Topic: Social Studies Review Game
Grade Level: Fifth
Duration: 50 minutes
Grouping: Five Groups of Four-Five Students
Goals:
1. The students will review information covered over the past unit so as to better prepare for the following day’s test.
2. The students will exercise reading, writing and speaking skills.
3. The students will work cooperatively in a group.
Objectives:
1. After reviewing an assigned section of a recently studied chapter or another assigned written resource, the students will work in groups to develop three “brain-teasing questions.”
2. After creating three “brain-teasing questions,” the students will present them to the class in the form of a game, and the class will attempt to answer the presented questions.
Materials:
1. Social Studies Textbooks and other resources used for the unit
2. “Brain-Teasing Questions” worksheet
3. Popsicle Sticks labeled according to the textbook’s sections/lessons covered
4. Container to hold Popsicle sticks
5. “Helping Questions” cards for each of the textbook’s sections/lessons
6. “Indians of North America” crossword puzzle
7. Candy Corn in small bags
Procedures:
1. The students will get into groups and take out a single textbook or other written resource. The groups will be assigned a section of the textbook of resource to review (listed in materials on Popsicle sticks). Each group will choose a member to be their reporter, and the reporter will raise his/her hand. A recorder will also be chosen, and he/she will raise their hand.
2. Each group will use their resource to create three questions about their assigned section or topic. The questions and answers will be transcribed onto the “Brain-Teasing Questions” worksheet by the recorder. The teachers will walk around to check the group’s progress and the accuracy of the student-developed questions/answers. If it appears that a group is having difficulty coming up with all three questions, a “helping questions” card will be provided to that group after ten minutes. The student will be required to find the answers to the “helping questions” however. All of the groups must come up with at least one unique question.
3. The students will then participate in a review game entitled “Brain Teasers”. The teacher will pull out a Popsicle stick labeled with a group’s section title. The teacher will then call upon that group’s reporter to ask the class one of the group’s questions. The remaining members of the class will attempt to answer that question. Three tries will be allotted towards each question asked. If the question is not answered within three tries, the answer will be provided to the class by the questioner.
4. After the game is completed, each student will receive a small bag of candy corn for their participation.
The students who complete the “brain teasers” worksheet earlier than others will be provided with a crossword puzzle asking questions related to the information studied in chapter two while they wait for the rest of the class to finish. This crossword puzzle could also serve as a backup if the lesson runs short for some reason.
