Erin Finneron

Cecilia Szymanski
EDU-225
April 3, 2015

RAFT Task Card: Row 1- Science: From Seed to Produce

Objective:
You will be able to describe a plant that is endangered and why it is important to the
environment.
Student Role:
A blogger who wants to inform readers why they should work to save an endangered plant.
Audience:
Everyday visitors and readers of the online source.
Format:
An informative blog post on the students personal blog page.
Topic: The importance of a specific endangered plant and why it should be protected.
Directions:
1. Visit http://plants.usda.gov/threat.html and find a plant that is interesting to you.
2. Decide why you believe this plant should be protected and how we can go about saving
the plant.
3. Use a writing planner such as a web to sort all of the ideas.
4. Type the informative 1-2 paragraph using Microsoft Word.
5. Provide the teacher with a copy of the draft for review.
6. Post the final copy of the 1-2 paragraph paper on to the blog site.
7. Comment on another students blog post with your thoughts.

Resources:
Websites to visit:
Government Information about Plants:
http://plants.usda.gov
How to Save Endangered Plants:
http://www.endangered.org/10-easy-things-you-can-do-to-save-endangered-species/
Why Plants are Important:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fecessadATQ

Assessment:
Prepare a 1-2 paragraph blog that your classmates can read and comment on.
You will receive up to 25 points for each of the following: Web or story planner, draft version of
blog, commenting on a classmates blog, and the final blog post.

RAFT Task Card: Row 2- Science: From Seed to Produce

Objective:
You will explain how a plant goes through the transformation from seed to food.
Student Role:
A plant with fruit, beans, or flowers
Audience:
A bird who is about to eat the food off your plant.
Format:
A story of a plants life and the interaction between a bird and the plant.
Topic:
Explain to a bird how the food that it eats is created and spread.
Directions:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Visit http://mocomi.com/what-is-germination/ to learn more about how seeds grow.

Read or listen to Eric Carles The Tiny Seed book.
Write your own story about a seed or plant and a bird.
Create a 5 slide power point to illustrate your story.

5. Practice your story aloud with the teacher.

6. Share your story with your classmates and read your story as the power point plays.
Resources:
Websites to visit:
How Birds are Involved in Germination:
http://kidsgrowingstrong.org/birds-garden
How Seeds Spread:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/gardening_with_children/didyouknow_seeds.shtml#how_plants
_spread_seeds
Eric Carles The Tiny Seed
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls6wTeT2cKA
Assessment:
Prepare a short story and a 5 slide power point about a plants life in nature for your classmates.
You will receive up to 25 points for each of the following: written story, practicing story with the
teacher, power point, and sharing your story with classmates.

RAFT Task Card: Row 3- Science: From Seed to Produce

Objective:
You will be able to tell a local farmer why it is important to keep their farm open.
Student Role:
An animal or a local townsperson. (Farms do not only help people!)
Audience:
A farmer who is about to close his or her farm.
Format:
An email to the farmer.
Topic:
The importance of local farms and the impact they have on humans and animals.

Directions:
1. Visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXJSI6n8oz8 to learn more about where our
food comes from.
2. Make a list of all of the foods that you eat daily.
3. Sort the list of foods you eat into categories and decide where they come from.
4. Research different types of farms.
5. Decide why a farm is important to your everyday life.
6. Write a letter to a local farmer explaining why they should continue to farm and why it is
important to your daily life.
7. Provide the teacher with a draft of the letter.
8. Email the letter and receive a response from a local farmer.
Resources:
Websites to visit:
Virtual Tours of Farms:
https://www.agclassroom.org/kids/tours.htm
Meet a Dairy Farmer:
http://www.sites.ext.vt.edu/virtualfarm/dairy/dairy_producer.html
Meet a Poultry Farmer:
http://www.sites.ext.vt.edu/virtualfarm/poultry/poultry_producer.html

Assessment:
Prepare a letter to a farmer that will be emailed about why they he or she should continue to
farm. Explain why their farm is important to your everyday life.
You will receive up to 25 points for each of the following: list of foods categorized, draft of
letter, and email sent to farmer.