Taylor Martin

10/22/2014
Science: Prairie Unit: Animal Adaptations


LAUNCH/INTRO:
Students should be sitting at their desks with their unit studies folders out. They may review
their Change Game sheets from yesterday.
Review with students what the object of our game was from yesterdays lesson.
What is the purpose of these adaptations?
Students should reason that adaptations are designed to help an animal
survive/thrive. Prey have adaptations that enable them to escape, predators have
adaptations that enable them to catch prey.

Introduce the prairie dog and rattlesnake video. Remind students that these are two animals
that we would see regularly on the prairie. Tell them that we are going to witness a
showdown between predator and prey.
Have students identify which animal they think is the predator and which animal
they think the prey.
Students should make a t-chart in their notebooks with a partner (one side for
prairie dogs, one side for rattlesnakes) and list possible adaptations for each animal.
o Remind them that animals adapt over time to help them survive. Since the
rattlesnake and the prairie dog have always had a predator/prey
relationship, we can assume that their adaptations have affected one another.
Students should then evaluate their t-charts independently. Have students write
their prediction of who would win this round if the rattlesnake and the prairie dog
were to be contestants in the Change Game.

Play the prairie dog and rattle snake video. Students should be examining each animals
behavior, tactics, defenses, skills, etc.
As they are watching, students should fill in a second t-chart (identical to the first).
This chart will represent adaptations, defenses, and skills that they hear or see the
animals using in the video.
o Some of these may be ones they predicted. They should include them in both
t-charts anyway.
Once the video has finished, discuss with students what they saw and noticed.
o How did the prairie dog escape its predator?
Lesson Information:
Grade Level: 4th
Objective: Students will be able to identify and explain at least two adaptations of a given prairie animal within a small
group.

Materials: youtube video, Audubon Adventures handout, construction paper, animal photos, tape

o What was the rattlesnakes hunting technique?
o What adaptations did you notice? How did those help that specific animal?
o What defense do you think made the prairie dog able to escape and save the
baby prairie dogs?

Remind students that there are many animals on the prairie and all of them have
different adaptations to help them survive the climate and other animals.
Hand out Audubon Adventures pamphlet. Students should open to the center
fold where they can examine a number of different images and pieces of text
relating to species on the prairie.
Tell students that they will have 3-4 minutes to explore this part of their
pamphlet independently.
Their job in that time is to find another survival adaptation of another living
thing on the prairie. They should be able to share the adaptation and explain
how it might help that living thing.
Once their time is up, students may share their finding with a partner. Call on
a few students to share out some different findings to the whole group.

Divide students into groups of 2-3.
Explain that they are going to be working in their groups to think about
another specific prairie animal.
Students will receive one photo of a prairie animal, a piece of construction
paper, and a marker.
Directions:
1. I will come around and give each group a couple of pieces of tape. You
are to tape your photo to your piece of construction paper. (Model)
2. Once your photo is taped, your group should examine the photo and
think about adaptations that this particular animal has. Think about
things that make them a better predator or a less likely prey. Also
make sure that you are considering who their predators might be.
3. Use your marker to draw arrows to the location of the adaptation on
the pictures. Write a couple phrases to share what the adaptation is
and how it helps that animal.
4. You should have at least 2 adaptations, but find as many as you can!.
5. If you believe that you have no more adaptations and you still have
work time: write about the defenses or skills that this animals
predator or prey would have to possess.

CLOSURE:
Once all students have had sufficient work time, make sure to leave enough time for
all groups to share in some way.
If in a time crunch:
Have groups pair up and share their animal adaptations with a partner
group.
If we have enough time (try for this):
Have each group go to the front and share their animal adaptations
Remind students of what it means to be a good listener.

EVALUATION:
I will collect the groups projects from today and check to make sure that each group
has at least 2 adaptations on their papers. I will also pay close attention during
group work time to make sure that everyone is contributing and engaged in the
proper thinking. Students who are not contributing and engaged may be asked to do
the project independently.


CLOSURE:
Give students some more practice with writing expressions for story problems.
When writing expressions, problems should only use one-step expressions. When
evaluating these expressions for a given value, include some two-step expressions
such as 2n+1.
Instruct students to work independently on book-work problems. Once finished
they may check their work with a partner and work on blue folder math work.

EVALUATION:
While students are working on their book work, I will walk around the room to
check for misconceptions or students needing assistance. I will look at each students
work as I do so, it is my expectation that students should each be able to write 3
expressions with a variable and solve them using a given variable correctly.