Unit: Life Science Time Frame: 32 days Standard: 5.3 Life Science All students will understand that life science principles are powerful conceptual tools for making sense of the complexity, diversity, and interconnectedness of life on Earth. Order in natural systems arises in accordance with rules that govern the physical world, and the order of natural systems can be modeled and predicted through the use of mathematics. Strands: A. Organization and Development: Living organisms are composed of cellular units (structures) that carry out functions required for life. Cellular units are composed of molecules, which also carry out biological functions. B. Matter and Energy Transformations: Food is required for energy and building cellular materials. Organisms in an ecosystem have different ways of obtaining food, and some organisms obtain their food directly from other organisms. C. Interdependence: All animals and most plants depend on both other organisms and their environment to meet their basic needs. D. Heredity and Reproduction: Organisms reproduce, develop, and have predictable life cycles. Organisms contain genetic information that influences their traits, and they pass this on to their offspring during reproduction. E. Evolution and Diversity:: Sometimes, differences between organisms of the same kind provide advantages for surviving and reproducing in different environments. These selective differences may lead to dramatic changes in characteristics of organisms in a population over extremely long periods of time. Essential Questions: What do living things need? Where do plants and animals live? How do parts help living things? How do animals and plants grow and change? How are living things connected? Big Ideas: Things can be classified as living and nonliving. Different environments have a variety of characteristics related to the specific plants and animals that live in each one. Each part of a plant has a specific and important job. Living things change in different ways and in different amounts of time as they mature. All living things are part of a food chain. Plants and animals are dependent upon each other for survival. 1
Concepts (NEED to KNOW) Living organisms: Exchange nutrients and water with the environment. Reproduce. Grow and develop in a predictable manner. A source of energy is needed for all organisms to stay alive and grow. Both plants and animals need to take in water, and animals need to take in food. Plants need light. Animals have various ways of obtaining food and water. Nearly all animals drink water or eat foods that contain water. Most plants have roots to get water and leaves to gather sunlight. Organisms interact and are interdependent in various ways; for example, they provide food and shelter to one another. A habitat supports the growth of many different plants and animals by meeting their basic needs of food, water, and shelter. Humans can change Skills (ABLE to DO) 5.3.1.A.1-GROUP living and nonliving things according to the characteristics that they share. 5.3.1.B.1-DESCRIBE the requirements for the care of plants and animals related to meeting their energy needs. 5.3.1.B.2- COMPARE how different animals obtain food and water. 5.3.1.B.3- EXPLAIN that most plants get water from soil through their roots and gather light through their leaves. 5.3.1.C.1- DESCRIBE the ways in which organisms interact with each other and their habitats in order to meet basic needs. 5.3.1.C.2- IDENTIFY the characteristics of a habitat that enable the habitat to support the growth of many different plants and animals. Bloom s Taxonomy Levels (2)To understand (2)To understand 2
natural habitats in ways that can be helpful or harmful for the plants and animals that live there. Plants and animals often resemble their parents. Organisms have predictable characteristics at different stages of development. Variations exist within a group of the same kind of organism. Plants and animals have features that help them survive in different environments. 5.3.1.C.3-COMMUNICATE ways that humans protect habitats and/or improve conditions for the growth of the plants and animals that live there, or ways that humans might harm habitats. 5.3.1.D.1- RECORD the observable characteristics of plants and animals to determine the similarities and differences between parents and their offspring. 5.3.1.D.2- DETERMINE the characteristic changes that occur during the life cycle of plants and animals by examining a variety of species, and DISTINGUISH between growth and development. 5.3.1.E.1- DESCRIBE similarities and differences in observable traits between parents and offspring. 5.3.1.E.2- Describe how similar structures found in different organisms (e.g., eyes, ears, mouths) have similar functions and enable those organisms to survive in different environments (2)To understand (4)To analyze (2)To understand 3
Unit Assessments: Formative Pre-Assessment Concept Web- Students can create a concept web to organize ideas about living and nonliving things, habitats, K-W-L Chart- Use this chart to introduce vocabulary Informal Progress-Monitoring Checks Interactive Science Notebook Lesson Checkpoint Lesson Review Worksheet: Chapter 1- pgs. 4A, 7A, Chapter 2 pgs. 14A, 15A, 16A, 17A Chapter 3 pgs. 24A, 25A, 26A, 27A, 28A Chapter 4 pgs. 36A, 37A, 38A, 39A, 40A, 41A Chapter 5 pgs. 48A, 49A, 50A Post-Assessment Chapter 1 Unit Test, Assessment Book pgs. 1-4 Chapter 2 Unit Test, Assessment Book pgs. 5-8 Chapter 3 Unit Test, Assessment Book pgs. 9-12 Chapter 4 Unit Test, Assessment Book pgs. 13-16 Chapter 5 Unit Test, Assessment Book pgs. 17-20 Performance-Based Assessment Activity Flip Chart- How can you group nonliving things? Activity Flip Chart, pg. 2 Activity Flip Chart- What does a plant or animal need in its habitat? Activity Flip Chart, pg. 3 Activity Flip Chart- What are the parts of a plant? Activity Flip Chart, pg. 6 Activity Flip Chart- What helps a plant make food? Activity Flip Chart, pg. 9 4
Instructional Planning: Resources Scott Foresman Science: Unit A, Chapter 1 Lessons 1, 4 Chapter 2, Lessons 1-4 Instructional Strategies Transparency 1 and 3. Living and Nonliving by Zachary Cohn Is It a Living Thing? By Mary Katherine Tate What We Need by Barbara Luciano Transparency 6. living nonliving habitat forest wetland ocean desert Vocabulary 5
Habitats by Arlene Block Places by Mary Katherine Tate Swamp Life by Kristin Cashore Chapter 3, Lessons 1-5 Chapter 4, Lessons 1-6 Related Books: Hello, Fish!: Visiting the Coral Reef by Sylvia A. Earle Transparency 3. How Plants and Animals Live by Tristan F. Nicholas Animals and Plants by Shirley Horton Many Leaves by Ann Rossi Related Books: The Tine Seed by Eric Carle Watch It Grow by Craig Hammersmith antennae camouflage root stem leaf flower tadpole life cycle larva pupa 6
Transparency 4. seed coat seedling Chapter 5, Lessons 1-3 Life Cycles by Steven Danan Living Things Grow and Change by Ann Rossi Egg to Owl by Jessica Quilty Transparency 4. Food Chains by Rose Murray Food Chains and Habitats by Ann Rossi On the Seashore by Barbara L. Luciano oxygen rain forest food chain marsh 7
Differentiated Instruction Differentiated Strategies for Intervention Utilize visuals to reinforce concepts throughout the unit (pictures, graphic organizers, real objects). Have students study visual for 1 minute. Remove and have students describe in as much detail as possible. Use descriptions as basis for instruction. Help students compare their descriptions to the visual for accuracy. Differentiated Strategies for Enrichment Play a sorting game. Classify objects as living and nonliving. Begin with objects in the classroom then include things for textbooks. Continue with unfamiliar objects and organisms. Encourage students to ask questions that will help them decide if something is living or nonliving. Differentiated Strategies for ELL Learners Lead a class conversation about the meaning of selected vocabulary words. Use gestures and simple, correct English to explain and demonstrate its meaning. Model its use in a short sentence that you write on the board. Help students understand each word in the sentence. Have students draw and label pictures in a Word Collection Book. 8