Lesson Plans for Dinosaur Unit 12-5

Concept: Interactions

Essential Understanding: Interactions influence change

Essential Questions: In what context do interactions influence perspective?

Subject: Science

Integration: Art

Pre-Requisite Skills:

 Knowledge of basic structure of a bone

 Basic understanding of vertebrate/invertebrate

 Knowledge of how to construct a figure

Objectives: At the end of this activity, students will define the purpose of a vertebrate.

Standard: 2-LS4-4 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity

Motivation: Categorize animals into two groups.

Vocabulary: Vertebrates, invertebrates, and spinal cord

Body of Lesson:

Intro

 Motivation: 10:35-10:37

 Categorize animals into vertebrates and invertebrates

 Lecture about vertebrates/invertebrates: 10:37-10:40

 Vertebrates are animals that have backbones

 Invertebrates are animals without a backbone

 Vertebrae’s help protect the spinal cord and muscles

  A spinal cord is most important structure between the body and the brain

Body

 Construct dinosaur with vertebrates 10:40-10:48

 Use clay to make a four-legged dinosaur

 Make sure the dinosaur has pipe cleaners in all four legs and a pipe cleaner

running through its “spine.”

 Test vertebrates/invertebrate with JENGA blocks 10:48-10:50

 Use the invertebrate dinosaur and vertebrate dinosaur that were prepared by

the teachers

 Stack JENGA blocks onto each dinosaur one by one.

 Have one group students keep track of how many blocks reach the invertebrate

before the dinosaur falls

 Have the second group of students keep track of how many JENGA blocks are

stacked on top of the vertebrate dinosaur

Conclusion

 Which one held longer and why 10:50-10:52

 Ask the students how many blocks each dinosaur held up

 Ask why the one with the invertebrate was not as strong

 Explain the importance of the vertebrate

 Review of what a vertebrate is 10:52-10:54

 Vertebrate are animals that have back bones

 Invertebrates are animals that do not have back bones

Transition 10:54-10:55

Materials:

 Clay

 Pipe cleaners

 Blank paper

 Crayons

 Q-tips

 JENGA blocks

Plan B: Color a picture of a dinosaur and place q-tips as their vertebrates.