EDUC 3239 Teaching English as a Second Language:
Revised lesson Plan: Kaeleigh Tucker 0545169
Lesson Plan Identification:
Grade 7 Science
Understanding life systems
Biodiversity
Web of Life Interrelationships
Vocabulary strategy: (insert image/explanation of section
where this adaptation will be inserted. Explain the reason for Grouping: teacher and ELLs, whole
the adaptation.)
The adaption will be in the vocabulary section of the lesson
plan. New words can be difficult for all students to learn,
especially English language learners (ELLs). ELLs are
learning the new concepts/terminology that are presented in
lessons as well as learning the English language
simultaneously. It would be very challenging for students to
do this all at once and that is why it is important to use as
many strategies and resources as possible to explain a
concept/term, such as: KWL charts, the Frayer model, class
discussions, think/pair/share, etc. The words I chose to
focus on are: producer, primary consumer, secondary
consumer, tertiary consumer, niche and biome.
Description: (Overview of strategy.
class, cooperative groups. Materials:
visuals, handouts, printed materials.)
The strategies that I will use to
teach terminology to the class will be,
utilizing questions and prior knowledge
as well as direct instruction. I chose to
use the questioning and prior
knowledge strategy because students
have probably seen the words that are
being introduced before (e.g. if you
think of producer, you can see the root
word, produce, and students may
respond with making something,
something that people take, etc.). I
chose the direct instruction strategy
because I think that some of these new
terms will need some teacher guidance
to get the students thinking about what
they could mean, examples and non-
examples of them.
The grouping of the class for the
vocabulary portion of the lesson will be
in groups of four. Each group will be
carefully chosen based on a variety of
factors, such as: students with the
same first language and different
levels of English proficiency to support
each other, students paired with others
who grasp concepts quicker than
others who may require more time
(ELLs or other students), as well as
students who take on more of a
leadership role in the school with
students who are more shy or are not
as proficient in the English language.
There will be name cards placed on
each table and the students will be
instructed as soon as they come in to
find their name tags on the desks. The
 students will complete their KWL chart
individually, then will pair with a partner
at their table of 4. After they have
shared we will come back as a class
(teacher will use clapping rhythms to
get students attention). The actual
activity will require the participation of
the entire class.
There will be a variety of materials,
visuals and worksheets for the
students to use for this lesson, such
as:
- KWL chart for each student and
one on the ELMO projector to
discuss the food chain
- 6 copies of the Frayer model for
each student (one for each new
term)
- Fact sheets
- A duotang for each student with
a cover page to start their
glossary for the new unit,
biodiversity
- Translation dictionaries in ELLs
first language
- Dictionaries
TEACHER says and does
STUDENTS say and do

Before students come in the teacher will put one KWL chart.

The teacher will welcome the class in and instruct each student to find their name on a desk.
“Hi class. I would like you to find your name on one of the desks and sit there, please”

Students listen to the teacher and find their applicable seat and settle in for the lesson.

The teacher will introduce the topic of today’s lesson to the class and explain KWL chart.
“Today we will be learning about the web of life and relationships or another word is connections in
nature”.
“I would like each of you to have a pencil in your hand and the KWL chart on the desk”.
Teacher holds up KWL chart. Points to the know part. “In this box I would like you to write what you
already know about the web of life or what you think it is”.
Teacher points to wonder part. “In this box I would like you to write what you want to know about the
web of life”.
Teacher points to learn part. “Leave this box empty because we will write what we have learned at
the end of the lesson, today”.
Teacher will instruct students to complete chart.
“I am going to give 5 minutes to finish the know and wonder part of the chart. You can use any way
you would like to explain your idea. You can write sentences, draw pictures or write simple words that
you think of when you hear the web of life. I also recommend or suggest that you make use of the
dictionaries in the class to help with the chart” *teacher could get dictionaries out and place them at
the front of the room, or point to where they are in the class*.
Teacher provides an example.
“For my chart in the know box I would write animals, people and food”.
Teacher will write animals, people and food and draw a picture of a pig beside animal, a picture of a
person beside people and an apple beside food.
“In the want to know box I would write, I want to know if all animals eat the same type of food”.
Teacher would write this in that part of the chart.
“Okay learners, what will we put in this this part of the chart *points to know box*?”
“We will write what we know about the web of life”
“What do we write in this box?” *points to the want to know box*
“I’m not sure what we write here…”
“That’s okay! In the want to know box you could write anything you are interested in or something you
like, something you wonder about. If you still are not sure what to write you can talk to the people at
your group.”
“Okay everyone, you have 5 minutes to write in the know and want to know boxes. We will be sharing
with our partner after so please complete the chart”.

Students write their ideas in the boxes.

Some ideas in the know box may be:
- All living things work together
- Living things
- Animals, plants, sun, humans, organisms
- Different organisms eat each other
- Spider
- Places in the world are connected
- Connectedness
- Relationship
- Everything needs each other
Some ideas in the want to know box may be:
- Do living things need each other to live?
- Does everything need sun to survive?
- How does the web of life work?
- What happens if something leaves the web?

“Can I see a thumbs up of who is done, or a thumbs down if we need more time”.

Students will either show thumbs up or thumbs down.

If the students are all done then move on. If they need some more time allow 1-2 more minutes.
“Please turn to the person beside you and talk about what you wrote or drew in the boxes of the
chart. You have 3 minutes to do this”.

Students will talk to their partner about their ideas.

Students will discuss what they wrote in their boxes, some might explain the pictures they drew.
Some sample ideas are above, but students will have a range of ideas.

After 3 minutes, the teacher will clap a rhythm and the students will clap it back. This will repeat until
the teacher has everyone’s attention and the talking has stopped.
*Teacher claps rhythm*
*Students clap it back*

The teacher will hand out 6 copies to each student of the Frayer model.
“Right now I am handing out a worksheet that each of you will complete with your groups of 4”.
Students wait for handouts.

Teacher instructs the class to label the middle of their Frayer model with each of the words on the
board: producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer, niche and biome.
“On the board I have six words that are new to most of us. On the sheets I have just handed out I
would like you to write in the middle box *point to it* each of the words on the board *point to each
and say the word as you do it, have the students repeat the word back to you*”
“Producer” “Producer”
“Primary consumer” “Primary consumer”
“Secondary consumer” “Secondary consumer”
“Tertiary consumer” “Tertiary consumer”
“Niche” “Niche”
“Biome” “Biome”

Students will write each of the new words on their Frayer models.

Teacher will tell the students what to do with the models. NOTE: each model will be labeled with what
I think this word means, definition, examples and non-examples (I couldn’t make it work on this
document) and there will also be a definition/fact sheet that the students will use after they have filled
out the ‘what I think the word means’ box.
“In your group of four everyone will work together to fill in the box, ‘what I think this word means’. I
would also like to remind you that the dictionaries in the room are free for everyone to use”.

Students will converse with their group mates and record information.
“I think producer is something that makes something for something else”
“I think producer is a factory”
“I think producer means someone buys something”
“Oh I didn’t know that a producer was a plant!”
“I wonder what kinds of plants are producers…”
ETC.

“Does anyone need more time to fill out the what I think the word means box, please put your hand
up if you need more time?” Teacher can also walk around the room to see where everyone is at in the
activity.

Students will respond with their hands up if they need more time.

When the students are done with that box hand out the fact sheets two to each group of four.
“I have handed two information sheets to each group of four. You will work with your group to fill in
the rest of the boxes on the sheet” *point to each of them and say what they are*. “I’m going to give
10 minutes for this.”

Students will work together to fill in the other three boxes.

After 10 minutes see where they are at and allow for more time if necessary.
“Now that everyone has completed their organizer, I am going to ask some questions.”
“Where are producers in the food chain?”
“Producers are at the beginning of the food chain.”
“They are the plants that give food to animals.”
What is another term for a tertiary consumer?
“An animal”
“An animal that eats plants and meat.”
“It is also called an omnivore.”
“What do carnivores eat?”
“They eat meat.”
“They eat other animals.”
“They eat rabbits!”
“What kind of animal would live in a forest?”
“A bear.”
“Fox.”
“Wolf.”
“What about a desert?”
“Camel.”
“Snake.”
“Lizards.”
“What about a rainforest?”
“Frog.”
“Spider.”
“Worm.”

Teacher will take note of the student’s responses by means of anecdotal records and address any
misunderstandings among students.
These questions were asked to assess understanding of the vocabulary. Now we can proceed with
putting our materials away and get ready for the activity shortly after.

Teacher will instruct students to pull out their glossary duotang and add the new words they have
learned in the biodiversity unit. (They have premade tabs in their duotangs of all the units they will be
learning in the year).
“Can everyone please get their glossary duotang from the bucket *points to bucket*, this group will go
first, when they are back this group will go, etc.”

When it’s the student’s turn they will get their glossary duotang and put their Frayer models into it.

The teacher will begin to explain the activity that the students will be doing… (Next part)

Other accommodation strategy: Description: (Overview of strategy.

(insert image/explanation of section where this adaptation Grouping: teacher and ELLs, whole
will be inserted. Explain the reason for adaptation) class, cooperative groups. Materials:
visuals, handouts, printed materials.)

The strategy that I will use for this

section is direct instruction and
demonstration. I will use direct
instruction to explain how the activity
works to the students and I will pick a
person from each group of 4 to help
me demonstrate the activity. I chose
these strategies because I thought
they would be the most effective to
explain the activity to the students and
a demonstration about what I am
talking about will help ELLs in
particular understand what is
 happening.
The activity will be explained to the
entire class. The students will repeat
the instructions to their group of four so
that everyone understands what the
activity is. This will help with ELLs as
other students may be able to place
special attention to concepts they are
having difficulty with. The students will
know each other better than we will
and that will help with ELLs in the
class. The teacher will pick one person
from each group of four to help
demonstrate the activity on a smaller
scale. The actual activity will be with
I chose this portion of the lesson to adapt because this is the entire class.
the hand on activity part of the lesson. The rules and The materials required for the
instructions for the activity could be confusing for an ELL activity are as follows:
student if the teacher were to just explain them verbally. I - Index cards in colours: green,
will use a variety of ways to get the students to understand orange, purple, red and yellow
the instructions, such as: explicit explanations, hand - String for cards
gestures, reiteration by students in their groups, - Ball of string for activity
demonstration and modeling with the materials. - Pictures of various
plants/animals and the sun
- Glue sticks
- Markers
- Paper for their drawing of a food
web and for their written
paragraph
- Translation dictionaries in ELLs
first language
- Dictionaries
TEACHER says and does NOTE *_____* indicates an action
STUDENTS say and do

First the teacher will have the students move the desks to the sides of the room so they have enough
space for the activity.
“To do this activity we will need a lot of space! Could everyone please move their desks to the edges
of the room so we have a clear space in the middle?”

The students will move the desks to the edges of the room. Usually one student will begin and the
rest will follow. ELL students will see what is happening and participate if they did not understand the
teacher’s instructions.

The teacher will tell the students to assign someone to gather the materials for the group.
“For our activity could each group of four assign one person to be the person that gathers materials
for all the members of the group?”

Students will assign one person to gather the materials.

Teacher will see if everyone has assigned a person to gather the materials by using thumbs up for
yes or thumbs down for no. If the students respond with no the teacher will pick someone from the
group.
“The materials that you will need are: a bag of index cards (the teacher will keep the yellow one and
be the sun), four pieces of string, a hole puncher, two glue sticks and a bagged set of pictures. Would
the assigned member please come up and grab those items”.
The assigned student will grab the materials for their group.

Teacher will instruct what to do with the card and provide an example.
“Each person will choose an index card from the bag, it’s okay if anyone has the same colour. Take
turns using the hole punch and punch two holes in the index card, one in the top left corner and one
in the top right corner *point while explaining*. Each person will grab a piece of string and put it
through the holes and tie a knot on either side to create a necklace. Each colour index card
represents a different organism and it is written on your index card. Using your Frayer models and the
bag of pictures find a picture that represents your organism and glue it on the index card”.
Teacher will demonstrate using an herbivore index card. Teacher will punch holes, tie the string and
chose a picture such as a cow and glue it on to the index card and put it around their neck.
“Everyone please make their index card, and I encourage you to talk to your group about your
choice”. ***Teacher will have the sun card already made prior to class

Students will make their index cards. They will look through their glossary duotang and find an
organism that is appropriate for their index card heading. There might be conversation among
students but this is encouraged.

Teacher will walk around the room while this is happening and pay particular attention to ELLs and
provide them with support to complete their index card.
When everyone is done and their index cards are around their necks encourage them to share what
they are with the members of their group.
“I would like everyone in their group to share what organism they chose for their index card”.

Students will discuss their choices with their group.

Examples:
“I am a herbivore and I chose a sheep because sheep eat plants and I know herbivores eat plants”.
“I am a carnivore and I chose a lion because lions eat red meat and I know that carnivores are meat
eaters”.

Teacher will observe students discussions and add where necessary.

Teacher will now go over the instructions of the activity.
“We will have a ball of string and all of us will stand in a circle. I will start because I have the sun
card.”
“I am the sun and each one of you is either a producer, herbivore, omnivore or a carnivore.”
“I will say I am the sun and I give energy to [name of animal/plant] and throw the ball of string to that
person. They will say I am a [name of animal/plant] and I give energy to [name of animal/plant] so on
and so on until everyone has had the ball of string once.”
“I would like each of the groups of four to explain the instructions to each other to make sure
everyone understands.”
Teacher will walk around during this and provide support and discuss further with ELL students in
particular.

Students will explain the instructions to each other.

Teacher will ask the students if they understand by using a fist of five.
“Can everyone show me if they understand with a fist of five? One finger meaning you do not
understand and five fingers meaning you do understand.”
Students will show their understanding.
Examples: 2 fingers meaning they aren’t sure, 4 fingers meaning they pretty much get it.

The teacher will provide further clarification with students who do not fully understand. The teacher
will then ask the students to form a big circle in the classroom. The teacher will be holding a ball of
string. The teacher will explain that they are the sun.
“Please form a big circle in the open space.”

The students will form a circle.

The teacher will pick one student from each group to demonstrate the activity within the inner part of
the circle.
“Suzy, Muhammad, Lei, Alex and Anuj please take two steps towards the inside of the big circle. We
will demonstrate the activity to the rest of the class. I am the sun and I give energy to grass *throw
string to Suzy and Suzy catches it*”.
Suzy: “I am grass and I give energy to a sheep *throw string to Muhammad, and Muhammad catches
it*”
Muhammad: “I am a sheep and I give energy to a lion *throw string to Lei, and Lei catches it*”
Lei: “I am a lion and I get energy from Buffalo *throw string to Alex, and Alex catches it*”
Alex: “I am a Buffalo and I get energy from leaves *throw string to Anuj, and Anuj catches it*”
Anuj: “I am a leaf and I get my energy from the sun *throws string to teacher, and teacher catches it*”

“Does everyone understand the activity? Please show me with thumbs up for yes and thumbs down
for no”

Students show thumbs up if they understand and thumbs down if they don’t.

Depending on students’ responses the teacher can give further clarification, but pay attention to ELL
students. Teacher will now have the students return to the larger circle and will ravel the string back
up and start from the beginning.
“I will start the activity because I am the sun, and I give energy to [animal/plant]… And so on until
everyone has a turn.”

Students will participate in the activity. If students have trouble the teacher can provide cues.
Examples: student doesn’t know where to throw it, the sun is always an option because the sun is
connected to everything

The activity will continue until a web is formed connecting everyone in the class. While everyone
holds the web the teacher could ask questions:
“What did we make?”
“We made a web”, “we are all connected with the string”
“What are the connections?”
“We seem to all be connected to each other”, “we are all dependent on each other”, “The plants
require the sun to live, the herbivores require the plants to live, the carnivores require the herbivores
to live… etc.”
“What would happen if all of the herbivores were gone from the ecosystem?”
“Not many things would eat the plants and they would die”, “I don’t know”, “there would be nothing for
the carnivores to eat”
“Let’s see what would happen. Every herbivore please drop your string. What happened to the web?”
“It’s broken”, “it’s damaged”, “not everything is connected now”. ***Can do this with every group
“What would happen if there were no herbivores in real life?”
“The carnivores would die because they wouldn’t have any food”, “nothing would eat the plants”,
“nothing”
“Would anyone like to make some comments about what we just did?”
“I never realized that everything was connected in life like it is”, “I didn’t think that plants mattered to
animals that only eat meat”, “I really like that we could actually see what would happen to the web if
one group disappeared”

“We will now move the desks back into our groups of four for the next part of the lesson.”

Students move all the desks back into groups of four.

“I would like everyone to get their KWL chart out and take one or two minutes to fill in the what we
learned box *point to that box*.”

The students will fill in what they learned box based on the activity, the Frayer models or even the
discussion questions at the end.

Walk around and see what the students are writing and provide help/cues where needed. When
students are done with the box, start with the next activity.
“We will now create our own web of life and write a paragraph about what happened when different
groups of organisms disappeared. I would like to remind everyone that the dictionaries are free to use
for anyone in the class.”
Teacher will distribute the worksheet to each student along with pencils and coloured pencil crayons.

Students will work on their worksheets and converse with their group if they would like.

The teacher will walk around the room and make observations about the students learning and assist
where necessary.
Example: An ELL student could be struggling with vocabulary. The teacher could remind them to look
at their glossary and see if that helps, if not the teacher can provide additional resources such as
pictures or the internet as well as translation dictionaries to their first language to assist with the task.

“At the end of class I would like everyone to give me their worksheet so I can look them over and give
everyone feedback for tomorrow.”

When students are done they will hand their worksheets to the teacher.

References:
Arfo, K., Feddema, S., Paas, J., & Wearing, J. (2012). Grade 6 biodiversity activities. Retrieved from
https://www.otffeo.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2014/07/Grade-6-Lessons-
Biodiversity.pdf
Edutopia. (n.d.). 53 ways to check for understanding. Retrieved from
https://www.edutopia.org/resource/checking-understanding-download
Ministry of Ontario. (2001). Supporting english language learners: A practical guide for ontario
educators grades 1-8. Retrieved from
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/document/esleldprograms/guide.pdf
Ministry of Ontario. (2015). STEP steps to english proficiency: A guide for users. Retrieved from
http://www.edugains.ca/resourcesELL/Assessment/STEP/STEPUserGuide_November2015.p
df
Washoe Country School District. (2015). Instructional strategies list. Retrieved from
https://www.washoeschools.net/cms/lib08/NV01912265/Centricity/Domain/228/Instructional%2
0Strategies%20List%20July%202015.pdf
Attachments:
KWL Chart

Name:___________________________ Date:____________________

TOPIC:______________________________________________

KNOW WONDER LEARN

What I think I know… What I want to What I have
know… learned…
Frayer Model

Draw a picture of what we learned above

Information Sheet:

Producer:
Producers are the beginning of a food chain. They are the plants and vegetables in the environment.
Plants require sunlight to survive because the sun provides the plants with foot. This process is called
photosynthesis. Plants are full of nutrients that are good for the organisms that eat them. Some
examples of a producer are grass, dandelions, flowers, shrubs and bushes. Animals are not
producers.

Primary consumer:
These are the next step of a food web. These are the organisms that eat the producers, the plants.
Primary consumers are also called herbivores. These organisms eat the plants and fruits that are
provided by the producers which are provided by the sun. Some examples of primary consumers are
elk, squirrel, beavers, cows, giraffes and deer. Some animals are not primary consumers such as
humans, lions, hyenas, wolves, and lynx.

Secondary consumer:
Secondary consumers eat the primary consumers. Secondary consumers are also called carnivores.
These organisms eat meat. Some examples of primary consumers are, lions, hyenas, wolves, T-Rex
and lynx. Some examples that are not secondary consumers are elk, squirrel, cows, giraffes,
Stegosaurus and deer.

Tertiary consumer:
A tertiary consumer can also be called an omnivore. Omnivores are organisms that eat plants and
animals. Examples of omnivores are pigs, humans, bears, dogs, chickens and hummingbirds. Some
examples that are not tertiary consumers are, giraffes, cows and lions.

Niche:
A niche is a position that an organism takes in their environment in which they interact with everything
else around them. A niche is like a place for an organism to call home. Examples of a niche: the niche
of a bird would be a tree, the niche of a fish would be a water system, and the niche of a cow would
be a field. Non-examples of a niche would be: a deer in the desert, a human in a pond, and an
octopus in a field.

Biome:
A biome is a place where animals and plants occur naturally in a community. Examples of a biome
are a forest, ocean, desert or tundra. A non-example of a biome would be an ecosystem because an
ecosystem is the interaction of living and nonliving things in an environment, whereas a biome is a
geographic area, which can be identified by the type of species living there (e.g. a camel in the
desert).
Pictures:
Name:___________________________ Date:_______________________

My Web of Life

My Paragraph
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