Whose Habitat Is That? (Lesson 3)

This lesson is designed to help students explore the surroundings animals find in each of the five habitats. This plan is written for the desert habitat but the same plan should be used for the exploration of all five habitat settings.

A lesson plan for grade 1 English Language Arts

By Kelly Stewart

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• Tarantulas: Students will read Tarantula by Jenny Feely. Then they will summarize what they have learned about tarantulas by writing descriptive words or phrases on a graphic organizer. Finally, using the Kid Pix Studio Deluxe (or other similiar drawing program), students will write sentences about tarantulas and make an illustration.

Related topics

• Learn more about English language arts.

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Learning outcomes

At the completion of this lesson students should be able to give characteristics of the habitat that was studied that day. For example, when studying the desert the students should be able to write or tell the teacher that the desert is a hot, dry place and may name some of the animals which inhabit the desert. The student should be able to inform the teacher about each habitat after the lessons are complete.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

45 minutes

Materials/resources

• animal and habitat surroundings photos for each of the habitat settings (from lesson 2 in this series)
• blank paper and pencils
• habitat mini books from lesson 1 in this series with habitat definition on page 1 and blank pages
• internet-ready computer to view web gallery of photos (preferably a large computer screen for whole class to view)
• science text with information on habitats

Technology resources

Internet-ready computer (large screen Destination system is preferable so all students can view gallery pictures at one time)

Pre-activities

The students should have completed lessons 1 and 2 in this series before completing this lesson set. Students will need to know what a habitat is, what types of things are found in a habitat, and that all habitats are not the same.

Activities

1. The teacher should start this lesson with a review. The students should be asked what the word habitat means and should also tell the teacher what things are included in a habitat. The teacher should remind the students of the previous lesson’s sorting activity and how they found out that all animals do not live in one place.
2. After a review, the teacher should focus on the pictures from one of the habitats from lesson 2.
3. The teacher will show the students the pictures from the lesson 2 sort and ask them to describe the pictures aloud. The students should comment on the animals and the surrounding habitat characteristics. The teacher will then direct the student’s attention to the Destination computer screen.
4. The teacher will access the web photo gallery using the web address from the bonfire website. Showing the pictures from one habitat (one at a time), the teacher will allow students to make observations aloud about the pictures from the single habitat. The teacher will make comments as well and will ask the students about things they noticed in all the pictures.
5. After viewing the pictures from the habitat (the desert, for example) the teacher will send the students to their seats with a blank paper on which to create a bubble map about the day’s habitat. The students will create the map by drawing six circles.
6. The first circle will be drawn in the middle of the page and will have the name of the habitat in the middle. The other five circles will be connected to the middle circle using short lines, forming a circular pattern around the inner circle. (See attachment for sample of bubble map.)
7. In the five empty circles the students will write a word or phrase that describes the habitat that is written in the middle of the map.
8. After completing the bubble map the students will be asked to return to their habitat mini-books and write one or two sentences about the day’s habitat at the bottom of the page. For example, “The desert is a hot, dry place.” Some kinds of snakes live in the desert. Then the students will be asked to illustrate their sentences.
9. To end the lesson, the teacher should review the characteristics of the habitat by allowing some children to share their sentences and pictures.

Assessment

The teacher will look at student bubble maps and habitat book pages to assess understanding. The teacher will also pay attention when students are responding to the web pictures and paper pictures.

Supplemental information

Thinking Maps training (this training involves all sorts of mapping, like the bubble map included in this lesson)

Related websites

http://www.nczoo.org
http://www.allaboutnature.com/biomes
http://www.nashville.k12.tn.us/webquests/HattieCotton.HTM
http://bonfire.learn.unc.edu/zoo/week02/photos/index.html
http://www.thinkingmaps.com/htrelinks.php3

Comments

This is part three in a series of lessons. This lesson should be used for five separate 45 minute lessons. Each day a different habitat should be discussed. The children will complete the same activities over the five days but on different habitats each day. The lessons in this series are:
Lesson 1- Habitat-What’s That?
Lesson 2- Habitat Hodgepodge
Lesson 3-Whose Habitat is That?
Lesson 4- Match that Habitat
Lesson 5- Habitat Happenings
Zoo Visit
Lesson 6- Habitat Homework