Download School In The Park Curriculum

SITP Curriculum 2007-08 – page 13
School In The Park Curriculum
SITP Curriculum for the Zoo, Rotation # 3, Grade 3
TOPIC:
Life Science: Living Things Are Connected
“Many kinds of animals survive in many kinds of environments.”
Textbook References: Harcourt Science, Unit A, Life Science, Survival of Living
Things, Chapter 1 (How Plants Grow), Chapter 2, Lesson 4 (What Is Extinction?),
Extension Chapter 1 (Living Things Depend On One Another).
1. California State Standards Addressed
Science Content Standards
Life Sciences
3. Adaptations in physical structure or behavior may improve an organism’s chance
for survival. As a basis for understanding this concept, students know:
a – plants and animals have structures that serve different functions in growth,
survival, and reproduction.
c – living things cause changes in the environment where they live; some of
these changes are detrimental to the organism or other organisms, whereas
others are beneficial.
e – some kinds or organisms that once lived on earth have completely
disappeared; some of these resembled others that are alive today.
Investigation and Experimentation
5. Scientific progress is made by asking meaningful questions and conducting
careful investigations. As a basis for understanding this concept and addressing
the content in the other three strands, students should develop their own
questions and perform investigations. Students will:
a – Repeat observations to improve accuracy and know that the results of similar
scientific investigations seldom turn out exactly the same because of differences
in the things being investigated, methods being used, or uncertainty in the
observation.
b – Differentiate evidence from opinion and know that scientists do not rely on
claims or conclusions unless they are backed by observations that can be
confirmed.
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c – Use numerical data in describing and comparing objects, events, and
measurements.
d – Predict the outcome of a simple investigation and compare the result with the
prediction.
e – Collect data in an investigation and analyze those data to develop a logical
conclusion.
2. Instructional Goals & Objectives
By the end of the week, students will be able to
• identify at least two of the four things plants need to live.
• name the three major structures of plants.
• describe what happens when a seed germinates.
• provide an example of a correctly labeled food chain.
• explain at least two reasons that a plant or animal species may become
endangered or extinct.
• use oral or written language to describe at least one personal observation.
3. Key Vocabulary
air
carbon dioxide
carnivore
chlorophyll
cone
consumer
decomposer
ecosystem
energy
energy pyramid
flower
fruit
food, stored food
food chain
food web
germinate
herbivore
interact
leaf, leaves
light
minerals
omnivore
oxygen
photosynthesis
plant
predator
prey
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producer
root
seed
seed coat
seedling
soil
sprout
stem
sun
water
4. Days 1 – 5 Activity Descriptions
All days require students to make observations and use oral or written language to
describe what they are observing.
Zoo life science lessons are integrated with many English-language Arts and Math
standards.
DAY 1: Plants
Students will…
1. make a list of foods we eat that come from plants. Identify which ones come
from roots, stems, leaves, fruits, seeds, and flowers. Make a bar graph from
the list.
2. take a Zoo walk to find plants and plant parts; work in four small groups with
an adult leader.
3. draw a leaf from memory. Draw a life-sized leaf using observation and a ruler.
4. illustrate the parts of a plant.
5. extract chlorophyll from a leaf.
6. observe elodea
7. sprout seeds (week-long observations)
8. use vocabulary words to complete cloze sentences that describe the
characteristics of plants.
9. answer a ThinkQuest question of the day.
DAY 2: Animal Diets
Students will…
1. meet an herbivore: an animal that eats only plants. Visit the elephants and
meet an elephant keeper
2. meet a carnivore: an animals that eats only other animals. Visit a wolf (or
other carnivore) and met an animal trainer at Hunte Amphitheater
3. answer a ThinkQuest question of the day
4. identify themselves as either carnivore, herbivore or omnivore
5. observe sprouting seeds
6. use vocabulary words to complete cloze sentences that describe animal
adaptations for getting food.
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DAY 3: Food Chains
Students will…
1. meet a carnivore: owl
2. walk by the “mouse house” in the Children’s Zoo
3. dissect an owl pellet to determine what an owl pellet is
4. use vocabulary words to complete cloze sentences that describe food chains.
5. draw a food chain
6. answer a ThinkQuest question of the day
7. observe sprouting seeds
Day 4: Extinct Animals, Endangered Animals and Conservation
Students will…
1. walk to the gorilla and orangutan enclosures to make observations of these
apes; record data about animal behavior.
2. play a conservation game
3. answer a ThinkQuest question of the day
4. observe sprouting seeds
5. use vocabulary words to complete cloze sentences that describe endangered
animals, plants, and habitats
Day 5: Summary and Review
Students will…
1. make and feed enrichment to animals in the Children’s Zoo
2. meet an animal
3. complete their Zoo scrapbooks and take them back to the classroom
4. play a classification (sorting) game
5. observe sprouting seeds and take them back to the classroom
6. take a post-test
7. Final Assessment Instrument
Circle the letter of the best choice.
Sun
grass
mouse
Look at the above diagram of a food chain.
Use what you know to answer questions 1, 2 and 3.
owl
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1. In this food chain diagram, which of the following is a carnivore?
A
grass
B
mouse
C
owl
D
sun
2. In this food chain diagram, which of the following is a producer?
A
grass
B
mouse
C
owl
D
sun
3. In this food chain diagram, which of the following is a predator?
A
grass
B
mouse
C
owl
D
sun
4. What does an herbivore eat?
A
plants
B
animals
C
plants and animals
D
dead plants and animals
5. What happens when a seed germinates?
A
The seed breaks open and a seedling appears.
B
The seedling breaks through the soil.
C
Leaves begin to form.
D
Germs make the seed sick.
6. __________ gives plants their green color.
A
Roots
B
Water
C
Oxygen
D
Chlorophyll
7. What are the three groups of consumers?
A
carnivores, herbivores and omnivores
B
mammals, birds, and reptiles
C
plants, animals, and minerals
D
habitats, environments and ecosystems
8. Which is passed in a food chain from one living thing to another?
A
producers
B
animals
SITP Curriculum 2007-08 – page 18
C
D
sunlight
energy
9. A __________ is a living thing that eats the wastes of living things or living
things that have died.
A
producer
B
decomposer
C
consumer
D
predator
10. What could cause an animal species to become endangered or extinct?
Choose the best answer.
A
Their habitat changes or is destroyed
B
A new predator moves into their habitat
C
Humans hunt and kill most of them.
D
All of the above
11. Write a paragraph: (0-2 points)
Choose one animal from the list.
What are its characteristics?
Where does it live?
What does it eat?
ape (gorilla or orangutan), wolf, elephant, owl