SUBJECT: Science
GRADE: Third Grade
TECHNOLOGY: Internet

ANIMALS AND THE INTERNET

Target Grade/Subject

This lesson plan was specifically designed with third graders in mind. Its purpose is to help third graders gain a basic understanding of the ways that the physical and behavioral characteristics of animals contribute to their ability to their survival and that such traits are the result of evolutionary adaptations to meet basic needs in the midst of a challenging environment. Nurturing the seven to eight-year-old’s need for independence, this activity allows students to complete the associated work by themselves and at their own pace. A particularly motivating quality about this lesson plan is that it also allows third graders to explore a topic (within the animal kingdom) which personally interests them. Furthermore, this lesson integrates a change of pace from rote classroom instruction with use of the technology of which third graders are already fond of using. Finally, because children of this age are naturally adventurous and curious about the living world around them, this activity allows them the opportunity to embark on a quest for knowledge to satisfy their natural curiosity about an animal of their own choosing.

Objectives

The SOL fulfilled by this activity is standard 3.4 under the heading of "Science" and deals with "Life Processes". This standard is composed of two items and states that the "student will investigate and understand that behavioral and physical adaptations allow animals to respond to life needs". The concepts of which this includes require that students learn about the methods by which animals obtain and store food, the types of shelter they use, the way that they care for their offspring, and the ways in which they defend themselves against their enemies. This SOL also encompasses the concepts of camouflage, migration, hibernation, imprinting, and learned and instinctual behaviors as they relate to animals.

Materials

• Copy Machine (used to make copies of worksheets for each student)
• Copier Paper (5 sheets per student) (to print copies of worksheets on)
• Stapler (to staple together the five leafs that compose the worksheets for this activity)
• Chalk or dry erase marker (to write addresses of common search engines on chalkboard or dry erase board in computer lab)
• Poster paper and marker (to write search engine addresses on if computer lab lacks message board)
• Pencils or other writing instruments for each student (to complete worksheets)
• A computer terminal for each student (to access Internet)
• Internet access on each of the aforementioned terminals (to research animal of choice)
• Worksheets

Lesson Description

Before the Lesson:

• Use copier to make copies of the appropriate worksheets for each student
• Staple collated leafs of worksheets together into booklets for each student

On the Day of the Lesson

• Explain to students that there will be a special activity today
• Explain that the activity will require their use of computers
• Tell students to get their pencils
• Take students to a location where there are Internet accessible computers for each student
• Distribute worksheets to each student
• Read directions of activity from worksheet booklet
• Remind students to pick an animal, not a plant!
• Tell students that before they begin this activity, they should read over all the questions in their booklet so that they know what information they are searching for before they begin
• Answer any questions about the activity’s directions students may still have
• Write the Internet address of some common search engines on the board or on a poster so that students will have a base from which to begin their work

Some common engines: www.webcrawler.com, www.yahoo.com, etc.

• Tell students to begin the activity
• Allow students to answer the questions in the worksheet booklet
• Collect worksheet booklets from each student
• End of activity-remind students to leave the computer lab as they found it or better

Evaluation Procedure

In assessing student performance in this activity, the correctness or error of answers in worksheet booklets will depend upon the type of animal each student chose to research. Therefore, grading will require the instructor to exercise his own knowledge of animals.

Scoring for this activity is simple. There are twenty questions worth five points each if correctly answered. The nature of the questions asked require that students use their learning about how animals adapt to their environment. Therefore, if a student has met the objective of this lesson, he should be able to answer the questions correctly. Two extra credit items were added in order to give students who might have had trouble with finding the information requested a chance to redeem their grade on this activity.

The following chart will help you assign numeric scores to student work:

If student missed ___ items……………….	Then he earned ___ points on this activity.
None	100
One	95
Two	90
Three	85
Four	80
Five	75
Six	70
Seven	65
Eight	60
Nine	55
Ten	50
Eleven	45
Twelve	40
Thirteen	35
Fourteen	30
Fifteen	25
Sixteen	20
Seventeen	15
Eighteen	10
Nineteen	5
Twenty	0

Extra Credit: For each extra credit item correctly answered, add five points to the student’s score.