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UNIT TITLE:
Its Not Easy Being Green; Whats With All These Plants?
LEVEL
TEAM
TERM
DURATION
9 weeks
3-5
UNDERSTANDINGS:
FOCUS QUESTIONS:
Level 3
- Consider environmental differences.
- Students explore how and why natural
factors affect the growth of plants in
different places.
Level 3:
- What are some different environments?
- What are the features of different
environments?
- Do different environments have different
plants? Why?
Level 4
Level 4:
- What impact do the features of differing
environments have on the plants in them?
- How do plants adapt to the environment?
Level 5
- Students begin to develop a breadth of
understanding about natural processes and
human activities beyond their immediate
environment.
- Students identify patterns and processes in
natural environments and human activities
to understand increasingly complex
interactions of physical and human
phenomena within Australian and other
environments and to generalize from
particular contexts.
KEY CONCEPTS:
Location, Environment, Plant life, Climate,
Photosynthesis, Food Chain.
Level 5:
- What is the relationship between animals
and plants?
- How are plants classified as from different
families?
Thinking Processes
Students are to record
data based on
investigation by
constructing a labelled
table and explaining
their findings. Students
are to collect and
explain data through
observations and reach
conclusions.
Communication Skills
Students can present
information in a range of
ways; for examples
through making
informational posters, in
written form, oral
presentation or digitally
using some sort of
digital form such as
cameras/videos and
power points.
Personal Learning
Students learn about the
environment around
them, specifically the
plants within said
environment.
Interpersonal
Development
Students often have to
work in groups
throughout the unit, in
which they will be able
to collaboratively
construct learning and
develop social skills
throughout.
RESOURCES
-
Student Cohort:
- The student cohort is from a school in the outer suburbs of Melbourne. In this location, the students
are in an environment that, while within half an hours travel of the CBD, still has a fair amount of
greenery, found both in local parks and botanical gardens.
- The student cohort itself is comprised mostly of students from an Anglo-Saxon background; however,
there are a reasonable number of students from Indigenous backgrounds.
- Most of the students have a pretty good grasp of the required literacy and numeracy skills for their
age group, and thanks to some effort on the part of the Level teachers, they have some idea about
basic scientific concepts.
Immersion Lesson:
- To begin the inquiry unit, the class should be taken on an excursion to the Royal Botanical Gardens in
Melbourne.
- These gardens are the most impressive within an achievable travelling range, and have not only a
detailed, dedicated website but plenty of information about the plants that can be found throughout.
- Focus on seeing each different part of the gardens with the students.
- Before beginning the exploration of the gardens, give each student a card; task them to, when they see
a plant they find interesting, find the information plaque and write down the name of the plant. This
will be used later on.
TUNING IN
Lesson 1: Where have you been? What plants have you seen?
-
Begin the lesson by opening a general discussion about the different places students have visited
and the environment of those places. The teacher will facilitate the discussion by asking questions
such as how was the weather like? What kind of plants did you see and were there certain things
in the environment that stood out to you?
The teacher will record the different places students have been to and the environmental features of
each place on a whiteboard.
* The teacher will then show students a video clip which portrays different environments and their
features.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8K5pLt6vsc
- After watching the video, talk about what students learned. What does a tropical rain forest look
like? What kinds of plants and animals live in the desert? Why is it important to preserve rain
forests etc...?
- Students will write what they discovered or what theyre wondering about on a sticky note and
place it on the classroom thinking wall. Students will be able to, during the learning sequence,
attempt to answer these questions based on their new knowledge.
Lesson 2:
Biodiversity survey
Have students watch the Wild Classrooms Biodiversity Video at:
http://www.thewildclassroom.com/home/ecogeeksvideos/biodiversity.html
This video defines biodiversity and its three levels: genetic diversity, species diversity and
ecosystem diversity.
- After watching the video, discuss and define the term biodiversity with the students and identify a
variety of ecosystems. A good way to do this is to ask the students where they have been for
holidays or where they would like to go.
This initial biodiversity survey will focus on plant variety and vegetative layers, as plants are the
foundation upon which most ecosystems are based. It is designed to get the students to view their
playground from a different perspective, with a biodiversity focus, and establish a sense of place.
1. Walk around the school grounds with the students, using the Biodiverse Playground Data Sheet.
Give the groups a time limit to count as many species as possible belonging to one of the vegetative
layers in particular areas.
- The students justify the number counted by describing or sketching leaf shape, flowers and bark on
the data sheet. Students should also take digital photos of each area. The variety of plant species
counted will help the students make inferences about the possible number of animal species at a
later date.
- Also look for evidence of animals in each area, eg, droppings, chewed leaves, scratch marks, webs,
etc. Note these on the recording sheet.
- Ask the students to compare the areas as you walk around asking questions such as: Do you think
this garden area would have greater biodiversity than the bush corner? What invertebrates and other
animals would you expect to find in this area? (Invertebrates are a good indicator of biodiversity.)
- In the classroom, display a large map or Google Earth satellite image of the school site. Students
label the map or satellite image with information from the Biodiverse Playground Data Sheet and
digital photos.
Lesson 3:
The teacher will have three A3 pieces of paper with the titles; Rainforest, Arctic and Deserts.
Divide students into three groups and allocate each group an environment (the desert, arctic or
rainforest).
- Depending on their assigned environment students will receive one of these three books; Jungle
by Theresa Greenaway, Desert Trek : an eye-opening journey through the world's driest places
by Marie-Ange Le Rochais or One Small Square: Arctic Tundra by Donald Silver.
- Once each group has received their environmental book, give each group an A3 piece of paper and
ask them to write about their given topic. Theyre to include the different animals and plants found
in their environment, the features of the environment and the climate (hot, wet, dry etc...)
Reflection:
When there is about 15 minutes left in the session, the teacher will gather the students and ask them to
share their informational poster. Each group will inform the class about the climate of their environment
and the different animals and plants that are found in that environment. The teacher will ask questions that
prompt discussion, such as is there a reason why some plants and animals are only found in certain
environments?, why dont we see cactuses in our gardens etc. After all three groups have shared; ask
students which environment they would like to live in and why?
- There should be a display section in the class where students can hang their posters and index cards
to refer back to if necessary.
FINDING OUT
SORTING OUT
How can we: Take students beyond what they already know?
Challenge their ideas, beliefs and attitudes? Enable them to use
skills and knowledge to collect new information? Provide a
range of experiences to develop our understandings?
Suggested Sites:
- http://www.rbg.vic.gov.au/visitmelbourne/attractions/plant-collections
- www.wikipedia.org
GOING FURTHER
How can we extend and broaden the unit? What other perspectives or dimensions can we explore? What are the ways which
students can negotiate their own personal inquiries?
Re-use the laminated A4 sheets from Lesson 5 for this activity. Place them in different areas around the
room. Using prepared cards, read out one at a time a plant the students will be familiar with. In response,
students have to stand next to the climate or area that they think that plant lives in.
Feel free to add other activities if you wish.
INQUIRY STAGE
Lesson 6
DESCRIPTION
The childrens writing will be
collected and assessed.
Level Three: will have to
identify one reason for placing the
Chia where they did or for the
watering schedule they elected.
Level Four: Will have to
identify two reasons for placing
the Chia pet on the watering
schedule.
Level Five: Same as Level four
but will have to identify what
kind of eco system they were
aiming for.
PURPOSE
Understanding of how the
environment and climate can
affect plant growth.
Building vocabulary in this area.
INQUIRY EVALUATION
-
The students really seemed to find this unit fascinating. Many of the students had older siblings
who had already gone through these year levels, and as such were expecting to do the same units.
They were pleasantly surprised to be studying something different in plants and the climate. Many
students mentioned telling their siblings about the work with genuine pride.
The excursion was a success. Although it was difficult to keep the group together and focussed due
to the excitement, having parent helpers helped keep things on track. Students showed genuine
interest in the different varieties of plants on offer, and as a result all handed in their cards at the
end of the day.
We were pleased with the results of the Biodiversity Survey activity. Students enjoyed working
outside for a change, though some abused the freedom provided by not doing the work.
The Symposium was a mixed success. Although most of the groups put on interesting and varied
presentations, and the parents enjoyed watching their children, some unmotivated students had
rather less impressive contributions to make. Perhaps next time a greater focus on each group doing
similar quality work, by using more restricted criteria for example, would result in a more even
spread of presentation quality.
The students absolutely adored the Chia pet activity. Not only did they get to make their own
creature, they had the opportunity to watch it grow in the classroom, learning more about the
impact of climate on plants in the process. During these lessons, students were abuzz with
discussion about how well their Chia pets would grow depending on where they were placed, and
most students were pleased with their results. Also, the fact that they could take the Chia pets home
resulted in many positive comments from parents.
Next time we decide to run this Inquiry Unit, it might be good to place more focus about how
plants impact the lives of people, so that it relates more to the students. Although students were
engaged and interested most of the time, there were many questions by students about how, for
example, finding out about plants in certain climates has to do with them specifically. Linking the
variety of plants in the environment to the variety of impacts they have on humanity might result in
greater engagement and personalised learning.