M & M COOKIE CITY

Submitted by: Mary H. Harris    School: Hopkins Middle School

Grade Level: Sixth    Subject: Social Studies

Right click to download a Microsoft Word document of this lesson plan!

http://www.overpopulation.net/

http://www.dayof6billion.org/splash.html

http://www.un.org/pubs/.cyberschoolbus/

http://www.worldbank.org/html/schools/

Development Data Book, World Bank, Washington, DC

Computer with Internet access

Paper, pencils or pens 


Culminating Assessment: This lesson contains a variety of assessments.
The students will determine the advantages and disadvantages of the locations of the cities. A sample handout is provided. Groups will write a creative short story about their findings. Sample rubrics are provided for teacher and peer reviews.



Instructional Activities:

Activity One
Focus Activity: Ask how many students have moved from one place to another. Why did they relocate? List the students' responses on the chalkboard. Explain that this lesson refers to why early people moved from one location to another. Introduce the concepts of hunter-gathers and the Agricultural Revolution. Explain that thousands of years ago, people learned how to grow food from seeds. As a result, people no longer had to move in search of food. Permanent settlements began to be established. Over hundreds of years these settlements developed into cities. 

Have class list the reasons why certain areas grew to become cities. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of an area.

1. Students should be placed in collaborative groups of 4 or 5 to work throughout this lesson. Each group should be given the name of a continent.
   
2. Teacher should introduce the meaning of terms such as city, site, urban, rural and suburban.
   
3. Have groups brainstorm the reasons why certain areas grew to become cities. Then, discuss why other areas did not develop. After the discussion, provide groups with the criteria that impact the location of a city. (See attachment A) Students may also refer to http://www.overpopulation.net/ and http://wwwdayof6billion.org/splash.htm/ to review factors that influence the growth of a city.
   
4. Teacher and students will monitor the group's progress. The Rubric for group work should be given to each group. (See attachment B)
   
5. Issue cookies to each group. Groups should examine each cookie. Students should imagine that the cookie represents a state/country of their choice and that the M& M represent cities.
   
6. Students should examine the location of the "cities" and determine which one would be considered most important based on the criteria discussed. Students should use their imagination to consider the advantages and disadvantages of a city's location. Also, they should consider what factors might have influenced the city's growth.
   
7. When all groups have completed their analysis, each will explain to the class, the conclusions they reached.
   
8. Each group will write a short story about their city. Students should use their imagination and describe important physical features of their city. Each member should review the story before the final product is submitted. 
   
9. Groups may eat their cookie.
   
   

EXTENDING THE LESSON
Students may review a physical map of their state and analyze why cities developed in certain locations.
Students may create a population density map. Have students compare population growth rates of countries in other parts of the world.


Attachment A

Attachment B