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Spring
Introduction | Learners |
Standards | Process
| Resources |
Evaluation | Conclusion |
Credits |
Student Page
Introduction
As Spring begins, we see lots of
changes all around. This WebQuest, designed for grades 2-4, begins
with making certain that all the students have some prior knowledge
about Spring. Then, it allows students to explore a topic in depth
with their group. There are many ways to take what your students
learn in this guided study into the outdoors to liven up your
classroom when "Spring Fever" strikes.
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Learners
This unit is all about Spring.
It is designed as a group exploration for students in grades 2-4.
Due to the fact that the reading level is a bit advanced, if you do
this with second graders, I suggest pairing readers. I have
included a section called Spring Characteristics which you can use
to give each child some prior knowledge about Spring. However a
K-W-L chart might also be beneficial so that you can get your
students thinking about what they already know about Spring before
they start to explore the topic on their own. Again, this would
depend on your class as to how much background knowledge you feel
you need to give them before they begin their quest.
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Curriculum Standards
Students will learn all about
Spring by doing this WebQuest. Specifically, students will learn
about Spring Celebrations (NOTE: There
are some religious holidays in here that may not be appropriate in
all schools), Seeds, Plants, Flowers, Gardening, Bird Migration, and
Much, Much More!
Grade 2
SOCIAL STUDIES
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Competency Goal 3 |
The
learner will analyze how individuals, families, and
communities are alike and different. |
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Objectives
| 3.05
Identify historical figures
and events associated with
various cultural traditions
and holidays celebrated
around the world.
3.06 Identify
individuals of diverse
cultures and describe on
their contributions to
society. |
|
SCIENCE
| Competency Goal 1: The learner will
conduct investigations and build an understanding of animal
life cycles. |
| Objectives
1.01 Describe the life cycle of animals including:
- Birth.
- Developing into an adult.
- Reproducing.
- Aging and death.
1.02 Observe that insects need food, air and space to
grow.
1.03 Observe the different stages of an insect life
cycle.
1.04 Compare and contrast life cycles of other animals
such as mealworms, ladybugs, crickets, guppies or frogs. |
Grade 3
SOCIAL STUDIES
|
Competency Goal 1 |
The
learner will characterize qualities of good
citizenship by identifying people who made a
difference in the community and other social
environments. |
|
Objectives
| 1.06
Identify selected
personalities associated
with major holidays and
cultural celebrations. |
|
SCIENCE
| Competency Goal 1: The learner will
conduct investigations and build an understanding of plant
growth and adaptations. |
| Objectives
1.01 Observe and measure how the quantities and qualities
of nutrients, light, and water in the environment affect
plant growth.
1.02 Observe and describe how environmental conditions
determine how well plants survive and grow in a particular
environment.
1.03 Investigate and describe how plants pass through
distinct stages in their life cycle including.
- Growth.
- Survival.
- Reproduction.
1.04 Explain why the number of seeds a plant produces
depends on variables such as light, water, nutrients, and
pollination.
1.05 Observe and discuss how bees pollinate flowers.
1.06 Observe, describe and record properties of
germinating seeds. |
Grade 4
SOCIAL STUDIES
|
Competency Goal 5 |
The
learner will examine the impact of various cultural
groups on North Carolina. |
|
Objectives
| 5.01
Explain different celebrated
holidays, special days, and
cultural traditions in North
Carolina communities.
5.02
Describe traditional art
music and craft forms in
North Carolina.
5.03
Describe and compare the
cultural characteristics of
regions within North
Carolina and evaluate their
significance. |
|
SCIENCE
| Competency Goal 1: The learner will make
observations and conduct investigations to build an
understanding of animal behavior and adaptation. |
| Objectives
1.01 Observe and describe how all living and nonliving
things affect the life of a particular animal including:
- Other animals.
- Plants.
- Weather.
- Climate.
1.02 Observe and record how animals of the same kind
differ in some of their characteristics and discuss possible
advantages and disadvantages of this variation.
1.03 Observe and discuss how behaviors and body
structures help animals survive in a particular habitat.
1.04 Explain and discuss how humans and other animals can
adapt their behavior to live in changing habitats.
1.05 Recognize that humans can understand themselves
better by learning about other animals. |
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Process
The following
list will help you and your group get the information about your
topic and stay organized so that you will have an easier time
finishing this project.
1. You will be
put into a group of two or three people.
2. Your
group will begin by exploring the topic
SPRING CHARACTERISTICS to
get some background knowledge about Spring.
3. Next you will
be given a topic to explore with your group.
4. Now you are
ready to begin exploring. I suggest that you each take a piece of
the topic to explore and record information about, but you may
decide how you will learn about your topic with your group. It
might help to look at how you will be evaluated before you begin
your quest. It is important to do what you think will help you
learn the information best.
6. Each topic
has a set of directions and questions that you must answer as you go
through the WebQuest. Please make sure that you record your
answers, because these notes will help you put together your final
project.
7. You will find
your topic listed below and you can begin exploring it:
SPRING CELEBRATIONS
MIGRATION
SEEDS AND PLANTS
FLOWERS AND GARDENS
7.
Congratulations, you have finished exploring your topic!
8. With your
group, look back at your notes and think of a way that you could
present your topic to the group. You have four choices:
- You can
write a report to present to the class with your group. Note:
Each person needs to have a part in the presentation.
- You may do a
skit where you include all the information in a play like
format. Note: Again, every person must have a part in the play.
- You may make
a Science like display using the provided display board. Note:
Each person must help design the display.
- You may come
up with another way to present the material as long as you talk
about it with me first.
9. After completing
your final project and listening to your classmates projects, you
will have learned a lot about Spring.
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Resources Needed
This unit will work with
one teacher, because for the most part the students are responsible
for their quest. However, if you do this WebQuest with younger
students, it might be helpful to have some other adults in the room
to help the children with vocabulary and other difficulties that may
arise.
You will need the
following things to make this unit on Spring work well:
 computer
with internet capabilities
paper/recording
sheets for note taking
supplies
for final projects/presentations: markers, crayons, poster
paints, glue, tape, construction paper, fabric, Science display
board, etc. This really depends on what type of final
project/presentation your children decide to do.
The following books, which
are linked to
Amazon.com will enhance this unit:
St.
Patrick's Day in the Morning
Alison's
Zinnia
The
Dandelion Seed
How
a Seed Grows
The
Reason for a Flower
The
Rose in My Garden
Flowers
for Mom
Counting
Wildflowers
Flower
Alphabet Book
Jack's
Garden
The
Surprise Garden
Sunflower
House
Round
the Garden
What's
This?
The
Gardener
Garden
From
Seed to Plant
Easter
The
Reasons for Seasons
St.
Patrick's Day
The
Magic School Bus Plants Seeds
The links that the
children will use are listed above, but you will need to check to
make sure that these are appropriate (and not broken) before you
allow your children to work through this WebQuest. Here are some
additional links that may be helpful as a teacher resource:
Visit
this site to learn about
garden
journals.
Visit
this site for
Spring
lesson plan ideas.
Visit
this site for
May lesson plans and some great ideas for gardens in the
classroom.
Visit
this site for a
lesson
plan about the parts of plants.
Visit
this site for a
lesson
plan titled from seed to plant.
Visit
this site for a
St.
Patrick's Day lesson plan.
This
site is a lesson plant on
plant growth, which is written for Kindergarden students,
but it has great songs and literature that could be used with a
variety of ages.
Visit
this site, which is written for families, for great
Spring ideas.
OPTIONAL: As a follow-up activity, I
decided to work with parents, other teachers, and my students to
create a garden. The students will have researched and learned
about Spring weather conditions, seeds, plants, and gardening in
this unit. Therefore, I think that this will be a great culminating
activity to this unit. However, the unit will work just as well
without this activity.
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Evaluation
In order to evaluate
students, please refer to the rubric below. The students will be
given a group grade. However, if you feel that one student has not
contributed to the lesson, then you may want to think about giving
this student a different grade from the other members of the group.
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Beginning
1
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Developing
2
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Accomplished
3
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Exemplary
4
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Score
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| Worked
well as a group to complete the project. |
The group
finished the task, but struggled to complete it by the
appropriate date. The group had trouble working together. |
The group
started to work better together once they got further along
in the project, but they had trouble getting along. |
The group was able to cooperate fairly well, each person
contributed to the project, and there were very few problems
among the members of the group that they didn't work out on
their own. |
A score of three is the highest a group can get in this
category. |
|
| The group
recorded the information in their notes. |
The individuals did not recod much information in their
notes, but did record some information. |
Each group member had recorded information about their
own part of the project, but not everyone had recorded each
other's information about the topic. |
Group
members all had some notes written down about each part of
their topic, even if they did not actually study that part
of the topic. |
Every
group member has notes and each person has notes on every
part of the topic. |
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| The group
came up with a final presentation/project. |
Group members included some of the information about
their topic in a presentation. |
Group
members included most of the information in their
presentation. |
Group
members included all the information learned about their
topic in their presentation. |
Group
members came up with an extremely creative and well
organized final project that showed how much each member
learned. |
|
| The group
presented the information in a way that the class was able
to understand. |
A
project/presentation was completed, but the class had
trouble understanding the information. |
Most
members of the group worked hard to present the information
clearly to the class. |
Each
member of the group contributed to the presentation and was
able to present the information in a clear way to the class. |
The group
presented the material in an interesting and engaging way
that helped members of the class really understand the
topic. |
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Conclusion
This Spring unit will
help you teach several SOLs at one time, as well as help your
students stay focused and motivated by doing some fun, interactive
activities during this time of the year. I hope that you and your
students like exploring Science and Nature as much as my class and I
do.
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