Endangered Species in Illinois
Aparna Raghunathan
(raghunat@uiuc.edu)
(not ready to use)
Coauthors
ASK
Partner Projects
Subject Areas
| Educational Technology, Language Arts, Science, Social Studies |
Grade Levels
Unit Keywords
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Endangered, sanctuary, pinnate feathers, clutch, booming grounds, predators, territorial, sac , leek, inter-breeding, parasite,decline |
Open Directory Category
Rationale of the Unit
Background and Resources
BACKGROUND -- brief overview, or URL for the overview article.
http://www.museum.state.il.us/mic_home/schools95/newton/project/lesson_plans.html
Introduce the unit to the class by showing books, slides and picures of the bald eagle and passenger pigeon. Students will immediately recognise the pictures and point out a few things. This then leads to the discussion of endangered species. You can then tell the class that there exists an endangered species in Illinois- THE PRAIRIE CHICKEN.
READINGS -- texts
Read Aloud Selection-The American Prairie Chicken by Mary Adrian
This is an excellent selection for young students. It contains factual information the students need to know about prairie chickens told in a story form.
"Once there was a passenger pigeon" by Esther S. and Bernard L. Gordon
A description and history of the passenger pigeon of North America, once one of the world's most numerous birds, but, due to thoughtless killing, now extinct.
"It could still be endangered" by Allan Fowler
Presents many animals that are extinct or endangered, such as the bald eagle, passenger pigeon, and American bison, tells what has caused their numbers to dwindle, and suggests how they might be saved.
Stories on Endangered Species
"Amy's Goose" by Efner Tudor Holmes
This is a short story about a girl who tries to help a hurt goose. It teachs about migration, mating for life, and how to let go of a wild creature even when you want to keep it.
WEB SITES -- sites for exploration and interaction.
http://www.ulala.org/P_Pigeon/George.html
http://www.eco-action.org/dt/pigeon.html
http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i3520id.html
http://www2.lhric.org/pocantico/5thgrade99/animals.htm
http://www.chias.org/www/edu/mitc/prate.html
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Activities and Open-ended problems
IN-CLASS ACTIVITIES -- activities and discussions within synchronous classes
1) Creation of Journals
2) Storymapping
Have students make story maps of stories as a means of checking comprehension. This will also give the students practice in putting events into sequential order.
3) Retelling
Have students retell the story by making a small book. Have them write the story in their own words, and illustrate it.
4) Collage/Scrap Book
ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE OF CLASS / INDEPENDENT WORK
Web research and reading books for more information on endangered species. Independent learning about the prairie chicken in preparation of the journal.
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Dialogues, Discussions, and Presentations
GROUP DIALOGUES
Divide the class into groups and assign topics such as history of prairie chicken, factors that led to their endangerment, physical characteristics of the bird, nesting habits, mating, etc., to each group. Allow for discussion, followed by preparation of a report and its presentation to the class. The report will be typed on a word processor or on PowerPoint.
IN-CLASS DISCUSSIONS
General discussions on different endangered species and the consequences of such endangerment.
PRESENTATIONS
- Individual student presentations of the journals
- Group Projects
- Persuasive writing (on an assigned topic, every student will write 5 paragraphs and reasons to suppport their written document)
- Collage/Scrap Book
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Assessment, Related Questions, and Story of the Unit
ASSESSMENT
Group projects
Individual reports
Persuasive writing
Collage/Scrap Book
How much research has been done and knowledge gained?
Use of computers
RELATION TO ISBE STANDARDS
LEARNING STANDARDS-ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS
http://www.isbe.state.il.us/ils/english/eng1.html
STATE GOAL 1-READING
Read with understanding and fluency.
STATE GOAL 2-LITERATURE
Read and understand literature representative of various societies, eras and ideas.
STATE GOAL 3-WRITING
Write to communicate for a variety of purposes.
STATE GOAL 4-LISTENING AND SPEAKING
Listen and speak effectively in a variety of situations.
STATE GOAL 5-RESEARCH
Use the language arts to acquire, assess and communicate information
LEARNING STANDARDS-SCIENCE
http://www.isbe.state.il.us/ils/science/science.html
STATE GOAL 11-INQUIRY AND DESIGN
Understand the processes of scientific inquiry and technological design to investigate questions, conduct experiments and solve problems.
STATE GOAL 12-CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLES
Understand the fundamental concepts, principles and interconnections of the life, physical and earth/space sciences.
STATE GOAL 13- SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY
Understand the relationships among science, technology and society in historical and contemporary contexts.
LEARNING STANDARDS-SOCIAL STUDIES
http://www.isbe.state.il.us/ils/socscience/social.html
STATE GOAL 16-HISTORY
Understand events, trends, individuals and movements shaping the history of Illinois, the United States and other nations.
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