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Global Schools Program Grade 3

Elementary

Description

The Global Schools Program for Grade 3 aims to teach students about the origin of food, the systems that distribute it and how it impacts the lives of people around the world.  The resource is comprised of five lessons.

Lesson 1 Origins of Food: The students will draw and discuss what they are eating for lunch and where the food came from. Then they will complete a picture analysis of lunches from around the globe which they will sort and rank based on quality. As a final activity, the students will create a food production map.

Lesson 2 Farming Culture and Guest Speaker: The students will be introduced to different agriculture practices from around the world.  A guest speaker involved in agriculture will present to the class.  Afterwards the students will complete a piece of writing as a reflection activity.

Lesson 3 How Plants Grow: The students will learn about the plant life cycle and then design an individual garden that will be shared with the class.

Lesson 4 Class Garden: After a review of the individual garden plans, each student will complete an individual assigned task in order to help in the creation of a class garden.

Lesson 5 Food in Complex Systems - Harkness Discussion: The students will participate in a Harkness style discussion in order to share and reflect on their learning.

General Assessment

What skills does this resource explicitly teach?

  • Harkness discussion skills
  • Gardening skills

Strengths

  • Interesting and engaging activities for the students
  • Good quality of background information and external links provided
  • Easy to use resource that is teacher friendly
  • Assessment suggestions provided

Weaknesses

  • There are no suggestions for struggling learners
  • A few external links that are broken
  • No background information on Harkness discussions provided

Recommendation of how and where to use it

This resource is suitable for early elementary classrooms.  It connects very well to the Social Studies, Science and Health curriculum and can be used later in the year to plant a garden as a culminating year end activity.  

Relevant Curriculum Units

The following tool will allow you to explore the relevant curriculum matches for this resource. To start, select a province listed below.

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  • Alberta
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    • Grade 3
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      • Health Education
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        • Making meaning of healthy living and the decision-making process contributes to our understanding of healthy growth and development
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      • Health Education
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        • Making meaning of healthy living and the decision-making process contributes to our understanding of healthy growth and development
      • Science
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        • Exploring connections strengthens our understandings of relationships to help us make meaning of the world.
        • Investigating change and the diversity of Earth’s systems helps us to develop understandings of the conditions necessary to sustain life.
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        • Science 3: Living things are diverse, can be grouped, and interact in their ecosystems
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        • Science 4: All living things sense and respond to their environment
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        • Growth and Changes in Plants
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        • Communities of the World: Communities of the World
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        • Habitat and Communities
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        • Personal Wellness: Wellness
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        • Our Local Environment : :Scientific Literacy
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        • : Understanding Me and My World
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        • Nutrition
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        • Life Systems: Growth and Changes in Plants
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        • Communities of the World: Communities of the World
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      • Health Education
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        • Nutrition
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        • Science 4: All living things sense and respond to their environment
  • Nova Scotia
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        • Science 3: Plants
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        • Science 4: Habitats
  • Nunavut
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        • Nutrition
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        • Life Systems: Growth and Changes in Plants
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        • Connecting With the World:Culture & Community
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        • Nutrition
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        • Life Systems: Habitats & Communities
  • Ontario
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  • Saskatchewan
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    • Grade 3
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      • Science
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        • Plant Growth and Changes
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      • Health Education
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        • Sharing What It Means to Be Healthy: Action Planning
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        • Habitats and Communities
  • Yukon Territory
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    • Grade 3
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      • Science
        • Step 4Relevant matches
        • Science 3: Living things are diverse, can be grouped, and interact in their ecosystems
    • Grade 4
      • Step 3Select a subject
      • Science
        • Step 4Relevant matches
        • Science 4: All living things sense and respond to their environment

Themes Addressed

Food & Agriculture (5)

  • Conventional Farming
  • Food Security
  • Local Food
  • Organic Farming
  • Subsistence Farming

Human Health & Environment (2)

  • Hunger and Malnutrition
  • Quality of Life

Sustainability Education Principles

Principle Rating Explanation
Consideration of Alternative Perspectives Very Good

The basis of the resource and its five lessons are on open ended discussions that allow the students to explore the topic of food and food production.

Consideration of Alternative Perspectives:
  • Satisfactory: absence of bias towards any one point of view
  • Good: students consider different points of view regarding issues, problems discussed
  • Very good: based on the consideration of different views, students form opinions and  take an informed position
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions Satisfactory
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions:

Effectively addresses the environmental, economic and social dimensions of the issue(s) being explored.

  • Satisfactory: resource supports the examination of  these dimensions
  • Good:  resource explicitly examines the interplay of these dimensions
  • Very Good:  a systems-thinking approach is encouraged to examine these three dimensions
Respects Complexity Satisfactory
Respects Complexity:

The complexity of the problems/issues being discussed is respected.

Acting on Learning Very Good

The students are involved in planning and building their own class garden.  This may lead them to encourage their parents to build a family garden.  

Acting on Learning:

Learning moves from understanding  issues  to working towards positive change — in personal lifestyle, in school, in the community,  or for the planet

  • Satisfactory: action opportunities are included as extensions 
  • Good: action opportunities are core components of the resource
  • Very Good: action opportunities for students are well supported and intended to result in observable, positive change
Values Education Good

The Harkness discussion at the end of the resource allows the students an opportunity to express their learning, beliefs and values.

Values Education:

Students are explicitly provided with opportunities to identify, clarify and express their own beliefs/values.

Empathy & Respect for Humans Good

The discussion of the origin of food and the analysis of meals from around the globe will allow students to explore other cultures and learn about their food choices.

Empathy & Respect for Humans: Empathy and respect are fostered for diverse groups of humans (including different genders, ethnic groups, sexual preferences, etc.).
Personal Affinity with Earth Very Good
Personal Affinity with Earth:

Encourages a personal affinity with -the natural world.  

  • Satisfactory: connection is made to the natural world
  • Good: fosters appreciation/concern for the natural world
  • Very Good: fosters stewardship though practical and respectful experiences out-of-doors 
Locally-Focused Learning Good

The building of a class garden could benefit the local food bank or the students themselves.

Locally-Focused Learning:

Includes learning experiences that take advantage of issues/elements within the local community. 

  • Satisfactory: learning is made relevant to the lives of the learners
  • Good: learning is made relevant and has a local focus
  • Very Good: learning is made relevant, local and takes place ‘outside’ , in the community 
Past, Present & Future Satisfactory
Past, Present & Future: Promotes an understanding of the past, a sense of the present, and a positive vision for the future.

Pedagogical Approaches

Principle Rating Explanation
Open-Ended Instruction Very Good
Open-Ended Instruction :

Lessons are structured so that multiple/complex answers are possible; students are not steered toward one 'right' answer.

Integrated Learning Very Good

  • Science
  • Social Studies
  • Health

Integrated Learning:

Learning brings together content and skills  from more than one  subject area

  • Satisfactory: content from a number of different  subject areas is readily identifiable
  • Good:  resource is appropriate for use in more than one subject area
  • Very Good:  the lines between subjects are blurred 
Inquiry Learning Satisfactory
Inquiry Learning:

Learning is directed by questions, problems, or challenges that students work to address.   

  • Satisfactory: Students are provided with questions/problems to solve and some direction on how to arrive at solutions.
  • Good: students, assisted by the teacher clarify the question(s) to ask and the process to follow to arrive at solutions.  Sometimes referred to as Guided Inquiry
  • Very Good:  students generate the questions and assume much of the responsibility for how to solve them.  . Sometimes referred to as self-directed learning.

 

Differentiated Instruction Good

There are no strategies provided for learners with difficulties.

Differentiated Instruction:

Activities address a range of student learning styles, abilities and readiness.

  • Satisfactory:  includes a variety of instructional approaches
  • Good: addresses  the needs of visual, auditory &  kinesthetic learners
  • Very Good: also includes strategies for learners with difficulties
Experiential Learning Very Good

The building of the garden allows students to have a learning experience that is in a natural setting.

Experiential Learning:

Authentic learning experiences are provided

  • Satisfactory: learning takes place through ‘hands-on’ experience or simulation
  • Good: learning involves direct experience in a ‘real world context’
  • Very good: learning involves ‘real world experiences’ taking place’ beyond the school walls.
Cooperative Learning Good

The students will learn the necessary skills of a fair and equal discussion by participating in the Harkness discussion.  The teacher will have to research how to properly conduct such a discussion as there are no materials provided for background information.

Cooperative Learning:

Group and cooperative learning strategies are a priority.

  • Satisfactory:  students work in groups
  • Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught and practiced
  • Very Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught, practiced and assessed
Assessment & Evaluation Very Good

Although there are no tools provided, there are concrete assessment suggestions for the teacher that are easily implemented.

Assessment & Evaluation: Tools are provided that help students and teachers to capture formative and summative information about students' learning and performance. These tools may include reflection questions, checklists, rubrics, etc.
Peer Teaching Satisfactory
Peer Teaching:

Provides opportunities for students to actively present their knowledge and skills to peers and/or act as teachers and mentors.

  • Satisfactory: incidental teaching that arises from cooperative learning, presentations, etc.
  • Good or Very Good: an opportunity is intentionally created to empower students to teach other students/community members. The audience is somehow reliant on the students' teaching (students are not simply ‘presenting')
Case Studies Poor/Not considered

This is not a focus for this resource.

Case Studies:

Relevant case studies are included.  Case studies are thorough descriptions of real events from real situations that students use to explore  concepts in an authentic context.

Locus of Control Satisfactory

The lessons are structured in a manner where the goals of the lessons are very focused; therefore, there is not a lot of choice for the students to make.

Locus of Control: Meaningful opportunities are provided for students to choose elements of program content, the medium in which they wish to work, and/or to go deeper into a chosen issue.

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