1. Topic-
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2. Content-
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Earth
Natural Resource (Air, Rocks, Water, Soil)
Conservation
Recycling |
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3. Goals: Aims/Outcomes-
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Students will understand the following:
1. Natural resources come from the earth and can include rocks, soil,
water, and air.
2. We can use natural resources to create many useful items we use
in our daily lives.
3. Natural resources are important to conserve and use wisely. |
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4. Objectives-
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1. Students will learn that the natural world includes rocks, soil,
water and gases of the atmosphere.
2. Students will be able to identify uses of natural resources. |
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5. Materials and Aids-
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| Stopwatch, soda can, piece of chalk, resource cards (I make), classroom
objects, colored tokens or counters, overhead projector/whiteboard |
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6. Procedures/Methods-
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A. Introduction-
Tell the class, "Today, we'll be looking at some of Earth's resources
and trying to figure out a definition for 'natural resource.' "
Have students take a long, deep breath (and exhale.) Ask class "Why
do we need to breathe air?" (field answers)
"Now we are going to see who can hold their breath the longest!" (use
stop watch to time class)
Ask again, "Why is air important to us? What would happen if we didn't
eventually breathe after taking that big breath? What else needs air
to survive?"
Hold up soda can and chalk - ask class where these come from? (give
guess time. Answer: they come from rocks!)
"What else can we think of that comes from rocks? hmmm"
Tell class that based off this intro with air, chalk, soda cans, and
rocks, we are going to come up with a definition for "natural resource." |
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B. Development-
Define the following vocab for the class:
natural resource: items found in nature, such as rocks, soil, water,
and air, that are useful to humans.
water: an odorless, colorless, and tasteless liquid that is key to
life on Earth
rocks: hard, mineral-rich substances that make up the crust of the
Earth
air: a mix of gases, including oxygen, that make up the atmosphere
surrounding Earth
conservation: the careful use of natural resources to prevent them
from being lost or wasted
(Have visuals on smartboard or overhead projector) |
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C. Practice-
Point out that all of the objects we use in our daily lives are
made from the Earth's resources.
Examples can include wood (from air and water), metal (from rocks),
plastic (from rocks), glass (from rocks), and neon signs (from air).
Give each student a set of "Resource cards"�. Students will identify
objects in the classroom that are made from rocks, soil, water, or
gases. They will use the tape to attach a "resource card" to an object
while moving around the room in pairs or threes.
Some examples include chalk and concrete (made from rocks) and cotton
and food (from plants grown with the help of soil).
Challenge students to connect the materials an item is made from to
the Earth materials they are familiar with. |
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D. Independent Practice-
Focus question for students: How much water do our families use
to shower and bathe?
Begin as a class by listing ways that we use water in our daily lives.
The students will be discussing in groups the number of showers and
baths each of their families take each day. Share the plan with the
class about how you will collect and record the data.
Each group will create a tally of the total number of showers and
baths their families take every day and they will report this figure
to the teacher.
On a whiteboard write the number of gallons for a bath (30) and the
number of gallons for a shower (10).
Next, hand out colored tokens to each group and let them know that
each token stands for 10 gallons of water.
Each group will make two stacks of tokens, one to represent the total
number of gallons of water used by their families for showers and
the other for baths.
They will report the total number of gallons for each category to
you, who will record it on the class chart and arrive at a class total.
(The class total represents the daily water usage in showers and baths
among all the families on any given day. You may also add the totals
of your own family to the classroom tally.)
After arriving at the total, ask the class to figure out how much
water we can save each day by only taking showers. Discuss how to
arrive at a solution, using tokens or cubes if necessary. If no family
takes a bath, discuss other ways to conserve water, including taking
shorter showers or using a low-flow shower head. |
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E. Accommodations (Differentiated Instruction)-
1. Students will be given manipulatives to assist with the math
portion of the independent practice
2. I will circulate the room to provide one-on-one help if needed.
3. Directions will also be written on the board, as well as provided
verbally. |
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F. Checking for understanding-
They will report the total number of gallons for each category to
you, who will record it on the class chart and arrive at a class total.
After arriving at the total, ask the class to figure out how much
water we can save each day by only taking showers. Discuss how to
arrive at a solution, using tokens or cubes if necessary. If no family
takes a bath, discuss other ways to conserve water (including taking
shorter showers or using a low-flow shower head.) |
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G. Closure-
"So what we have been able to learn today is that natural resources
are very important to many parts of life.
It is our job as humans to do our best to keep them safe - kinda like
Earth superheroes. When we see an opportunity to recycle or reuse
something, we need to take it!" |
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7. Evaluation-
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On an exit card (premade by me), have the following questions:
1. What is a "natural" resource"?
2. Name 2, 3, or 4 natural resources we learned about today
3. Why is it important to protect natural resources?
(collect after allotted time) |
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