Problem-Based Learning units for Grade 3 social studies. Each unit moves students from building knowledge (surface) to organizing it (deep) to solving a real, ill-structured community problem as a stakeholder (transfer).
Vocabulary, community facts, jigsaw reading, map work.
Needs vs. wants, scarcity, supply & demand, a concept map and a claim.
Meet the problem, take a role, investigate, weigh options, vote, debrief.
A growing town has one empty lot left on the square. Families, shop owners, and town leaders all want something different for it — but there isn't enough money or space for everything. Students become stakeholders and decide together. 5–8 class periods.
Open the unit → Communities & environment · §113.14Every spring the river near Willow Bend rises and floods homes, the park, and Main Street. People disagree — build a wall, move the park, plant trees, or leave things be. Students become stakeholders and decide how to live safely with the river. 5–8 class periods.
Open the unit → Communities & heroes · §113.14A town is opening a new public library, and the community gets to choose whose name it will carry — a scientist, a local hero, a beloved author, a civil-rights leader. But the library can have only one name. Students become stakeholders, weigh contributions with evidence, and vote. 5–8 class periods.
Open the unit →| TEKS SE | What students do |
|---|---|
| (c)(2)(A–B) | Explain reasons people form communities (security, laws, well-being) and how communities meet needs — government, education, communication, transportation, recreation. |
| (c)(3)(B) | Describe how people adapt to and modify their environment. |
| (c)(4)(C) | Use map elements — title, compass rose, legend, scale, and grid — to read and make a map. |
| (c)(5)(A–B) | Explain earning, spending, saving, and donating; make a simple budget. |
| (c)(6)(A–C) | Explain supply and demand, scarcity, and the difference between cost, price, and profit. |
| (c)(7)(A,C) | Describe how local government is organized and the services it provides. |
| (c)(9)(A,C,E) | Identify good citizenship, explain civic responsibility, and take part in voting on a decision. |
| (c)(14)(A–F) | Gather and compare sources, tell cause from effect, and make a claim with evidence. |
| (c)(15) | Communicate ideas clearly in speaking and writing. |
| (c)(16)(B) | Use the problem-solving process: identify a problem, gather information, list and consider options, weigh advantages and disadvantages, choose and implement a solution, and evaluate its effectiveness. |
🧑🏫 Teacher supports: UDL · ELPS · PBL facilitation guide · Activity → TEKS correlation