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Unit of Study #11
Unit Components
School District:Custer
Unit of Study Title:Animals
Grade Level:K-2
Time Frame:one month
Key Words:habitats, extinct, similarities,differences
 
Unit Designer:Kay Mckee
Unit Designer E-mail:Kay.Mckee@k12.sd.us
Date Added:6/11/2002 3:19:55 PM
Date Last Revised:6/24/2002 3:38:30 PM
 
Topic Area:Science
 
Peer Reviewer:Dee VanEaton
Peer Reviewer E-mail:dvaneato@k12.sd.us

Brief Summary of Unit: 1. The students will talk about their favorite animals and why they like them. They will discuss how the animals are alike and different. Then pictures will be displayed of different animals and the students will compare them.
2. The students will understand that an animal habitat is the place where an animal lives and that an animal lives in a particular habitat because it can find food, water, and shelter there. They will look at different books to see animals in their surroundings and compare them with those in other habitats.
3. The students will look at pictures of a puppy and an adult dog and compare them to pictures of the life cycle of a bird.
4. The students will discuss reasons why the dinosaur disappeared, such as changes in climate.
Students will Understand: 1. Describe similarities and differences of animals.
2. Compare animals in their immediate surroundings with those in other habitats.
3. Describe how some animals go through distinct stages during their lives while others generally resemble their parents throughout most of their lives.
4. Explain reasons for the disappearance of extinct species.

SD Content Standards
Link to Standards #1
Goal:

Science
Students will explore, evaluate, and communicate personal and scientific investigations to understand the nature of science.
Indicator:1. Describe similarities and differences of animals.
2. Compare animals in their immediate surroundings with those in other habitats.
3. Describe how some animals go through distinct stages during their lives while others resemble their parents throughout most of their lives.
4. Explain reasons for the disappearance of extinct species.
Benchmark(s):1. The student will be able to describe similarities and differences between examples of animals, such as the differences if animals have fur or not.
2. The student will be able to compare animals in their immediate surroundings with those in other habitats, as those of the desert or the rainforest.
3. The student will be able to describe how some animals go through distinct stages during their lives while others generally resemble their parents throughout most of their lives, for example the differences between a puppy’s live birth and a how a how a bird hatches from an egg.
4. The student will be able to explain reasons for the disappearance of extinct species because of the possibilities that the temperature of the earth changed, therefore is was too cold for life.
Other Content Standards:No other standards.

Other Components
Essential Questions to Guide this Unit and Focus Teaching and Learning: 1. How did you decide which animals belonged together in a group? How many ways did you classify the animals?
2. Where does your animal live? How does your animal meet its needs?
3. How are the growth of a puppy and the life cycle of a bird different?
4. What were some causes why the dinosaur disappeared?

Key Knowledge and Skills Students will Acquire: 1. The student will be able to write down similarities and differences of animals.
2. The student will be able to compare animals in their immediate surroundings with those in other habitats.
3. The student will be able to draw the stages of the life cycle of a bird.
4. The student will be able to explain reasons for the disappearance of extinct species.
Assessment Plan: A child earns an S for participation and completion of activities. A child will receive a U if the child does not finish activities or participate. (Adjustments are made for IEP students). Certificates and stickers are given for projects that go beyond what is expected in the classroom.
Learning Activities: 1. The students will read and discuss the chapters from the textbook on animals.
2. They will do worksheets from the workbook on animals together in groups.
3. Children will arrange pictures in groups according to their similarities.
4. The children will bring in pets that the class can observe.
5. The children will read other books about animals: such as, Animal Societies, Animals—Adaptation, Do You Know The Difference—Wild Animals, Who Is the Beast?, Crinkleroot’s Guide to Knowing the Birds, Amazing Animal Babies, and Animals—Extinct
6. The children will use the Internet for research.
7. The children will write a story and draw a picture about their favorite pet on KidWorks.
8. Parents will be asked to read a book about animals to their child.
9. The children will work on the computer programs at centers: such as, The San Diego Zoo presents…The Animals!20, The Alphabet Zoo, Dinosaurs, Amazon Trail and The Magic Schoolbus…Animals.

Notes:This will be a useful Unit Of Study for Animals. The users will need the Science textbook, worksheets from the workbook, pictures of animals, a variety of books about animals, and the Internet.
Internet Resource Link: http://km071.k12.sd.us

Adapted from the the work of Jay McTighe and Grant Wiggins. Understanding by
Design. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Alexandria, VA. 1998.

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