Life science is the study of living things. It encompasses all living things around us. Plants and animals are living things included in the realm of life science that share many similar characteristics but also possess many distinguishing characteristics. It is important for students to understand these life forms, their roles in our ecosystem, and their uniqueness. In this unit, students will explore both plant and animal life and will engage in hands-on learning experiences and examples of multicultural approaches to learning about life science. Students will experience diverse forms of plants and animals and will learn of the value of living resources to our world.

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITIES

1. I will read the book Nine-in-one, Grr! Grr!: A Folktale from the Hmong People of Laos. Students will help generate a list of all the animals and plants in the story. Students will work in cooperative groups to brainstorm characteristics of both plants and animals and characteristics that they share.
2. I will explain that we are going to engage in a unit on life science, which is the study of plants and animals. The class will generate a list with two columns: "what we already know about life science," and "what we want to learn."
3. Students will preview the CD ROMS about life science available in the classroom.

UNIT GOALS

The student will:

1. understand the characteristics of various life forms.
2. appreciate the role of living things on Earth and how they interact.
3. develop an awareness of the necessity of conserving natural resources and life forms on our Earth.

INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES

The student will:

• understand how different cultures use plants and animals as resources
• recognize the differences among plants and among animals
• realize ways that animals impact the environment
• discover different cultural heritages by creating a family tree
• recognize different cultures that live in each habitat
• compare the traits of various animals
• conduct hands-on experiments about life science
• design an advertisement
• write a newspaper article
• react to readings about a chosen plant or animal
• engage in a CD-ROM program about plants or animals
• contribute to a classroom web of ideas about life science
• demonstrate following directions.
• engage in various art activities to show appreciation and
• understanding of plants and animals
• develop creative and critical thinking skills
• follow safety rules and correct procedures for carrying out laboratory experiments

MATERIALS AND RESOURCES NEEDED

A. Text- Cohen, Dr. Michael R., Dr. Timothy M. Cooney, Cheryl M. Hawthorne, et al. (1989). Discover Science. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman and Company.

B. Trade Books (all trade books will be made available for student use and will be placed in a book display)

1. Aardema, Verna. Rabbit Makes a monkey out of lion. a Swahili tale. FOR USE IN A LESSON ON ANIMAL TRAITS AND PERSONIFICATION
2. Baron, Virginia (adap.) Trans. By S.P. Chung. (1974). Sunset in a spider web. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston. FOR USE IN A LESSON ON SPIDERS; APPRECIATION AND BEAUTY OF NATURE; IMAGERY
3. Blood, Charles and Link, Martin. (1976). The Goat in the Rue. New York: Four Winds Press. FOR USE IN A LESSON ON HOW ANIMALS ARE USED AS RESOURCES
4. Demi. (1987). A Chinese zoo. Fables and proverbs. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc.
5. Garland, Sherry. (1993). The lotus seed. New York: Harcourt Brace. FOR USE WITH THE LESSON ON SEEDS AND THE PROGRESSION FROM SEED TO PLANT
6. Hamilton, Virginia. (1985). The people could fly. New York: Knopf. FOR USE IN A LESSON COMPARING HUMANS TO OTHER ANIMALS; LESSON, ON FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
7. Harlow, Rosic and Morgan, Gareth. (1991). 175 amazing nature experiments. New York: Random House.
8. Keller, Holly. (1994). Grandfather's dream. New York: Greenwillow Books. FOR USE WITH A LESSON ON HABITAT PRESERVATION, ENDANGERED SARUS CRANES
9. Locker, Thomas. (1991). The land of the gray wolf. New York: Dial Books. FOR USE IN A LESSON ON NATIVE AMERICAN DISPLACEMENT IN THE U.S.; LESSON ON CONSERVATION OF PLANT AND ANIMAL RESOURCES
10. McDermott, Gerald. (1974). Arrow to the sun: A Pueblo Indian tale. New York: Puffin Books. FOR USE IN A LESSON ON THE DESERT HABITAT AND ALSO HOW DIFFERENT CULTURES USE PLANT AND ANIMAL RESOURCES
11. Mizumuru, Kazue. (1971). If I built a village. New York: Crowell. FOR USE IN A LESSON ON HOW TO PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT IN THE FACE OF DEVELOPMENT
12. Newkirk, Ingrid. (1991). Kids can save the animals! 101 easy things to do. New York: Warner Books.
13. Niller, Kenton and Tangley, Laura. (1991). Trees of life: saving tropical forests and their biological wealth. Boston: Beacon Press.
14. Pearce, Q.L. (1991). Easy answers to first science questions about animals. Illustrated by Gil Hung. New York: Smithmark Publishers, Inc.
15. Schwartz, Linda. (1992). Questions and answers: Save the earth. Lincolnwood, IL. Publications International, Ltd.
16. Soya, Kujoshi. (1986). A house of leaves. New York: Philomel Books. FOR USE IN A LESSON ON LEAVES
17. Spagnoli, Cathy. (1989). Nine-in-one, grr! grr!- a folktale from the Hmong people of Laos. New York: Houghton Mifflin. FOR USE IN THE INTRODUCTORY LESSON ON LIFE SCIENCE
18. Supraner, Robyn. (1981). Fun-To-Make Nature Crafts. Illustrated by Renzo Barto. Mahwah, NJ: Troll Associates.
19. Williams, Sherley Anne. Working cotton. Illustrated by Carole Byard. FOR USE IN A LESSON ON HOW PLANTS ARE USED BY HUMANS; LESSON ON TENNESSEE HISTORY, SLAVERY
20. Wyler, Rosa. (1990). The Wonderful Woods. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Simon and Schuster, Inc., 1990.

C. Teacher Resources

1. Snyder, Julie and Graves, Kimberlee. (1993). Plants and Flowers: Theme Unit. Cypress, CA: Creative Teaching Press, Inc.
2. Vriesenga, Daryl. (1991). Plant Kingdom: Whole Language Theme Unit. Grand Rapids, Ml: Instructional Fair, Inc.
3. Vriesenga, Daryl. (1991). Communities in Nature: Whole Language Theme Unit. Grand Rapids, MI: Instructional Fair, Inc.

D. Other Resources

1. Gerry Edwards, Ph.D. in Forestry - Guest Speaker
2. Community walk field trip
3. Discovery Center outreach programs
4. Film: "The Navajo"

E. Other Materials

1. paper
2. construction paper and tissue paper
3. crayons and markers
4. chalk and chalkboard
5. leaves
6. wax paper
7. iron
8. flowers
9. x-acto knives
10. flowerpot centerpiece with edible dirt
11. Oreos
12. margarine
13. cream cheese
14. powdered sugar
15. vanilla
16. instant choc. pudding
17. milk
18. Cool Whip
19. gummy worms
20. silk flowers
21. flower pot
22. Ziplock bag
23. 2 bowls & spoons
24. paper plates

ACTIVITIES

A. Introduction: The student will:

• contribute to a classroom web about life science
• preview CD-ROMs
• create leaf rubbings

B. Language Arts, Art, and Social Studies:``The student will:

• make leaf rubbings
• make plants and animals to display on the class ecosystem
• engage in a birdwatching activity
• make a flower arrangement with edible dirt
• create a family tree
• write a newspaper article or advertisement covering the learning about a plant or animal or a report of the state of a plant or animal, etc.)
• produce an artistic representation of a fall tree for display in the classroom
• read a book about plants or animals and share response journals with group members

C. Science: The student will:

• contribute to a classroom leaf journal
• participate in a investigation about flowers
  a. learn parts
  b. dissect
  
• engage in a mini-unit about animals
  a. discussion about mammals, amphibians, reptiles, insects and others
  b. research an animal and either (1) write a brief report; or (2) draw a picture
• take part in learning about environmental conservation, including rainforest extinction and animal extinction
• create a classroom worm farm
• plant a tree

D. Technology: The student will:

• engage in an interactive CD-ROM program about life science.
• contribute to a class newspaper

SPECIAL PROVISIONS FOR INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES

This unit is designed to encompass a wide range of activities and interests. Students will work in collaborative groups for many of the activities. Peer tutoring, collaborative group efforts, hands-on experiments, and lectures will be used to allow the material to be comprehended in several ways by students of diverse learning styes or cultural backgrounds.

This lesson plan was created in the Fall of 1995.
It was mounted on the World Wide Web on January 8, 2000.