Unit Plan

Travel Pals: A Journey For Learning

Grades

1–2

Duration

40 WEEKS

Overview

Students refine their map, geography, reading, writing, and presentation skills and increase their technology skills by engaging in Internet research, navigating website and using digital cameras. Students collaborate to create scrapbooks of information to be sent out with the Travel Pal as they explore the U.S. As email and postcard information about the Travel Pal's journey is received, students track where the Travel Pal's have been and what they've seen. The project culminates with a completed scrapbook and a bag full of souvenirs from the Travel Pal's trips that students use to complete a final presentation.

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5 Items

Lesson Plan

6 Items

Reproducible

Preinstructional Planning

During Instruction

Preinstructional Planning

Objectives

Students will:

Contribute to a class made scrapbook about themselves, their school and community
Operate and download photos from a digital camera and use iPhoto so they can help to crop and choose pictures for the class scrapbook
Learn how to access and respond to email
Use the internet to research and report on cities, famous sites and places
Learn how to navigate Google Earth and Google Maps to observe the places that the Travel Pal visits
Illustrate books, brochures, posters, poems, stories and more
Use map skills to keep track of places their Travel Pal has been,
Recall the location of states and cities on the U.S. map
Write narratives, letters and informational posters during activities related to the adventures of their Travel Pal

During Instruction

Culminating Activity

I let the Travel Pals spend a night with each of my students upon their arrival back to Austin. That way each student has an opportunity to share all of their adventures and what they had been learning with their family.

Supporting Books

Any of these books listed would be excellent references to extend the activities completed throughout this project.

The Scrambled States of America by Laurie Keller
The Scrambled States of America Talent Show by Laurie Keller
This Land is Your Land by Kathy Jakobsen, Woody Guthrie, illustrated by Kathy Jakobsen
My America by Jan Spivey Gilchrist
Tour America by Johnson Siebert, Diane Siebert, illustrated by Stephen T. Johnson
United States of America by Jeff E. Reynolds
Discover the United States of America by Lara Rice Bergen
Scholastic Atlas of the United States by David Rubel
United States of America: A State by State Guide by Millie Miller and Cyndi Nelson
Series Rookie Read About Geography by various authors

Getting Ready

Jennifer's students make real-world connections to places and people around the U.S. by tracking the adventures of a class stuffed animal, or Travel Pal.

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

Introducing the Travel Pals and the Interactive Notebook

After meeting the stuffed animal Travel Pals, students conduct research on each animal to write informational pages and begin journaling in their project notebooks.

GRADES

1–2, 3–5

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2, 3–5

DURATION

40 WEEKS

Creating the Travel Pal Scrapbook

In this lesson plan, students create personal scrapbook pages, a school A-Z book, and a city photo collage to send with a Travel Pal across the United States.

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

The Travel Pals Journey

As Travel Pals arrive at U.S. destinations, students make real-world connections with creative research projects based on the culture and geography of the area.

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

Home, Sweet Home for the Travel Pals

At the culmination of the Travel Pals project, students explore the returned scrapbook and special items sent back to the class, then complete final presentations.

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

Grade

1-4

Reading level

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About This Unit

Objectives

Culminating Activity

Supporting Books

Featured Lesson Plan

Getting Ready

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

Introducing the Travel Pals and the Interactive Notebook

GRADES

1–2, 3–5

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2, 3–5

DURATION

40 WEEKS

Creating the Travel Pal Scrapbook

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

The Travel Pals Journey

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

Home, Sweet Home for the Travel Pals

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

GRADES

1–2

DURATION

40 WEEKS

Featured Reproducibles

Email Introducing Travel Pal Project

Travel Pal Biography Examples

Travel Pal Blank Biography

Caretaker Information for Scrapbook

Scrapbook Page 1

Scrapbook Page 2

Susan Cheyney