Approximate Pacing for First Grade Insects and Plants Unit p.1 = Part 1 p.2 = Part 2 p.3 = Part 3 The schedule for this unit is almost COMPLETELY dependent on what the living organisms are doing and where they are in their life cycle. Use the kids and the insects as a guide to take more time when necessary and to move on when appropriate. Know that for these insects to go COMPLETELY through their life cycle it can take as much as 4 months under less than ideal conditions. However, you should receive insects in multiple stages and should be able to see EVERY PART of the life cycle using the collection of organisms you have. Work diligently at the beginning of this unit to set up the organisms quickly (within the first 1-1 ½ weeks). This will allow maximum time for students to watch the insects go through their life cycles. Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Mealworms p.1 Bug Timeline (Lesson in Investigation 3) Set up Butterfly Cage Butterflies p.3 Adult Butterflies Milkweed Bugs p.3 Habitat Maintenance Mealworms p.2 Hand lenses, structures and behaviors, notebooking Mealworms p.2 Silk worms p.2 Mealworms p.2 Silk worms p.2 Silk worms p.1 Butterflies p.1 Milkweed Bugs p.3 Growing Bugs Silk worms p.2 Observe Compare w/ Mealworms Milkweed Bugs p.1 Eggs Milkweed Bugs p.2 Building Habitats Milkweed Bugs p.2 Butterflies p.2 Chrysalises Mealworms p.2 Silk worms p.2 Milkweed Bugs p.3 Growing Bugs Mealworms p.2 Silk worms p.2 Milkweed Bugs p.3 Discuss Molting Milkweed Bugs p.3 Discuss Eating Milkweed Bugs p.3 Adults, Holding Bugs, Discuss Mating Mealworms p.3 over weeks Silk worms p.3 Silk worms p.3 Mealworms p.3 Observe Life Cycle
Insects and Plants Storyline Prepared Graduate Competency Analyze how various organisms grow, develop, and differentiate during their lifetimes based on an interplay between genetics and their environment. Analyze the relationship between structure and function in living systems at a variety of organizational levels, and recognize living systems dependence on natural selection. Big Idea All organisms share common characteristics and needs. All organisms have a life cycle. Each cycle stage has special characteristics and needs. Grade Level Expectations and Enduring Understandings Offspring have characteristics that are similar but not exactly like their parents characteristics. An organism is a living thing that has physical characteristics to help it survive. Each plant or animal has different structures or behaviors that serve different functions. The duration and timing of life cycle events such as reproduction and longevity very across organisms and species. Insects need air, food, water and space in order to survive and go through their life cycle Living things may have different needs at different points in their life cycle. Insects go through either complete or simple metamorphosis. All insects have 3 body parts a head, thorax and abdomen Essential Questions How are you like your parents? In what ways do offspring resemble their parents? How do the needs of plants and animals differ? What helps a specific plant or animal survive? What different structures do plants and animals have that perform the same functions? How are life cycles from a variety of organisms similar and different? How does an organism change throughout its life cycle?
Investigation 1: Mealworms Part One: Mealworms Part Two: Larva, Pupa, Adult 7-9 days Life Cycle 3 days What do mealworms need to live? How do mealworms grow and change? What are the stages of a beetle s life cycle? I Check Summative Investigation 1 Insects are animals and need air, food, water, and space. Live organisms need to be treated with care and respect. Mealworms resemble each other. Insects have characteristic structures and behaviors. The structures of some insects change as the insect grows. As insects grow, they molt their hard, external covering. Adult insects have a head, thorax, and abdomen. Science Resources Book: Animals and Plants in Their Habitats The life cycle of the beetle is egg, larva, pupa, and adult, which produces eggs. Insects have predictable characteristics at different stages of development. Math Standard: 43.1a.ii. Ask and answer questions about the total number of data points, how many in each category, and how many more or less are in one category than another. 1a.i. Describe objects in the environment using names of shapes, and describe the relative positions of these objects using terms such as above, below, beside, in front of, behind, and next to.
Investigation 2: Brassica Seeds Part One: Planting Brassica 1-2 days Part Two: Observing Brassica Growth 4-5 days Plant Life Cycle 4 days Part Four: Planting Outdoors 2 days How did we plant the brassica seeds? How does a young plant change as it grows? What will happen to the flowers on the brassica plant? Where is a good outdoor place for growing young plants? Plants are living organisms that need water, air, nutrients, light and space to grow. Plants produce seeds that develop into new plants that look like the parent plant. As plants grow, they develop roots, stems, leaves, buds, flowers and seeds in a sequence called the life cycle. Bees and other insects help some plants by moving pollen from flower to flower. Media: How Plants Grow Learning Outcome: As plants grow, they develop roots, stems, leaves, buds, flowers and seeds in a sequence called the life cycle. Science Resources Book: Flowers and Seeds Learning Outcome: Plants are living organisms that need water, air, nutrients, light, and space to grow. Summative I Check Investigation 2 Math Standard: 3.1a.i. Organize, represent, and interpret data with up to three categories.
Investigation 3: Milkweed Bugs Part One: Eggs Part Two: Habitats 2 days Growing Milkweed Bugs 6-8 days Part Four: Insect Search 2 days How do the yellow objects change? What do milkweed bugs need in their habitat? How do milkweed bugs grow and change? Where do insects live? I Check Insects hatch from eggs. Live organisms need to be treated with care and respect. Insects need air, food, water and appropriate space including shelter; different insects meet these in different ways. Variations exist within a group of related organisms. Science Resources Book: So Many Kinds, So Many Places As insects grow, they molt their hard external covering. Insects have 3 body parts: head, thorax and abdomen. Insects and other animals have different structures that help them grow and survive. The life cycle of some insects is egg, nymph stages, and adult, which produces eggs. Science Resources Book: Variation Insects need air, food, water and appropriate space including shelter; different insects meet these needs in different ways. Summative Investigation 3 Math Standard: 3.1a.i. Organize, represent, and interpret data with up to three categories. 3.1a.ii. Ask and answer questions about the total number of data points, how many in each category, and how many more or less are in one category than another.
Investigation 4: Silk Worms Part One: Eggs and Larvae 2-3 days Part Two: Silkworm Structures 4 days Pupae and Adults 4 days Part Four: Plant Eaters What do silkworms need to live? How does a silkworm compare to a mealworm? What is the lifecycle of the silkworm? What evidence is there that insects are eating plants in the schoolyard? I Check Summative Investigation 4 Insects need air, food, water and space including shelter; different insects meet these needs in different ways. The structures of some insects change as the insect grows. As insects grow, they molt their hard, external covering. Insects have three main body parts: head, thorax, and abdomen. The structures of some insects change as the insect grows. The life cycle of some insects involves complete metamorphosis- egg, larva, pupa, and adult, which produces eggs. Insects need air, food, water and space including shelter; different insects meet these needs in different ways. Science Resources Book: Insect Shapes and Colors Science Resources Book: Insect Life Cycles
Investigation 5: Butterflies Part One: Caterpillars 3-4 days Part Two: Chrysalises Butterflies 5-6 days Flower Power What do caterpillars do? How is a painted lady pupa different from a silkworm pupa? What is the life cycle of a painted lady butterfly? What plants in our schoolyard have pollen? Summative I Check Investigation 5 The life cycle of the butterfly involves complete metamorphosis- egg, larva, pupa, and adult, which produces eggs. Butterflies construct chrysalises when they pupate. Butterflies construct chrysalises when they pupate. Life cycles are different for different animals. The life cycle of the butterfly involves complete metamorphosis- egg, larva, pupa, and adult, which produces eggs. Life cycles are different for different animals. Science Resources Book: Life Goes Around Fossils As butterflies, moths, bees, and other insects get food, they move pollen from a flower of one kind to another flower of the same kind. Plants depend on insects and birds to pollinate flowers in order to produce seeds. Media: What is Pollination? Math Standard: 3.1a.i. Organize, represent, and interpret data with up to three categories.