Lesson plan for field trips to Granville Island

Granville Island Museums Lesson Plan

Activity

Time Spent

This is a sample lesson to teach before you take your class to Granville Island Museums on a field trip. It is designed for grade five, but can be modified for different elementary grades. It’s purpose is to introduce the content and create anticipation.

Warm-up:
1. Give each student an index card with sounds on them (these are listed below). Tell them it is a “secret” card, so keep your sound to yourself for now.

Sounds (If you do not see a speaker icon beside each term then your browser is missing the Flash player.)

sonar			fishing rod
train			sub dive
railroad crossing

Prep Work

2. Each student must make their specific sound, and find others making the same sound. This will get them into groups of 6 or so (depending on class size). Have each group sit together in preparation for the next activity.

5 Minutes

Connection to prior knowledge
1. a) Have 5 pieces of chart paper prepped.
b) At the top of each piece, write the “sound” object that belongs to that group. For example, TRAIN.
c) Also, have each piece of paper divided in half by a thick line.
d) On the bottom half, write BURNING QUESTIONS! Leave space under this heading for questions.

2. Each group will make drawings in the top chunk of the chart paper that shows what they know about their object.

3. “What do you still want to know about your object? What burning questions do you have???” (Think, pair, share)

4. Each student writes a question in the burning questions chunk of the chart paper.

15 Minutes

5. Ask for two volunteers from each group. One person will be a “reader” for the next exercise, and one will be a “writer.”

6. The groups take a “tour” of the posters.

7. When a group comes to a poster:
a) a “reader” reads the questions aloud to the group.
b) a “writer” should write down any new questions the group might have about the object.

20 Minutes

Processing of new information
1. Read the following excerpt aloud to the class.
Dear Mother,
Life on a submarine is a strange life indeed. Miles and miles below the ocean surface, our sleek, smooth boat glides silently through the icy waters. I’ve been aboard for three and half weeks. I can hardly believe it will be 2 more months before my feet touch land again.
What an adventure to be a crew member on this underwater voyage! I feel as if I am doing something as special as walking on the moon! I live among the whales and darkness, the bubbles and sea caverns.
The days I miss you the most, I get upset by the things that are not good on board this submarine. We have hardly any fresh water. There’s enough to drink but none for washing our clothes. The ship stinks of sweat, cooking smells, and diesel oil. The sub gets tossed by the ocean constantly. If we do not use the hand rails we will surely get thrown against the wall. The other thing is that there is only one toilet down here for 60 crew members. You practically have to make an appointment!
In the end it is the challenge that I love. I know this is something I will remember forever.
Love Always, your son.

5 Minutes

Extensions for demonstrating understanding
1. Write a letter home from a trip on a train.
2. Design a menu of the food that might be served on a day on a submarine.
3. Write a poem about fish or fishing.
4. Design and draw a poster asking for volunteers to go on a sailboat trip around the world.
5. Perform a short dramatization that shows the writer of the letter (above) saying goodbye to his parents/family.
6. Draw and colour a torpedo whizzing through the ocean on a square of cardboard. Then, cut it into a jigsaw puzzle.

5 Minutes

Part Two - Lesson plan by Ms. Krista Tulloch of General Wolfe Elementary School

Model Ships and Model Trains Museums
www.modeltrainsmuseum.ca

Respectful visitors:

Walk
Use quiet voices
Look with their eyes
Stay back from the case and displays - no fingers!!!

Work expectations:

Grade 6 - one free question on each page
Grade 5 - two free questions on each page
Grade 4 - four free questions on each page

MODEL SHIPS ROOM

What letters are hanging from the ceiling inside the sips flags? Draw them here.

Find a submarine
Find the bluenose
Find a navy vessel

What is special about a turtle ship?

How is the Elf paddle wheeler different then the Samson V?

SPORTFISHING ROOM

What simple machine is used on a fishing rod? Draw a detailed sketch here.

Sketch three fish in this room.

First Nations Artifacts
Sketch a wooden halibut hook.

Draw and label the tools that First Nations people used to catch fish and whales.

Hallway
Look carefully at the wheel of a train. How does the wheel stay on the track? Sketch a wheel on the rail.

Upstairs Displays
Make the Cathedral train move. (Touching is OK here). What railway is it from?

Find and record the names of two tools you could use to navigate a ship?

______________ and ______________.

Find the log barge. It has two ______________ on it to load the ______________.

Find a blimp.

Find a watch that a train conductor would use. Sketch it here. Do you know what it is called?

At the end of the hall there are trains on the wall, but they could go on a letter because they are?

What is special about the Lionel Girl train?

Record at least 5 different kinds of trains cars you can use?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

How many different types of transportation (trains, boats etc) can you find in the large diorama (model train set)?

Find the animals on the large train diorama (model).

Cows
Mountain goats
Bears
Deer
Eagle
Beaver

Yes / No
Yes / No
Yes / No
Yes / No
Yes / No
Yes / No

The front part of the train that does the pulling is called?

Questions I have after seeing the artifacts and models at the Museum.

Cool new words I collected on today's outing? (make a sketch if that will help you remember what it means).