DIXIE STATE COLLEGE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION UNIT PLAN TEMPLATE Semesters 1& 2

Teacher Candidate __Krissy Yunker_________________________Content ______Life Science_________

Step 1 DESIRED RESULTS A. Utah State Core Curriculum Standard Standard 4 Life Science. Students will gain an understanding of Life Science through the study of changes in organisms over time and the nature of living things. Objective 1 Investigate living things. a. Construct questions, give reasons, and share findings about all living things. b. Compare and contrast young plants and animals with their parents. c. Describe some changes in plants and animals that are so slow or so fast that they are hard to see (e.g., seasonal change, fast blooming flower, slow growth, hatching egg). B. Enduring Understanding/Big Idea Animals and plants found in nature go through changes as the seasons change around them. C. Concepts By the end of the unit, students will know Students will know the seasons summer, winter, spring, and fall Students will know differences between young plants and animals, and their parents Students will know about some forest animals and plants Vocabulary words: season, difference, similarities, forest, changes D. Skills By the end of the unit, students will know I will describe the seasons; summer, winter, spring and fall I will know differences between young plants and animals, and their parents I will know differences between spring and winter I will know the difference between summer and fall E. Essential Questions/Guiding Questions What is a season? In what ways can we describe each season? In what ways is each season different from another? Similar? What is a forest? What plants and animals might be found in the forest? Why is safety so important?

Step 2 ASSESSMENT EVIDENCE A. Pre-assessment Draw and color a picture of a forest. Add as much detail and color as possible. B. Formative Assessments / Evidence 1. Students will sing and clap the vocabulary words from this unit; seasons, changes, different, similar, forest 2. Students will investigate the changing of the seasons throughout the year, by looking at pictures, books, video clips, handling plant materials, and sharing information with their peers. 3. Students will recite their full name, home address, and telephone number. 4. Students will look at landscapes paintings in the book Bambi that depict the seasons of the year. They will then use finger paints, to create their favorite scene, depicting one of the seasons. 5. Students will use animal families to work on their adding and subtracting skills. C. Summative Assessments/Evidence Students will have drawn and colored a picture of a forest, with as much detail as possible.

Step 3 INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES & LEARNING ACTIVITIES Lesson 1: I will sing, and clap out the vocabulary words that I am learning in this unit; seasons, changes, different, and forest Lesson 2: I will investigate the changing of the seasons throughout the year, by looking at pictures, books, video clips, handling plant materials, and sharing information with my peers. Lesson 3: I will learn to recite my full name, my home address, and telephone number. Lesson 4: I will look at landscapes paintings in the book Bambi that depict the seasons of the year. I will use fingerpaints to re-create my favorite season from the book. Lesson 5: I will use animal families to work on my adding and subtracting skills.

Adapted from: McTighe, J., & Wiggins, G. (2005). Understanding by design, 2nd ed. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.; Ainsworth, L. (2003). Unwrapping the standards: A simple process to make standards manageable. Denver, CO: Advanced Learning Press.