Students read informational texts about the seven continents, and what makes each of them unique, while working to understand text features and develop skills in writing about informational texts.
As part of the upgrade to Fishtank Plus, this unit was revised in October 2020. Some texts, materials, and questions may have changed as part of the revision. If you are looking for the 2018-2019 version of this unit, visit our archives.
In this unit, students learn about the seven continents and what makes each continent unique. A large part of the 1st grade English Language Arts curriculum is focused on communities and understanding communities around the world. In order to understand the differences between communities around the world, students need to understand what the world is, identify the different continents, and explain some of the differences between continents. Students will use the facts learned in this unit to deeply connect with the characters and information they learn in later units.
This unit will serve as the foundational unit for creating a strong Read Aloud, discussion, and writing culture in the informational block. Students will learn to identify facts from informational texts and use those facts to describe places and ideas. Students will also learn how to use text features to locate and understand information in a text. By the end of the unit, students should be able to name different text features and explain how the text features help a reader better understand an informational text.
In writing, students will write daily in response to the text. The focus for this unit is on building student stamina and routines in regard to writing about reading. After learning about each continent, students will participate in a variety of independent and shared writing activities in order to develop skills in informational writing while simultaneously solidifying understanding of new material.
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Book: Explore North America by Bobbie Kalman (Crabtree Publishing Company, 2007) — IG720L
Book: Explore South America by Bobbie Kalman (Crabtree Publishing Company, 2007) — IG700L
Book: Explore Africa by Bobbie Kalman (Crabtree Publishing Company, 2007) — IG650L
Book: Explore Antartica by Bobbie Kalman (Crabtree Publishing Company, 2007) — IG700L
Book: Explore Australia and Oceania by Bobbie Kalman (Crabtree Publishing Company, 2007) — IG640L
Book: Explore Europe by Bobbie Kalman (Crabtree Publishing Company, 2007) — IG690L
Book: Explore Asia by Bobbie Kalman (Crabtree Publishing Company, 2007) — IG610L
See Text Selection Rationale
This assessment accompanies this unit and should be given on the suggested assessment day or after completing the unit.
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In this unit, students begin their exploration of complete sentences. Over the course of the unit, students will learn to distinguish between complete and incomplete sentences. After learning the difference, students will be challenged to use complete simple sentences orally and in writing. Students will also learn how to add details to simple sentences, particularly using proper nouns to tell about specific places on each continent.
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architecture climate continent culture desert forest grassland island landform lake mountain natural resource ocean river rural sea tundra urban
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Explore North America pp. 4 – 15
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
SL.1.2
L.1.6
Identify different things you might see in North America.
Explore North America pp. 16 – 25
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
SL.1.2
L.1.6
Identify different things you can see in North America.
Explore North America pp. 24 – 31
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
SL.1.2
L.1.6
Identify different things you can see in North America.
Writing
Explore North America
RI.1.1
RI.1.7
W.1.2
W.1.8
L.1.1
L.1.2
L.1.6
Create a postcard of what you saw on your visit to North America.
Explore South America — Pages 6-7, 10-19
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
SL.1.2
L.1.6
Describe two to three different things you can see on the continent of South America.
Explore South America pp. 18 – 31
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
SL.1.2
L.1.6
Describe two to three specific things you may see in South America.
Writing
Explore South America
RI.1.1
W.1.2
W.1.8
L.1.1
L.1.2
L.1.6
Create a postcard of what you saw and where you went on your visit to South America by writing an informational text that names a topic and supplies one to two facts about the topic.
Explore Africa — pp. 6-7, 10-19
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
SL.1.1
L.1.6
Describe two to three things that make the continent of Africa special.
Explore Africa pp. 20 – 31
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
SL.1.1
L.1.6
Describe two things you might see in Africa.
Writing
RI.1.1
W.1.2
L.1.1
L.1.2
L.1.6
Create a postcard of what you saw and where you went on your visit to Africa by writing an informational text that names a topic and supplies one to two facts about the topic.
Explore Asia pp. 8 – 19
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
Describe what you might see in the desert and what text features the author includes to help the reader better understand what they would see in the desert.
Explore Asia pp. 20 – 31
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
Describe some of the famous tourist spots in Asia and how the text features help the reader better understand the locations.
Writing
Explore Asia
W.1.2
L.1.1
L.1.2
L.1.6
Write a travel poster that highlights something you could see or do in Asia.
Explore Europe — pp. 6-7, 10-19
RI.1.1
RI.1.3
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
Explain how landforms and ecosystems influence the way people live in different parts of Europe.
Explore Europe pp. 22 – 31
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
Describe two to three things a person visiting Europe may see.
Writing
Explore Europe
W.1.2
L.1.1
L.1.2
L.1.6
Write a travel poster that highlights something you could see or do in Europe.
Explore Australia and Oceania
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
Describe two to three unique things you might see if you visited Australia and Oceania.
Explore Europe
Explore Australia and Oceania
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
RI.1.9
SL.1.1
Explain if Australia is just like Europe.
Explore Antartica — pp. 8-9, 12-13, 14-15, 18-19, 20-21, 26-27, 30-31
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
Describe two to three unique things you might see if you visited Antarctica.
Explore North America
Explore Antartica
RI.1.1
RI.1.5
RI.1.7
RI.1.9
Explain if Antarctica is just like North America.
Assessment
Writing
W.1.1
W.1.5
L.1.1
L.1.2
Write an opinion piece to share which continent you would like to visit.
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