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African Adventure Safari: A 3-5, Life Science Project
Student naturalists help safari guests learn about diversity, interdependence, and wonder of life in the African wild.
Technology-Enhanced Learning
Students use technology to gather information and create a safari field guide and a multimedia presentation allowing them to share their learning with a wider audience. Additionally, they are encouraged to extend their learning by creating a Web site to share what they have learned with a broader audience.
Higher-Order Thinking Skills
After collecting information about African animals, students synthesize information to “become” that animal and take on their perspective. Students take knowledge of what they have learned from their research and apply it to the creation of a field guide and multimedia presentation. Classroom discussions lead to higher levels of thinking prompted with Curriculum-Framing Questions. A K-W-L chart encourages investigative thinking throughout the unit.
Varied Instructional Strategies.
Prior knowledge is assessed at the beginning of the unit with a brainstorming game to get students thinking about African animals. Next, a Know-Want to Know-Learned chart elicits questions based on students' curiosity. Finally, students create a chart of prices for familiar items, such as food and clothes. This initial knowledge is transferred to their investigation of the Essential Question: What is the price of life?
Graphic Organizers: Visual organizers are incorporated throughout the unit. The unit begins with group and class created lists to accompany the brainstorming process. K-W-L charts, class made and individually made, are referred to throughout the unit and then revisited when the unit is over to celebrate the knowledge gleaned about African animals. A storyboard planning sheet helps students with the design of their multimedia presentation.
Cooperative Grouping: Students work in collaborative teams to brainstorm African animals and discuss the Essential Question. Cooperative teams work together to offer peer feedback on their field guide work. Student teams also collaborate to complete the Web site. Partnering is encouraged for resource, gifted, and ELL (ESL) students.
Peer and Teacher Feedback: Teachers meet with students for mini-conferences to give specific, individual feedback as they are researching their African animals. Rubrics communicate progress when final products are assessed. Students exchange feedback when they share drafts of their field guide writing.
Recognition: Students get recognition through the publication of their field guide. Student slideshows are shared with other classes, parents, and invited guests through a virtual safari showcase. The student’s follow-up paragraphs and reflections are viewed by parents and other classmates as portfolio pieces. Students also receive recognition through their Web site.
Questioning: Discussion of Essential, Unit, and Content Questions provides questioning throughout the unit. As students fill out the K-W-L chart they are repeatedly asked, What do you know?, What do you want to know?, What did you learn?, further probing them to think at higher levels.
Modeling: The teacher models the research steps and presents models for exemplary work with a student sample presentation and field guide. A class K-W-L chart is completed and modeled before students work on individual charts.
Classroom Management: The students use computer templates and storyboard planners to create their field guide pages and multimedia presentations. This allows for quick and easy assembly.
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