Erin Yago & Ginger Hall

Bear Tavern Elementary

First Grade
Mrs. Weidman

Tuesday, 11/18/14
Time: 1:30

Science: Lets Talk About Adaptation!

Essential Question: Can students attentively listen to facts about adaptation then
demonstrate comprehension by completing a worksheet?
Standards:
1-LS1-2 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.1 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
Learning Objectives and Assessments:
Objective

Assessment

Students will participate in a mini activity

and understand how it relates to
adaptation.

The teacher will take mental notes of the

students reactions and responses during the
mini group experiment.

Students will be able to recall facts from

the book in order to complete an
adaptation based worksheet.

The teacher will check the worksheets for

error upon completion.

Materials: Adaptation books, worksheet

Prior Knowledge: The students have been talking about living and nonliving things as well
as life cycles. The students will have also completed a morning worksheet based on
adaptation. The students have previously learned about animals that hibernate and migrate.
Hook: The teacher will call the students to the carpet. She will tell them that they will be
talking about how in addition to hibernation and migration, there are also animals who just
adapt to the change of season, like humans for example. The teacher will have a big chart
and will ask the students what they do in their own lives to adapt to the cold weather. For
example, wear warmer clothes, eat more soups and drink hot chocolate.
Instructional Plan:
1. The teacher will discuss on the rug how people adapt to the colder weather that
winter brings. The teacher will be fully dressed in winter clothing (coat, hat, scarf,
gloves, etc.)
2. The teacher will then go through a brief explanation of adaptation using an anchor
chart.
3. The teacher will discuss how animals adapt to their surroundings and why they
adapt.
4. Before beginning the mini activity, the teacher will announce that anyone who is
acting silly or uses the materials inappropriately will be asked to sit out.
5. The teacher will have a big piece of white paper with different cut outs of winter
rabbits. She will time the students and allow them to search for as many rabbits as
they can gather within the set time. There will be all different colored rabbits,
including white.

6. The teacher will count up the number of rabbits the students found of each
color. The class will have a discussion about how the white rabbits blended in best
so they were the hardest to find.
7. The teacher will lead a brief discussion about the mini activity and what the students
reactions were.
8. The teacher will then ask the children to move closer to her chair as she reads a
quick story based on adaptation.
9. Once the story is finished, the teacher will go over what animals from the story
adapted and review what it means to adapt.
10. The students will then complete a worksheet at their desks based on adaptation.
Differentiation: The teacher will walk around the room during the worksheet activity and
gently assisting with clues that will steer the student in the right direction. The teacher will
allow all students the opportunity to respond during the discussion by allowing an adequate
response wait time.
Questions: What do they think some animals do to adapt during the winter? What does it
mean to adapt? Which animals adapt? What do humans do to adapt?
Classroom Management: Before beginning the mini activity, the teacher will announce
that anyone who is acting silly or uses the materials inappropriately will be asked to sit out.
The teacher will use the chime if necessary to regain all the students attention. She will
give clear directions for the worksheet when she has 100% of student attention.
Transitions: As the students finish up their math period, the teacher will call the students to
the carpet for the discussion. Once the lesson has finished, the teacher will excuse the
children from their seats in order to begin packing up for the day.
Closure: The teacher will refocus the students at their seats. She will collect all worksheets.
She will then allow the teacher helper to call students by table to pack up for special.