1st grade · Social Studies · Unit 7 of 15
Our Land
Nature, buildings and caring
What your child practices
Natural and human-made features, how the land shapes how we live, and caring for it by reducing, reusing and recycling.
Alabama Course of Study content standard: 1.9; 1.4 · landforms and bodies of water, and how the land shapes work and play
How we explain it
Children can open this short lesson before they practice.
- Natural things come from nature: trees, oceans, flowers.
- People make things like houses, roads and schools.
- We help nature when we recycle and pick up litter.
Example: Where should an empty plastic bottle go? Plastic bottles can be made into new things. So they go in the recycling bin. Answer: recycling bin
Our Land in Alabama
In the Alabama Course of Study, this is unit 7 of 15 in 1st grade Social Studies, after Maps and before Changes in My Life.
Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
Where should a candy wrapper go?
- 🗑️garbage can
- 🛣️on the sidewalk
- 🦆in the pond
🗑️ garbage can
Hint: Litter can hurt animals and make places messy. Put it in the garbage.
Question 2
Which one was made by people?
- 🌳tree
- 🛣️road
- 🌊lake
🛣️ road
Hint: People build roads so cars, bikes and buses can get around.
Question 3
Why should we leave wildflowers growing?
🌼- 🐝bees and other animals need them
- ⏱️flowers grow back in one minute
- 🏋️flowers are too heavy to pick
🐝 bees and other animals need them
Hint: Bees and butterflies drink from flowers. Leaving them helps nature.
Question 4
People cut down some trees to make…
🌲- 💧water
- 🪵wood for houses
- 🪨rocks
🪵 wood for houses
Hint: Wood from trees is used to build houses and make paper.
Question 5
Why do people build bridges?
- 🌉to cross rivers safely
- 🌾to grow food
- 🌧️to stop the rain
🌉 to cross rivers safely
Hint: People change the land to meet their needs. A bridge helps us get over water.
Question 6
Does it help or harm nature? Tap an item, then tap its basket.
Sort into: 💚 helps nature · 💔 harms nature
- 🚰leave the tap running
- 💡leave lights on all day
- 🪵break branches off trees
- 🚶walk to school
- 🧤pick up litter
- 🛍️reuse a bag
💚 helps nature: walk to school, pick up litter, reuse a bag · 💔 harms nature: leave the tap running, leave lights on all day, break branches off trees
Hint: Caring for the land, water and animals keeps our community healthy.