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Sea Turtles
Students investigate eight different species of sea turtles while being involved in classroom lecture and video presentation. The characteristics used to identify sea turtles is taught to help students identify unknown species.
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What's In A Name?
Young scholars create a binomial system of nomenclature for classifying organisms they encounter in a field trip to a natural history museum or from pictures in library books. They work in small groups to create accurate drawings and...
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Classification of Materials
Students classify photographs into a two-way classification system. They practice with pictures of people who are young and old, male and female, then they use pictures of animals to create their own two-way classification system.
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Powdery Mildew Fungi: Classification and Ecology
Pupils use a written key or illustrated key to identify fungi on plant leaves into its genus based on sexual or asexual reproduction, host range diversity, and host-parasite relationships.
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Fossils-Where Should We Place Archaeopteryx?
Students explore an interactive computer activity that provides the opportunity to look at features of various groups of animals and determine where an extinct organism might be classified.
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Variation
Students practice sorting living things into groups using their characteristics. Using pictures of leaves and animals, they sort them based on their color and shape and write the objects characteristics under the picture. They share...
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Grouping and Changing Materials
Students feel and observe different types of materials. Using the internet, they sort objects based on the materials they are made from and justify their reasons for putting it in a certain category. They identify objects that could...
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Supplies
Fifth graders determine what supplies they will take with them in order to survive their trip through the Amazon. The use estimation and basic math skills to determine how much they can carry and what they can use to survive in the Amazon.
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Classifying Candy III
Students create a classification tree based on grouping candy with eight different properties. This allows students to understand how living things are classified.
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Classifying Rocks
Students classify rocks into groups after they observe the rocks and identify properties that can be used to divide them into groups. They then identify other properties that could be used to classify other objects into groups.
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Adaptations
Students identify features of animals that enable survival in particular environments and group animals on the basis of their similarities. They compare and contrast features of groups of animals.
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Populations
Students calculate the area of grasslands needed to support a small pride of lions. They also identify food web links in an ecosystem and trace the energy pathways in an ecosystem.
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Animal clues
Fifth graders use general knowledge to make educated guesses about the habitat and survival strategies of animals from Australia, Antarctica and Africa. They research to confirm and check ideas and group animals in a variety of ways.
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Survival
Students identify characteristics of Australia, Africa and Antarctica and compare and contrast them to each other. They work together to identify adaptations that animals have used to survive. They also practice classifying animals.
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Analysing Scientific Explanations for Megafauna Extinction
Students compare explanations for Australian's megafauna extinctions and identify reasons for popular acceptance of certain scientific explanations. They debate and analyze scientific explanations.
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This Place is Going to the Dogs
Students study different breeds of dogs. They watch a video, "Extraordinary Dogs", about special dogs and how they are categorized according to their adaptations. Then they create a digital video that demonstrates the qualities of dogs...
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Scientific Inquiry
Middle schoolers make inferences about what activities occur at different places in school. They form a hypothesis as to how space is used. They simulate how archeaologists explore past people by designing and conducting a research project.
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Who Am I?
Fourth graders identify and classify insects while working with a live insect. They collect an insect to study.
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What Kind of Insect is That?
Fifth graders characterize insects and classify insects according to the Linnaean system. They use hand lenses or microscopes to examine insect body parts.
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Classification
Second graders sort insects into groups by determining similar characteristics. They role play as Entomologists to sort insects.
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"Bug Hunt"
Fourth graders find bugs represented on a grid and then identify their name and physical characteristics that provide a picture of the bug using imagery.
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Rock Hounds
Second graders read Byrd Baylor's book "Everybody Needs a Rock", and select a rock, study it, and describe its attributes.
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Nuts & Bolts: is Classification, Arbitrary, Or Not?
Students, in groups, classify furniture, share their categories and rationales, then note how their different schemes vary, perfectly logical and useful, but completely arbitrary.
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Trees, Trees, Trees! - Adopt A Tree
Students adopt a tree, take a bark rubbing from that tree, and conduct research about that type of tree. They write an original piece about their tree using three facts and in a genre of their choice.