Habitat Heroes Teacher Page
3rd Grade Habitat Heroes!
Before Summit was built.
Fictitious Scenario - As more and more homes are being built around Summit Elementary, the natural habitat that sustains native plants, insects, birds, and small animals is disappearing. Native plants are mowed down to create lawns. As a result, small mammals, like rabbits, have nowhere to hide from predators. Birds are losing spaces to build their nests and the food they need to feed their babies.
To remedy the problem the Office of Science has challenged every 3rd grade Summit student to create a plan for a schoolyard habitat. A habitat is an environment that provides the basic needs of food, water, and space for the wildlife that live in and around Summit Elementary.
This is where you come in! The Office of Science is asking you to collect and analyze data about your school's grounds. Then, you will research what living, non-living, and once-living factors are needed to support local native species. After you have collected and evaluated data about your schoolyard and researched information about your local habitats, you will create a Schoolyard Habitat Action Plan. Finally, you will submit your plan for creating a Summit schoolyard habitat to your principal for approval.
To remedy the problem the Office of Science has challenged every 3rd grade Summit student to create a plan for a schoolyard habitat. A habitat is an environment that provides the basic needs of food, water, and space for the wildlife that live in and around Summit Elementary.
This is where you come in! The Office of Science is asking you to collect and analyze data about your school's grounds. Then, you will research what living, non-living, and once-living factors are needed to support local native species. After you have collected and evaluated data about your schoolyard and researched information about your local habitats, you will create a Schoolyard Habitat Action Plan. Finally, you will submit your plan for creating a Summit schoolyard habitat to your principal for approval.
Sample Activity and Lesson Ideas
Activity 1
First, you as the teacher will assign your students to a team along with a section of the Summit schoolyard to observe and survey. Then, each team will complete a general habitat survey of Summit's school grounds. As the students conduct this survey, they will have to make careful observations so that they can draw a map of their assigned area and also determine the sunlight capabilities and soil texture.
Summit Schoolyard Habitat Survey Map
Summit Schoolyard Sunlight and Soil Observation Form
Activity 2
Next, the students will conduct a wildlife inventory. They will observe and simply count the number of species they see, hear, or find evidence of within their assigned area (or could include the entire Summit schoolyard area). They will need to note the date and time of their observations as seasonal and time of day changes will affect the number of species they will see. Their initial wildlife survey will serve as their baseline, so they will be able to measure to see if changes in their future habitat improvements will increase or decrease the number and diversity of species living around the Summit grounds.
Support document to help the students use animal tracks and scat to discover which animals live in Summit's schoolyard area are linked below.
Summit Schoolyard Wildlife Inventory Form
Activity 3
You will assign your students into teams of three or four. Each team member will be responsible for gathering information about one of the three habitats listed below. Each habitat is linked with an information sheet for the students to use as research or they may find their own research information on the web or from the library.
~ Forests
~ Grasslands
~ Deserts
~ Research Questions Worksheet for Summit Schoolyard Habitat
~ Forest Report Paper
~ Grassland Report Paper
~ Desert Report Paper
~ Student Self-Assessment Rubric for Research Process on Selected Habitat
~ Teacher Assessment Rubric of Student Research Process (optional)
Activity 4 Based on the research work from the team members, they will synergize and think win-win in deciding which type of habitat is most suitable for Summit's schoolyard area. Format for the method of selection will be decided by the students and teacher i.e, voting, plus/delta, other student feedback.
Activity 5
Then working individually, each student will develop a proposal (reflective paragraph) on how they would create a schoolyard habitat based on the specific habitat selected by each team. The reflective paragraph format will be decided by teacher i.e, written paragraph or typed electronically.
~ Reflective Paragraph Rubric
Activity 6 Final Project
Student will create a map proposal identifying the location and type of habitat that would be best supported by Summit's current environmental surroundings. The student will then submit this map and their proposal (their reflective paragraph) to Dr. LaPlante for review and to help decide which habitat will be selected as the winning habitat for Summit's schoolyard setting. (Actually creating the schoolyard habitat is optional) :-)
~ Summit Schoolyard Habitat Map Rubric (Word)
~ Summit Schoolyard Map Habitat Rubric (PDF)