Developed for the second grade. A biodome is a self-sustaining habitat for plants. Students will make a biodome in a recycled soda bottle and watch as their seeds grow. Students will observe and understand how the water in the biodome continues to recycle itself through condensation and evaporation.Biology In Elementary Schools is a Saint Michael's College student project. The teaching ideas on this page have been found, refined, and developed by students in a college-level course on the teaching of biology at the elementary level. Unless otherwise noted, the lesson plans have been tried at least once by students from our partner schools. This wiki has been established to share ideas about teaching biology in elementary schools. The motivation behind the creation of this page is twofold: 1. to provide an outlet for the teaching ideas of a group of college educators participating in a workshop-style course; 2. to provide a space where anyone else interested in this topic can place their ideas.

Students read an article titled "The Sixth Extinction" by Niles Eldredge on past mass extinctions and the current rate of loss of species. The instructor can choose from a suite of activities which include having students respond to discussion and extension questions about the article, write an essay on the article defending Eldredge's view, create an extinction chart, and debate the actions of stakeholders faced with an endangered species vs. human water needs scenario. Students will need to research additional references to complete the activities and be prepared to defend their positions.

This is a unit for K-2 students on fish habitats. The last day is a field trip to a local lake.

This lesson is an introduction to a unit on habitat. It is designed to combine literature and science.

This activity is an investigation to determine the effect of soil type on plant growth. The students will develop an understanding of the plant as producer.

In this unit second graders explore different habitats (forest, desert, water, rainforest, and wetland) and investigate how different plants and animals survive in each the habitat. Rather than just learning facts about the habitats, students examine come to understand the connection between parts of each habitat and how those connections are crucial for survival. Using the Next Generation Science Standards as a guide, students are challenged to use the information they learn about different habitats to compare how different plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs. Students will also be challenged to compare the differences in the kinds of living things that are found in different areas and why those differences exist. This unit builds on the first grade Animals unit, in which students learned about different types of animals and their characteristics, and prepares students for a third grade unit in which they will analyze animal adaptations with regard to animal habitats.

This unit uses the Bobbie Kalman Introducing Habitats series as mentor texts. These texts were chosen because of their clear representations of the different habitats and their accessibility. The texts in this unit support student understanding of key genre features while also allowing multiple opportunities to develop fluency. Over the course of the unit the majority of heavy thinking and analysis should be on students. By the end of the unit, students should have a deeper understanding of key components of informational texts, and students should be able to transfer those understandings to other complex informational texts.

Students will also write daily in response to the text, with a focus on making a correct claim to answer the question. Students will also begin writing longer informational texts in which they synthesize and teach back the content they are learning about the different habitats.

The Ecology Student Edition book is one of ten volumes making up the Human Biology curriculum, an interdisciplinary and inquiry-based approach to the study of life science.

In this unit, second graders learn about insects and the impact insects have on the natural world. Building on what students learned in Unit 1 about habitats, they will explore how different insects rely on the environment, or habitat in which they live, for survival. Through this exploration, students will learn the unique characteristics of insects, how insects can be both beneficial and destructive, and the stages of an insect's life cycle. By the end of the unit, students will have a deeper understanding of and appreciation for the beauty of the insect world.

This unit is comprised of predominantly shared reading experiences to help students practice different reading strategies and skills. Building on unit one, students will continue to be inquisitive, active consumers of texts by asking and answering questions, and they will continue to deepen their understanding of the role text features and illustrations play in helping a reader better understand the content of a text. Students will also begin to explore the connections between scientific ideas and concepts using cause-and-effect language and will continue to strengthen their habits of discussion as they debate and analyze key ideas of the unit.

This activity is a field investigation where students will observe, discuss, and gather evidence on how environmental changes affect animals that live in that habitat.

This investigation is a field study where students compare the diversity of plants and insects in a naturally existing habitat to that of a human altered habitat.

This activity is a longer project that involves using inquiry to find out what kinds of aquatic animals live in our school pond. Students use direct observation, journaling, outdoor classroom techniques, research skills, collaboration, and service learning to learn about their question.

Video Description:  In this close-up video, Julie Williams-Byrd, Center Chief Technologist at NASA's Langley Research Center, shares her love for identifying technologies that support NASA missions.  Video Length:  2:03.NASA eClipsTM is a suite of online student-centered, standards-based resources that support instruction by increasing STEM literacy in formal and nonformal settings.  These free digital and downloadable resources inform and engage students through NASA-inspired, real-world connections.NASA eClips Ask SME: Close-up with a NASA Subject Matter Expert videos are professionally developed to capture a glimpse of NASA SME's personal interests and career journeys. Each can be used to spark student interest and broaden their ideas of the STEM workforce. Additional videos in this series can be found by searching GoOpenVA using "NASA eClips Ask SME".       

Spreadsheets Across the Curriculum/Geology of National Parks module. Students use the geometric mean and multiplicative standard deviation to examine the right-skewed distribution of nutrient concentrations in water-quality data at Mammoth Cave National Park.

This activity is a field investigation where students will compare the biodiversity of two separate habitats based on the collection and identification of insects.

This article provides ideas and lessons on how elementary teachers can integrate webcams from the Arctic and Antarctica into their teaching. Five webcams are highlighted as well as three lessons on writing poetry and observing animal behavior.

Learn about the diverse group of wildlife known as water birds -- loons, herons, egrets, ducks, geese, grebes, pelicans, and more -- which makes up 30 families, and, collectively about 800 species. Water birds can be found in the mountains, rivers, marshes, and coastal plains; each adapted to their specific environment. Whether year-round residents or long-distance migrants, many water birds depend on critical wetland habitats. Learn more about this amazing avian wildlife and how we can change our behaviors to help their habitats and populations. UNTAMED looks at the wild and often perilous world of wildlife, as seen through the eyes of the patients of the Wildlife Center of Virginia, a non-profit teaching and research hospital for native wildlife.

Students will listen to the book, Under One Rock Bugs, Slugs, and Other Ughs, written by Anthony D. Frederick and illustrated by Jennifer DiRubbio and then make a mini-book observation journal, Under One Rock to record what they see when they go outdoors to investigate what lives under a rock.

Spreadsheets Across the Curriculum/Geology of National Parks module. Students estimate the net volume of pollutants flowing into the Houchin's Narrows entrance of Mammoth Cave using actual air-flow and air-quality data from the park.

Students learn about endangered species and actions humans have taken to address the issue of endangered species. The Xpeditions lesson has students think about their experiences with zoos, learn about the reasons for captive breeding, and come up with an opinion about the role of zoos and aquariums in addressing this issue. The additional activity in the Teaching Materials section has students learn about a controversy within the scientific community regarding the captive breeding of tigers. Students will read articles written by the scientists, develop an opinion, discuss the issue with their classmates, and draw a conclusion based upon additional information they have researched.