LodeStar Unit**The WILD flowers

This Unit Covers

This 4MAT unit has been selected as a 4MAT LodeStar Unit, 4MAT units we honor and proudly show to the world representing the best from About Learning.

Lodestar: A bright, easily found star that is used to find direction.
Anything that acts as a guide, inspiration or example to follow.

This Unit covers the study of flowers in nature, organization, observation and classification.

Learning Outcomes

To create an experience where students will understand the balance in nature.
Students will understand the need for life-giving essentials provided by nature.
To involve students using different mediums to create flowers.
To identify/match parts of flowers with vocabulary.
To identify 10 flowers in the wild through collecting or photographing.
To work cooperatively in a group to design and complete the creation of a flower garden.

Teacher Notes

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Time Frame

Total time : 365 minutes

Concept :

Nature's Balance

Content :

Wild Flowers

Bridge :

Adaptation

Essential Question :

How do flowers use adaptation to survive?

Outcomes :

Know : Students will know how to design and prepare a flower garden. Do : Students will be able to identify flowers & create a flower garden. Be/Become : Students will be appreciative of the beauty in nature.

The "Chip Game"

Discussion of Experiences

Create a flower with background music.

Lecture and discussion.

Worksheets on identifying parts of flower and what they do. Learning Centers.

Begin pressing, or photographing wild flowers and labeling.

In groups of 4 co-operatively design a wild flower garden.

Students will show and share the wild flower garden in the school yard to schoolmates and parents....

Nature's Balance

1. Connect: Connecting to the Concept Experientially

Objective:  To create an experience where students will understand survival in nature.

Activity
Students will each take a paper plate and choose a  location and place it on the ground.  This is the trees' roots and can not be moved (trees do not share).  Each student will put one foot on the plate and can not move it.    Students are told to look down.  The teacher will toss the "counting chips" into the air.  The students will reach and try to pick up as many as he/she can making sure the colors are balanced.  Repeat this exercise 3-4 times.  Students may move their roots to a different location between events..

As the trees do NOT receive enough chips to survive they die and rot away becoming part of the forest floor, creating nutrition for others.  Those with a balance survive and grow.  Thus the cycle of balance and life goes on.

Materials:
paper plates
counting chips in 4 colors:
   blue = water
   green = nutrients (food)
   red = sun
   white = space

2. Attend: Attending to the Connection

Objective:  Students will understand the need for life-giving essentials provided by nature.

Activity:
Students will discuss the necessary balance and change of the elements.  Is it necessary for trees or wildlife to have a balance of water, space, nutrients, sun.

3. Image: Creating a Mental Picture

Objective:   To involve students using different mediums to create flowers.

Activity:
Hand out paper/paints, constructions paper, glue, scissors.  Each student will create a picture/model of a flower.

4. Inform: Receiving Facts & Knowledge

Objective:  Learn what the parts of a flower do.


Activity: A lecture will be given on how plants grow from seeds,   Pictures will be shown of the embryo, monocot, dicot, stamen, pistil, petal, sepal & ovary.  Discussion on the beauty of the flower and the different colors in wild flowers.  What the differences there can be between (possible answers:  color, size, shape of petals, number of petals, shape of pistil, etc.

5. Practice: Developing Skills

Objective:  To identify/match parts of flowers with vocabulary.

Flowers

Use worksheet p.6, Scott Foresman Science, co. 2003

Activity:
Students will complete  worksheets.
Students will cooperatively work at Learning Centers.  Matching cards, etc.  Flowers are on the centers, plastic and real so students can "feel" and see.

6. Extend: Extending Learning to the Outside World

Objective:  To identify 10 flowers in the wild through collecting or photographing.

Activity:  Students will be placed in groups of 2.  They will make the choice to either collect/press and label wild flowers or photograph and label wild flowers. 

7. Refine: Refining the Extension

objective;  To cooperatively create a wild flower garden.

Activity: Students will be placed in groups of 4 and create first on paper, a pattern/layout of their flower garden.  Students will then work together to create the wild flower garden on the school property. 

Students will be supplied with:

paper
markers
pencils
rulers
stickers
soil
spades
water

Students will gather from nature wild flowers to be transplanted.:

8. Perform: Creative Manifestation of Material Learned

objective: To work cooperatively in a group and display their creation. to design and complete the creation of a flower garden.

Activity:  Students will work together to share their design.

No file attached with this lesson.

1. Level of Engagement, Fascination :

Participation in activity and discussion.

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2. Seeing the Big Picture :

Completion of task.

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3. Success with Acquiring Knowledge :

Cooperative, demonstrates good listening skills, participation and relevance in discussion.

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4. Success with Acquiring Skills :

To what degree are students gaining the skills associated with this unit?

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5. Performance, Creative Use of Material Learned :

Completion of project in an aesthetically pleasing design.

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Author : Melinda Zanetich