FOSS at Home
FOSS® at Home
Environments
The FOSS® (Full Option Science System™) program offers a number
of ways to get parents involved in their child’s science education.
Included here are short descriptions of several ways to bridge from
classroom to home.
Letter to Parents. The letter to parents can be sent home at the start
of a new science module. The letter describes what children will
be learning and ways that parents can enrich the science-learning
experience.
FOSS Science Stories. FOSS Science Stories is a series of original books
developed to accompany and enrich the FOSS modules. The books
include a variety of articles written in a number of styles, including
narrative tales, expository articles, technical readings, and historical
accounts.
Here are some suggestions for using FOSS Science Stories at home.
LETTER TO PARENTS
Name ____________________________________
Date _____________________________________
Cut here and paste onto school letterhead before making copies.
SCIENCE NEWS
Dear Parents,
Our class is beginning a new science unit using
the FOSS Environments Module. We will
investigate several different plants and animals to
discover the environments that support their wellbeing, and attempt to determine the optimum
environments for some of the organisms.
The news is full of discussions of
environment—environmental issues,
environmental protection, environmental activism,
and more. Environmental issues are complex
because environments are complex. Our studies will not range into
issues, but will deal with the more fundamental question: What is an environment?
Often environments can be analyzed in terms of the individual physical (temperature,
moisture, light, etc.) and biological (other organisms) factors that surround an organism. This
analysis can take time and often requires close observation and interpretation of results. We
expect to work with lots of plants and animals to start understanding how organisms flourish
when provided with an environment that is just right for them.
Watch for Home/School Connection sheets that I will be sending home from time to time.
The activities described on them suggest ways you and your child can extend the environmental
inquiry into your home, neighborhood, and community. If possible, take a family field trip to a
local aquatic environment to see what lives there and to ponder the environmental factors that
affect the organisms there. At another time you might set up a specialized environment in your
home to raise Sea Monkeys (brine shrimp), or embark on a mini-safari, looking into microenvironments to see what insects and their kin are living nearby. Hopefully your discoveries will
start some family discussions about environments.
We’re looking forward to weeks of fun with organisms and their environments! If you
have questions or comments, or have expertise you would like to share with the class, please
drop me a note.
Comments:
FOSS Environments Module
© The Regents of the University of California
Can be duplicated for classroom or workshop use.
Investigation 1: Terrestrial Environments
No. 1—Teacher Sheet
No. 1—Teacher Sheet
• Expository and Historical/Biographical Readings. The
expository and historical/biographical readings provide
excellent opportunities for students and parents to discuss
the science content students are learning in the module.
Specific articles include Terrestrial Environments around the
World, Aquatic Environments around the World, and How
Organisms Depend on Each Other.
• After the Story. See the Science Stories folio in the Teacher
Guide for suggestions on how to extend the stories at home.
For example, after students read What Is an Ecosystem?, you
might have students draw food chains and/or food webs at
home.
Environments
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Environments
Name ____________________________________
Date ___________________________________
HOME/SCHOOL CONNECTION
INVESTIGATION 3: WATER TOLERANCE
Where is the optimum environment for growing a plant in your home? That’s not an easy
question to answer. It seems logical to assume that a fern and a cactus would find
optimum conditions in different places, but how would you find out for sure? Conduct an
experiment.
Set up three identical cups, supply each with the same amount of soil, plant the same number of seeds, water them all the same, but place them in three different locations. Then let
the plants indicate which environment is optimum.
Materials
3 Paper or plastic cups
9 Seeds (all the same type) or
3 Small plants of the same kind
• Soil (same amount for each cup)
• Water (same amount for each cup)
My experimental plant (seed) is
The three different environments I selected for my plants are
Environment 1
Environment 2
Environment 3
After 3 or 4 weeks record what happened to the three plants and describe the environment
that you determined to be optimum for your plants.
FOSS Environments Module
© The Regents of the University of California
Can be duplicated for classroom or workshop use.
Home/School Connection
No. 31—Student Sheet
No. 31—Student Sheet
Name ____________________________________
Date ___________________________________
MATH EXTENSION—PROBLEM OF THE WEEK
INVESTIGATION 1: TERRESTRIAL ENVIRONMENTS
Eric, Jose, Shannon, and Jackie wanted to plant a garden. Jose’s dad said they could use a
rectangular space in the backyard that was 8 m by 4 m.
The friends decided they would first like to make a colorful border for the garden using
small flowering plants called marigolds.
If they planted the marigold plants 10 cm apart, how many would they need to complete
the border? Show all your work.
The four friends decided to divide the 8 m by 4 m garden into four plots with equal areas so each could plant his or her own little garden. What size plot will each of the four
friends get? Describe at least two possibilities. Show your work, including drawings if
you like.
FOSS Environments Module
© The Regents of the University of California
Can be duplicated for classroom or workshop use.
Student Sheets. Throughout the module, students complete various
recording and response sheets. Students should bring the sheets and/
or their science notebooks home for families to review and discuss.
For example, student sheet number 6, Animal Investigations, is a good
opportunity for students to explain and review with parents how
an environmental factor, such as water, affects an animal’s preferred
environment.
Home/School Connections. Home/School Connections are activities
developed specifically for the whole family to enjoy at home. For
example, in Investigation 3 (student sheet number 31), students and
their families can investigate the optimum place to grow plants at
home by setting up an experiment with three cups and nine seeds.
Students write their own procedures, make observations, and write a
conclusion based on their results.
Interdisciplinary Extensions. Each investigation has suggestions for
art, language, math, social studies, and science extensions. These are
good family activities. For example, after Investigation 1 students
and their families can read the newspaper and find articles that deal
with environmental factors and their influence on organisms. They
might also do the Math Problem of the Week at home.
FOSSweb (www.fossweb.com). FOSSweb is an interactive website
where families can find instructional activities and interactive
simulations specifically designed for each FOSS module. Problem of the Week
No. 23—Student Sheet
No. 23—Student Sheet
NOTE: All student sheets, including
the Letter to Parents, Home/School
Connection, and Math Problem of
the Week, are available in FOSS
Teacher Guides and online at
www.fossweb.com. They are also
available in Spanish. See For
Parents and Teachers: Home/
School Connection on page 4 of this
folio.
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NOTE: Pages 3 and 4 of this folio can be photocopied and sent home
for parents to read. Those pages provide information on the resources
for students and their families on FOSSweb.
full option science system
FOSS at Home
FOSSWEB (WWW.FOSSWEB.COM)
The FOSS program maintains a resource-rich website for students
and their families and friends. To explore the resources available for
the Environments Module, first enter www.fossweb.com in your
browser.
The FOSS website requires plug-ins for your browser. We recommend
that you click the “Test Your Browser” link at the bottom of the home
page before you begin to ensure your computer has the minimum
requirements.
Click the grades 3–6 icon to get a menu that links to each of the 3–6
modules. There you can choose Environments and travel to a wealth
of information and activities specific to this module.
ACTIVITIES
In the Environments Module, you’ll find an activity called Virtual
Aquarium. Introduce this activity after students have completed
Investigation 4, Aquatic Environments. Children are challenged to
create an environment that will keep the fish they select alive for at
least 30 days. You might ask,
•
What kinds of organisms live in a freshwater environment?
•
What are the environmental factors in a freshwater environment?
•
How did the organisms affect the quality of the aquatic
environment?
If necessary, review the living and nonliving factors children
investigated with the freshwater aquariums. At the computer,
show children the choices they can make in creating their virtual
aquariums: the number of fish and plants, whether to have the
bubbler on, the amount of food to release, and the water temperature.
Try setting up the aquarium for one fish with the class, asking for
suggestions on the choices. Click Start and observe. Show children
the ? button and explain that they can find some helpful suggestions
for a successful aquarium at this link. Have them keep a record of
what conditions they set up and the results for each trial.
Environments
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Environments
MOVIES
The Movies section shows various environments, organisms, and
cycles.
PICTURES
In the Pictures section, you can view images of various environments
and organisms, as well as diagrams of the water, nitrogen, and
carbon cycles. You can use the images to discuss the environmental
factors that affect the different environments and organisms and
how the water, nitrogen, and carbon cycles play a role in each of the
environments. Students may want to do further research on these
organisms as part of their end-of-module project.
WEBSITES
The Websites section includes links to sites that can extend and enrich
children’s experiences with the Environments Module.
VOCABULARY
In the Vocabulary section, you will find the glossary words and
definitions used in the Environments Module. They are provided in
English and Spanish.
BOOKS/SOFTWARE
This section includes an annotated list of books, videos, and software
recommended for the Environments Module. You should be able to
find many of these titles at your local library. FOR PARENTS AND TEACHERS: HOME/SCHOOL
CONNECTION
The For Parents and Teachers section includes the Home/School
Connection that describes ways for families to do science together.
For example, in Investigation 1, students can make a list of living
and nonliving environmental factors found in and around their
homes. Students then discuss this list with a family member. If there
are differences, the student writes a brief explanation. Look in this
section for other resources included in a downloadable PDF file,
including a general letter introducing the module, student projects,
and math problems that relate to the science investigations.
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Copyright The Regents of the University of California
full option science system
1014233