Animal environments: Day 2

Students will group animals using common characteristics. Students will develop an understanding of animal adaptations. This lesson is one in a series of lessons: Understanding Animal Adaptation: Day 1; Animal Environments: Day 2; Diamante Poetry Using Environments: Day 3. This is lesson two.

A lesson plan for grade 4 English Language Arts and Science

By Cheri Cole

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Related topics

• Learn more about environmental science and science.

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Learning outcomes

Students will:

• identify common animal adaptations
• relate the adaptations to a function in the environment

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

1 day

Materials/resources

• Pictures of various animals—each group should have the same set of pictures. I use pictures I downloaded from the internet. You may also use calendar pages or personal photos.
• chart paper
• markers

Technology resources

• If you choose to download pictures off the internet, you will need a computer, paper, a color printer and access to the web.

Pre-activities

• Students should have a working idea of an environment.
• Students should be knowledgeable regarding cooperative learning skills (for example, group roles, and group participation limitations and possibilities).

Activities

Teacher starts the lesson by breaking the class into heterogeneous groups, with no more than five students per group. Students will be instructed to classify the pictures into five different environments, and be able to explain the classification they chose. Students will be informed of the assessment process. I will be looking for the following attributes as I am walking around the room:

• Is your group productive?
• Is your group working together?
• Is your group completing the assigned task?
• Are you allowing everyone in your group a chance to talk learn and listen?

The teacher will pass out the group sets of animal pictures, and allow the students fifteen minutes of time to complete the assigned task. While the students are performing the assigned task the teacher is monitoring and yet not involved with the group discussions. (Teacher interaction might inhibit the discovery learning process.)

After the fifteen minutes are completed, the teacher will record the group’s responses on chart paper. The teacher will be asking the following questions:

• How did the students group the pictures?
• Why did their group choose to group the pictures the way they did?
• What were common traits within each group?

Once all groups have shared the teacher will lead a whole group discussion.

• What were common characteristics of all groups? Why do you think they were classified the same way?
• What are characteristics that are different in each group? Why do you think that they were classified different?
• What are some common traits of each group?
• How do the groups differ? How are they the same?
• What are common traits within each group? Why do you think this is?
• Why do you think the animals have the characteristics they do? Why is the polar bear white and not purple? Why do you think the polar bear has a fur coat?

After the class discussion the teacher introduces the concept of animal adaptations. (For example, students should understand that a polar bear has a white fur coat to protect it from the cold and help it blend into the environment.)

Students will have an opportunity to list questions they might be answered at a later date (possibly during a media special, technology time, or during some free time in the classroom).

Assessment

• Student findings are posted in the classroom (chart paper).
• Students and teacher reach consensus of how structural characteristics are related to the environment in which the animals are typically found.
• Student use of information will be monitored in future lessons.
• Questions to be researched are also recorded and monitored for answers that are found through continuing study. (Possibly during a media special, technology time, or during some free time in the classroom).

Supplemental information

Comments

This lesson is one in a unit of lessons centered around animals, their environments and adaptations.