Lesson Plans

Did you know animals help plants find new places to grow?

Debbie Lester, Tara Ramos, and Eric Sanderson

Read, View, Listen Model (#3) and Learn by Doing Model (#15)

Old method: Teachers assigned “animal reports” in which each student chose an animal to write a report about. They were instructed to report on the animal’s habitat and diet. They were also instructed to include at least one picture with a caption and/or labels.

Overview: Our new unit plan will align with the NGSS for 2nd grade. It will also incorporate elements of Flipped learning and the SAMR model. Students will now be engaging in a unit of study about how animals help plants to disperse seeds (per NGSS for grade 2). After studying a number of sources about animal seed dispersal using a Read, View, and Listen model and experimenting with different fruits, seeds and materials using a Learn by Doing model, students will begin to imagine, and ultimately create a model of, their own imaginary animal, as well as a seed that that animal can distribute. Their task in imagining, building and presenting their animal will be to show how their animal helps plants to disperse seeds. The imagination/design phase will involve playing web-based games such as SwitchZoo to create their own animal. It will also include lessons and tutorials on ways they can build their models. One culminating activity will be a “gallery opening” event where students will put their models on display to their classmates and other guests. Another will include students looking at all their classmates' models in an online gallery and identifying other seeds that they believe their animal might also be able to distribute.

Goals and objectives:

• Content Objectives: Objectives associated with the topic of the learning experience.

  • Next Generation Science Standards (Grade 2)

  • LS2-2: Develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal in dispersing seeds or pollinating plants. (The CA science standards are the same as the overall Next Generation Science Standards. However, the CA standards doc (which is linked to our INFO 250 site) has examples, commentary, and links to CA math and ELA standards that are not in the NGSS documents.)

• Process Objectives: 21st Century Skills or other learning how to learn skills needed to master the content of the learning experience

  • • Model School Library Standards for California Grade 2

      • Standard 3: Students use information – The student will organize, synthesize, create, and communicate information

        • 3.1 Demonstrate ethical, legal, and safe use of the information in print, media, and online resources.

        • 3.2 Draw conclusions and make informed decisions

        • 3.3 Use information and technology creatively to answer a question, solve a problem, or enrich understanding.

    • AASL Standards for the 21st-Century Learner

      • Standard 2: Draw conclusions, make informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations, and create new knowledge.

        • 2.1.1 Use technology and other information tools to analyze and organize information

        • 2.1.5 Collaborate with others to exchange ideas, develop new understandings, make decisions, and solve problems.

        • 2.2.4 Demonstrate personal productivity by completing products to express learning.

        • 2.3.1 Connect understanding to the real world.

        • 2.4.3 Recognize new knowledge and understanding

Essential Questions: How do animals help plants distribute their seeds?

Assessment:

Content Assessment

• • Formative Assessment: The adult coaches will be able to gather formative assessment data regarding the content objective following the Read, Listen, View, and Learn by Doing components. If students have difficulty with these formative assessment elements, more time should be spent on the Read, List, View, and Learn by Doing components. These formative assessment elements require students to contrast the features of seeds that make them suitable for dispersal by being eaten and excreted or by being transported via an animal's fur or coat.

    • • Each student or group can complete a four-quadrant learning log based on the information they have found about seeds and animals. The adult coaches can assess the content of the learning log using the Formative 1 item of the Content Assessment Rubric.

      • Each student or group can complete the Seed Sort and Animal Sort. The adult coaches can assess the student's or group's performance on these sorts using the Formative 2 and Formative 3 items of the Content Assessment Rubric.

  • Summative Assessment: The students or groups should be able to demonstrate essential content understanding via the formative assessment elements before continuing with the creation of the seed and anima models and the gallery activity, the completion of which represents the summative assessment for the lesson.

    • • Each student or group completes an animal model based on the essential understandings of the lesson. The animal model can be assessed using the Summative 4 item of the Content Assessment Rubric.

      • Each student or group completes a seed model based on the essential understandings of the lesson. The animal model can be assessed using the Summative 5 item of the Content Assessment Rubric.

      • Each student or group examines the gallery and connects seed models with appropriate (i.e., consuming to consuming and transporting to transporting) animal models using appropriate reasoning. This activity can be assessed using Summative 6 item of the Content Assessment Rubric.

Process Assessment

• • Formative Assessment: The adult coaches will assess each group's process skills using the Process Assessment Rubric? If a group does not meet the expectations of the Process Assessment Rubric during the Read, View, Listen, and Learn by Doing elements, the adult coaches should pause the group to reteach, reinforce, and/or support process expectations. No group should be allowed to continue through the Read, View, Listen, and Learn by Doing elements without demonstrating appropriate process skills.

  • Summative Assessment: Each student will complete the Process Assessment Reflection Stems. The adult coaches can use the completed sentences as part of individual conferencing with students and/or group as well as part of whole-class reflection. The adult coaches can use the information gathered from the Process Assessment Reflection Stems to modify future projects as well as to support individual students in completing future projects.

Graphical Chart / Flow Chart:

Learning Activities:

1) Introduction: Activating Prior Knowledge We will begin by asking students to consider the questions on the "hook" page of this assignment. "Did you know that animals help plants find new places to grow?" We will view the Youtube video to activate students' minds and after we will ask them to conjecture "In what ways do you think animals might help plants to move their seeds to new places?" Students will discuss their ideas with a partner and then we will have a whole group share out of ways students think animals can help move seeds. 2) Read, View, Listen and Experience Phase Now that we have activated students' ideas and prior knowledge, we will set students to investigating the essential question: How do animals help plants distribute their seeds? For this investigation we will be using the Read, Listen, View Think Model in which students are provided with a plethora or resources in a variety of formats (books, web-based, videos, etc). We will also expand upon this model by adding "Experience" to the modes of learning. See the "Read, View, Listen and Learn by Doing" tab for resources that can be used for this part of the unit. For the "Learn by Doing" part students will be provided with a variety of real seeds to get first hand experience with different seeds and to formulate ideas on how they might get distributed. Fruits will also be available for students to open and examine the seeds. Other experiences could include experimenting with different materials to see which ones which seeds stick to. Students will keep track of their learning in their Science notebooks by recording questions, ideas, and what they have learned during this part of the unit. They can also discuss their learning in their groups and use the Forum tab above to communicate with the whole class. We will also ask that they do some drawing/sketches showing different ways that animals distribute seeds in their Science notebooks.

3) Formative Assessment: Drawing on shared understanding and collaborative intelligence, groups will complete three formative assessment elements. Successful completion of these activities suggests success with the Read, View, Listen, and Learn by Doing elements and a the necessary foundational understanding to proceed with the culminating activity. More information on the formative assessment can be found above in the Assessment section of this lesson plan.

4) The Design Phase: Now we will be moving on to application. We will let students know that now they are going to invent an imaginary animal that helps a plant to distribute its seeds, and that then they will create a model of that animal. At this point, to help students get their imaginations activated and ideas flowing we will have them play the web-based animal creation games of SwitchZoo and Build Your Wild Self. These games, found in the "Model Tools and Tutorials" tab of this site, will help students to identify the parts of the body they may want to include on their imaginary animal. Once students have an idea of the animal they would like to create, they make a sketch of it in their Science notebook. In addition, students will also have to design a seed that their animal can somehow transport. For the seed, they have the choice of creating a 3D model or doing a pencil and paper or digital drawing of their seed design.

When designing their animals and their seeds, students are to check in and consult with their groups about their ideas and listen to their group's feedback. This will help students to consider things they may have not or to troubleshoot. During this phase, students can also use the Forum tab above to communicate with the class about their ideas.

5) The Building Phase: While students are working on imagining and designing their animals, they will also receive some lessons and view some tutorials on making models. These tutorials can be found in the "Model Tools and Tutorials" tab of this site. In order to maximize students' ideas and creativity, please do not show these tutorials to students until they have completed the imagination/design phase. Once designs and ideas are complete students will begin constructing their models. We will provide a wide array of materials including pipe cleaners, tissue paper, glue, clay, felt, faux fur, old stuffed animal parts, Velcro, toilet paper rolls, toothpicks, popsicle sticks, cotton/polyfill, plastic sheets, masking tape, paper from the shredder, rods, cloth scraps, paint, markers, googly eyes, seeds, popcorn kernels, glitter, etc. to really stimulate students' imaginations and help the project be as limitless as possible. We will remind students throughout to make sure that their model addresses the essential question of this unit so that people viewing the model can see how their animal helps to distribute seeds, and we will also make sure they have access to resources as questions arise as they construct their models. Students should keep their groups informed as to their progress and turn to them for support when needed. We will also remind them that the online Forum tab is available for them to communicate with the class.

Culminating Activity #1: The school will host a "gallery opening" activity where the students' models are put on display for their classmates and others to view their work. The students will be present to answer any questions or to present their work to special visitors such as parents or friends who come to the gallery opening event.

Culminating Activity #2: Photographs of students' animal and seed models will be posted to the "Animal and Seed Gallery" tab on this site. In pairs, students will review the photographs and identify combinations of animals and seeds that might be able to work together that have not been previously identified. After identifying at least one combination (hopefully more), students will be asked to create a short oral presentation in which they will present the combinations they were able to make and explain how/why those animals and seeds make a good combination for dispersal.

The Big Think: (comes after all the grades are in - a reflection by adults and students about the entire learning experience.

• Content Big Think: H.O.T. - Create a whole-class chart that focuses on the question, How do animals help plants? So What? Have students fold their paper into 3 sections with one of these questions at the top of each section: How are animals important to plants? What would happen if plants didn't have animals to help? What surprised you about the relationship between plants and animals?

• Process Big Think: Active Discussion - So What? What strategies did we use to learn? How did these strategies work for us? Which worked well or didn’t work well and for whom? Why? What Next? Create a Symbaloo with tips for learners next year and resources for further exploration.

Defense: In this lesson, students are actively engaged in their learning. They are encouraged to think about their own learning and how they learn best. Students are engaged in activities such as writing about what they have learned and not just reading an assigned text in order answering a set of predetermined questions. They are encouraged to talk about their learning and collaborate with other students instead of listening to a teacher's lecture. They are also afforded the opportunity to explore, think about, and create other examples of learning rather than take an end of unit test. Because of these reasons, this lesson is more of a constructivist than a behaviorist lesson. Because of the vast array of multimedia information available to students and the sites such a Padlet and Google Pictures, which allow collaboration, and Symbaloo, which allows students to create a pathfinder, technology plays a big role in this lesson.