LESSON PLAN
Fieldwork in the school grounds
Aim : To produce a fieldguide of living things in a particular habitat
Objectives :
 Pupils recognise that there are different plants and animals in their local
environment.
 Children learn how to use simple keys to identify living things in their
local environment.
 They use observational skills to help them write detailed descriptions
and ICT skills to produce the pages of a fieldguide.
 To learn that animals and plants in a local habitat are interdependent.
National curriculum:
Sc2: 4a,b,c and 5b,d
Learning outcomes :
 They can recognise that different living things are found in different
places (level 2).
 They can use keys based on observable external features to help them to
identify and group living things systematically (Level 4)
Key vocabulary:
Investigation,
relationships, recognition, habitats
adaptation,
identification,
feeding
Resources: Try and keep the equipment to a minimum but encourage pupils
to collect samples for detailed study.
Collecting : Collecting pot/tray/bag, Pooters, Nets for ponds, Tweezers or
paintbrushes for small things
Observing : Magnifying glasses, Collecting tank, Cameras
Identifying : FSC fold out identification chart or similar
Safety guidance: Before you carry out your fieldwork think about some of the
potential risks of working outside and handling certain plants or animals. When
working in the school grounds always be aware of everyday risks. See
www.hull.ac.uk/primaryschoolfieldwork for some generic risk assessments and
check out your own school procedures.
Teacher’s notes: This is a simple activity that allows pupils to work in small
groups to investigate a local environment. The activity encourages children to
explore, find and identify for themselves specific living things in a particular
habitat, and is intended to have very little teacher input other than safety
guidance and some assistance with using keys to name living things.
Worksheets that can be used for several different groups of living things can be
found at www.hull.ac.uk/primaryschoolfieldwork. Templates for the ICT work
and examples of fieldguide pages can also be found at
www.hull.ac.uk/primaryschoolfieldwork
Lesson plan:
Prior to the activity the area and the type of living things to be investigated
must be chosen and appropriately resourced with the correct identification
charts, eg. Plants on the playing field, minibeasts in the school grounds, trees
in the local wood.
Introduction : Discuss with the class the different habitats that make up your
school grounds. Talk about how scientists name the living things in a habitat by
collecting specimens and using identification keys. Distribute and demonstrate
the equipment.
Activity 1 : Investigation of a habitat. Move outside to the area to be
investigated, go over the safety aspects of the activity and make clear the
boundary lines for working. Allow the children to explore and collect all the
particular living things, e.g. all the different types of minibeast and make a list
of them. Once they have done this, then split the class up and allow them to
chose a particular species to then study in more detail. Recording these
observations
on
a
worksheet
(download
at
www.hull.ac.uk/primaryschoolfieldwork) will help to prompt memory when
writing the fieldguide page. Encourage them to draw and observe really
carefully their living thing and to try and think what it is like to live in the
habitat, thinking perhaps of what it eats or what eats it. Emphasise the
importance of having special adaptations to live in particular places. Discuss
why specimens should be handled carefully and returned to where they were
found. If investigating plants then pupils can be encouraged to look at all the
parts of the plants, including the roots and samples could be taken back to the
classroom. Children are to take photographs using digital cameras of the living
things for use in the fieldguide pages.
Activity 2 : This requires access to computers for pupils to produce a page of a
fieldguide on their particular species. This task might be shared by a small
group doing the same living thing or there might be duplicate pages of the
same species. A blank template for use by pupils to fill in and an example of a
fieldguide page can be found at www.hull.ac.uk/primaryschoolfieldwork. Once
the pupils have written their description and chosen the photos to use, they
will then need to research further information from the internet or library
resources on their particular species. Suitable websites for plants, trees,
minibeasts, pond organisms and rock pool organisms can be found at
www.hull.ac.uk/primaryschoolfieldwork. Once all pages have been written
they can be collated into a fieldguide of the living things in that specific habitat,
e.g. minibeasts in the school grounds and the guide can be used by other
classes. A range of ICT skills will be used to complete this authentic task.
Extension activities :
 Use the observational drawings of the living things to inspire a creative
display of the habitat.
 Design and build improvements to the school grounds to encourage
more biodiversity by creating micro-habitats.
 Produce a set of top trump cards on the living things, using the facts that
the children have gathered from their research.
 In numeracy, work with estimations of populations of organisms and the
role of sampling.
 Find out the similar niches of a particular set of living things in a different
country with different climates.
 Write a diary of an explorer who discovers new species.
Useful information:
Find
out
more
about
this
particular
project
from
www.hull.ac.uk/primaryschoolfieldwork for all the information and examples
of making a field guide.