I hear and I forget.
I see and I remember.
I do, and I understand.
- Chinese Proverb
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I hear and I forget. - Chinese Proverb |
Topic Area: Critter homes.
Key question: What would be needed to build a suitable, humane home for critters?
Objectives: Students will
1. Identify several critters and their environmental needs and assign them to appropriate homes
2. Learn the science processes of
Observing
Collecting and organizing data
Classifying
Inferring
Applying
Materials:
activity sheets, scissors, glue, crayons, materials to make critter homes (2-liter plastic bottle, jar, milk carton, plastic shoebox or aquarium, soil, water, gravel, oatmeal, slice of potato, rock).
Types of Homes:
Students are fascinated by critters and often want to keep them in a jar or box with inadequate ventilation and no food or water. They need to be taught that even small animals like isopods and ants have needs and should be treated humanely. This activity is meant to make students aware of the kind of homes that would provide a good environment for various critters. These homes can easily be constructed from inexpensive materials. Below is a description of the four homes pictured on the activity sheets.
1. 2-liter plastic bottle with soil and a cupful of water: butterfly, lizard, ant, tarantula, snake, snail
2. Jar with branch, gravel and a cup of water: butterfly, lizard, ant, tarantula, snake
3. Milk carton with oatmeal and a slice of potato: mealworm, isopods
4. Plastic shoebox aquarium with water and a rock: fish, tadpole, turtle, aquatic snails
Activities:
1. Enter the wetland area.
2. Walk along path and identify places where animals might be living or can be seen.: worms, fish, frogs, birds, lizards, snakes, turtles, insects.
3. Go to picnic tables. There will be critters on the tables as well as materials to make homes.
4. Go to key question: What would be needed to build a suitable, humane home for critters?
5. Go to Find Me a Home, activity sheet 1. Have students select the critters that can live together and discuss what homes would be appropriate for them. They can cut out the pictures of the critters and paste them on an appropriate home.
6. Go to Home on the Range, activity sheet 2. Discuss the four easy-to-make, inexpensive critter homes and their features. Working in teams or individually, students can design an additional critter home and draw a picture of it on the activity sheet.
7. Discussion Questions:
What would happen if you put the lizard in the milk carton?
Which other critters must hvae specific homes? Why?
Which critters could live in any of the homes? Why?
Besides creating a safe home for class pets, what else is important in their environment?
How could a critter's need for food and water be met in each of the homes?
What would be needed to build a suitable, humane home for critters?
8. Build at least one home. If time allows, build more homes for worms, fish, tadpoles, snails, etc.
9. Closure: It is important for us to have places for animals to get water, build a home, and find food in the city. Does our wetland area have any of these necessary items? Should there be more of them? If so, why wetland areas?
10. Clean up so we do not litter our special place.
Wetland Homes Lesson Plan
Activity Sheet 1Home on the Range:
Activity Sheet 2Back to Best Practices Page
Updated 8/8/2002