Inquiry Lesson

By Denedra Shepherd
1

TITLE:
Saving Trees and Keeping the Environment Clean

PURPOSE:
The purpose of the activity is to help students develop strong environmental attitudes and habits. One misconception
students may have about trees is that they are not important and that they do not provide many benefits to us and other
living things. The scientific inquiry question in which students will be engaged for science inquiry is -- "How can we
help save trees and keep our environment clean? and Why?" The objectives of the lesson are the following:
- Skills. Students Will:
a. Identify products made from trees (newspaper, wood toys and furniture, tissue, books, cardboard boxes, plates,
cups, napkins, etc.)
b. Identify behaviors that help conserve paper and keep the environment clean and litter-free.
-Behaviors. Students will practice the following behaviors to help the environment:
a. Take only what you really need when using paper towels, napkins, tissues, and other things made from paper.
b. Use washable towels, napkins, plates, and cups instead of throw-away paper ones when you have a choice.
c. Recycle paper.
d. Put trash in trash cans; do not liter.
e. Use only as much water as needed.

Target Learning Group Kindergarten:

Approximate Time Involved: 60 minutes

Engage - 8 minutes
Explore - 25 minutes
Explain - 15 minutes
Elaborate/ Expand - Students will be instructed to do this at their home as homework
Evaluate
12 minutes

Science Content Background Information for Teacher with Reference(s):

-Concepts. Students will understand the following environmental concepts:
a. The natural environment is made up of sunlight, air, water, land, plants, and animals.
b. We need each of these elements to be able to live.
c. Living trees provide many benefits to us and other living things.
d. We cut trees down to make many wood and paper products.
e. Wasting paper uses up trees, which are important in our environment and which are slow to replace.
f. Littering the environment with paper and other wastes looks bad, harms animals, is unhealthy, and is not fair to
others.
g. Recycling paper instead of putting it in the trash will help save trees.
h. Everyone needs to help save paper and trees and keep our environment beautiful and clean.
-Vocabulary.
Lumber - wood from trees that is cut to use in building and in making wooden products

Think Earth Foundation. (2002-2016). Kindergarten Unit: Jay's Tree, "Learning About Trees". Retrieved February 4,
2016, from Think Earth Foundation's website:
http://thinkearth.org/curriculum/kindergarten-main.php
Please see researched background information on a special need at the end of this lesson.
6 NGSS Performance Expectation Involved:
Students who demonstrate understanding can:

K-E SS3-3 Communicate solutions that will reduce the impact of humans on the land, water, air, and/or other living
things in the local enviornment.* Examples of human impact on the land from this particular
lesson
includes cutting trees to produce paper and using resources to produce bottles. Examples
of solutions
include reusing paper and recycling cans and bottles.
K-ETS1.A Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to
define a simple problem that can be solved through the development of a new or improved object
or tool.
ESS3.C
Communicate solutions that will reduce the impact of humans on the land, water, air, and/or other living
things in the local environment.
W.K.2
Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose informative/explanatory texts in which
they name what they are writing about and supply some information about the topic.
7
8

Materials and Advance Preparation:

Student seating arrangement is 5 round tables with 4 students at a table (20 students total)
The teacher will provide each table with a garbage can filled with the following items:
1 Newspaper, 4 Aluminum Cans, 4 Letters, 4 Plastic Water Bottles, 4 Small Drinking Glasses, 4 Paper Napkins, and
some non-reusable trash items
4Large Cardboard Boxes (large enough to put reusable items inside)
4 Labels (that read Trash, Plastic, Paper, Glass)
2 Glue Sticks
4 Pairs of Gloves
1Dry Erase Board
You TubeVideo- KidVision VPK Recycling Center Field Trip
The video should be set up in advance and ready to start from the beginning with no interruptions
For the post assessment a class of 20 students will need 80-8X11 in. sheets of construction paper, and 20 boxes of
crayons. Each student will have a standard box of crayons. Construction paper must be white, yellow, pink, or orange,
light enough to see students illustrations clearly. The books for the post assessment will consist of 2 sheets of
construction paper put together and folded in half to make a book. This will give a cover page, 6 inside pages, and 1
back page. If students make a mistake and would like to start over there will be one extra book available for them to
use. The teacher will prepare books before the lesson begins by placing two sheets of construction paper together and
folding them in half to make a book explained in detail above in italics.

Lesson References:
Think Earth Foundation. (2002-2016). Kindergarten Unit: Jay's Tree, "Learning About Trees". Retrieved February 4,
2016, from Think Earth Foundation's website:
http://thinkearth.org/curriculum/kindergarten-main.php

9. Safety Considerations:
Students must be sitting down at their assigned seats when handling the glass bottles. There are no significant safety
considerations for this lesson.
SCIENCE ACTIVITY

1.PreAssessment
Students will tell a friend what they do and/or what they see their family members do with the following items, after
they've been used, at home: plastic water bottles, aluminum cans, newspapers, glass bottles, paper, and paper plates and
paper cups. While students are talking at their tables assess them by circulating around the room and listening to their
responses and asking them what did they talk about. Make sure to keep track of the individual students' responses.
Say to the class, "Students turn and talk to a friend about what you do or see your family members do with used plastic
water bottles, aluminum cans, newspapers, glass bottles, paper, paper plates and paper cups?"
Accommodation #1

If Jake or any of the students look puzzled or do not seem to understand the question, say to them, "After you finish
drinking the water in your water bottle what do you do with the bottle or what do your parents do with it?"
The answers students give will provide you with evidence of if students have prior experience or not with conserving,
reusing, and recycling these reusable items and it will help the instructor with planning and teaching what students need to
know.
2. Procedures:
Engage- Tell students, "Beautiful trees are being cut down to make products that we use every day and people are
throwing away things that can be reused to make new things. By saving these used items to make new things we can
save the lives of trees and keep our environment clean." Then, take the class outside for a nature walk around the
playground to observe the different kinds of trees that they see.
Accommodation #2:
Show students the You Tube Video- KidVision VPK Recycling Center Field Trip.
After the video, ask students the inquiry question, "Think about how we can save the lives of trees and keep our
environment clean and beautiful?" Tell students to partner share their thinking about this. Students partner share their
thinking by talking to someone at their table about their thoughts about the question. Students seating arrangement is
5 round tables with 4 students to a table for a class of 20 students.
Explore- Give each table of 4 students a garbage can filled with the following items: 1 Newspaper, 4 Aluminum
Cans, 4 Letters, 4 Plastic Water Bottles, 4 Small Drinking Glasses, 4 Paper Napkins, and some non-reusable items.
AND
-5 labels (that reads TRASH, PLASTIC, ALUMINUM, GLASS, PAPER)
-Five Large Cardboard Boxes ( Large enough for the reusable items to fit inside)
-2 Glue Sticks
-One measuring tape
-Four pairs of gloves
The teacher will read the names (Trash, Plastic, Aluminum, Glass, Paper) with the class and show them an example of
each item. This should be displayed for students to see throughout the whole lesson for them to refer to. Tell students
to glue the labels to the boxes if they do not know what to do with them. For example if students look puzzled or seem
confused or frustrated.
Accommodation #3:
"Jake use the glue stick to glue the label to the boxes". "Now put the items in the boxes according to there type, if its
plastic, then place it in the box that reads plastic and so on."
Tell the students that they are working as a team with the people at their table and together using the materials given
to them they will complete the following steps:
Step #1: Measure the garbage in the trash can and record your data on your dry erase board.
Step #2: Create reusable bins with the materials given to you.
Step #3: Put on the gloves and go through the trash. Take out all reusable items and place them in the reusable bins
you created in step 2.
Step #3: Measure the trash in the garbage cans again and record your data on your dry erase board.
Step #4: Compare the data and talk to your group members about what you've concluded from this experiment.
Students will measure the trash in the garbage cans first with their measuring tape and record the data on their dry
erase board. Next they will create 4 recycling bins using the materials given to them. They should have 4 boxes with a
glued label on each box (Plastic, Aluminum, Glass, and Paper). Then after they have taken all of the reusable items
out of the garbage cans and placed them in the correct recycling bin that they created, they will measure the trash in
the garbage can again and record the data.
Explain- Next they will compare the data results and make a conclusion. Students should conclude that before taking
out the reusable items there was much more garbage in the cans and that by saving them to be used to make new items
they helped save trees and kept their environment clean. Now the instructor will introduce the new vocabulary words

that tie into the lesson, "conserve" and "recycle". "Students there is a name for what we just did and it is called,
"recycle"." Write down the word "recycle" on the board and spell it out, "r-e-c-y-c-l-e", as you write it out have
students say the word with you." "Students, repeat after me "recycle". Then write down the sentence on the board,
"Today we recycled, paper, plastic, aluminum, and glass". "These are items that we can , save or conserve, to be
reused to make new items instead of cutting down beautiful trees and using them to make the same stuff. Everyone
say "conserve"."
Accommodation #4:
Jake say "conserve"
Say, "Instead of throwing away these items, we have saved them, or conserved them, to be reused to make new items.
What else have we saved? Students may respond "We have saved the lives of beautiful trees in the environment"."
Expand/Elaborate- Students will go a step further with the lesson by sharing new knowledge about keeping the
environment clean and saving trees with family and friends, and encouraging them to conserve and recycle reusable
items instead of throwing them in the trash can. How will students share? They will draw pictures that describe their
experience.
Evaluate- Students will give examples of how they plan to share with their family how they can save trees and help
keep their environment clean. This will be done through partner talk. As students talk with the members of their
group, the teacher will circulate to listen to students. Say to students, "Turn and talk about how you will share what
you learned today with your family at home? What will you do with used plastic water bottles, paper, and aluminum
now?".
Question:

Claim:

Aretherethings
thatweusedaily
madefromtrees?

Yes.

Aretrees
importanttous?
Aretherethings
thatwecandoto
savetrees?

Wecansave
treesby
recyclingpaper
products.

Wecanhelp
keepour
environment
cleanby
Howcanwesave recycling
treesandkeepour reusable
environment
products,like
clean?andWhy? paper,plastic,
aluminumand
glass.

Evidence:

Wooden
Chairs,
Newspapers,
Aluminum
Cans, Letters,
Plastic Bags,
Cardboard
Boxes, Paper
Napkins, and
Pencils are all
things that
people use
every day and
are made from
trees.

Reasoning(What

Conclusion

Thislessonis
designedatthe
kindergarten
level.

Studentswill
discoverthat
treesarevery
importanttous
andwecan
helpsavetrees
byrecycling
someofthe
thingsmade
fromtreesthat
weusedaily.

sciencedidweuseto
answerthequestion?
Grade5andup.)

We can reuse
some of these
things or
recycle them.

Real-World Connections: This lesson directly relates to the child's life or "real world" because all of the things made
from trees explored here are used by people daily.
3. Post-assessment
Students will create their own unique book of things that they plan to conserve and recycle to help save trees and keep
their environment clean.

Give students the construction books prepared before the lesson and a box of crayons. Say to them, "Now we will
draw all of the things that we can save and reuse to help save the lives of beautiful trees and keep our environment
clean."
Each student will get a box of crayons and one book. One more book will be available, for each student, if a child
should mess up and ask to start over with a new book, but do not tell students that there are extra books available.
While students are coloring and drawing, circulate around the room to compliment their drawings and ask them what
are they drawing, then help them write the name of the product in the book, on the same page as the drawing of the
product. Use students drawings to talk about the items students may plan to recycle.
Accommodations:
The following accommodations are for Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD's) such as Autism and Asperger Syndrome:
I'm using "Jake" as my student who has this disorder. Throughout my lesson I have noted accommodations for this
student.
If you ask a question or give an instruction and are greeted with a blank stare, reword your sentence.
Repeat instructions and checking understanding. Using short sentences to ensure clarity of instructions.
Using various means of presentation-visual, physical guidance, peer modeling, etc.
References for Accommodations with Background Information:
http://www.specialed.us/autism/05/strategies.htm
Website: http://www.heartlandaea.org/media/cms/Recessbuddies_2AA4D00C86B19.pdf
Hensley, P. (2015). Teaching Community Where teachers Meet & Learn. 22 Tips For Teaching Students
With Autism Spectrum Disorders

Background Information:
Autism & Aspergers
History
The word "autism," which has been in use for about 100 years, comes from the Greek word "autos," meaning
"self." The term describes conditions in which a person is removed from social interaction -- hence, an isolated
self.
Eugen Bleuler, a Swiss psychiatrists, was the first person to use the term. He started using it around 1911 to
refer to one group of symptoms of schizophrenia.
In the 1940s, researchers in the United States began to use the term "autism" to describe children with emotional
or social problems. Leo Kanner, a doctor from Johns Hopkins University, used it to describe the withdrawn
behavior of several children he studied.
Aspergers syndrome (also known as Aspergers Disorder) was first described in the 1940s by Viennese
pediatrician Hans Asperger, who observed autism-like behaviors and difficulties with social and communication
skills in boys who had normal intelligence and language development. Many professionals felt Aspergers
syndrome was simply a milder form of autism and used the term high-functioning autism to describe these
individuals. Uta Frith, a professor at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience of University College London and
editor of Autism and Asperger Syndrome, describes individuals with Aspergers as having a dash of autism.
What is autism or autistic disorder?
Autism is the most common autism spectrum disorder. People with autism have differences in the development
of their thinking, language, behavior and social skills. The differences appear before age three, and can be
diagnosed by 18 months. For a diagnosis of autism, a child must have a specified number of symptoms in these
areas:
social interaction
communication (including language delay)
restricted range of behaviors, activities and interests (often called stereotypic behaviors)

What is Asperger syndrome (AS)?

People with Asperger syndrome have normal intelligence and language development, but also have some
autistic-like traits. They may have trouble with social skills, sensory input, and making transitions, and may
need rigid routines. Their interests can focus on one area to the point that it is like an obsession. Some experts
believe AS is like a "high-functioning autism," and/or that it is like a non-verbal learning disability (NLD). See
also Your Child: Non-verbal Learning Disabilities.
What are the autistic spectrum disorders (ASD)?
Autism spectrum disorders, or ASD, are also called pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) because they
involve delay in many areas of development. PDD or ASD is a category that includes five different disorders of
development, each with differing severities and patterns:

Autistic Disorder

Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS)

Asperger Syndrome

Childhood Disintegrative Disorder (CDD)

Rett Syndrome

References:
Hacker, B. (2015). Sensory Solutions in the Classroom For The Kid Who Cannot Sit Steal
http://special-ism.com/sensory-solutions-in-the-classroom-for-the-kid-who-cannot-sit-still/
http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/history-of-autism
https://www.teachervision.com/teaching-methods/new-teacher/48446.html
http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/autism.htm
http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/asperger.htm