4th Grade
Northern Elementary
Organizer
How do organisms interact with their environment?
Academic Expectations and Demonstrators
2.2 Students identify, analyze, and use patterns such as cycles and trends to understand past and present events and predict possible future events.
- Identify and communicate common attributes of items in a group.
- Classify objects according to one property or attribute.
- Recognize, describe, and create patterns (e.g., repeating, developmental, behavioral, symmetrical, cyclical) of objects or events.
2.3 Students identify and analyze systems and the ways their components work together or affect each other.
- Recognize things that work together.
- Identify components of a system.
- Communicate functions of a system.
2.5 Students understand that under certain conditions nature tends to remain the same or move toward a balance.
- Identify, observe, and communicate recurring events.
- Describe an event or system that includes a constant process.
- Investigate and describe steady state systems and components of a system that work together to achieve constancy.
- Investigate factors which may disrupt constancy and describe their effects in a steady state system.
2.6 Students understand how living and nonliving things change over time and the factors that influence the changes.
- Observe and communicate change over time
- Identify and predict small and large scale changes.
- Describe the sequence of steps in a change process.
- Investigate variables that influence change over time
- Describe situations where one change causes another change.
Secondary Academic Expectations and Demonstrators
1.1 Students use reference tools such as dictionaries, almanacs, encyclopedias, and computer reference programs and research tools such as interviews and surveys to find the information they need to meet specific demands, explore interests, or solve specific problems.
1.2 Students make sense of the variety of materials they read.
1.3 Students make sense of the various things they observe.
1.4 Students make sense of the various messages to which they listen.
1.5 - 1.9 Students use mathematical ideas to communicate, reason, and solve problems.
1.10 Students organize information through development and use of classification rules and systems.
1.11 Students write using appropriate forms, conventions, and styles to communicate ideas and information to different audiences for different purposes.
1.12 Students speak using appropriate forms, conventions, and styles to communicate ideas and information to different audiences for different purposes.
1.16 Students use computers and other kinds of technology to collect, organize, and communicate information and ideas.
5.3 Students organize information to develop or change their understanding of a concept.
6.1 Students connect knowledge and experiences from different subject areas.
Essential Questions
Culminating activity
Local area wildlife reserves have requested computer-generated brochures on various organisms found in Kentucky. They will distribute the brochures to school age visitors. Each brochure must include information on the organism’s habitat, body characteristics, scientific class, role in the food web, and life cycle. It should also include illustrations, photos, and/or diagrams.
Rubric
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Habitat
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Characteristics
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Role in Food Web
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Life Cycle
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Writing
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Knowledge (Core Content)
SC-E-3.1.1
Things in the environment are classified as living, nonliving, and once living. Living things differ from nonliving things. Organisms are classified into groups by using various characteristics (e.g., body coverings, body structures).SC-E-3.1.2
Organisms have basic needs. For example, animals need air, water, and food; plants need air, water, nutrients, and light. Organisms can survive only in environments in which their needs can be met.SC-E-3.1.3
Each plant or animal has structures that serve different functions in growth, survival, and reproduction. For example, humans have distinct body structures for walking, holding, seeing, and talking.SC-E-3.2.1
Plants and animals have life cycles that include the beginning of life, growth and development, reproduction, and death. The details of a life cycle are different for different organisms.SC-E-3.3.1
Plants make their own food. All animals depend on plants. Some animals eat plants for food. Other animals eat animals that eat the plants.SC-E-3.3.2
The world has many different environments. Distinct environments support the lives of different types of organisms. When the environment changes, some plants and animals survive and reproduce, and others die or move to new locations.SC-E-3.3.3
All organisms, including humans, cause changes in the environment where they live. Some of these changes are detrimental to the organism or to other organisms; other changes are beneficial (e.g., dams built by beavers benefit some aquatic organisms but are detrimental to others).Technology Standards
T1.1 Demonstrate ethical use of electronic resources
T3.1 Use proper citations
T3.2 Communicate responsibly and respectfully
T4.4 Locate information using the Internet
T4.5 Navigate within an operating system or software
T5.1 Use proper keyboarding with speed and accuracy relative to the task.
T5.3 Evaluate information from the Internet
T5.4 Generalize from one operating system or software to another
T5.6 Enter and edit word processing information
T5.7 Enter and edit spreadsheet information
T6.1.2 Develop a plan for the project
T6.4 Use a Word Processor to present information
T6.5 Create a presentation or product using application software.
Skills and Procedures
Instructional Activities
Timeline for Unit
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Mon |
Tues |
Wed |
Thurs |
Fri |
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Week 1 Feb. 5 Five Characteristics of Living Organisms |
Define alive Alive or Not Alive: Candle demo Introduce Five Characteristics of Living Things |
Continue Five Characteristics of Living Things Plant Wisconsin Fast Plants Order from Carolina Biological Reinforce Scientific Method |
Finish Five Characteristics Read Substituted Sammy |
Needs of Living Things
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Oh Deer Activity Project Wild Five Char. Assessment: (OER) Scientists discovered a ______. How would you determine if it is living or non-living? |
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Mon |
Tues |
Wed |
Thurs |
Fri |
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Week 2 Feb 12 Food web Body Structures |
Introduce Food Web with Who Eats What by Patricia Lauber |
Owl Pellets |
Owl Pellets |
Owl Pellets Diagram Owl Food Web as a whole class (Inspiration?) |
Magic School Bus Gets Eaten Video Food Web Assessment: Diagram a food web |
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Week 3 Feb 19 Life Cycle |
No School |
Introduce Animal Life Cycles with a BOOK |
Discuss life cycles of Frog and Butterfly |
Plan notes for PowerPoint
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PowerPoint on life cycle of a butterfly or frog |
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Week 4 Feb 26 Organisms and their Environment |
Guest Speaker
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Videos available from library |
Ecosystems |
Ecosystems |
Ecosystems |
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Week 5 March 5 Scientific Classes |
Introduce classes PowerPoint demo of a class |
Groups begin work Use guiding worksheet |
Continue Group Work |
No School |
No School |
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Week 6 March 12 Scientific Classes |
Continue Group Work |
Start creating PowerPoint |
Finish PowerPoint |
Present PowerPoint to Class |
Present PowerPoint to Class |
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Week 7 March 19 Brochure |
Introduce Brochure Send home letter about diorama Discuss rubric Select an animal and begin research |
Continue research for brochure |
Continue research for brochure |
Continue research for brochure |
Begin creating brochure in computer lab
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Week 8 March 26 |
Continue brochure work |
Wildlife Extravaganza |
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Notes:
Critical Resources