Year 5 unit overview Australian Curriculum: Geography.

Information taken and adapted

from: Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), Australian
Curriculum v5.0: Geography for Foundation10,
www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/Geography/Curriculum/F-10.

Year 5 Unit Overview

Learning Area

Unit title

Duration of unit

Year 5 Geography

Natural hazards (Flooding)

12 x 70 Minute Lessons

Identify Curriculum
Key/Guiding Questions
Problem - The Sunshine Coast has been issued with a severe fl ood warning
which threatens to cause the next natural disaster! What can we do!?

What is a flood and what are the different types?

What are the impact of floods on people and the environment?
What can we do about preventing reducing, preparing for and responding
to floods?
Why is it important to think about this?
What is currently in place in Australia or globally to solve this problem?
What is the location, severity and frequency of these events in Australia?
What are the causes of floods?
What does the data we have collected suggest?
What is the significance of these events to your life today?
What does someone who doesnt know anything about floods need to
know to prevent or survive this type of natural disaster?
How effective is your disaster management plan?

Content Descriptions:
Geographical
knowledge The impact of bushfires or floods on environments and communities, and
and
how people can respond (ACHGK030)
understandin
g
mapping and explaining the location, frequency and
severity of bushfires or flooding in Australia

explaining the impacts of fire on Australian vegetation

and the significance of fire damage on communities
researching how the application of principles of
prevention, mitigation and preparedness minimises the

harmful effects of bushfires or flooding

Observing,
questioning
and planning

develop geographical questions to plan an inquiry about the

impact of bushfires or floods on people and places

Collecting,
recording,
evaluating
and
representing

collect, record and represent relevant geographical data and

information from sources about the location, frequency and
severity of bushfires or flooding in Australia and a selected country
or world region

represent the locations of bushfires or flooding in Australia and a

selected country or world region on large-scale and small-scale
maps

evaluate the usefulness of collected data and represent data and

information

Interpreting,
analysing and
concluding

investigate management of spaces within places affected by

bushfires or floods and identify the principles of prevention,
mitigation and preparedness as ways to minimise the effects of
bushfires or flooding

Communicati
ng

interpret geographical data and information and infer relationships

to draw conclusions to identify distributions, patterns and trends
about bushfires or flooding using spatial technologies where
appropriate.

Reflecting
and
responding

Present findings and ideas and reflect on learning to propose

actions about the management of spaces within places.

Unit outline
This unit of work was designed for a Year 5 cohort based on the Geography Curriculum.
The focus was creating a unit which integrates ICTs in an authentic, purposeful manner to
transform the learning design and outcome. The topic for the unit is the impact of
flooding on people and the environment. Flooding was chosen as opposed to bushfires
due to the location of the intended cohort given that flooding is much more of a threat to
their everyday lives based on the patterns of historical events in Queensland. The
context is provided to the students in the form of an authentic problem relating to their
real lives:
Problem - The Sunshine Coast has been issued with a severe fl ood warning
which threatens to cause the next natural disaster! What can we do!?
The unit has been planned with the integration of two major frameworks. Firstly, the

content and learning sequence was designed around the Science 5 Es framework
(engage, explore, explain, extend and evaluate (Australian Academy of Science, 2015)
Secondly, the pedagogy and presentation of the teaching strategies to students was
designed using the Technology Cycle (Queensland Studies Authority, 2003).
These frameworks and the integration of ICTs were selected to ensure that the learning
experiences provided an authentic, rigorous, problem-based inquiry sequence which
encourages student directed learning and higher order thinking skills.

Students will:

Develop problem solving skills;

Follow an a problem based sequence to find solutions;

Guide their own learning;

Develop their own questions;

Collect and represent data using ICTs;

Interpret data;

Evaluate sources;

Represent locations and features of places using technologies;

Interact with various technologies;

Consider the location, frequency and severity of bushfires and floods using a map;

Present findings.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Students will understand

Students will know and be able to

DK 1 The impact of floods on people and

the environment.

PK 1 Develop questions to investigate the

topic of flooding to guide learning.

DK 2 The measures that can be taken by

PK 2 Collect, record, represent and evaluate
humans to prevent, mitigate and respond to information appropriately.
floods nationally and internationally.
PK 3 Identify the locations nationally and
DK 3 The location, frequency and severity internationally which have been flood
of flooding nationally and internationally.
affected.
DK 4 How to collect, record, represent and
evaluate information appropriately.

PK 4 Interpret geographical data and

information and infer relationships to draw
conclusions to identify distributions,
DK 5 How to be an effective team member.
patterns and trends about flooding.
PK 5 Present ideas to promote actions to

the community.
PK 6 To be an effective team member.

Assessment Overview
Students use their knowledge and understandings of the topic developed through the
problem based learning approach to develop a disaster management plan to aid the
people of the Sunshine Coast to prevent, prepare, mitigate and respond to a potential
flood in the area. The task will be evidenced in the students group construction of a
website demonstrating their learning and research. They will then use their new
knowledge to create and present a Disaster Management Plan in their groups in a format
of their choice. The will finally evaluate their disaster management plans in the form of
an individual peer assessment which will be presented as a blog post.
The learning design incorporates opportunities for students to acquire the skills and
knowledge to complete this task as well as the opportunity for feedback and support
throughout. The assessment is to be completed in allocated computer lab time. Students
will be encouraged to access the library computers or work from home to complete tasks
outside of this schedule.

Unit Overview

Investigating Natural Hazards (The reduction and

impact of floods on people and the environment)
Du Key
Overview
rat Questio
io ns
n

Student Teacher
ICT use ICT use

Engage hook students and access prior

knowledge
** The teacher must review the unit of work and obtain the appropriate permissions from
parent/caregivers to share students work on the Learning Place and with the sister school.
Appropriate approvals must also be received from the Principal. The teacher must also contact
and arrange the Skype sessions and sharing of work with the Year 5 cohort from Japan.

70
mi
ns

The
Sunshin
e Coast
has
been
issued
with a
severe

Introduce the task/identify

a need

Simulate a flood to hook students and have

them guess what the topic is about. As the
water rushes into a simulated town, turn on
a video on the whiteboard showing what
happens as the water hits the buildings.

Flood facts
NASA
satellite
images

fl ood
warnin
g which
threate
ns to
cause
the
next
natural
disaste
r! What
can we
do?

Review flood facts.

Compare the NASA satellite images taken

of the Queensland coast line during the
floods.

Student
resource
website

Review the learning goal - The sunshine

coast has an imminent flood warning in
place! How can we prepare a disaster
management plan?

Interactive
whiteboard

Introduce the problem and provide the

context. Ask students whether they think
prevention, reduction or responding is most Weebly
important when considering the preparation websites
of a disaster management plan. Ask them
to provide examples of disasters they are
aware of.

Weebly
websites

Introduce the student resource website and

explore the home page on the interactive
whiteboard.
Weebly
tutorial for
Click the next link to show students they
students:
will be working through the technology
Weebly
cycle to create their invention. Introduce
the cycle and explain to students that they websites
will be following this sequence throughout
the unit to create their disaster
management plan.

Set up groups and discuss how to use

Weebly
Weebly safely. Write a list of rules with
websites
student input including never share
personal information, password protect
your website and crediting images. Talk to
students about netiquette, digital footprints
and considering their potential audiences.

Students to set up their group websites

using Weebly using the classroom login
(rather than students signing up and
sharing personal information) teacher to
model how to do this first. Then
demonstrate to students where to find the
tutorial on the student resource website or
school drive to access at their own pace.

Bubbl.us
Mindmap

Show students how to use clipart to add

pictures as well as how to credit clipart and
other images. Display a poster
demonstrating this skill for future reference
in the classroom. The teacher then floats
whilst providing assistance to groups. Use
peer teaching to assist if multiple groups
are experiencing difficulty. The website is
created in one students account and other
group members are added as authors so
they can all access and update the site.

70
mi
ns

What
are the
impacts
of
fl oods
on
people?
Why is
it
importa
nt to
think
about
this?

Teacher guides students to set up a

welcome message for the Sunshine Coast
Community introducing their disaster
management plan. Also set up a page titled
KWL and include the subheadings: what I
know, what I want to learn and what I
have learnt.

Brainstorm as a whole class joint

construction to construct a mindmap on
bubbl.us based on what students know.
When complete, teacher drops this into the
school drive. Students access this and
upload it to the tab what I know on their
group website.

Group discussion to brainstorm what we

want to know. Students then respond to this
in their groups under the what I want to
learn tab of their group website.

Setting up the websites,

groups & identify a need

Wireless
Download
mouse and the task and
keyboard criteria
sheet

Click a link to open the task sheet and

criteria. Using wireless mouse, choose
students to highlight the key words and
discuss each element with an elbow partner Student
Weebly
to clarify what they need to do.
websites
The students discuss in their groups and
create a list of what they need to do to
check for understanding by recording dot
points in the what I want to learn tab of
their group website.

Projector
and
whiteboard

What is
the
locatio
n,
severit
y or
frequen
cy of
these
events
in
Australi
a?
What
signifi c
ance
does
this
have
on you?

Explicitly teach how to be an effective

group member with roleplay.

Ipads

World
Under
Direct students to the technology cycle link
Water
and advise they will be engaging in the first
resource
process Identification of a need. Teacher to
guide this using the projector and
whiteboard whilst the students follow in
their groups on the Ipads.

World Under
Water
resource

Log onto World Under Water and show a

depiction of their school under water. Look Floodmap
Floodmap
Resource
up different local locations under water.
resource
Look up international landmarks (the
Colosseum, the Eiffel Tower etc) and show
Projector
that they too are underwater. Discuss the Ipads
and
key facts which are rolling across the
whiteboard
screen.
Disaster
Log on to Floodmap on the Ipads and type Mapper
in the Sunshine Coast to bring it up on the
Disaster
map. Adjust the levels of water elevations
Mapper
to map what parts of the Sunshine Coast
are going to be inundated at varying levels.
Let the students play around with this
Whiteboard
noting various points on interest. Teacher to
Student
make sure students understand the many
Weebly
variables which could cause inaccuracies
websites
with this prediction but also point out the
many useful purposes for this type of
software.
Pose the rhetorical question to students:
why is it important to be learning about
flooding? Students log on to and explore
Disaster Mapper on the Ipads. Teacher to
model on the whiteboard. Get students to
click all the natural disasters to hit
Queensland to discover flooding has had
biggest impact. Review and compare the
statistics. Have the students consider the
loss of life and economic impact. Students
discuss in the group and write a reflection
on the what ive learnt tab of their group
website.
Identify the need for the invention by
brainstorming as a class. Summarise ideas

into a sentence or short paragraph and

have students add this to their website
homepage.

Explore think, plan, investigate and organise

collected information
70
mi
ns

What
are the
impacts
on
people
and the
environ
ment?
What
can we
do to
prevent,
reduce,
prepare
and
respond
?

Investigation

What is
currentl
y in
place in
Australi
a and
globally
?
What
causes
the
floods?

Review new vocab: prevention, mitigation,

reduction, preparedness. Create new
definitions with class input.
Teacher to model safe, responsible use of
Student
the website. Teacher to provide students
with a safe internet use contract for them Weebly
websites
to sign. Remind students about the safe
ICT rules previouslt created and again
discuss never sharing personal information,
password protect your website, credit all
images, engage in netiquette, digital
footprints and considering their potential
audiences.
Review the standards identified in the want
to learn section of the KWL chart.
In their groups, students pose the
Student
investigation questions they would like
Weebly
answers to about and record on the want websites
to learn tab of their website:
- The impact of floods on people and the
environment. (such as what is a flood?
Are there different types? What happens
to buildings, do people get warnings?
Skype with
What happens to animals? What
the year 5
damage happens to the environment?) class in
- Mitigating, reducing, preventing and
Japan also
responding to floods. (Such as how can studying
people prepare for floods? What causes flooding
them? How can you flood proof your
nationally
house? What can the council do? How do and
you clean up after a flood?)
abroad.
- Teacher to adjust the learning design to
ensure all questions are accommodated. Email
As a joint construction, draft an email to the students
construct
experts from the Sunshine Coast Council
listed in the Disaster Management Plan pg on the
14, as well as a contact from the Bureau of learning
Meteorology to collect information based on

Whiteboard

Student
Weebly
websites

Email
construction
projected on
the
whiteboard

Teacher to
organise,
prepare and
co-ordinate
the Skype
session.
(Teacher to
obtain the
appropriate
permissions
form
parents/care

70
mi
ns

What is
a flood
and
what are
the
different
types?
What
are the
impacts
on
people
and the
environ
ment?
What
can we
do to
prevent,
reduce,
prepare

the identified standards listed in the KWL

place
chart.
Teacher provides background information
on the flooding in Japan. Using the council
email as a guide, the class decides what
information they want to know when they
talk to the international school in Japan who
are also learning about flooding. Students
Skype with the class organised from the
other school and share where they are up
to in their investigations of their own place,
the task as well as where they are headed
and find out information/get their questions
answered about Japans floods. Both classes
have agreed to send them there completed
Disaster Management Plans.
Each group then drafts an email on
Microsoft Word to send to the school to
follow up and request information including
photographs, locations, and what plans
Japan has to prepare, reduce and respond
to floods. Once complete, students upload a
copy to the what I want to know tab of
their website.

Investigation

Students investigate what is a flood and

what are the type of flood by accessing the
sites on their Ipads. Students use the
student resources website to access and
explore Kidcyber.com and Floodsite.net to
find the information to complete the
reflection activity about what a flood is and
describing the different types. Students to
upload their response to the what have I
learnt tab of their website.

Kidcyber
Floodsite

Student
Weebly
websites

Talking
Review the evidence from the experts.
point
Students to use the talking point
microphones to record their thoughts and microphon
discussion within their group responding to es
the evidence received based on questions Global
provided by the teacher. Students to upload Warming
to the what I have learnt tab of the
website.
Case

givers ahead
of time).

and
respond
?

Review global warming as a cause. Explore studies

what it is at
https://www.oxfam.org.au/what-we-do/foodand-climate/climate-change/. Log on to
http://carbonstory.org/projects/renewable_e
nergy and look at how projects are tackling
global warming. What are the four ways
listed to eliminate global warming? Each
group selects one project and explains how
it reduces the carbon impacts under the
what I have learnt tab on their website.

What do
the
experts
say?
What is
currentl
y in
place in
Australi
a and
globally
?
What
causes
the
floods?
What is
the
location,
frequen
cy and
severity
of
flooding
in
Queensl
and?

Explain analysis of exploration. Reflective

activities to clarify and modify understandings
70 What are
mi the
ns impacts
of floods
on people
and the
environm
ent?
What is

Investigation/Ideation

Computer
lab

Students to log on to the student resource

website in the computer lab.
Interactive
Explore the interactive timeline and website timeline
on the Queensland floods as a class with
Australias
the teacher demonstrating on the
most
whiteboard:
damaging
Review the ariel before and after photos,
floods
watch the animation and play some flood

Interactive
timeline

Australias
most

the
location,
severity
and
frequenc
y of these
events in
Australia?

What are
the
causes of
floods?

70 What are
mi the
ns impacts
of floods
on people
and the
environm
ent?
What is
currently
in place
in
Australia
or
globally
to solve
this
problem?
What is
the
location,
severity
and
frequenc
y of these
events in

stories to the class.

Open Australias most damaging floods on
the whiteboard and review by reading out
the main facts of each flood. Provide a hard
copy to each group.
- Teacher to model the use of Scribble
Maps to the whole class.
- Half the students in each group use
SCRIBBLE MAPS to map out the major
floods in Australia and use the embed
code to add to their websites.
- The other half create a DIPITY TIMELINE
(students have used Dipity in a previous
assessment task. Teacher to provide
extra assistance to the groups working
on the timelines to monitor abilities) to
display the information for the purpose
of comparison.
- Groups upload their completed map and
timeline to the what I have learnt tab.

Scribble
Maps

damaging
floods

Dipity
Timeline

Groups to explore and draw conclusions to Sunshine

the following questions on their websites: Coast
Disaster
- What year did Queensland suffer the
Manageme
most disastrous floods? Why?
- What determines the level of disaster? nt Plan
- What was the number of the population
affected during times of flooding
(consider number 1 and 2? What can we
predict from that?
- Where are floods most likely to happen
in Australia and how can we tell?
- Is there a pattern in the floods? What
does this suggest?
Review answers as a class.
How do you define whether a flood is minor,
moderate or major? (Review Appendix C,
Venn
page 25 of the Sunshine Coast Disaster
Diagram
Management Plan) and write a description
of each on your website.
Provide each group with the response
received from the international school in
Japan by placing the files on the school
drive. Teacher to model the use of the
online Venn Diagram. Students to complete
an electronic Venn Diagram within their
groups and embed it on their website to

Pictures of
Japans
flooding
from 2011

Australia?
What
does the
data we
have
collected
suggest?
What is
the
significan
ce of
these
events on
your life

compare and contrast Queensland Floods to

the floods experienced in their countries.
(Gifted students requiring extension could
be given the task of contacting another
school in an alternate country to gather
more evidence under the close guidance
and with support of the teacher).
Show students pictures of the devastation
causes by the flooding from the tsunami in
Japan in 2011.
Class discussion about the likelihood and
impact of what it would be like to
experience a flood on the Sunshine Coast.

Extension opportunity to expand and solidify

their understanding of the topic and apply it to
a real life situation
4 x What are
70 the
mi impact of
nut floods to
e people
les and the
son environm
s ent?
What can
we do
about
preventin
g,
reducing,
preparing
for and
respondin
g to
floods?
Why is it
important
to think
about
this?

Ideation/Production

Simulated
game

Allow students to apply knowledge to a real

life situation and hook them in by playing a
flood disaster simulator whereby they must
act as the town planner and choose, trial
and implement a variety of strategies to
prepare for and reduce the effects of the
flood. Teacher to model the tools of the
game and also allocate peer helpers. Once
the timer finishes the simulated flood
happens and a report is generated on the
students performance. This could be done
in pairs or groups and be used as a class
competition. Students reflect on what they
have learnt about the best and most
important measures to take to flood proof a
community under the what I have learnt
tab of their websites.

Student
resource
website

Student
resource
website

Choice of
presentatio
n format
Remind students about the safe ICT rules
PowerPoint
previously created and again discuss never (Word,
template
Prezi or
sharing personal information, password
and
protect your website, credit all images,
PowerPoint exemplar
engage in netiquette, digital footprints and this
download
considering their potential audiences.
cohort has here
used these

What are
the
causes of
floods?

What is
currently
in place
in
Australia
or
globally
to solve
this
problem?
What
does the
data we
have
collected
suggest?
What is
the
significan
ce to
your life?

What
does
someone
who
doesnt
know
anything
about
floods
need to
know to
prevent
or survive
this type
of natural
disaster?

tools
extensively
Students explore the following questions:
How can we mitigate, reduce, prevent and in the
prepare for floods? What are the risk factors past).
and causes of floods? What is currently in Provide
place in Australia to solve this problem? By students
engaging in a jigsaw activity using the
with the
resources on the student resource website: exemplar
and
- Each group explores one tab under the
scaffold
disaster management plan map each
template
lesson.
to help
- Groups are responsible for allocating
guide their
roles, undertaking the research and
research.
planning how to present it on their
website (Word document, Prezi or
Powerpoint).
- Groups construct their presentation
whilst simultaneously discovering the
research.
- Teacher to provide a scaffold for
students in the form of a PowerPoint
handout by providing headings for
students to display their information and
allow their creativity to decide how to
present it.
- Teacher to monitor closely. If groups
finish one before the lesson is over they
may move onto the next one. Discuss
the timeframes for completing this task
over 4 lessons.
- Students upload their finished product to
the class blog.

Evaluation scoring tools to evaluate process

and understandings
70 What can
mi we do
ns about
preventin
g,
reducing,
preparing
for and
respondin
g to
floods?
Why is it
important
to think
about
this?

Evaluation

What
does the
data we
have
collected
suggest?
What is
the
significan
ce to

Teacher to provide an exemplar and get

students to highlight the specific textual
and language features relating to an
evaluation. Create a classroom display
listing choices students can use to help
write their feedback.

Model how to use the blog (students will

only be adding their evaluation to the
comments of the class blog not creating
their own). Pick some students to
demonstrate how and allocate them as
experts to help other students.

Each group accesses another groups

disaster management plan from the class
blog. Each group collaborates using the
criteria sheet and taking notes. Students
then individually assess their peers work
and provide recommendations. Students
then save their work to the school drive.

What are
the
causes of
floods?
What is
currently
in place
in
Australia
or
globally
to solve
this
problem?

Teacher models how to do peer assessment

and provides a scaffolding template for
students to write on. Teacher to explicitly
teach the sandwich model for providing
warm and cool feedback.

Projector
and
whiteboard
Evaluation
Microsoft template
Word
Evaluation
Class exemplar
blog

Working
on their
multimodal
Disaster
Teacher reviews feedback for inappropriate
Manageme
content. Each student then uploads the
nt Plans
feedback to the comments section on the
blog post of the group they evaluated.

Ideation

Review the standards, task sheet and

criteria sheet on the Ipads.

Each group has a one on one conference

with the teacher to receive feedback and
guidance for improvements based on the
criteria.

Paint
Microsoft
Word

your life?
What
does
someone
who
doesnt
know
anything
about
floods
need to
know to
prevent
or survive
this type
of natural
disaster?

Production

Students to make adjustments to their

disaster management plans based on the
feedback received.

Extension activity for early finishers

create a blueprint of your house using
Paint. Copy and paste the picture into
Microsoft Word and add annotations about
measures that can be taken around the
home to prepare for a flood.

How
effective
is your
disaster
manage
ment
plan?
70 Consolida
mi tion of
ns learning

Ideation/Production

Students are then given time to consider

and discuss the feedback they received and
make minor changes is necessary.
Online
Survey
Students complete an online survey about
the group work process and peer
participation and effectiveness.
Student
Blog
Student work on ensuring there Disaster
Management Plans are ready to present the
Sunshine Coast Community and to share
with the sister school in Japan. The students
must check their work is free from personal
information and double checked by the
Learning
teacher. The teacher must also password
protect the blog, inform and get permission Place
from parents/caregivers to share students
work, and create an agreement/contract to
Japanese
send to the Japan school protecting the
school

Student blog

Learning
Place

Japanese
school
Disaster
Management

students intellectual property which is

approved by the principal.

They then upload them to the Learning

Place to share with their families (students
are very familiar with the Learning Place).
Teacher to send home a newsletter
presenting them to families and
encouraging them to provide feedback.

The students complete the unit by

reviewing the Disaster Management Plans
shared from the Japan School. Teacher to
explain that they cannot be uploaded to the
student resource website because that
would be breaking the copyright agreement
with the sister school.

Disaster
Plans
Manageme
nt Plans