UNIT	SKILLS	TYPE OF ASSESSMENT USED	
Each classroom completes a minimum of 3 units from the following:
•	Polar Regions
•	Grasslands
•	Deserts
•	Rainforests
•	Australia
•	Japan	Key Skill Objectives:  Gathering, using and presenting information in independent and group settings.
The student will demonstrate the ability to compare and contrast world communities and regions by distinguishing similarities and differences between them.
Geographic Strand:
1.	Use map/globe skills to locate regions.  Upon presentation of a map or globe, the students will be able to identify:
•	The seven continents
•	The Atlantic, Pacific, Arctic and Indian Oceans
•	The equator
•	The Northern and Southern Hemispheres
•	North and South Poles
•	The cardinal directions (N,S,E,W)
•	The intermediate directions 	(NE,NW,SE,SW)
•	Map key (legend) and symbols
•	Compass rose
•	Natural (physical) features
•	Cultural (political) features
•	Distances
•	Boundaries
•	Scale of miles
•	Parallels and meridians as vocabulary terms
2.	Understand features and vegetation of each region.
3.	Understand climactic conditions of each region.
4.	Know the natural resources and ecology of each region.
5.	Understand that geographic and environmental forces influence one’s lifestyle.
6.	Become familiar with monuments and memorials of
      regions studied.	•	Essays
•	Projects
•	Class discussions
•	Teacher observations
•	Research papers
•	Paper/pencil tests
•	Oral presentations
•	Response journals	

	Economic Strand:
1.	Understand the differences between needs/wants and goods/services.
2.	Understand that all communities have basic needs and wants (food, shelter, clothing)
3.	Understand that people’s needs, wants and ways of meeting them are influenced by many factors: culture, values, environment, experience, accessibility of information, technology.
4.	Understand that people must make economic choices due to unlimited wants and needs and limited resources
5.	Know that all people are producers and consumers of goods and services.
		
	Social Strand:
1.	Understand the awareness of one’s own values, attitudes, and capabilities as an individual and as a member of a community.
2.	Understand that communities have social/cultural similarities and differences due to the following factors: family life, ways of meeting wants and needs, customs, traditions and language.
3.	Understand the importance of appreciation and tolerance of other’s expressions, interests, feelings and values.
		
	Political Strand:
1.	Understand that people in all communities develop rules and laws to govern and protect community members.
2.	Understand that community members plan, organize, and make decisions for the common good.
3.	Understand that citizenship includes an awareness of the purposes for celebrating patriotic holidays and the symbols of our nation as they relate to our nation’s heritage.
4.	Understand the selection of leaders in regions studied.

	Historical Strand:
1.	Understand that communities change over time (i.e. size, ways of living, population, discovery, use and depletion of natural resources, attitudes, beliefs, and values of community members, food, shelter, clothing).
2.	Understand that communities of the future will be different in many ways (i.e. location, architecture, transportation, communication, education, resources, occupations, recreations, etc.).
3.	Use of BC & AD as reference points on timelines.