Unit Plan: Field Study – Farm

Science / Grade 4

Big Ideas

Science

  • All living things sense and respond to their environment.
Essential Questions

Students will keep considering…

  • How do living things sense and respond to their environment?
  • What does using my senses in nature look, sound, feel, taste and smell like?
  • How do my senses compare to the senses of other plants and animals?
  • How is sensing and responding related to interdependence within ecosystems?
Evaluative Criteria

N/A

Monitoring Progress

Teacher will monitor progress:
Teachers can monitor progress through ongoing formative assessment including but not limited to:

  • Class discussion
  • Group and pair discussions
Resources

AUDIO

TEXTS

  • Chicken Anatomy 101
  • Farm Animal Info Sheets
  • Farm Facts
  • Laminated Farm Animal Senses Info Cards

VIDEO

Reflection

How will teachers and their students reflect on and evaluate the completed project?

Teacher Reflection

  • What aspects of the field study went well?
  • What did students struggle with?
  • What did you struggle with?
  • What would you add/revise the next time you taught this field study?
  • What connections can I make back to my school learning community?e.g. Create a plan of action to address a chosen (environmental) problem or issue (SS 4).

Stage 1 – Desired Results

Big Ideas

Science

  • Living things sense and respond to their environment (Science 4).

Concepts:

  • Interactions
  • Environment
  • Survival
  • Stewardship
  • Interdependence
  • Ecosystems
  • Adaptation
Transfer Goals

Students will be able to independently use their learning to…

  • Use their sense to make observations in the environment
  • Connect to place and understand their role and responsibility as stewards of the environment.
  • Discover and compare their senses to a variety of organisms, both aquatic and terrestrial.
  • Develop a plan of action to address a selected problem or issue in school or community.
Meaning

UNIT UNDERSTANDINGS:

Students will understand that…

  • Living things have senses that detect changes in their environment.
  • Living things respond to changes in their environment.
  • Anything that causes a living thing to react is called a stimulus.
  • Response to a stimulus is important for its survival.

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS:

Students will keep considering…

  • How do living things sense and respond to their environment?
  • What does using my senses in nature look, sound, feel, taste and smell like?
  • How do my senses compare to the senses of other plants and animals?
  • How is sensing and responding related to interdependence within ecosystems?
Acquisition

CURRICULAR COMPETENCIES

Students will be skilled at…

  • Demonstrating the proper use of binoculars
  • Pair-sharing observations
  • Sharing in small groups
  • Sharing with the large group
  • Demonstrate curiosity about a scientific topic or problem
  • Make observations about living and non-living things in the local environment
  • Collect simple data
  • Experience & interpret the local environment
  • Identify First Peoples perspectives & knowledge as sources of information
  • Identify some simple environmental implications of their and others’ actions
  • Contribute to care for self, others, & community through personal or collaborative approaches

CORE COMPETENCIES

Communication:

  • Students will use scientific language to exchange ideas with peers.

Thinking:

  • Creative & Critical Thinking: Students will make observations about birds and their habitat in the local environment.

Social Responsibility:

  • Students will explore some simple environmental implications of their and others’ actions and how those affect birds.

The following resources are made available through the British Columbia Ministry of Education. For more information, please visit BC’s New Curriculum.

Big Ideas

The Big Ideas consist of generalizations and principles and the key concepts important in an area of learning. The Big Ideas represent what students will understand at the completion of the curriculum for their grade. They are intended to endure beyond a single grade and contribute to future understanding.


Visit the Ministry of Education for more information

Core Competencies

orangecommunicationCommunications Competency

The set of abilities that students use to impart and exchange information, experiences and ideas, to explore the world around them, and to understand and effectively engage in the use of digital media

bluethinkingThinking Competency

The knowledge, skills and processes we associate with intellectual development

greensocialSocial Competency

The set of abilities that relate to students’ identity in the world, both as individuals and as members of their community and society


Visit the Ministry of Education for more information

Curricular Competencies & Content

Curricular Competencies are the skills, strategies, and processes that students develop over time. They reflect the “Do” in the Know-Do-Understand model of curriculum. The Curricular Competencies are built on the thinking, communicating, and personal and social competencies relevant to disciplines that make up an area of learning.


Visit the Ministry of Education for more information

Additional Resources

First People's Principles of Learning

To read more about First People’s Principles of Learning, please click here.

For classroom resources, please visit the First Nations Education Steering Committee.