Ms. Trappen’s and Ms. Fowler’s

Kindergarten Animal Unit

Table of Contents

Rationale…………………………………pg. 3Standards………………………………...pg. 3Goals……………………………………...pg. 4Bulletin Board…………………………....pg. 6Summative Assessment………………….pg. 7Summative Assessment Explanation…...pg. 9References For Teachers and Kids….....pg. 11

Online ResourcesBooks

Lesson Plans:Direct InstructionPresentation w/ Advanced OrganizationConcept AttainmentCooperative LearningInquiry Teaching

Rationale

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Ms. Trappen and Ms. Fowler decided to joint teach a unit together. After much deliberation, they planed on teaching five lessons that revolve around animals. These lessons would teach their classes about the importance of different animals, habitats, and an animal’s life cycle. Students will also learn the importance of properly taking care of an animal.

They decided to teach their Kindergarten students about animals because they feel it is important to teach children about other living things. Many of these students have pets or will have pets at some point in their life. This was a large real-world connection that these teachers wanted to teach. It was also important to Ms. Trappen and Ms. Fowler that the students understand how animals live. This is why they decided to teach students about their habitat, how to take care of an animal, and their life cycle.

At the end of the unit, Ms. Trappen and Ms. Fowler decided to do a Problem Based lesson. During this lesson, students learned how to take care of an animal. This was to prepare that students for the class pet that that was introduced at the end of the lesson. It is a pet bunny named Henry.

Ms. Trappen and Ms. Fowler really wanted to make sure that the students would feel comfortable with taking care of the classroom pet. They also wanted to create an interest for the students. They wanted their students to know that we share a word with millions of different animals and that each and every animal is special and unique in their own way. These two educators also wanted to make sure that their students found compassion for animals. Children tend to relate towards animals; this was a way of teaching them to extend kindness to others and treat everyone with respect. Every animal is different in this world and the students need to respect their home and their differences.

StandardsCCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.5Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions as desired to provide additional detail.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.4Describe familiar people, places, things, and events and, with prompting and support, provide additional detail.

Understand and apply knowledge of the basic needs of plants and animals and how they interact with each other and their physical environment. (S.K-2.LS.3)

Recognize roles and Responsibilities and are open to change (21.K-2.ES.2)

Understand and apply knowledge of life cycles of plants and animals. (S.s-2.LS.2)

Unit Goals

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Ms. Trappen’s and Ms. Fowler’s goals for this unit are for their students to have a better understanding of animals not only in their everyday world, but in the whole world. They wanted students to understand that there are more than just dogs and cats in this world. They wanted their students to understand how and where they lived. Students are supposed to understand that animals grow differently, but still start out very small like them. Students should be able to see that all animals are different. They wanted to make sure their students felt compassion to their furry friends.

Direct InstructionObjective: After students listen to My School’s a Zoo, the Kindergarteners will

be able to make a visual aid of an animal they would like to see at their school and orally describe 4 details of the animal in front of the class with 2 or less corrections from the teacher. – Direct Instruction

Connection: In this lesson, Ms. Trappen’s and Ms. Fowler’s students made a visual aid of an animal. They made each animal very unique and describe it with a few characteristics. This related to the idea that all animals are different and they all need special care. The two educators want to make sure these are hung up and referred to throughout the lesson. Especially, when they are learning about pets.

Concept AttainmentObjective: Kindergarten students will be able to categorize animals into

columns of ocean and land animals as a class with direct instruction.After categorizing, Kindergarten students will be able to listen actively to a

read a loud of Commotion in the Ocean, with less than two reminders of the read aloud rules.

After the Read aloud, students will be able to discuss that characteristics of ocean animals, and create a jellyfish with all characteristics of ocean animal on the tentacles with no mistakes.

Connection: Students will be able to describe ocean animals in unique ways. This goes along with the goal of having students understand the different kinds of animals and how they are unique in their own way.

Cooperative LearningObjective: After reading My Very First Book of Animal Homes aloud, kindergarten

students will be able to categorize animals into their correct habitat with 100% accuracy.Social Goals for lesson: Students will be able to sit quietly and respectfully during a

read aloud. Students will be able to work cooperatively and interactively with their group until the task is complete.

Connection: The teachers wanted to make sure that students now how and where animals live. By teaching students the different types of habitats and which animals lived where, students will reach this goal.

Presentation w/advance Organizer

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Objective: Kindergarten Students will be able to categorize 4 foods that represent each of the following categories: egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, and butterfly, and place the categories in order in which they take.

Connection: The teachers wanted to make sure that students understood the life cycle of animals. They chose a butterfly because it’s an easy way to show how animals grow. This shows that butterflies started out as a small egg and flourished into a butterfly.

Problem Based/ Inquiry Lesson Objective: Students can explain and model through drawings the importance of

taking care of an animal. Connection: This was a very large objective. Ms. Trappen and Ms. Fowler

wanted to make sure that the students were comfortable with taking care of the class pet. By doing this lesson last, students have the background knowledge of how animals grow, what they need to survive, and where they live.

Bulletin Board

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This board will be up at the beginning of the unit. Behind these habitats that are made with construction paper will be a magnetic board. Next to the board will be a basket of animals that have magnets of the back. Throughout the lesson, Ms. Trappen and Ms. Fowler will attach the animals into the correct habitat. During morning meeting or at the beginning of the lesson, we can reference the board. If children find other animals that are not in the basket, one of the teachers will create a magnet. Under the bulletin board, students will find books about animals that are categorized by their habitat. This means that students can quickly find information about animals they are curious about.

Summative Assessment

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1. Draw a line from the animal to its correct habitat.

2. Circle the words that are the correct characteristics of the animal in the picture.

Fins Gills Smooth Rough

3. Fill in the blank with a word that helps describe the dog. You may use the word bank.

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4 legsGillsFins

aThe dog has _______.

4. Put the pictures in the correct order.

___ ___ ___ ____

5. Circle the correct tasks that you need to do to take care of out classroom pet, Henry.

Take for a Walk

Clean CageFeedWater

Brush

Assessment reflectionIn the end-of-the-unit assessment, Ms. Trappen and Ms. Fowler wanted to

incorporate questions that represented each lesson in the unit. By incorporating questions from each lesson, a full analysis of the students’ understanding is possible. Each of the questions that were crafted in the assessment was created at a level that Kindergarteners

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are capable of answering with the help of the teacher. Every question includes pictures and minimal words to make understanding possible for Kindergarten students.

Question 1 asks students to draw a line from the animal to its correct habitat. This relates to the objective for that lesson: After reading My Very First Book of Homes aloud, kindergarten students will be able to categorize animals into their correct habitat with 100% accuracy. The assessment question asks them to do just that, connecting farm and sea animals to the picture that represents their home.

Question 2 asks students to circle the characteristics that represent the animal in the picture. This relates to the objective for that lesson: After the read aloud, students will be able to discuss the characteristics of ocean animals… Although this question asks the student to identify the characteristics that relate to the animal shown, it is addressing the knowledge the students would have gained from the discussion of the ocean animal characteristics.

Question 3 asks students to write the word out of the word bank that helps describe the dog shown. This question relates to the objective: After students listen to My School’s a Zoo, the kindergarteners will be able to make a visual aid of an animal they would like to see at their school and orally describe 4 details of that animal in front of the class with 2 or less corrections from the teacher. Although this question strays from the “oral description” element of the objective, it addresses the kindergarteners’ ability to describe a specific animal. The students would have discussed ways to describe a dog before having to answer the question on the assessment.

Question 4 asks students to number the pictures of the life cycle in the correct order. This relates to the objective: Kindergarten students will be able to categorize 4 foods that represent each of the following categories: egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, and butterfly, and place the categories in the order in which they take place. By numbering the pictures of the life cycles with a 1,2,3,and 4, students will be showing their knowledge and ability to place events in a correct order.

Question 5 asks students to circle the tasks that are essential in taking care of the class pet, Henry. This relates to the objective: Students will be able to explain and model through drawings the importance of taking care of a pet. Through taking care of Henry in class, students will gain a knowledge of the necessary tasks that need to be completed in order to properly take care of Henry. This question not only assess their understanding of the lesson that was completed, but the attentiveness that they have had in taking care of Henry in the time since the final lesson.

In order for an assessment to accurately assess the knowledge and abilities of kindergarteners, it needs to be short and to the point. Additionally, it needs to be reflective of the objectives and activities that were performed in the lessons that the students have participated in. Ms. Trappen and Ms. Fowler have created an assessment that features these traits, and will give an accurate evaluation of what their kindergarteners have learned throughout their animal unit.

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Resources

Online Resourceshttp://www.sheppardsoftware.com/content/animals/kidscorner/gamesforkids.htm

http://pbskids.org/games/animal/

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http://kids.sandiegozoo.org/games

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/content/kids/en_US/games/more-games/african-animals-maze-game/

http://petgames.my-pet-care.com/cat-games/net-pet-adopt.html

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com

http://www.turtlediary.com/kids-videos/butterfly-life-cycle.html

BooksA Very Hungry Catipillar by Eric CarleMy School is a Zoo by Stu SmithCommotion in the Ocean by Giles AndreaeA House for a Hermit Crab – Eric CarleLittle Blue Truck by Alice SchertleGiraffes Can’t Dance by Giles AndreaeDear Zoo by Rod CampbellOn the Farm by David ElliotMrs. Wishy-Washy’s Farm by Jow CowleyI Spy on a Farm by Edward GibbsFarm Animals by Nancy DickmannGood Night Farm by Cooper Kelly Adam GambleI’m the Biggest Thing in the Ocean by Kevin Sherry Ocean Life from A to Z by Cynthia StierleThe Magic School Bus on the Ocean Floor by Joanne ColeCow by Jules Older

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