My contemporary teaching in social studies lesson will be used with my third grade students. We will use Google Earth to research environmental issues located in different regions in the world. Students will locate different places and observe how different communities around the world are making a difference to help the environment.

Objectives: Students will be able to identify environmental issues globally.

Students will be able to use an online program to enhance their knowledge of both computers and environmental issues.

Students will be able to compare and contrast different communities around the world.

Students will research environmental issues.

Students will be able to brainstorm solutions to resolve environmental issues

21^st century skills that will be addressed include: understanding the role of media in society, exercising sound reasoning in understanding and making complex choices, understanding the interconnections among systems, ability to frame and solve problems, staying open to new ideas and perspectives, transforming learning from one domain to the other, exercising personal responsibility, acting responsible with the interests of the larger community in mind, demonstrating ethical behavior

Materials Required: Google Earth, Laptop, LCD projector

Day 1: I will introduce the different environmental issues that are occurring globally by showing students pictures from www.timemagazine.com. I will than introduce the key vocabulary that is needed in order to understand the content of the lesson. We will discuss the consequences and resolutions to these issues.  Students will identify possible concerns in North Carolina and brainstorm a list of solutions. We will use this list to compare and contrast the results after we collect data using Google Earth.

Day 2: Using the LCD projector, I will show students how to navigate Google Earth. We will explore earth.google.com/scholastic to access places around the world that are involved in committing themselves to environmental issues. As a whole class, we will explore different places around the world and observe how they are making a difference to help the environment. As we navigate, students will take notes on what the different areas are experiencing and their plans to create solutions. Students will organize their notes in an orderly fashion and compare notes with a partner.

Day 3: Students will reflect on what they learned from the previous day. They will share their reflections in their research groups. We will discuss the differences in communities we looked at and what they are doing to help change the world. We will then brainstorm a new list of solutions to help the environmental issues in North Carolina. Students will develop a plan and create a brochure that raises awareness of environmental issues. The brochure will include a description of an environmental issue in North Carolina and a potential solution to the problem.

Closing/Assessment:

I will close the lesson my having students share their brochures. Their final product will be an assessment of what they learned about developing solutions. During the lesson, students will compare and contrast the different geographical regions and the different environmental issues/solutions that e is characteristic to each region. I will use this to assess their knowledge in distinguishing the differences.

Extension Activity:

Google Earth will be at the computer center for students to explore during center rotations. They will be able to locate different areas independently and research their own topics such as climate change, historical monuments and landmarks, etc.