This activity is intended to help fourth grade students identify insects that are endemic to the outdoors found in the student's everyday environment. This activity can take anywhere from one hour to many days, depending on the depth that the teacher wishes to take the activity. Students will learn to distinguish between insects using distinguishing physical characteristics that particular insects have.
Purpose:
TEKS
(8)Adaptations Increase Survival of Members of a Species
Materials:
Getting Ready:
Students should already be shown how to collect insect specimens, as well as being taught the
basic elements of classification. (Ex. How do you write the correct scientific term for an
organism? What is an order?) The teacher must also be aware that different insects are active at
different times of the year, and should plan the "Bug Hunt" according to the insects that are
active for the season. The teacher may want to rope off or somehow mark the area that the
students are required to search in, to keep children from wandering.
Motivate!
The teacher will enter the class dressed in safari gear and begin searching around the room. As the class settles down the teacher will talk about going on a hunt. He/she will look under students' desks, behind books, etc. as if searching for something. H e/she will say that he/she is on the lookout for some particular organisms he/she needs to find - INSECTS. The teacher will discuss how he/she must find the different bugs as pictured on his/her grid. Where might the teacher want to look to find the bugs ? Are all of the bugs the same? Do these bugs live in the same location? What might determine where you could find the bugs?
Activity:
Students will then be asked to join in the "Bug Hunt." The class will be grouped into pairs, where each pair is given an insect net and a collection jar. Each pair will also be given the grid containing the pictures of the various insects to be collected . The students will then go outside in search of their insects. This process can take anywhere from twenty minutes until however long the teacher deems adequate. Students will be free to comb the school property looking for bug specimens with the understa nding that they stay on task and on school property. The students will find as many bugs represented on the grid and place them into the collection containers. The class will rejoin in the room, and in pairs, students will mark off the bugs collected, ide ntify the name of the particular insect, and identify physical characteristics that provide a picture of the bug using imagery. These descriptors can be written in the grid underneath the picture of the bug.
Safety Tips:
Students should be advised as to dangerous insects native to the area, as well as being alert for any animals that might pose danger to them. It is also important for students to stay within a particular area that the teacher designates, so that no childr en are lost due to any cause.
Concept Discovery:
At this time the teacher can explain the purpose of classifying insects, and how the mere aspects of classification can be used in everyday life. Students will be asked why they think it might be important to know classification skills. (In learning to cl assify, students can distinguish similarities and differences between orders of insects.) Students are also learning to take a deeper look at life rather than making assumptions through distant surface appearances.
Going Further:
This activity can be expanded so students carefully examine different physical characteristics of the insects and write about why/how certain physical characteristics can help the insects survive. Students can then use these characteristics to create the ir own "Super Insect." Students can take all of the physical characteristics that they think make different insects the best and combine them to make their own indestructible insect. With their "Super Insect," students will need to justify why they gave p articular characteristics to their insect, and how these characteristics make the "Super Insect" most adapted to survival
Closure:
Class will close with students sharing some of their insect specimens and the teacher asking students questions about classification. Why is classification important? What did the students learn today?
Assessment:
Students will be assessed through informal assessment. Students will be assessed using a rubric rating the students' ability to complete the assignment. Students will be judged as to whether they could correctly identify insects, as well as elaborating on insects' physical characteristics. Students will also be assessed for participation, and their responses shared as they present their insect specimens to the class.
Connections:
This activity can be incorporated into various content areas. The activity can be expanded into the math realm by having students measure the length and weight of their insect specimens. Students can then chart the species and compare different species l ength and weight. In English, students can write in their personal journal about their experience on the "Bug Hunt". The students may decide to add a different ending to the story of their "Bug Hunt." This activity can also be extended into social studies , in looking at geography. Students can look at what types of bug variations they would find in different countries around the world. How are the bugs similar? How are the bug varieties different? The activity can also be further expanded in the study of science as students aim to make comparisons between different insects within different habitats. Students can look at flying versus terrestrial insects, grassland insects versus forest insects, or insects found in tropical climates versus insects found in temperate climates. Through expanding the activity to different subject areas and various realms within science, the lesson can be made into an activity that is meaningful to the students.
Mathematics TEKS:
(10) Measuring- estimate and measure weight and capacity using metric and customary models.
(11)Solving Problems using measurement- measure length, perimeter, weight, capacity, time, temperature, and area; describe equivalent measures
Students grades will be based on a 30 point format
Points will be awarded based on the following:
15 Points Shared Knowledge
10 Pointsfor Information Gathered
3 points for correctly identifying the insects
3 points for using proper scientific terms
4 points for describing any unique/ interesting characteristics
5 points for presenting knowledge to the class.
12 Points Product Completion
4 points will be awarded for including each of the following for a total of 12 points
3 Points Participation
3 points will be awarded to those students who take an active role and participate in the bug hunt.
Points Awarded
Shared Knowledge:
Product Completion:
Participation:
Total Score:
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