This California Regions Foldable was a favorite activity for my Social Studies group. After we learned about California's regional diversity, we set about creating this foldable. Students worked in groups to find details about each major region. Then, I did a directed draw for each region. To do that, I directed the student to divide each space into a quadrant. Bonus points for using the word "quadrant". Next I gave basic instructions to create each picture. For example, for the valley region I had the students draw a three by five grid in the lower two quadrants. After the directed draw, students were given time to color in their creations. I think they turned out beautifully and my students really enjoyed the experience. Thank you to Lesson with Laughter for the great idea.
The students enjoyed the experience so much that we will be repeating the experience as we study about the California Missions. I located this series on You Tube by Patty Fernandez that has a directed draw for each mission. I plan to have students pair up and research a mission. Their final project will include facts about their mission and their finished drawing. Can't wait to see how that turns out.
What the Teacher Learned: Integrate art into activities to help bolster interest and connections.
