Rubric - 50 State Quarters Program
History in Your Pocket: The 50 State Quarters Program
Teacher Lesson Plan
Subject Areas: Geography, American History, and Language Arts
Grade Levels: 5th through 7th grades
Background: This lesson can be delivered in conjunction with a larger study of the United States Mint. Students will have already explored how coins are designed and made.
Objectives: Students will:
Anticipatory Set: The teacher passes out quarters from the program to the class. If there are not enough quarters for the whole class, students can work as partners. Discuss with the students what they already know about the 50 State Quarters Program (some students might be collectors). Introduce the term numismatist (coin collector). If possible, discuss your own state's quarter design and the process the state goes through to select a design. Tell the students they will be investigating the state's quarter they have been given. Through the course of their Internet research, they will be required to determine the meaning of the design and explain it on a web page with an image map of their quarter design. Later, students will perform the same research on a state whose quarter has not been issued in an effort to collect enough information to design a quarter face.
Independent Practice: Students will first investigate the U.S. Mint Web Site to find out a brief overview of the 50 State Quarters Program. Students can use the attached guided questions to get background information. Have the students discuss with a partner what they learned about the program to share information. Using the Ready-Set-Go as their starting point, students can select their quarter face as the basis for their image map. Students should use the attached worksheet as questions to answer as they investigate their state. Th first half-hour should be spent researching the state and collecting information for their web site. Students can use the attached Skill Set to create image maps with their quarter face. The same steps are repeated with the states whose quarters have not been released.
Assessment: Information included in the image map must be in the students' own words. Web resources used should be cited on the web page. The following information is required:
The students have the ability to be creative with the product, and should be encouraged to do so.
Resources:
U.S.
Mint 50 States Quarter Program - Find out about the program, design requirements
and production figures.
50states.com - A comprehensive site with information about the 50 states.
Internet Public Library: Stately Knowledge - More information about states.
Enchantedlearning.com - Even more!!
Investigate Quarter Designs - This website provides good information about the designs.
Biography.com - Helpful information about the famous people from your state.
Links:
History in Your Pocket: The 50 States Quarter Program
Guiding Questions about the U.S. Mint's Program