Wichita falls ISD
4th Grade Texas History
Lesson Planner
Unit #1: A Land Called Texas, Map Skills
Time Frame: 15 days
Objectives
Skills: The student will be able to…
 Apply geographic tools and translate geographic data; identify, locate and compare geographic
regions of Texas with U.S. and other parts of world
 Describe and explain location and distribution of various towns and cities in Texas, past and
present; explain geographic factors that influence patterns of settlement and distribution of
population, past and present; climate and vegetation
TEKS
Readiness:
4.12A
Supporting:4.7B,C;
4.8B,C; 4.12B
Skills:4.6A,B; 4.7A;
4.21B-C; 4.22D
Lesson Information
Activities
Once per week, the Texas Studies Weekly is
planned for as a lesson, for a total of three
additional lessons in Unit 1.
Lesson 1 (corresponds with Unit 1 Chapter 1,
Lesson 1 in textbook)
 Class (possible group) identification of major
cities and towns in Texas, bordering states and
country, natural boundaries (rivers, Gulf of
Mexico), natural resources. Review cardinal
directions (students draw on dry erase board);
review differences among these: county, state,
country, continent
(textbook pages 11-13, map skills page 18)
 Review hemispheres; identify equator and Prime
Meridian
 Where in the World Am I? (handout)
 Texas Cities (handout)
Lesson 2 (corresponds with Unit 1 Chapter 2,
Lesson 4 in textbook, roughly one region a day)
 Discuss meaning of a natural region
 Identify and describe land, major areas and cities
and landmarks in Coastal Plains region and
compare to U.S. and its neighbors (page 65)
 Begin relief map (Dough Map), be sure each
student creates a map key to label each region
using a small portion of that day’s colored dough
(keep some extra dough in baggies)
 If the teacher does not wish to do the relief map,
choose an alternate activity from the Social
Studies Plus! Hands-On Approach Workbook
Lesson 3 (corresponds with Unit 1, Chapter 2,
Lesson 1 in textbook)
Wichita Falls ISD (2013-2014)
Vocabulary
 landform
 geography
 hemisphere
 Prime Meridian
 cardinal directions
 climate
 symbol
 scale
 grid system
 vegetation
 geographic tool
 atlas
 latitude
 longitude
 natural resource
 environment
 nonrenewable resource
 conserve
 drought
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region
border
equator
compass rose
desert
plains
physical characteristics
plateau
legend
human characteristics
geographic factor
aquifer
parallels
meridians
resource
renewable resource
pollution
recycle

Identify and describe land, major areas and cities
and landmarks in Central Plains region and
compare to U.S. and its neighbors (page 53)
 Continue relief map (using different color)
Lesson 4 (corresponds with Unit 1, Chapter 2,
Lesson 2 in textbook)
 Identify and describe land, major areas and cities
and landmarks in Great Plains region and
compare to U.S. and its neighbors (page 57)
 Continue relief map (using different color)
Lesson 5 (corresponds with Unit 1, Chapter 2,
Lesson 3 in textbook)
 Identify and describe land, major areas and cities
and landmarks in Mountains and Basins region
and compare to U.S. and its neighbors (page 61)
 Finish relief map (using different color) and key
 Texas Map-Map Skills (handout)
Lesson 6 (corresponds with Unit 1, Chapter 1,
Lesson 3 in textbook)
 Workbook page 6 (use with textbook pages 2833) Identify causes and effects of weather and
climate in Texas
 Can extend lesson with Extreme Weather (pp 3435 in textbook), weather poster on construction
paper or write a safety plan for their family for a
tornado
Lesson 7 (corresponds with Unit 1, Chapter 1,
Lesson 4 in textbook)
 Identify vegetation and animals in different
regions of Texas. Texas Symbols (Fact File p. 40
and Fact File p. 43), Texas State Symbols
handout, Texas Senate Kids website
 View Texas History Facts (short video)
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The Legend of the Bluebonnet (pp 76-77) or can
check out the book from library
Readers’ Theatre Texas Pride Parade pp 6-7 in
Social Studies Plus! Workbook
Texas Treasures pp 8-9 in Social Studies Plus!
This Land is Our Land pp 10-11 in Social Studies
Plus!
Additional Information
Materials/Resources
Weekly resource: Texas Studies Weekly
Map of Texas (can be wall map or individual,
political, landform and Regions of Texas)
Scott-Foresman textbook and student workbook;
Scott Foresman Social Studies Plus! Hands-On
Wichita Falls ISD (2013-2014)
Notes from Council
Texas Studies Weekly is a weekly resource which should be used
by the teacher as a lesson once each week.
Each campus should have a class set of State of Texas road maps,
provided by Texas Tourist Bureau. If your campus doesn’t have a
Approach workbook
Where in the World Am I? handout
Texas Cities and Texas Map –Map Skills handouts
Poster board (cut to fit Region Map), salt, flour, food
coloring, cooking oil, cream of tartar, water (recipe
included)
Regions of Texas map handout; Texas State Symbols
handout; Comparison Graphic Organizer (Venn
Diagram) compare and contrast regions of Texas;
Texas Cities handout (label cities and provide general
and economic facts); Texas Senate Kids website;
www.sfsocialstudies.com
Dinah Zike’s Notebook Foldables Texas History (each
campus should have a copy)
State of Texas road maps (class set – see Notes from
Council)
Discovery Education (United Streaming) website:
http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/
class set, please contact the Social Studies Curriculum Specialist.
This is an excellent way for students to practice map skills!
Relief map of Texas Regions (dough map) requires advance prep
work (at home) on part of teacher! Plan ahead!
Recipe for dough for relief map (double for a class of 22)
2 cups flour, 1 cup salt, 2 Tablespoons cooking oil, 4 teaspoons
cream of tartar (DO NOT OMIT!), food coloring, 2 cups water
Mix all dry ingredients in a saucepan, then add oil, water and
food coloring (amount depends upon your preference). Cook
over medium heat, stirring constantly until very stiff and lumpy
(you will have one big glob on the end of your spoon!). Let cool,
then knead. Store in an airtight container or large baggie.
Extension (or alternate lesson instead of relief map):
Comparison Graphic Organizer (Venn Diagram) compare and
contrast two regions of Texas
Extension and enrichment activities for both short- and longterm projects can be found in Social Studies Plus! A Hands-On
Approach Workbook (Scott Foresman).
Texas State Travel Guide site: http://www.traveltex.com/
Good site to research regions and cities. Take a virtual tour of
Texas.
Texas Highways Magazine site:
http://www.texashighways.com/index.php
Parent Resources
 www.sfsocialstudies.com
 http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/
 http://www.senate.state.tx.us/kids/Trivia.htm
 Have your child design a quiz for parents to answer about Texas state symbols
 Have your child draw a picture postcard for the region in which you live
 On a Texas map, have your child locate our city, the capital city of Texas, the largest city in Texas, one
natural boundary (water), and one Texas region
Wichita Falls ISD (2013-2014)