1

Cameron R., Ward H., Dustin J.

Lesson
Where are certain animals found
Title/Focu
within Alberta, and why?
s

Cours
e

Science - Grade 3
English - Grade 3

LESSON OUTCOMES
Demonstrate awareness that animals require different habitats in order to meet their basic needs
of food, water, shelter and space
Choose appropriate forms of oral, print and other media texts for communicating and sharing
ideas with others

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. By the end of the lesson, students will demonstrate an awareness of habitat needs of various
animals through visual, oral and demonstrative formats. (Understanding)
2. By the end of the lesson, students will be able to produce visual and written representations of
their specific research [Poster Presentation or Write-up]. (Understanding)
3. By the end of the lesson, students will be able to identify important/relevant attributes of
effective research. (Understanding)

MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT

Flash Cards with animal names on them
Ipads with pre-approved websites based on wildlife
Resources from the library based on wildlife (Nature Encyclopedia. What is Hibernation? What
is migration? Underground habitats. Animal Homes. Backyard Habitats. A Grassland habitat. Life
in a Grassland. Forest Food Chains. A Forest Habitat. Why am I Rare? Gone Wild. The Food
Chain. Predator! Predator. Nature All Year Long. My First Nature Treasury. The Nature Book. The
Jumbo Book of Nature Science. Alberta: A Natural History.)
Resources from LearnAlberta for online information: trueflix bookflix
Poster paper - premade templates (has food, water, shelter and space already on it)
Write up assignment template (has food, water, shelter and space already on it)
Markers
Tape
Checklist (Pre-made)

PREPARATION AND LOGISTICAL CONSIDERATIONS

ED 3501 PQR Fall 2016

Make Ipad cart available to students who want technology based research
Make resources available to students who want book based research
Have flash cards ready to hand out
Depending on the how well the teacher knows the class, we will either decide the groups ahead
of time or leave it to chance. Pre-decision would be to avoid unfair assessment.
Have examples of each form of presentation (poster, write up)
Guiding questions on the board (Prompt questions)

PROCEDURE
Introduction

Time

Introduce the overarching question: What is the purpose of the Parks in

Alberta?
This is done through a brief skit, pretending to be a Parks Ranger. Introducing
ideas about: What kinds of animals are found in Alberta Parks? Ideas about the
relationship between predators and prey, and what that categorization means.
What kinds of habitats are evident in Alberta? Forest, prairie, mountains, caves,
lakes & rivers, rural & urban. What kinds of animals do we see within
Lethbridge? Are there animals that can be found in both urban settings and
natural settings? What animals live exclusively in the wild?

10 min

Body

Time

Animal
Research

ED 3501 PQR Fall 2016

1. Have students stand up and find the corresponding animal

that is presented on the flashcard they have been given
2. Ask students to determine whether they are predator or
prey
3. Ask partners to take either an Ipad or Resource book
(whichever they prefer) and begin researching the animal
that was presented on their card
a. Does your animal exist in a city, outside of the city, or
both?
b. What does your animal eat?
c. Does your animal make a shelter? If so, what kind of
shelter?
d. How much space does your animal need to live?

30 min

3
Development
of Mini Project

ED 3501 PQR Fall 2016

1. Describe the assignment to the class

a. Students have the option between making a poster
or developing a write up about their animal shown
on their card that answers the questions posed
above.
b. Show an example from both a poster and a write up
- make sure to describe that both projects need a
visual element and a written portion (each student
will have to participate in both the visual aspect and
the written portion)
c. Tell students that their will be an oral presentation
at when they are finished in which half of the
students will walk around and view the other halfs
presentations and vice versa.
2. Have the poster paper and markers ready up at the front.
3. Allow students time in order to complete the projects.

30 min

4
Oral
Presentations

1. Once the projects have been completed, ask the students to

hang their posters or write-ups around the classroom (use
the tape provided by the teacher)
2. Gather students together and hand out the checklist
a. Describe the purpose of the checklist - complete the
checklist while viewing your classmates works.
Put an X or a check mark after finding the
appropriate animal and name the animal on your
checklist
3. Divide the partner groups in half and have one half of the
groups stand by their project
a. Describe the purpose of the project is to inform
your classmates on what you have researched. For
15 minutes, allow the other half of the students to
view their classmates projects.
b. Remind the students who are viewing that they are
to fill out their checklists while going to different
projects.
4. Have students begin their presentations, once the 15
minutes is up, switch the presenters and the viewers for 15
minutes. (Walk around the classroom and observe each
students presentations)

Closure

ED 3501 PQR Fall 2016

35 min

Time

5
Closure

Have students return to their seats once the presentations

are complete.
Use prompt questions to engage students in discussion
Which of these animals can be found within
Lethbridge?
Which ones do you think are found outside of
Lethbridge?
Which animals are found in both?
Do you think Parks are like homes for animals that
can't live with humans?
Are Parks designed to keep humans out, or to keep
animals in?
How can we ensure that other animals can acquire
the resources they need to be comfortable?
Allow students to finish filling in any blanks in their
checklist throughout the discussion
Have the students hand in their checklists

10 min

Assessment
Exit Slip (Checklist) Formative Assessment (Learning Objective #1)
Observation and Discussion (Through presentations and closure discussions)
Formative Assessment (Learning Objectives #1- 3)
Grammar on presentations - Formative Assessment (Learning Objective #2)
Clarity of content (Learning Objectives #1-3)
Posters and Write-ups - Summative Assessment (based on rubric)

ED 3501 PQR Fall 2016