Countries Around the World

Introduction

Countries Around the World

Allison Moennig

5th Grade Class

As we begin learn more and more about the world, it is important for us to know certain characteristics about the countries making up our continents. Now that you are able to identify the continents, let's dive deeper! In groups of 3, you will be analyzing the culture, environment, and history of the country of your choice. You will then make a poster with all of your gathered data to present to the class. Whoever has the richest information, and most accurate data, will receive a special prize!

Task

There are many important characteristics of a country. It is your team's job to research these characteristics and provide the class with facts on what you find. Each team member will make an informational poster displaying what they have learned. There are three seperate sections of research, one for each team member. Keep in mind, every member must do their part for the whole team to be successful. Feel free to wear costumes that accurately represent your country when you present your data.

Process

Here are step-by-step instructions to help you complete your project:

  • Split up into groups of 3
  • Chose one of these 10 countries for your team to analyze:

China, Japan, India, Italy, France, Ireland, Russia, Mexico, Brazil, Egypt

  • Choose one member from your team to research each of the following areas:               Culture
      • What are the main languages spoken here?
      • What type of clothing do they wear?
      • Is there a main religion practiced there?
      • Do they celebrate different holidays than we do?
      • What does their flag look like?
      • Is their daily life different from ours in the United States?
      • Any other interesting facts about their people's way of life.
    • Environment
      • Tell us about the geography of the country (what does it look like on a map?
      • Are there any major mountain ranges?
      • Are there any major bodies of water? (only large ones)
      • What continent is it on?
      • Is it on the border of the continent, or in the middle? Or... is it an island?
      • Is it usually pretty cold or hot there? Or is their climate similar to ours in the United States?
      • What kinds of animals can be found there?
      • If this country has a mostly desert atmosphere, be sure to point that out!
      • Any other fun facts you find about the environment.
    • History
      • When did this place become it's own country?
      • What is the capitol?
      • What is the population?
      • What is the government like, and how has it changed over time?
        • Are they ruled by a king? A dictator? A president? Etc...
      • Were any major wars fought by this country?
      • If so, did it involve the United States?
      • Were there any major historical events involving this country?
      • Are there any historically famous people from this country?
      • Who is the leader of this country today?
      • Anything else you may find on the history of this countryGo into detail on these questions for your section! For example, under the History section, when I ask, "Were there any major historical events?" you should not only name the historical events, but also tell us about what happened. If you were doing your research on the United States, you could tell us all about the terrorist attack on 9/11, when the planes crashed into the World Trade Center.You are each going to make your own poster on your area of research. All of the above questions must be either shown on your poster, or said during your presentation. Use pictures, and be creative!You can find pictures of your country online by using Google Images  https://images.google.com/    Just type in the name of your country into the search bar to find results.

Resources

http://www.timeforkids.com/around-the-world

http://www.countryreports.org/country/Japan.htm

http://www.playkidsgames.com/games/south%20americaJigsaw/south%20americ…

http://www.playkidsgames.com/games/continentNames/continentJig.htm

http://www.yourchildlearns.com/online-interactive-maps.htm

Evaluation

Points 4 3 2 1
Accuracy of Facts All facts are accurate Most facts are accurate About half of the facts are accurate Hardly any of the facts are accurate
Grammar and Spelling Everything is spelled correctly, punctuated correctly, and put arranged in an organized way. Everything that needs to be capatalized is done correctly Mostly everything is correct grammatically About half of all the information is grammatically correct and appropriate The content is hard to understand because of very poor grammar
Richness of Information The questions that were required were answered with good explanation, and the student also added 5 or more of their own relevant fun facts that they found through research The questions that were required were answered and explained, and the student added 3-4 other relevant facts that they found through research The questions that were required were answered, and the student added 1-2 other relevant facts they found through research The student answered most of the questions that were required, without much detail, and didn't seem to research any other information.
Presentation The poster was well organized, featured pictures, showed clear facts, and decorated. The student showed enthusiasm about the project, and clearly expressed their knowledge on the country The poster was organized and decorated sufficiently. It was made mostly clear that the student researched the topic and was knowledgable about the country. The poster wasn't impressive, but contained appropriate facts. The student didn't seem to know the country very well. The poster was not completed, or contained little information. The student did not seem like they learned anything about the country.

Conclusion

Learning about other people's cultures, environments, and history is a very important part of your education. It's important for us to have knowledge about other places in the world, other than the United States. After this project, you should have a clear basic understanding of the country you research, and hopefully you also learned a lot from other student's presentations. Soon we will be diving even deeper into the cultures, environments, and history of other countries around the world... and even our own, the United States!