Project-Based Instructional Unit 2nd grade

Part 1: Create a work plan (group)

Abby

Allison

Terilyn

Part 2a: Unit Overview (group)

1. Overview

○ 2nd Grade

○ The topic of our PBL unit is going to be the zoo. For the unit, each student

will be given a common zoo animal and will research its habitat, eating

habits, place of origin, etc and compile information to contribute to the

class for their exhibit. As a class, the students will be grouped together

based on the habitat their animal lives in and they will work together to

research information about the habitat to present to the class. For the

science portion, they will use the internet and books to determine their

animals habitat and what they eat. For the writing portion, the students will

take all of the information gathered about their animal and describe it

using adjectives and adverbs to tell about it. They will also write an opinion

piece about if they think animals enjoy being in a zoo or if they would

enjoy being in the wild. To integrate this into speaking and listening,

students will be working in partner groups and collaborating with other

students. They will also give a presentation of their animal to the class to
 teach everyone about the specific animal they researched. For language

usage, students will be required to use different shades of meaning in their

writing to make it more powerful. We will address reading at the beginning

of the unit by having students identify who, what, when, where, why, and

how of different habitats.

○ This is important for students to learn because it teaches them that there

are all different types of habitats and climates that different types of

animals live in and they all have different needs. This helps students to

know that we are all diverse but we also all have similar basic needs in

order to survive.

2. Standards

○ Writing

i. W.2.10 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard

English grammar and usage when writing (e. Use adjectives and

adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be

modified.)

1. Write about an animal in the zoo given by the teacher

ii. W.2.1 Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or

book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that

support the opinion, use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to

connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement

or section.
 1. Write about if they think animals should be in zoos

○ Language

i. RL.2.12 Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and

nuances in word meanings - b Distinguish shades of meaning

among closely-related verbs and closely related adjectives.

1. Shades of meaning in presentations

○ Speaking/Listening

i. SL.2.2 Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read

aloud or information presented orally or through other media.

1. Students can present their information on their animal and

then the class will recount key ideas from the information

read aloud.

ii. SL.2.1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse

partners about grade 2 and texts with peers and adults in small and

larger groups.

1. Students will have the option to read their information to the

class if desired.

○ Reading

i. RI.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when,

why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

○ Science
 i. There are many different kinds of living things in any area, and they

exist in different places on land and in water. (2-LS4-1)

1. Habitats

ii. Living things need water, air, and resources from the land, and they

live in places that have the things they need. Humans use natural

resources for everything they do. (K-ESS3-1)

1. Animal habitats and what they eat

3. Informational Text Resources

○ Books (2-3)

i. “Environments of Our Earth” by Lawrence Lowery *

ii. “The View at the Zoo” by Kathleen Long Bostrom

iii. “What If Everybody” by Ellen Javernick *

○ Video (1-2)

i. Madagascar Clip : ​https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8qg7Sd8CZrA

○ Website (2-3)

i. San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants, Habitats at

https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/habitats

ii. National Geographic Kids, Animals at

https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/

4. Project Launch

○ Do all animals have the same habitat? No? Then how do they all live at

the same place like a zoo?

 i. They have the same air

ii. Same weather

○ How do they live at the same place but require different habitats and food?

Part 2b: Instructional activities for the 4 elements of Personal Digital Inquiry

Model (group)

● Wonder and Discover: ​All learners have opportunities to engage with content

and experiences that prompts their own questions about a topic and time to

explore resources and discover new ideas about the world around them. Content

and experiences could include books, websites, videos, images, field trips, real

objects, guest speaker, science experiment.

● Sparking Creativity

● Standard:

○ RI.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why,

and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

● Materials:

Lowery, F. L., & Olliver, L. (2013). Environments of our earth. Arlington,

VA: National Science Teachers Association.

● Describe the activity:

Students will sit on the floor during ​read​​ aloud, and will listen to the story:

Environments of Our Earth. Throughout the story, the teacher will provide

prompting questions, to make sure the students ​discuss​​ their understanding of

why certain animals need a particular environment to survive. After reading and
 discussion over environments, the teacher will put students in four groups:

Aquatic, Tropical Rainforest, Arctic, and Savanna. The students will ​discuss

what they remember from the story, regarding their environment, what animals

live there, and why they need that environment to survive.The students will have

a who, what, when, where, why, and how graphic organizer, and they are

required to answer each question regarding their environment.

● Collaborate and Discuss: ​All learners have opportunities to engage in joint

conversations around shared interests, discuss interpretations, make

connections, and negotiate differences in their thinking. Describe a structured

collaboration/discussion activity that has built in structures to keep students

focused on the topic and task.

○ All About the Habitats

○ Standards:

■ SL.2.1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse

partners about grade 2 and texts with peers and adults in small and

larger groups.

■ W.2.10 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard

English grammar and usage when writing (e. Use adjectives and

adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be

modified.)
 ■ Living things need water, air, and resources from the land, and they

live in places that have the things they need. Humans use natural

resources for everything they do. (K-ESS3-1)

■ RL.2.12 Demonstrate understanding of word relationships and

nuances in word meanings - b Distinguish shades of meaning

among closely-related verbs and closely related adjectives.

○ Materials:

■ Chromebooks

■ Paper and pencils

■ Clipboards

■ “Environments of Our Earth” by Lawrence Lowrey

■ https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/habitats

○ Describe the activity (3-4 sent)

■ For the collaborate and ​discussion​​ group, students will be given a

specific zoo animal and will be put into a research group with

people who have animals from the same habitat as them (for

example: elephants, giraffes, and rhinos are all found in the

Savanna). There will be 3-4 students in each group depending on

the class size and they will ​talk​​, research, and ​write​​ down

information about the habitats that their animals are from and

describe​​ what it is like. They will find stuff like the climate, what

food sources there are, what it looks like, what animals live there,
 etc. They will compile all of this information to contribute to the

class zoo and then from this information they will use it to help

describe information about their own individual animal. Students will

be required to use at least 3 “shades of meaning” words in their

descriptive ​writing​​ of their environment to make their information

and description more powerful.

● Create and Take Action:

○ Activity title: What if everybody did that?

○ Standard:

■ SL.2.2 Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read

aloud or information presented orally or through other media.

● Students can present their information on their animal and

then the class will recount key ideas from the information

read aloud.

■ W.2.1 Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or

book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that

support the opinion, use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to

connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement

or section.

● Write about if they think animals should be in zoos

○ Materials:

■ Book: What If Everybody Did That?

 Paper

Pencil

Microphone

Chromebooks

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8qg7Sd8CZrA

○ Describe the activity (3-4 sent): We will begin by ​reading​​ the book “​What

​ e will ​discuss​​ conflicts with zoos and try to

if Everybody Did That?” W

understand the perspective of the animal. For example, what if everybody

fed the owl skittles. After we read the book, students will ​analyze​​ issues

that could happen to their animals in the zoo. They will ​write​​ a few

sentences about how their animal would feel. They will also include a

opinion​​ paragraph about whether or not they believe their animal would

prefer to live in a zoo or its natural habitat. They will then ​present/share

their work to the class, they will be encouraged to ​talk​​ and dress up like

their animal and will use a microphone at this time to present their project.

● Analyze and Reflect:

○ Activity title: Padlet Compare & Contrast

○ Standard:

■ W.2.10 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard

English grammar and usage when writing (e. Use adjectives and

adverbs, and choose between them depending on what is to be

modified.)
 ● Write about an animal in the zoo given by the teacher

○ Materials: Chromebooks, graphic organizer,

○ Describe the activity (3-4 sent) Students will ​create​​ a tab in padlet where

they can post their research about their zoo animals. Once everyone is

completed posting, each student will get on padlet and pick a different zoo

animal that is in a different habitat and ​compare and contrast​​ the two.

They will be given a graphic organizer that will help them organize their

thoughts. There should be at least 2 bullets under each section.