MYP unit planner

Teacher(s)

Duchac/Maurer

Subject group and

discipline

Unit title Location, location, location

I&S-Humaniti

MYP year 2

Establishing the purpose of the unit

Key concept (choose 1 of the 16
MYP key)

Related concept(s) (choose 1-2 from

your subject/discipline)

Global con

Time, space and place

Power, civilization

Orientation

Statement of inquiry (Combines Key + Related Concepts + Global Context; is a statement

language, posted in class)
Location can dictate the success and failure of a civilization and its people.

Inquiry questions (at least one of each, share with students, have students develop them
Conceptual how/why, Debatable provocative!)

Factual How did Romes location help it to become powerful? How did Romes location lead to its

Conceptual What can a lack of resources do to a country? Did Romes location allow it to easily t
continents?
Debatable Why does where we live matter?

Objectives (A, B, C, or D, and

specific strands *i, ii, iii, iv*. You
must assess each of the 4 twice
per year!)
Ai
Ci
Di

Summative assessment

Outline of summative assessment

task(s) including assessment criteria:
(GRASPS, with a clear description of
what the kids are actually doing)
Learners will create an iBook (using
iBooks author) about Ancient Rome.
Each chapter of the iBook will revolve
around a topical question that relates
back to the essential question.

Relationsh
assessmen
inquiry: (Ju
assessmen
the Statem

The assess
inquiry in t
tell how Ro
created, an

Chapter 1- How did the location, geography,

and climate of Rome affect the development of
civilization there?
Chapter 2- How were the Romans influenced
by Greek culture and ideas?
Chapter 3- How was the Roman Republic
founded and organized? (Who created it? What
kind of government did they- or did they have
many different types of government?)
Chapter 4- Who was Julius Caesar and what effect
did he have on the Roman Empire?
Chapter 5- What other emperors affected Rome,
both positively and negatively?
Chapter6- What were some of the successes and
failures
of
the
Roman
Empire?
Chapter 7- How did the Roman Empire come to
an
end?
Chapter 8- What are some of the legacies the
Roman Empire left behind that we still use today?
http://mrguerriero.blogspot.com/2011/0
6/rome-essential-questions.html

Learner Profile (What LP traits will be tied to the unit?)

x Inquirers
x Knowledgeable
Open-minded
Caring

xThinkers
Communicators
Risk-takers
Balanced

Approaches to learning (ATL) (Choose 2 from the 5 general categories: Communication, So

Research, Thinking, then get a bit more specific, use your resources)

Self-management
Research
Thinking

Planning for teaching and learning through inquiry

Content (CCSS, CPS
Framework, state/national
standards)

Learning process

1.8.aApplykeyconceptssuch
aschronology,causality,and
conflicttoidentifypatternsof
historicalchange.

Learning experiences and teaching strategies (Day to d

pasting full lesson plans, do so at the end of this document an
plans)

2.8.cExplainhow
internationaltradeand
resourcedistributioncan
influencecooperationor
conflict.

Formative
assessment
(could
include
tests/quizzes
presentations, projects/performance, writing, etc)

See attached plans

Chapter checks
One-one meetings

Differentiation (SPED, ELL, tier 1-3, use resources)

ELLs will be given varied content that is suitable to their level.

Resources (Websites, technology, media, communications, community partnerships, etc)

http://mrguerriero.blogspot.com/2011/06/rome-essential-questions.html
iBooks Author

Reflecting and evaluating (choose a few of the below questions, briefly

reflect prior-during-after, delete the unused prompts)
Prior to teaching the unit
Why do we think that the unit or the selection
of topics will be interesting?
Learners will be given the chance to discover
various aspects of Rome, much to their own
choosing.

During teaching
What difficulties did we encounter while
completing the unit or the summative
assessment task(s)?
What resources are proving useful, and what

After teachi

What were the

How well did th

serve to distin

Was the task s

What do students already know, and what can

they do?

other resources do we need?

students to rea

What student inquiries are emerging?

What evidence

What have students encountered in this

discipline before?

What can we adjust or change?

What does experience tell us about what to

expect in this unit?

What skills need more practice?

What attributes of the learner profile does this

unit offer students opportunities to develop?

What is the level of student engagement?

What potential interdisciplinary connections

can we identify?

How can we scaffold learning for students who

need more guidance?

What do we know about students preferences

and patterns of interaction?

What is happening in the world right now with

which we could connect teaching and learning
in this
unit?

Are there any possible opportunities for

meaningful service learning?
What in the unit might be inspiring for
community or personal projects?

How well are the learning experiences aligned

with the units objectives?

What artifacts

Which teachin

What was surp

What student i

What will we d

How will we bu
next unit?

How effectivel
this unit?

What can stud

the next year/l

Could we develop authentic opportunities for

service learning?

Which subject
time?

How can we use students multilingualism as a

resource for learning?

What did we le
assessment?

Attached Plans
Day 1/2:
15 minutes-Introduction
-Does a countries location determine its success? (5-minute discussion)
-Look at this map of the Roman Empire.

Why would Romes location make it

successful?

http://www.timemaps.com/history/ancient-rome-395ad

(If you click through the map, back to 390 BCE, you can see just how much it
grew until 410 CE)
-learners answer question in pages/word doc./etc (5 minutes of writing- 5
minutes discussion)
25 minutes- Background Knowledge
-What connections can you make between Rome and the civilizations you studied
last year?

Common Characteristics among civilizations (China,

Greece, Egypt, Mesopotamia)- 5 things in common:

-access to water for drinking and for trading

-fertile farm land

-geographical barriers that act as deterrents to
enemies
-access to many other countries/continents for
trading
-a form of government (military)

(write Greece, Mesopotamia, Egypt on board-have learners fill in commonalities)

(15 minutes of walking, observing and writing)
-Why would Romes location make it successful? (reasons listed above) (2
minutes of reflection, 3 minutes of discussion)
-Why would Romes location make it a failure? (too large of large of an empire,
too many borders to defend, too many citizens to provide for) (2 minutes of
reflection, 3 minutes of discussion)

-Why would Romes location make it successful?

-Why would Romes location make it a failure?

5 reasons

-too large of an empire

-too many borders to defend
-too many citizens to provide for (spread across a
large geographic area)

-Why would Romes location make it a failure

25 minutes- Map Exercise
-Briefly show map of empire (just to give an idea of its extent)
-Fill in regional map during height of Romes power (learners have list of
places/areas to find-they can use good resources to fill in map) with color

Label the map with the following:

bodies of water [blue]:
Adriatic Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Tyrrhenian Sea,
Atlantic Ocean
rivers [blue]:
Po, Tiber, Rubicon
mountains/peaks [brown]:
Alps, Apennines, Mt. Etna, Mt. Vesuvius
islands [green]:
Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily
cities [red]:
Rome, Ostia, Syracuse, Carthage, Pompeii,
Brindisium, Tarentum
Shade the Roman Empire in during its height of
power (orange):
Around 100-200 a.c.e.

10 minutes

End of class reflection- How does a countries location determine whether it will
fail or succeed?

Day 3/4
Introduction (5 minutes)
-Show image of Romulus and Remus-Whats happening here? What is this
sculpture saying?
-Review: Why does location matter?
-Ask learners to download iBooks Author (its in the SCIS kiosk) so that its ready
to go after working on maps.
Finish Maps (20 minutes)
-Allow learners 20 minutes to work on/finish maps. If they dont finish, they can
complete at home.
Introduce iBook Project (5 minutes)
-Learners will create an individual iBook (using iBooks author) about Ancient
Rome. Each chapter of the iBook will revolve around a topical question that will
eventually relate back to the EQ. Learners are welcome to work with one another
though to find information.
-There will be a total of eight chapters. We will work on each chapter for 2-3 class
periods.
Begin iBook (30 minutes)
-show iBook example
-Begin by asking learners to open iBook and to make a new book, titling it Ancient
Rome (they can go back and change the title later). Have them choose the basic
template to begin with.
-Instead of working on a cover and image first, well go back and do that later once
they have a better idea of the direction of their book

-Ask learners to create their first chapter and put the following question as the title:

How did the location, geography, and climate

of Rome affect the development of civilization
there?

-Remind learners that we have discussed this over the past two classes.
-The answer to this question will be the content for their first chapter.
-Please ask learners to save their books often.

-Have learners break down the question (if need be) into the following segments
and relate it back to why a civilization developed there:

-location- describe in detail where Italy is located (which

continent, what is it surrounded by?, etc.) and how that
helped the civilization grow
-geography- describe the landscape of Rome (hills,
mountains, rivers, farmland, etc.) and how it helped the
civilization grow
-climate- describe the year round climate (weather) of
Rome and how it helped the civilization (and its food!)
grow

-Learners can find their own resources, but they need to make sure theyre
checking them for reliability first. If need be, please remind learners to use the
following resources to find the answer (which is quite broad to begin with):
- Britannica Encyclopedia via school library
- Webpath Express via school library
Break (2 minutes)
Standup, stretch, breathe
Images (15 minutes)
-Ask learners to find one or two images that reflect the chapter one question, and to
insert those images into their iBooks.
Backup Plans
-If iBook Author is not loading for some reason or another, students can begin this
project by creating chapters on Pages or Microsoft Word (the format is up to them,
for now).
Day 5/6
Introduction (10 minutes)
Show learners the attached PPT images. These images will lay the foundation for
everything that is Rome (Romulus and Remus) suckling the wolf that raised
them. Ask learners the following questions:
-show them the first picture for 10 seconds, then move to the second image-the
statue- for the discussion
-Whats happening in the picture?
-What do you think the statue is trying to say?
-How does this relate to the foundation of Rome?

-What does this say about Romans? (They view themselves as strong, powerful,
from the wolf!)
-Ask learners to keep this in mind as we look at Roman civilization, the spread of
the Roman Empire and Roman identity.
Map Check (20 minutes)
-ask learners to take out their completed maps and exchange with someone at their
table
-Have learners look at their partners map and check for accuracy
-With the map in your classroom, conduct an impromptu quiz (not for points,
just to see if learners understand basic geography) by asking learners to point out
various parts on the map
Civilization building activity (30 minutes)
-If you have the time to prepare this History Activator (thanks Kristin), Id like
to use this as a way to get learners thinking about Chapters 2 and 3. I realize that
learners cant just research for days on end, so I picked this activity to break up
the research and let them create something with their groups.
-This activity helps kids to understand how monuments can be used to control
people (go Collosseum and every other Roman marvel!). You can find this activity
on pages 82-86. Its a simple setup (all you need is paper, scissors and tape). If you
dont have time, just continue with chapter I.
Continue with Chapter I (20 minutes)
-ask learners to continue with their chapter one content and pictures

-give learners information on question two (teach a lesson), then give them time to
research Chapter II.

Day 7/8
-two minutes to prep for quiz
-quiz
-quiz graded by peer
-go over monuments and let them look at peers: Who won???
-Continue with chapter I-

How were the Romans influenced by Greek

culture and ideas?

Please write about the following similarities:

-architecture
-culture (clothing, sports, food, etc.)
-government
-religion
-Use the following resources:
-http://greekinfluenceonrome.wikispaces.com/Greek+Influence+on+Rome

9/10 (Thursday/Friday)
-Who is almost finished with Chapter I?
-Well spend a little time at the end of class working on Chapter II, especially since
youll have all of these new ideas after todays activities.
Comparison activity
-place learners in groups of two
-have them create a shared document

-using the following topics, give learners four minutes to do power research, find a
picture of the topic, and write a one sentence comparison on the topic.
-sentence and topic must be in pages format, titled Greek and Roman Comparisons
in the following order (as an example):
Greek and Roman Comparisons
1. Sports
The Roman sport of wrestling was adapted from Greek culture, hence the
name Greco-Roman wrestling.

-teams of two have four minutes to do the following:

1. find an accurate source
2. write a two sentence description comparing the topic
3. format their information in the right order (topic name, information, picture)
-Whoever has the most accurately described topic wins one point.
-There are a total of nine rounds.
Art
Architecture
Food
Government
Clothing
Entertainment
Language
Religion
Sports

11/12 (Monday/Tuesday)-have learners open shared document and refine categories, adding the following:
-detailed information
-source where information came from

-have learners transfer information from document into Chapter II

use story of Romulus and Remus, discuss beginnings, plebeians and patricians
http://www.historyonthenet.com/lessons/legendofrome/story.htm
-go back with your partner and finish your comparisons from the competition
-continue with Chapter II with your new examples.
-meet with learners individually to look at Chapter I, see where they are on Chapter
II