Animal Defenses GEMS project, April Ashmore, Alex Gaylor

5E Lesson Plan # 1 Dinosaur Defenses

AUTHOR'S NAME: Alex Gayler

TECHNOLOGY LESSON (circle one): No

DATE OF LESSON: Day 1, 2 and 3 of Week-long Unit

LENGTH OF LESSON: Over three days, about 30-45 minutes each day

NAME OF COURSE: 1^st Grade Science

SOURCE OF THE LESSON:

Echols, J. C. (1986). Animal defenses: Teacher’s guide. Berkley, CA: Lawrence Hall of Science.

TEKS ADDRESSED:

Science TEKS:

1.2(A) Ask questions about organisms, objects, and events.

1.6(A) Sort organisms and objects according to their parts and characteristics.

1.9(A) Identify characteristics of living organisms that allow their basic needs to be met.

1.9(B) Compare and give examples of the ways living organisms depend on each other for their basic needs.

CONCEPT STATEMENT:

This unit begins with a look at the defensive structures and behaviors of dinosaurs and allows ample time for independent dramatic play and exploration of the predator/prey relationship and the defenses dinosaurs used in their environments.

PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES:

Students will be able to:

Identify the defensive structures and behaviors that animals use to protect themselves;
Demonstrate their knowledge of the predator-prey relationship through dramatic play.
Demonstrate their knowledge of the defensive structures of a defenseless animal through dramatic play.

RESOURCES:

For class:

Posters of T-Rex, Stegosaurus and Triceratops
Copies of patterns for cut-outs (from GEMS guide)
1 9”x12” sheet of brown construction paper for T-Rex
1 9”x12” sheet of green construction paper for paper ferns
1 paper punch for making eyes
1 large pair of scissors for precutting
1 tray for demonstration
newspaper to cover tables and demonstration tray
transparent tape
overhead projector
projector screen

For each student:

1 pencil
1 4.5”x6” sheet of green construction paper for the defenseless animal
1 bottle or white glue
1 pair of scissors

SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS:

Remind students about how to safely use scissors. Keep large scissors out of student reach.

SUPLEMENTARY MATERIALS, HANDOUTS:

Barton, B. (1989.) Dinosaurs, dinosaurs. New York, Thomas Y. Cromwell.

ENGAGEMENT		Time: __10 minutes______
What the Teacher Will Do	Probing Questions	Student Responses Potential Misconceptions
Read “Dinosaurs, Dinosaurs” to full class to initiate discussion of dinosaurs, their habitats, foods, body structures, etc. Show posters of different dinosaurs to illustrate discussion.	1. How did the Stegosaurus protect himself if a T-Rex came along? 2. How did a Triceratops protect himself?	1. He fought him! 2. He used the spikes on his head.
Introduce vocabulary: defenses. Brainstorm definition and write down student ideas.	1. What does “defense” mean?	1. You have to defend your goal in hockey. Like you play defense in basketball.

EXPLORATION		Time: __30 minutes______
What the Teacher Will Do	Probing Questions	Student Responses Potential Misconceptions
Act out the “play” of the defenseless dinosaur hiding from the T-Rex.	1. Why did this dinosaur have to hide from the T-Rex?	1. Because the T-Rex was gonna eat him!
Ask students to help create defenses for the dinosaur so that it will be safe to go find food.	1. What can we give this dinosaur so that it can protect itself from the T-Rex or other bigger dinosaurs?	1. Spikes, teeth, claws, etc.
Observe independent student work.	What did you give your dinosaur to help him protect himself?	Students will work at their tables to create defenses for their dinosaur using paper, glue and tape.

EXPLANATION		Time: ___10 minutes_____
What the Teacher Will Do	Probing Questions	Student Responses Potential Misconceptions
Reenact the original scenario and use student-created dinosaurs.	What might happen now if your dinosaurs run into the T-Rex?	They might get in a fight and mine can use his claws to keep the T-Rex away from his food.
Recap previous discussion of dinosaur defenses using the posters of the stegosaurus, T-Rex and triceratops.	So do you think there were real dinosaurs that didn’t have any spikes or teeth or ways to defend themselves? What would have happened to dinosaurs like that?	No, all dinosaurs had claws at least or something that they could fight with.

ELABORATION		Time: ____30 minutes____
What the Teacher Will Do	Probing Questions	Student Responses Potential Misconceptions
Allow students to create larger, more involved scenarios and sets for their dinosaurs to live in. Rich dramatic play will follow.	1. Where do you think a T-rex and a stegosaurus might meet? 2. What is happening with your dinosaurs?	1. They might all meet at the river because they all want water or they might fight over food they find.

EVALUATION		Time: ________
What the Teacher Will Do	Probing Questions	Student Responses Potential Misconceptions
To assess student understanding and evaluate student participation, teachers can use a simple checklist (see rubric) and evaluate based on concept mastery.