SCIENCE FORWARD PLANNING DOCUMENT

TERM / WEEKS: Week 1 •

5E’s- ENGAGE (1-2 lessons)
To capture student interest and find out what they know about TOPIC
•
adaptations, specifically structural adaptations of birds
To elicit students’ questions/ prior knowledge about adaptations Adaptations of birds
Diagnostic assessment used- in this lesson you will find out what the students already
know about adaptations. This will allow you to take account of students’ existing
ideas when planning learning experiences.

GENERAL CAPABILITIES
Literacy Numeracy ICT Capability Critical and Creative Ethical Personal and Social Ethical
Thinking Understanding Capability Understanding
CROSS CURRICULUM PRIORITIES
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia Sustainability

SCSA LINKS
Science Science as a Science TEACHING AND LEARNING EXPERIENCES RESOURCES/KEY
Understanding Human Inquiry Skills QUESTIONS
Endeavour
Living things have
structural features Introduction
and adaptations • Ask students to think of their favourite animal and one thing about that animal that
that help them to
makes it special. Give an example: ‘my favourite animal is a monkey because of its
survive in their
environment. super long arms.’ Students think – pair – share their answers. Ask a few students to
(ACSSU043) share their partners' answer. Respond to each student’s answer by adding on that
the special thing about their animal is something that helps it to survive in its habitat.
LESSON OBJECTIVES E.G. a giraffe has a long neck to be able to reach their food on tall trees.
• Tell students that without all these special differences between animals, they would
As a result of this lesson, students will be able to: not survive in their habitat because their bodies wouldn’t be suited to the
• provide three examples of the diet of
environment. E.G. if a giraffe had a short neck, it would starve because it wouldn’t
different birds
be able to reach its food.
• Define what a structural adaptation is • Explicitly state to students that in using scientific terms, we call these special
and give an example of a structural
differences ‘adaptations,’ and more specifically, the differences that we can see
adaptation in a bird
from the outside are called ‘structural adaptations’ and they are special physical
features of animals that allow them to survive; they are things we can see from the 1 iPad between two
ASSESSMENT (DIAGNOSTIC)
outside. students
Specific probing questions during the classroom
discussion at the beginning of the main body of Main
the lesson (highlighted in blue) will elicit prior • Explain to students that for science this term, we are going to be looking at the
knowledge so the teacher can gauge how special differences/structural adaptations of Australian birds.
much her students know already. • For the first activity, students are going to go out into the school yard and take
photos of the different birds they see. Instruct students to partner up, with one Working whiteboard
student collecting an iPad and then lining up at the door with hats on. Give students markers
10 minutes to try and find a few different birds to take pictures of.
 • Back in the classroom, ask students to airdrop any images to the teacher to display Images of different
on the tv. Ask students questions to elicit prior knowledge. bird beaks/feet
o What are some of the differences you noticed between the birds? (Resource 1)
o Physically, what made each bird species unique?
o Why do you think these birds have so many differences when they all live in
the same area?
o Do you think you noticed any structural adaptations for any of the birds?

• Based on what students have just said, explicitly teach some specific structural
adaptations of a bird and write key words and concepts on the board. Project
images of various birds with different adaptations on the tv so students can see.
Beaks
1 iPad per student
o Seed eaters have a short, thick beak for cracking seeds
o Birds of prey have curved beaks for tearing meat
o Insect eaters have long, thin beaks
o Nectar eaters have long and slender beaks to reach the nectar from a
flower

Feet
o Some birds have curved claws to snatch fish out of the water
o Birds that scratch the soil for food have nail-like toes
o Ducks and other swimming birds have webbed, paddle like feet
o Some birds have a long back toe, which allows them to grasp a branch
tightly

General adaptations
o Many bones in a bird's skeleton are hollow, making them lighter and hence
flying is easier
o Feathers also help birds to fly; they are lightweight and help them to steer
and balance.

• Students begin making a ShowMe, including:

o some images of the birds they found in the school yard
o annotations of any specific features on the bird they want to point out
o any key words they have learnt today
o a definition and some examples of structural adaptations specific to birds.
(This ShowMe will be added to throughout the unit of work as students become more
knowledgeable.)

Conclusion
 • Students think-pair –share their definitions of a structural adaption. Ask a few
students to share their response to check for understanding.
• Put the images of the birds back on the tv, ask students to think about what food
those birds might eat considering the shape of their beak. Turn to a partner to
discuss. Ask students for their input to gauge understanding.
• Ask students to be on the lookout for any interesting/cool birds they see in their
backyard or elsewhere throughout the week. We will discuss this next lesson.
• As an exit slip, each student needs to recall one structural adaptation they learnt
about birds.

LEARNER DIVERSITY

Specific learning needs

• Students who struggle with writing have the option to record their voice on ShowMe
and add that in instead.
• Class discussions always begin with a moment to think and then a think-pair-share so
students of all abilities get the chance to think of an answer before being asked to
provide a response in front of the class.
• Writing key concepts and words on the board as well as verbally explaining the
different structural adaptations caters for the visual and auditory learner.

Specific behaviour needs

• Set very clear boundaries for all students on where they can go to photograph birds.
Remind students that other classes are working, so they need to be quiet and show
manners and respect when walking around the school.

SCIENCE FORWARD PLANNING DOCUMENT

TERM / WEEKS: week 2 •

5E’s- EXPLORE (2-3 lessons)
To provide hands on, shared experiences of the advantages of TOPIC
•
different shaped bird beaks
To support students to investigate and explore ideas about Adaptations of birds
adaptations in birds, specifically their beaks

GENERAL CAPABILITIES
Literacy Numeracy ICT Capability Critical and Creative Ethical Personal and Social Ethical
Thinking Understanding Capability Understanding
CROSS CURRICULUM PRIORITIES
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia Sustainability

SCSA LINKS
Science Science as a Human Science Inquiry Skills TEACHING AND LEARNING EXPERIENCES RESOURCES/KEY
Understanding Endeavour QUESTIONS
 Living things Science involves Identify, plan and Intro
have structural testing predictions by apply the elements of • Ask students if they saw any interesting birds since last lesson.
gathering data and
features and scientific Encourage students to describe the bird – its colours, size and anything
using evidence to
adaptations that
develop explanations
investigations to interesting about it. If the student can remember the birds name, find
help them to of events and
answer questions an image to put on the tv for all to see. Prompt students to recall
survive in their phenomena and and solve problems information learnt in the previous lesson:
environment. reflects historical and using equipment and o What shape is the beak?
(ACSSU043) cultural contributions materials safely and o Can you remember what that means about the bird's diet?
(ACSHE081) identifying potential o Do you notice anything interesting about its feet? Match activity
risks (ACSIS086) • In groups of four, students complete an activity where they need to (resource 2)
LESSON OBJECTIVES match the bird with its diet. This is revision from material learnt in the
As a result of this lesson, students will be able to: previous lesson, however, students now need to look at an image of a
• List the least and most effective 'beaks' used to pick bird, analyse it’s beak and determine what food it likely eats.
up food during the experiment. • Go over each answer to ensure groups got them correct/understand
• Give two reasons explaining why one beak was the where they went wrong. Each group provides their answer one bird at
most effective and why one was the least effective. a time. Ask students why they matched each pair the way they did to
check for understanding.
Team role lanyards
ASSESSMENT (FORMATIVE) Main (Resource 3)
• Assign team roles for this lesson’s experiment. Each group needs a
A checklist will be used to assess this lesson. The completed
manager, recorder, timer and birdie. Do this by asking each group
table will be assessed to check for understanding. The class
member to give themselves a number between one and four:
discussion at the end of the lesson will also help the teacher
1 = manager
to informally assess students. Along with that, the teacher will
2 = recorder
walk around during the lesson to observe students chatter
3 = timer
and ask questions to gauge understanding. 4 x cup of skittles
4 = birdie
4 x cup of red frogs
• Explain to students that in this experiment we are going to be looking at
4 x cup of scrunched
bird beak adaptations and exploring why different birds have different up sticky notes
beaks depending on what they eat. The experiment will go as follows: 4 x chopsticks
o The manager will come up to the front to collect the items 4 x hair clips
needed to complete the experiment. 4 x spoons
o The birdie will be the person using the different ‘bird beaks’ to 4 x stopwatch
try and pick up the various items from one container to put 4 x recording tables
them in a different container. (Resource 4)
o The timer has a stopwatch and records how long it takes for the
birdie to move every item into the new container.
o The recorder writes the results of the different times into the
recording table.
One sticky note per
Conclusion person.
• At the conclusion of the experiment, groups need to pack away the
items and the manager is to bring them back to the front of the room.
 • Sitting on the mat, the teacher leads a class discussion to find out what
students recorded.
o Which ‘beak’ was the most effective? Why?
o Did different beaks work better with different foods? Why?
o Was there one beak that worked really well to pick up one food
but was horrible for another food? Why do you think there was
such a big difference?
o Do any of the ‘beaks’ we used today resemble the beak of an
actual bird? What food did you find easiest to pick up with that
‘beak’?
• Give each student a sticky note, their exit slip out the door is to write
down two reasons why they think their most effective beak was so
effective and why their least effective beak was not effective. Their
names need to be written on the sticky note.

LEARNER DIVERSITY
• This lesson is very hands on and doesn’t require much reading/writing,
allowing all students to have a go.
• Allow students the ability to switch roles if they desire, e.g. if a child with
poor fine motor skills is the birdie they may want to switch to a different
role where they feel more comfortable. If a child with a maths difficulty
is the recorder or timer, they may feel more comfortable in a different
position where they don’t have to worry about reading numbers and
interpreting a table.

SCIENCE FORWARD PLANNING DOCUMENT

TERM / WEEKS: Week 3 •

5E’s- EXPLAIN (1 lesson)
To support students to develop explanations for experiences and TOPIC
•
make representations of developing conceptual understandings
Formative assessment Adaptations of birds

GENERAL CAPABILITIES
Literacy Numeracy ICT Capability Critical and Creative Ethical Personal and Social Ethical
Thinking Understanding Capability Understanding
CROSS CURRICULUM PRIORITIES
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia Sustainability
cultures
SCSA LINKS
Science Science as a Science Inquiry TEACHING AND LEARNING EXPERIENCES RESOURCES/KEY QUESTIONS
Understanding Human Endeavour Skills
 Living things Science involves Construct and Intro http://projectbeak.org/adaptations/beaks_test.htm
have structural testing use a range of • As a class, we play a quick online warmup game here
predictions by representations,
features and matching the bird to its food just by looking at its beak.
gathering data including tables
adaptations
and using and graphs, to • Ask if students have seen any interesting/unique birds in
that help them evidence to represent and the community since last science lesson. Allow students to
to survive in develop describe tell the class about what they saw and describe some of
their explanations of observations, its structural features. Encourage students to use proper
environment. events and patterns or scientific terms such as ‘structural features’ and
(ACSSU043) phenomena and relationships in ‘adaptations.’
reflects historical data using digital
and cultural technologies as • Get students thinking about the information from last Science exercise books
contributions appropriate week's experiment:
(ACSHE081) (ACSIS090) o What does the information tell us about bird beak
adaptations?
LESSON OBJECTIVES
As a result of this lesson, students will be able to: Main
• Compare their bar graph to the graph of a • Students are to individually graph the results from the table
student in a different group and list two in the previous lesson. Students can choose the graph they
possible reasons for their differences would like to use, however, a bar graph should be what
• Recall at least 4 pieces of information students use. Students should be confident in completing
about a specific bird beak and can refer a bar graph, however, if they are unsure, they are to stay One iPad per person
to at least two images of birds with that on the mat with their exercise book so the teacher can run
type of beak. through it.
ASSESSMENT (FORMATIVE) • Students then partner up with someone from a different
For this lesson I will use a checklist to assess the group to read and interpret each other's graphs. They
lesson objectives. need to locate any differences, write them down in their
exercise book below their graph and list two possible
reasons for the differences.

• Students then use this website

http://projectbeak.org/adaptations/beaks.htm to
research a specific beak. This explicitly explains why the
structure of bird beaks vary depending on diet, and gives
specific details about what makes them so effective.
• They are to add a page into their ShowMe with images of
birds that have the beak they researched. Students need
to include at least four pieces of information from their
research about the specific beak. Students are free to
display the information however they would like and can
be creative.

Conclusion
 • Students get into small groups of three to discuss the beak
they chose. Students should compare differences and
similarities:
o What makes your chosen beak different?
o What do you think would happen if your birds
swapped beaks and still tried to eat the same
food?
• Ask a few students to share their responses with the class

LEARNER DIVERSITY
• Students who struggle with graphing can sit with the
teacher in a small group to complete the activity together
• Students who struggle with reading can use the text to
speech function on the iPad to listen to the information
• Students who struggle with writing can record their
information on the iPad and put it into their ShowMe as a
voice over.

SCIENCE FORWARD PLANNING DOCUMENT

TERM / WEEKS: Week 4 •

5E’s- ELABORATE (1-2 lessons)
To challenge and extend students’ understandings in a new context TOPIC
or make connections to additional concepts through a student
planned investigation Adaptations of birds
• To use investigative/ inquiry skills
Summative assessment of science inquiry skills

GENERAL CAPABILITIES
Literacy Numeracy ICT Capability Critical and Creative Ethical Personal and Social Ethical
Thinking Understanding Capability Understanding
CROSS CURRICULUM PRIORITIES
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and Asia and Australia’s engagement with Sustainability
cultures Asia
SCSA LINKS
Science Understanding Science as a Science Inquiry TEACHING AND LEARNING EXPERIENCES RESOURCES/KEY QUESTIONS
Human Skills
Endeavour
Living things have With guidance, Intro https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6B-
structural features pose clarifying • Watch a video of ducks preening their feathers 8PG98NcA
and adaptations that questions and • Ask students if they know what the term ‘preening’ means.
help them to survive make predictions Explain to students that preening is a bird taking care of itself
in their environment. about scientific – we need to wash our hair to stay clean, and birds need to
(ACSSU043) investigations
(ACSIS231)
LESSON OBJECTIVES
As a result of this lesson, students will be able to:
• Define preening and give at least two reasons
why birds preen.
• Write a prediction about the science
investigation and make a comment on their
prediction after the investigation.
ASSESSMENT (SUMMATIVE – Science Inquiry Skills)
The experiment worksheet will be a summative
assessment, that directly assesses the objectives from this
lesson. It also links to previous lessons so the teacher can
informally assess whether students have retained
information correctly.
Main
preen their feathers to keep themselves clean and healthy.
Explain preening in the following way to students:
o birds use their beak to position feathers in their proper
place
o birds remove parasites, dust and dirt built up in their
feathers
o Most will preen several times per day to keep healthy
o The preen gland is located at the tail of the duck. This
gland produces an oily substance that ducks spread
across their feathers to keep them waterproof.
• Explain to students that preening is a behavioural
adaptation, meaning it is something they do to survive. It is
different to structural adaptations, because that focuses on
how an animal looks, whereas this focuses on an animals
behaviour.
• Students are to conduct an investigation looking at how
ducks keep their feathers waterproof. In groups of three,
each group has a manager, photographer and
experimenter. Groups have a few minutes to discuss how
they might use the materials at the front of the classroom to
create an experiment to mimic how a duck preens their
feathers to keep them waterproof. Lead a class discussion 2 x pieces of thick paper for each group
on how it could be run. Steer students in the right direction to
develop an effective investigation. For the investigation, 1 x cup of water for each group
students should:
o Collect two pieces of paper and cut out two feather 1 x cup of Oil for each group
shapes.
o Collect other resources such as water, oil, paint brush, 2 x paint brushes for each group
newspaper (to cover desk)
1 x worksheet for each person
o Make a prediction about which feather will be the
most effective at staying dry on the underside of the
feather and why.
o The experimenter uses a paint brush to wet the first
feather with just water. After a few seconds, the
recorder needs to take a photo of the feather on top
and then turn it over to see if the underside is wet
and take a photo.
o The experimenter then paints the second feather with
a thin layer of vegetable oil. Recorder takes a photo
of both sides of the feather. The experimenter then
 paints water over the oil to see what happens. The
recorder takes a photo of the feather. Students then
stop and record what they are seeing in their
experiment worksheet.
• Students then need to answer the questions on their
worksheet.

Conclusion
• Groups need to pack up their experiment and the manager
needs to bring any resources back to the front of the
classroom
• As a class, ask a few students to share their predictions for
the investigation and then what they found.
• Conduct a short class discussion talking about the questions
that students answered on their worksheet after the
experiment.

LEARNER DIVERSITY
• If students are having difficulty writing answers to the
questions, they are able to record themselves saying their
response on an iPad. Students can also collaborate with their
group to answer questions if need be.

SCIENCE FORWARD PLANNING DOCUMENT

TERM / WEEKS: Week 5 •

5E’s- EVALUATE (1 lesson)
To provide opportunities to review and reflect on their learning about TOPIC
the adaptations of birds and represent what they know about
adaptations Adaptations of birds
Summative assessment of science understanding e account of students’ existing ideas
when planning learning experiences

GENERAL CAPABILITIES
Literacy Numeracy ICT Capability Critical and Creative Ethical Personal and Social Ethical
Thinking Understanding Capability Understanding
CROSS CURRICULUM PRIORITIES
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia Sustainability

SCSA LINKS
 Science Understanding Science as a Science Inquiry TEACHING AND LEARNING EXPERIENCES RESOURCES/KEY
Human Skills QUESTIONS
Endeavour
Living things have
structural features and Intro
adaptations that help • Play a class game of celebrity heads with bird beak adaptations. Use
them to survive in their the images of birds from lesson one to stick on the board above the
environment. student’s head. Three students go at a time. Depending on how long it
(ACSSU043) takes, play 1-2 rounds.

LESSON OBJECTIVES Main

As a result of this lesson, students will be able to:
• Create a poster displaying what they know about
structural adaptations of birds, bird beaks, preening
and a summary of the experiments completed.
• annotate a picture of a bird to point out some key
adaptations and how they help them to survive.
ASSESSMENT (SUMMATIVE – Science Understanding)
A checklist with comments will be used to mark
this assessment to ensure students hit the criteria.
• Explain that today we are going to be consolidating our knowledge
that we have learnt over the last four lessons on structural adaptations
of birds and then extending onto behavioural adaptations of birds.
• Using the information from previous worksheets, information in ShowMe
and other information learnt over the lessons, students are to create a
Canva or a physical poster displaying what they have learnt about
birds and adaptations over the weeks. Students need to include: iPads
o General information on bird adaptations from week one
(information should be on their ShowMe) Poster board
o A summary of the bird beak experiment and the results of it.
What does this tell us about different bird beaks? Colourful textas
o In-depth information on the chosen bird beak from lesson three.
o An annotated image/drawing of at least one bird to point out Coloured pencils
some key adaptations and how they help the bird survive.
o A summary of the investigation completed in lesson four and
what was learnt from it on the importance of ducks preening
their feathers.
o A comparison of structural and behavioural adaptations, using
birds to give examples.
o Any other information the student wishes to share.

Conclusion
• Students get into partners to share their finished product of work.
Students should read over each other's work and orally give their peer
two stars and a wish.
• As a class, ask some students to share one star they gave to their
partner.

LEARNER DIVERSITY
• Students have the choice of creating their poster digitally, allowing
them to use speech to text technology.
• At the end of the lesson, the teacher puts students into pairs of similar
academic abilities. This is to ensure weaker students don’t feel
intimidated swapping their work with a gifted student who may have
an exceptional piece of work with words they do not understand.