Lesson Plans
Teacher:
Date:
Content Area: SCL2 WRL3
Unit: LIVING THINGS and ECOSYSTEMS
Title of Lesson: How do living things change over time?
Essential Questions: Why do living things change over time? What evidence do we have that extinct animals
once lived?
Standards Addressed: SC2.19 Describe fossil evidence of extinct organisms and explain changes in life forms over time
WR3.02 Experiment with original formats WR3.04 Uses descriptive words, WR3.11 Uses citation
Anticipatory Set/Introduction:
1) What happened here? Student teams use worksheet to come up
with a scenario about what happened. Group sharing and discussion
about how scientists use what evidence they have to develop
theories.
2) Extinct- ask students to think-pair-share about what it means.
Go over their ideas and come up with a class definition of extinct.
Read the Natural History Fact Sheet Wooly Mammoth (Wildlife for
the Future curriculum pg. 116) and summarize the information on
the board and in journals.
Modeling:
-Review information from Wildlife for the Future curriculum pages
27-32 about extinction. Summarize in notes for student journals.
-Project the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Center site and
show/discuss the fossil evidence for extinct animals of this region.
How did the Giant Beaver survive? Look at the information sheet
for the giant beaver with the class and model listing some of the
physical characteristics of the beaver and what traits helped it to
survive and why it became extinct. Cite the source of the
information explain this process to students).
Guided Practice:
How did the Wooly Mammoth survive? The class helps list the
physical characteristics of the mammoth and what traits helped it to
survive and why it became extinct. Cite the source of the
information.
Independent Practice:
Students choose the Stella Sea Cow or the Great Auk Fact Sheet
(Wildlife for the Future book pg. 117-118) -read and summarize
the fact sheet in journals- include characteristics that helped it
survive and why it is now extinct. Share with partners. Cite the
source of information.
Closure:
Students write a paragraph about what it would be like if wooly
mammoths still lived in your area and illustrate with a drawing.
Assessment Date and Type: Wooly Mammoth journal prompt.
R 8/09
Resources/Materials
What happened here? Worksheets for teams.
Alaska’s Wildlife for the Future book- pg.2732 and 116-118
Yukon Beringia Interpretive Center web site
http://www.beringia.com/ (under center
information-look at the virtual tour and online exhibits- Ice Age Gallery) ;under Beringia
research, print out or share the Wooly
Mammoth, giant beaver, others…
Projector for internet site viewing
Journal About Alaska prompt: Wooly
Mammoth
Resource below---What happened here? worksheet
R 8/09