Finding out and sorting out inquiry
LESSON THREE
LEARNING AREA: History LESSON TOPIC: Families in the Present (Our
Families) Focus on Family Structure
YEAR LEVEL: 1
LENGTH of LESSON: 50 minutes
CURRICULUM LINKS
Historical Knowledge and Understanding
Present and past family life
ACHHK028 Differences in family structures and roles today, and how these have changed or
remained the same over time
Comparing families in the present with those from the recent past (the families of parents
and grandparents) in terms of their size and structure (for example the different types of
family such as nuclear, single parent, blended)
Historical Skills
Chronology, terms ad concepts
ACHHS032 Distinguish between the past, present and future
Using terms to denote time (for example then, now, yesterday, today, past, present,
generations)
Mathematics
Statistics and Probability
Data representation and interpretation
ACMSP263 Represent data with objects and drawings where one object or drawing represents
one data value. Describe the displays
LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of this lesson students will:
Compare families from the past and different cultures to their own family structure
Identify their family structure, using key terms and language
Observe similarities and differences between families from the pas and their own family
LESSON OBJECTIVES
By the end of this lesson, students will:
1. Identify key facts about their family and share them with the class
2. Explore the differences and similarities that their peers family share
3. Make observations about the class and their family structures
4. Create a Family Tree using mediums of their choosing
INQUIRY QUESTION FOR LESSON
Who are the people in your family? How has family structure changed or remained the same over
time?
STUDENTS PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
Understanding that all families are unique and made up of different structures
An understanding of who the people are that make up their own family
A basic understanding of family structures
PREPARATION:
Resources
Family photos/lists from homework (Lesson 2)
Post-it notes for class family graph (2 squares per student)
Tom Tom by Rosemary Sullivan and Dee Huxley
A-Frame whiteboard and whiteboard markers
Family Tree display
Large poster paper
Permanent marker
House template
Classroom Organisation
Students to gather on the floor as a group in front of the Easel (Guided to do this with
nothing in their hands)
Students to work individually at their desks
LESSON PROCEDURE
Motivation (Orientating Phase) 10-15 minutes
Ask children to gather on the group mat in front of the easel (with nothing in their hands)
Reengage students in their understanding of our unit topic
Introduce the lesson and engage in a discussion with the students about our topic for today:
Our families and family structure
Last week we looked at families from different cultures and the past today we are going to
be exploring our families and our family structure
Engage students in the lesson by reading: Tom Tom by Rosemary Sullivan and Dee Huxley
Pose questions to start engaging students in their expected thinking for the lesson:
o Who are the people in Tom Toms family?
o How is this the same of different from your family?
o What do the people in Tom Toms family do?
o How is this the same or different from your family?
Procedure (Enhancing Phase) 20-30 minutes **Students move to desks**
Explain to students that we are now going to look at our class family structures **Distribute
post-it note to students
We are going to look at the:
o The number of people in our family and who are these people
o The number of people in my mother/father/grandparents family
On one piece of post-it note you are going to record the number of people in your family
and who they are:
o This could be who you live with? Do you have two houses? Count all the members of
family you live with **Use homework list/photo to help identify numbers and people**
On the other post-it note you are going to record the number of people in your family
members family **Use homework list/photo to help identify numbers and people**
On a large piece of card start to develop a graph of the family dynamics of the class Start
to use terms
Nuclear: A pair of parents and their children
Single parent: A single parent and their children
Blended: One parent may have children from previous relationships not all family
members are genetically related
Start building the graph as you go around the class and get each students square as they
read out their number encourage students to share their family structure with the class
and that of their relative
Once the graph has been built display this in the classroom to students to continue to
refer to
Have a class discussion on the dynamics of the families in the class:
o What is the largest family?
o What is the smallest family?
o What can you observe about the members of the family on display?
o Who has a shared family?
o Whose family includes a pet/s?
We can see that our class has a large family structure dynamic
Looking back to our lesson last week and at the different family structures of our relatives
(Draw students attention to the display wall:
o What similarities can we now see?
o What differences can we now see?
o Have some of our family structures changed? How?
Students are now to draw, do a word map or use a medium of their choosing to illustrate the
members who live in their house Students will be presented with a house template they
may want to use with their illustration
Display the completed houses on our family tree in the classroom (Students may not get
this finished but can continue to complete as a fast finisher in other lessons)
Conclusion (Synthesising Phase) 5 minutes
Draw students attention to the family tree reflect on how all families are different with
students linking their understanding to families of the past
o How have some of your understandings of families changed?
o Has anyone discovered something they didnt know about the families in our class?
As we have explored different family structures, do you think the roles that each family
member would be different or the same as the past and future? This is something we will be
exploring in our next lesson.
DIFFERENTIATION OF LEARNING
Some students may be sensitive about their family dynamic so it is important in all
discussions that all family structures and groups are recognised and supported
Have students who require extra attention or may disrupt the class sitting close to you
during group time
Allow students with physical ailments to sit on chairs during group time if required
The family tree contribution can be presented in a range of ways to suit the interests and
abilities of all learners
Encourage all students to be engaged in class discussions and scaffold this by asking
prompting questions and focusing attention towards them during specific instructions
ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING/LESSON OBJECTIVES
1. Assessment for Learning: Reflect on whether or not students were engaged in the
lesson and how they contributed to class discussion (have a quick checklist with all
students names)
2. Assessment as Learning: Students reflect on their own conceptions and how they might
have changed throughout looking at the family dynamics of the class
