Grade 4 Lesson at a Glance: Chapter 4, Lesson 2

Houghton Mifflin Social Studies
Oh, California

Lesson at a Glance
Chapter 4, Lesson 2: From Missions to Ranchos (pp. 90-93)

The Big Idea
Framework Concept: Change After the Mexican War for Independence, the missions were converted into ranchos.

Together with students consider who benefited and who lost by the closing of the missions and the granting of land by the Mexican government. Outline the effects of this change by making a Pros and Cons chart on the board. With students, fill in the chart with the pros or "positive" points of the missions becoming ranchos and cons or "negative" points.

Lesson Outline
Use the Lesson Outline to preview the content of the lesson. You may wish to print it for your students as a guide during reading.

Check for Understanding

Have students write a first person narrative describing the changing life from the missions to the ranchos. They can be a ranchero who is a new land owner, a padre, an Indian, or someone else directly affected by the change.
Invite students to make a poster showing the new way of life on a rancho. Encourage them to label the different features of the rancho.

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