The Harley School

Science Unit: Ecology

Lesson Title: Biomes- The unique geography, climates, and life forms of Earth
Teacher: Kaitlin Bates

LOGISTICS of the LESSON.

Objective. Students will understand what a biome is and how it works.

Target students. One class of approximately thirty 5th grade students.

Suggested duration. Approximately forty minutes.

Materials. PPT slides and copies of guided notes-shell, PDF of biome map and projector/ Smart
board with capability of playing a video, copies of biome worksheet and world map (see
attached), class set of computers, easel paper, masking tape, clip boards, colored pencils,
construction paper or colored printer paper, scissors, fasteners.

Overview.

In this activity, students collect information about different biomes. Then, they share their
information with the class, circulate in a carousel brainstorm activity, and locate the biomes on a
world map. By the end of the lesson, each student will produce a finished product that conveys
their understanding of what a biome is and how it works. This product should creatively
incorporate the key characteristics of each biome which includes their climates, environmental
factors, and examples of plants and animals that have adapted to live in these biomes.

Essential Questions.

• What is a biome?

• How is a biome organized into ecosystems, communities, populations, and individual

species?

• What life forms and climates are characteristic of each biome?

Benchmarks.

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

• Observe, examine, and record data about ecosystems including living and nonliving
factors that interact together.

• Examine and differentiate the populations and communities that make up an ecosystem.
 • Compare different ecosystems and describe how biodiversity is being reduced.

• Investigate and evaluate how ecosystems change.

• Identify the location of different biomes on a world map.

Addressing the five E’s.

ENGAGEMENT

The anticipatory set will be used as a hook to grab the students’ attention and put them into a
receptive frame of mind. The teacher will open by asking students to use a yellow crayon or
colored pencil to draw a bird on a sheet of white paper. Then, they will be asked to predict how
the bird will appear when covered with a piece of red saran wrap. After a brief discussion
students will try it out and will observe that the bird has camouflaged or disappeared. This will
lead into the introductory PowerPoint slides and corresponding guided notes.

EXPLORATION

Students are divided into groups of two or three (depending on class size). The names of the
seven biomes are written on slips of paper and randomly distributed to groups. These include the
tundra, taiga/coniferous forest, temperate deciduous forest, grassland/savannah, tropical rain
forest, shrub land, and desert. Next, the groups delve into their research using various resources
which include the internet, scholarly articles, and text books. As they explore, students are each
expected to complete the biome worksheet and to shade in the location(s) of the biome on the
world map.

EXPLANATION
After using multiple media to discover how a world community lives in one particular biome,
students will display their findings on easel paper as a way of explaining the biome to their peers.
During the carousel activity students will use a clipboard and rotate to each of the biome stations
where they will take notes on each of the biomes and shade-in its location on the world map.

ELABORATION

Following the carousel activity, students will be expected to take the information gathered in
their clipboard notes and create a flip chart, brochure, or spin wheel that incorporates key
information about each of the biomes. Key information includes the biome’s location on the
world map (with a color-coded key), its climate, environmental factors, and examples of plants
and animals that are adapted to this biome.

EVALUATION

The teacher will assess student progress by monitoring how much information they include in
their biome worksheets and easel papers during the carousel activity. More importantly, the
quality of the information in the flip chart, brochure, or spin wheel will indicate true
comprehension and appreciation of the various biomes.

Agenda.

Part I

1. Warm-up: KWL & Give 1 Get 1

2. BIOMES guided notes

3. Biome worksheet and travel brochure

Ticket-out-the-door: Finish KWL chart

Teacher script/ instructions.

• When given the KWL, students will be given a moment to discuss their prior knowledge
which may include what an organism is, how similar organisms make up a species, a
species cohabitating forms a population, and populations form communities. (This can
be executed as a “Two Minute Talk” or a “Give one, Get one.”)

• After a brief discussion, students are to complete the first two sections: “K”- What you
Know and “W” – What you Want to know.

• Groups of two or three will be randomly assigned a biome on a slip of paper. They will
have fifteen to twenty minutes to work on finding the information that will complete their
biome worksheet (climate, environmental factors, examples of plants and animals, and
how these are adapted to their biome).

• Carousel guidelines:

a. Start at the easel paper titled with the biome you researched. List all of the
important information that you gathered and recorded on your biome worksheet.

b. Use a clipboard and move around the room to the various other biome stations.
Record information on all of the other biomes as you go.

c. As you transition from one biome to the next, shade in their location on the
 world map. Include a color-coded key.

• When creating the final product, students may construct a flip chart, brochure, or spin
wheel. They may fashion it in any manner they choose as long as it includes the relevant
information on each of the seven biomes (tundra, taiga/coniferous forest, temperate
deciduous forest, grassland/savannah, tropical rain forest, shrub land, and desert).
Significant information includes the location of each biome on the world map, the climate
and environment, and examples of plants and animals that are unique and well-adapted to
each biome.

• When students get their KWL chart back, they will be instructed to fill-in the last column:
“L” – What you have Learned.

Assessment.

Four formative assessments are administered throughout the course of this lesson.

• First, students are evaluated on their ability to utilize the resources at their disposal to
complete the biome worksheet.

• Second, the teacher monitors student progress by assessing quality of information

included on respective easel papers during the “carousel” activity.

• Third, the final project that students submit (flip chart or alternative option) will
demonstrate the learner’s ability to interpret knowledge that was shared by peers, as well
as how uniquely the student can convey these understandings.

• Finally, the KWL chart is a relatively quick way for students to simply tell the teacher
what they learned, especially how much more they know as compared to the prior
knowledge they had coming into the lesson.

An optional enrichment opportunity is to design an imaginary plant or animal that is adapted to a

particular biome. It ought to include a visual and description of how this plant or animal is
adapted to its environment.

A review game like Jeopardy can be used in subsequent lessons to assess how well students
retained what they learned during the lesson on biomes, as well as how well they can recall it.

Consideration for learner difference.

Students who are easily distracted or who struggle to remain focused and on task will be given
preferential seating close to the Smart board/ projector screen for the initial introductory portion
of the lesson.

Students who are farsighted and struggle to read the handouts can be provided with enlarged
copies because all materials are saved digitally.

Any student who is physically unable to circulate the classroom during the carousel activity will
have a partner who delivers the easel papers to them, one at a time.

Those learners who benefit from extended time have two options. First, they will be invited to
return at another time outside of class or to take the biome worksheet home to finish. If this is
not an option they will be given a somewhat modified biome worksheet in which they record the
same information, but with a lesser degree of detail (i.e. two examples of plants and animals
instead of four).

Students who are able to complete assignments more quickly than their peers will have the
option to design an imaginary plant or animal that is adapted to a particular biome. This
enrichment opportunity requires the student to generate a visual and a description of how the
fantasy plant or animal is adapted to its environment.
Students who are easily distracted or who struggle to remain focused and on task will be given
preferential seating close to the Smart board/ projector screen for the initial introductory portion
of the lesson.

Students who are farsighted and struggle to read the handouts can be provided with enlarged
copies because all materials are saved digitally.

Any student who is physically unable to circulate the classroom during the carousel activity will
have a partner who delivers the easel papers to them, one at a time.

Those learners who benefit from extended time have two options. First, they will be invited to
return at another time outside of class or to take the biome worksheet home to finish. If this is
not an option they will be given a somewhat modified biome worksheet in which they record the
same information, but with a lesser degree of detail (i.e. two examples of plants and animals
instead of four).

Students who are able to complete assignments more quickly than their peers will have the
option to design an imaginary plant or animal that is adapted to a particular biome. This
enrichment opportunity requires the student to generate a visual and a description of how the
fantasy plant or animal is adapted to its environment.