Physical Features Exploration

Grade Level

1st Grade

Duration

30 minutes

Unit

Mapping Our World Together (Lesson 4 of 5)

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Learning Objectives (Aligned with Common Core)

Social Studies / Geography Standards:

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.7: Use the illustrations and details in a text to describe its key ideas.
• SS.1.G.1: Understand the use of maps and globes to locate places and physical features.
• SS.1.G.2: Identify physical features on maps and explain how they affect people’s lives.

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“I Can…” Statements

• I can name physical features like mountains, rivers, and lakes on maps.
• I can point to and identify these features on different maps.
• I can explain how physical features affect where people live and what they do.

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Success Criteria

I will know I am successful when:

• I can find mountains, rivers, and lakes on a map.
• I can describe one way a physical feature changes how people live.
• I can share my ideas clearly with my classmates.

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Materials Needed

• Large colorful world map and local/state map (laminated or on a whiteboard)
• Picture cards of mountains, rivers, lakes, forests
• Individual small laminated maps for each student
• Dyslexia-friendly reading sheets with simple sentences and icons
• Markers, crayons
• Sticky notes for students to label maps
• Tablet or projector (optional) for showing digital maps with physical features

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Lesson Breakdown

1. Warm-Up (5 minutes)

• Activity: Show the large world or state map. Ask: “What do you see on this map?”
• Introduce “physical features” as mountains, rivers, and lakes using picture cards.
• Use a dyslexia-friendly, simple sentence: “Mountains are tall and rocky. Rivers flow with water.”

2. Guided Exploration (10 minutes)

• Distribute small laminated maps to students.
• Ask students to find and point out mountains, rivers, and lakes on their maps.
• Walk through the maps together, highlighting physical features and using simple, clear language.
• Discuss: “How do you think living near a river is different from living near mountains?”
• Use story prompts: “If you live by a river, you might catch fish. If you live by mountains, you might climb.”

3. Interactive Group Activity (10 minutes)

• In pairs, students take turns placing sticky notes on their maps to label one physical feature each: mountain, river, or lake.
• One student explains why that feature is important for people living there (with teacher help as needed).
• Use sentence starters on the board:
  • “This is a ____.”
  • “People use the ____ to ____.”

4. Wrap-up and Reflection (5 minutes)

• Invite 3-4 students to share one physical feature they labeled and why it matters.
• Review “I Can” statements out loud.
• End with a quick thumbs-up/thumbs-down: “Do you feel more confident about physical features on maps?”

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Differentiation and Support

• For Diverse Learners:

  • Use multisensory approaches (touch maps, point and say).
  • Provide visual aids and dyslexia-friendly texts with icons and short sentences.
  • Pair verbal instructions with gestures and visuals.
  • Use sentence frames to support verbal explanations.

• For Advanced Learners:

  • Challenge students to think about how physical features impact people’s jobs and homes.
  • Ask them to create a simple sentence or drawing showing the feature’s effect on people’s lives.
  • Offer extension maps showing varied terrains (forest, desert) for further exploration.

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Assessment

• Formative: Teacher observes student participation in map labeling and paired discussions.
• Summative: Exit ticket where each student draws one physical feature and says one fact about it (can be oral or written with help).

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Teacher Reflection Prompt

• How engaged were students during interactive map activities?
• Which physical features did students identify most confidently?
• Did differentiation strategies support diverse learning needs effectively?
• What might be improved for the final lesson in the unit?

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This lesson brings geography to life in a hands-on way that invites 1st graders to think about the physical world—and their lives—on maps!