The College of New Jersey School of Education Bianca Venice and Heather Wuest Title: Whales vs. Sharks!

Grade Level: 1st grade Cooperating Teacher: Ms. Tindall Time Allotted: 45 minutes Description of Topic: The students will discover the basic characteristics of whales. The students will combine their newly acquired learning of whales to their knowledge of sharks (from the previous lesson). Standards: 1. 5.3.2.A.1 Living organisms:

Exchange nutrients and water with the environment.

2. 5.3.2.E.2 Plants and animals have features that help them survive in different environments. 3. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.3 Describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text.

Objectives 1. Students will interpret the similarities and differences between whales and sharks.

Assessments 1. Students will be given fin facts (facts about sharks and whales) which they place in the correct section of the shark and whale Venn Diagram. The students will fill in their own Venn Diagram simultaneously. 1. The teacher will question the students placement of the distinctive whale and shark images to assess their understanding that there are various types of sharks and whales.

2. Students will understand variations exist within a group of the same kind of organism.

Prior Knowledge: Students will have basic knowledge of basic characteristics of whales and sharks. They will have experience using Venn Diagrams. Students may have misconceptions that whales and sharks do not have anything in common. Students may also have misconceptions that whales lay eggs like other fish. Hook (5 minutes): The teacher will begin the lesson with a whale video. Procedure :( 30 minutes): 1. The teacher will read Whales A First Discovery Book. 2. The students will then return to their seats after the read aloud. 3. The teacher will tell the students that they are going to compare what they learned about whales with what they learned about sharks the previous day! 4. The teacher will ask the students to remind him or her of what a Venn Diagram is and how it is used. The teacher will tell the students that one section is for facts about sharks, one is for facts about whales, and the middle section is for facts that the two animals have in common. 5. The teacher will review the characteristics of sharks with the students. 6. Each student will then receive one fin fact. The teacher will model the activity first by putting one fin fact on the Venn Diagram in the appropriate place. 7. The teacher will have the students take turns putting their fin fact in the correct spot on the Venn Diagram. 8. When all of the children have gone the teacher will ask the students if there is anything they would like to add to the Venn Diagram. Closure: ( 10 minutes ) Each of the students will fill out their own Whales vs. Sharks Venn Diagram. Questions: 1. How are sharks and whales similar? 2. How are sharks and whales different? 3. Do these sharks all look the same ? 4. Do these whales look the same? 5. Can there be different kinds of sharks just like there are different kinds of people? Materials: Whales A First Discovery Book, Venn Diagram, fin fact, Venn Diagram worksheets, laptop, Classroom Management: Before the teacher begins the read aloud he or she will remind the students of the carpet rules. The teacher will remind the students that if they misbehave during the read aloud they will return to their seat. The students will begin on their assigned carpet spots for the read aloud. The teacher will dismiss the students back to their seats by stating anyone wearing orange can return back to their seats... and then anyone wearing blue return to their seats and so on. They will sit in their previously assigned mixed level groups. The teacher will utilize the whole brain learning strategies for managing the classroom including Hands and eyes, hands and eyes and Bring it back bring it back

bring it back now. The teacher will ask a student to help distribute the Venn Diagram handouts. The students will use the crayons they have in their desks. The teacher will hand out glue and scissors to students who do not have their own. The teacher will regulate the Venn Diagram activity by directing who should come up to place their fin fact on the Venn Diagram. Students working diligently will be placed on the happy list. Students misbehaving or not completing the activity will be placed on the sad list. Transitions: The teacher will transition between the whale read aloud and the Whale vs. Sharks activity by asking if any of the facts that they read in the whale book sounded familiar. The teacher will review characteristics of sharks and then move into the Venn Diagram activity. The teacher will call up students one by one to place their fin fact on the Venn Diagram.

Differentiation: The lower-leveled and ESL students will be given more guidance for the Venn Diagram activity. The lower-leveled students will be given the pictures of whales and sharks to place on the Venn Diagram. ESL students will be given a support sheet which will highlight key terms of the lesson for the students. The ESL students are seated together at their desks so they are able to support each other during the activities. The sheet will contain the word placed next to its picture. It will also contain regularly used classroom phrases to provide them with more comfort and therefore enhancing their development and learning in the classroom. The higher leveled students will pick out a challenge question from the Challenge Bucket to complete while the other students finish working.