Unit Name: 3rd: Environmental Impacts on Organisms
BIG IDEA: Organisms are suited for their specific habitats
Explanation: Students will investigate various habitats and how organisms are best suited for their specific
habitat.
STAGE ONE: DESIRED RESULTS
ESTABLISHED GOALS (State and/or National Content Standard (s)):
a. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the types of habitats in which organisms
live, and ask questions based on that information.
b. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information that in any particular environment, some kinds of
organisms survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.
c. Analyze data to describe how humans, like all other organisms, obtain living and non-living
resources from their environment.
d. Use models to evaluate how environmental changes in a habitat affect the number and types of
organisms that live there; some remain, move in, move out, and/or die.
e. Use evidence to argue that some changes in an organism’s habitat can be beneficial or harmful to
the organism.
f. Obtain and communicate information about the characteristics of groups of organisms and
evaluate how groups help organisms survive.
g. Use data about the characteristics of organisms and habitats to design an artificial habitat in
which the organisms can survive.
UNDERSTANDINGS:
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS:
EU1. Habitats are composed of living and non-living
elements.
EQ1. What are the essential components of all
habitats?
EU2. An organism’s habitat is dependent on the
environment.
EQ2. How can environmental changes affect the
organisms in a habitat?
EU3. All things in nature are constantly changing.
EQ3. Are all changes in a habitat bad?
KNOWLEDGE:
Students will know:
SKILLS:
Students will be able to:



what constitutes a habitat
organisms may move in and out of a habitat
based on environmental pressures
some environmental changes are beneficial to
organisms.



use appropriate materials to construct a
habitat
evaluate information
work together to solve a problem

how to construct a model
ESSENTIAL VOCABULARY: habitat, organism,
survival, characteristics
STAGE TWO: ASSESSMENT EVIDENCE
PERFORMANCE TASK:
OTHER EVIDENCE:
Students will demonstrate standard by:
In class conversations
Goal: Design a habitat
Drawings/writings in notebook
Role: The students will be working for the St. Louis Zoo
designing a habitat that fits the needs of an animal of
their choice.
The questions they generate
Audience: The head of the zoo
Situation: Students will research and build a model of a
habitat for an animal of their choice.
Performance: Presenting the habitats to the class
Standards: See rubric- students will aid in the wording
of the rubric.
Structure Function Rubric
Great Job
Habitat meets the needs
of the animal chosen
Understands the living
and non-living
components of a habitat
Attention to detail
Explains the effect of
environmental change on
the habitat
Needed redirection
Struggled
STAGE THREE: LEARNING PLAN
(LESSON SEQUENCE) Use WHERETO
W= Where unit is going H= Hook E= Equip R= Rethink/revise E= Evaluate T= Tailor O= Organize for deeper understanding
LESSON # 1: (1 day)
Hook: Video on the 7+ main habitats of the world. Discuss where this unit is going.
LESSON # 2: Start with notebook prompt (1 day)
Go out to the garden space. Have teams of students discover different habitats. They will need to record: what
makes up the habitat (living and non-living items, what might live there and what pressures might this area come
under and how that would affect the various organisms)
LESSON # 3: Start with notebook prompt (3 days)
Play the survival game:
Day 1/2: They pick an animal, cut out a picture of that animal and glue it to card stock. They need to write down:
What the animal eats, what eats the animal, where it lives and 4 things that helps that animal survive.
Day 3: Sitting in a circle I will pick trouble cards and read them out. After assessing the situation, they have to
determine if their animal would survive. We will play several rounds and then evaluate.
LESSON # 4: Start with notebook prompt (1 day)
Watch video on groups of animals. Break into small groups and come up with a pro and con list of living in a
group.
LESSON # 5: Start with notebook prompt (3 days)
Using the animal from lesson 3, students will be designing a habitat for that animal. They will be presenting their
habitat to the class.
LESSON # 6: Start with notebook prompt (1 day)
Wrap up by including humans in the grand scheme of things- the living and non-living things we get from our
environment.