Life Systems
Grade 5: Life Systems
Human Organ Systems
For PDSB Educators: if you are looking to reach out to the Peel Field Centres for further ways to connect your learning to the environment visit the PDSB Field Centre Share Point site.
Nature Journaling: I Notice..., I Wonder...?, It Reminds me of...
Nature Journaling is an incredible tool for students to document how nature affects their own bodies. This can be a wonderful way for students to have a mindfulness experience. Their nature journal allows them to write/draw their observations helping to cement the concepts being taught.
At this age all three prompts "I notice..., I wonder...?, and "It reminds me of..." become very intuitive. However the last statement becomes very important for connection making. Encourage students to begin writing using single words, simple sentences, lists, point form, paragraphs and even poetry. Please note that spelling is not a focus in the nature journal. At this age you may start to see art fears - please ensure you are re-iterating it is not about a pretty picture. It is about their observations. Please see the link feedback at the bottom of this lesson for tips on this. Using words, pictures and numbers allows the students multiple tools to document their observations. With permission Bethan Burton has allowed us to link to her website as she has written a blog post for Teaching nature journaling at all ages.
Here are some more ideas to get you started.
Engage the fives senses (whenever possible)
Make leaf prints ( paint the leaf and press the print into the journal)
Make leaf rubbings
Trace the items they are looking at
Add leaves into the journal using tape
Count the birds/squirrels/insects etc.
Measure as much of the phenomena as the students can using non standard and standard units of measurement.
Here is a downloadable lesson from John (Jack) Muir Laws and Emilie Lygren book: How to Teach Nature Journaling. All resources shared with permission. "I Notice..., I Wonder...?, It Reminds me of..."
GIVING FEEDBACK here is a fantastic resource from Jack and Emilie
NOTE: You are encourage to spend time in the outdoors Nature Journaling. However, you can also bring nature inside, look out your wonder window, have a refrigerator Safari or even observe a house plant or pet.
Photo via Clipart
Physical Challenge
This activity requires the student to do some online research. They can use E-books through PDSB BYOD or other sources.
Learn how to take your resting heart rate, breaths per minute, and body temperature. For this activity you will be measuring different physical responses to physical movement.
Write down your own base line measurements as well others who agree to participate
Creatively decide on some tasks that will affect your body's baseline measurements (i.e. walk/jog/run past 10 driveways, 25 jumping jacks, before and after eating a meal, sitting in place, waving at neighbours, playing a video game or watching a TV show etc.)
Take measurements before, during and after the activity. Record results
Explain why the results varied from activity to activity and person to person
Extension : Research at least one animal and compare their resting heart rate, breaths per minute and body temperature to your own. What are the differences and what are the factors that affect these changes? Amphibians, reptiles, mammals, birds, and fish are a few categories to think about for different species.
Curriculum Links: see Writing
NOTE: This can be used with the Nature Journaling activity at the top of the page.
Sidewalk Operation Ouch
This activity requires the student to do some online research. They can use E-books through PDSB BYOD or other sources.
Before completing this activity research the parts of the human body that make up our skeleton , organs and body symptoms. On a hard surface outside, example: driveway or balcony, trace a person with chalk, including the hands and feet. Draw the inside organs and bones using your research.
Then take a small object (rock, stick) and toss it onto your body outline.
Describe beneficial or harmful affects on this body part because of physical exercise, or social factors (i.e smoking) or environmental factors (i.e. sun exposure). You can choose the factor.
Does this part of the body rely on another part of the body to function?
What would be the affect on your body if this part wasn't working properly?
This can be played with 1 - 10 people, in person or online, inside or outside.
Curriculum Link: see Writing
Sweet Water - Health Benefits
An important part of this land is the trees. We, in Southern Ontario, are extremely fortunate to live next to our special Sugar Maple trees. Long before Europeans arrived on this land Indigenous people received a gift of sweet water from the maple trees. This provided them a much needed first harvest of the year. Sweet water, commonly known as sap, contains minerals, oligosaccharides, amino acids, organic acids, and phenolic compounds.
The eleven organ systems of the body are the integumentary, muscular, skeletal, nervous, circulatory, lymphatic, respiratory, endocrine, urinary/excretory, reproductive and digestive systems. Although each of your eleven organ systems has a unique function, each organ system also depends, directly or indirectly, on all the others.
Connect three of the known benefits of sweet water to the organ systems of the body. Explain how a specific system benefits from ingesting sweet water.
Now get outside and thank the trees for all they provide. Remember they are alive even in the winter time, but need to slow down and conserve energy during the cold months. Sound familiar?
Once you have highlighted three different benefits continue to Media Literacy.
Curriculum Links:
NOTE: This can be used with the Nature Journaling activity at the top of the page.