Social Studies): Citizens Taking Action

Lead students in planning and completing a real-world citizenship project that promotes respect, inclusion, and digital responsibility, guiding them to identify a local need, take informed action, and share their impact through a clear, well-crafted communication product.

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Grade 4 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 33 (Grade 4 Social Studies): Balancing Economy and Environment

Evaluate how natural resources support state industries and explore the benefits, costs, and sustainable practices that balance economic needs with environmental stewardship, guiding students to create evidence-based proposals for real-world action.

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Grade 4 Social Studies Units

Unit Plan 32 (Grade 4 Social Studies): Resources and Industries

Analyze how natural, human, and capital resources—and the state’s landforms, waterways, and climate—shape where people live, work, and build industries, helping students connect geography to economic activity and understand the benefits and trade-offs of using local resources.