Overview of Lesson		Body of Lesson - Procedure & Assessment
Connection to the Curriculum,Standards and Skills		Activity One and Student Assessment
Grade Level		Activity Two and Student Assessment
Purpose of Lesson		Activity Three and Student Assessment
Primary Geographic Question		Activity Four and Student Assessment
Secondary Questions		Assessment of Lesson
Materials		References

Overview of the Lesson

Most Americans drive automobiles, but do they understand where their vehicles are produced? We all know that one way or another we are all interconnected but it’s amazing to discover that we are interconnected by automobiles.

Geography Standards

Standard 2:  How to use mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments in spatial context.

Standard 11:  The patterns and networks of economic interdependence on Earth’s surface.

Alabama Course of Study:  Social Studies Content Standards (Grade 7)

Standard 2:     Illustrate spatial information using data, symbols, and colors to create thematic maps.

Standard 17:  Relate economic activity of a region within its geographic context.

Standard 19:   Discuss major industries in the United States from the perspective of how geography and the factors of production helped determine the locations of manufacturing plants.

Geographic Skills

Acquiring geographic information to create thematic maps. Gathering and analyzing data in order to understand the interconnection of General Motors in North and South America. To understand how events in one part of the world can affect other parts of the world.

Grade 7

To use charts to find information to create a thematic map. To use charts and thematic maps to understand and demonstrate the economic interdependence of various regions of North and South America.

Where are the majority of the General Motors production plants located? How are North and South America interconnected? How does the location of plants affect the economy?

Where are the General Motors production plants in the North and South America?

Where are some of the General Motors production plants moving? Why?

How will the relocation of these production plants affect the U.S. economy?

What was the result of the conflict between two groups of people at General Motors in June of 1998? How did this conflict affect your state? How did this conflict affect the economy? How did it affect the availability of automobiles?

• AI Global Vehicles & Production charts
• Maps of North and South America
• Colored Pencils
• Atlas
• Encyclopedia
• Articles on the GM strike of 1998

Activity One

Secondary Question # 1:  Where are the General Motors production plants in North and South America?

Divide the students into small groups. Give each group a copy of the AI Global Vehicles & Production chart and an outline map of North and South America.

Tell the students to use the atlas to find out where GM production plants are located .  They should identify 12 - 15 in North America and 12 - 15 in South America.  These choices will be used to develop thematic maps.  Students will use information to identify where the majority of plants are.

To create a thematic map, have students plot the locations of the production plants on the outline map. Students will use various colors and symbols to indicate how many different kinds of automobiles are produced in that plant.

Assessing Student Learning: Activity One

Have each group display their thematic map. Check to make sure that the production plants are located in the correct place. Students should have used different colors or symbols to represent different kinds of automobiles that are produced in the same location.

Activity Two

• Secondary Question # 2:  Where are some of the General Motors production plants moving? Why?
• Divide the students into small groups. Have the students brainstorm and make list of some of the reasons that the production plants may move to other countries.
• Hold a class discussion on why some of the production plants may be moving. Emphasize the cost of labor, the availability of labor, and the cost of operating a production plant in various parts of the world.

Assessing Student Learning: Activity Two

Have each student write a paragraph explaining why he or she thinks some of the production plants are moving. Also, have each student to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of moving the GM production plants outside of the United States.

Activity Three

• Secondary Question #3:How will the relocation of these production plants affect the U.S. economy?
• Divide the students into small groups. Provide each group with a copy of the General Motors Corporation article from Encarta® Encyclopedia® 98 or another current encyclopedia. Have each group discuss and answer question #3.
• Divide the groups into three teams. Tell the teams that they are going to debate whether or not the relocation of the GM production plants will have an affect on the U.S. economy. Two teams will discuss one side of the debate. The third team will discuss how many people at assembly, production, and parts plants could be affected if more GM plants move outside of the United States. Have the students personalize the debate by including the local impact of the relocation.

Assessing Student Learning: Activity Three

Have each student write two paragraphs answering question #3. They should include how the relocation of production plants may affect assembly and parts plants.

Activity Four

• Secondary Question #4: What was the result of the conflict between two groups of people at General Motors in June of 1998? How did it affect your state? How did this conflict affect the economy? How did it affect the availability of automobiles?
• Lead a class discussion about some possible consequences of conflict between two groups of people.
• Divide the students into small groups. Give each group copies of reports about the GM strike that are found on the Internet at (Click on more… for a complete listing of related articles).
• Give the groups a copy of the "Affected Plants" article to show them how the actions of one group can affect other groups.
• Have each group discuss question #4 and report their answers to the class. Allow different groups to answer different parts of the question.

Assessing Student Learning: Activity Four

Have the students write a paragraph explaining how this conflict could affect them by using the question as a guide. Tell them that they are expected to answer each part of question 4 in their paragraph.

Did the students correctly label the cities that contain GM production plants? Ask the students to write an explanation of how the production of automobiles interconnects North and South America and how this relationship affects the economy.

Affected Plants. (June 26, 1998) The Decatur Daily. Decatur, AL.

AI Global Vehicle & Production. (Online) Available (1998).

GM Layoffs Swell to 162,000. (Online) Available(1998).

GM Strike Impact Spreads. (Online) Available (1998).

GM Talks Get Serious. (Online) Available (1998).

"General Motors Corporation," Microsoft® Encarta® 98 Encyclopedia. © 1993-1997 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Poll: GM Strike Blame Spreads Evenly  (Online) Available (1998).

Still No Progress in GM Strike Talks. (Online) Available (1998).

UAW Strikes GM Plant   (Online) Available (1998).
 

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Created by Jennifer Atwell.  7/13/98.  Last revision 9/30/98.  lkm