Santiago Sere

OMDE 610
Section 9040
June 28, 2016
Assignment 3 Animal Adaptations 3rd and 4th Grade
Lessons Description:
These two activities will provide opportunities for students to explore adaptations and
survival of the fittest. These lessons are meant to engage students in third and fourth grade and to
provide a platform for students to actively participate in the learning process in the science unit,
Adaptation. These activities are intended as a two-day exploration and experimentation with the
concepts of animal adaptations, survival, evolution and survival of the fittest. Since I teach third
and fourth grade students with learning differences, I incorporated technology into the lessons
through a blended environment. The technology simulation of survival and adaptations is an
integral part of the lessons.

Grade/Audience: 3rd and 4th Grade

Lessons Objectives: Students will

explore animal adaptations and survival through a simulation and answer questions
regarding their observations

work in pairs to experience life without a human adaptation to come to the conclusion
that adaptations make things easier and possible

Lesson 1: Peppered Moth Simulation

(5 minutes) Warm-Up Students will try to define what Survival means. What does it
mean to survive? What is needed to survive? The class will go over it by sharing student
answers as a whole group.

(10 minutes) Building Prior Knowledge Students will participate in building prior
knowledge as the teacher reads an article aloud. The article is about pollutions and how
that changed the color of trees in a specific town in England. Throughout it, students will
stop and discuss with a partner certain key parts that when teacher stops reading. This
will allow students to go into the explore activity with a stronger foundation of what they
will be doing.

(5 to 10 minutes) Simulation First, students will review the simulation activity sheet to
know what they will need to answer and focus on during the simulation. Then, students
will use their Chromebooks to access the following link: Peppered Moth Simulation. In
the minute long simulation, students will be a predator (bird) and tasked with eating as
many moths as possible. The amount of each population (dark moths versus light moths,
50% each) will be totaled at the bottom. Students will be able to see one moth more
clearly than the other depending on the chosen forest. For instance, in the dark forest,
light colored moths will be more easily seen and therefore easier to catch. This will adjust
the population count. Students will be allowed to do the simulation twice; the first time
for fun and the second time to observe and learn from it.

(10 minutes) Simulation Activity Sheet Students work independently to compare the
population of moths at the beginning of the simulation and at the end. They will also

answer questions like: Why do you think the population changed the way it did? What
are some possible reasons why the dark moths were eaten more/less in your forest? Etc.

(10 minutes) Discussion Students will share their answers to the questions with the
class. They should have gotten similar results depending on their chosen forest so they
will collaboratively conclude certain aspects of the simulation: the population increased
for the moths that were hidden and that this adaptation was beneficial to one type of
moth.

Lesson 2: Thumb Adaptation

(5 to 7 minutes) Warm-Up: Students will come up with at least two possible adaptations
that animals may have that help them survive in the wild. Answers will vary.

(15 to 20 minutes) Thumb Adaptation: Students will work in pairs and go through each
center completing certain tasks using and not using their thumbs. Tasks will include:
writing their name, putting on a jersey, cutting paper with scissors, opening a jar, etc.
Throughout the activity students will rate which method (thumb or thumbless) was easier
on a worksheet. At the end, students will complete a few questions that will be used to
prompt a discussion.

(10 minutes) Discussion: Students will share their answers to the questions. Teacher will
facilitate discussion. If the dialog becomes stagnant, teacher should prompt them with
more questions.

Technology Integration:
Technology is critical in this lesson as it provides students with clear visuals that make
abstract concepts concrete. The moth simulation makes something very abstract and advanced
more student friendly. Through simulation, students are able to experience firsthand the ideas
behind natural selection, adaptations and survival. It is thanks to this simulation that students are
able to start constructing meaning of these sophisticated topics in a student-friendly way. Despite
being abstract and sophisticated concepts, students are able to engage with the topics of natural
selection, animal adaptations and survival because the simulation provides an effective visual
that will help students make the concepts more concrete. They will be responsible for directing
the bird to its prey and as such, students will construct the meaning behind the difficult topics.
The simulation will provide students with a better understanding of how certain
adaptations allow species to survive which results in a balance or increase in population allowing
for that trait to be passed down while less beneficial adaptations die out. Throughout the thumb
discussion on day 2, students should refer to the peppered moth simulation for examples or
supports. Besides using the simulation as a springboard for learning, it is an extremely engaging
activity that will generate enthusiasm, interest and buy-in from all students.
Students will be using the Chromebook that the school provides for each student to
access the simulation. Since most of the students at my school have IEPs, they require assistive
technology to access the curriculum and be active learners.

Theories behind this Lesson:

These two lessons are based on the constructivist theory of learning. Harasim (2012)
states that constructivist theory allows the learner to construct their own understanding and

knowledge of the world through experiencing the world; and reflecting on those experiences (p.
60). Furthermore, as the epistemology of constructivism states that knowledge is constructed by
the learner and his/her interactions with the world and others (Harasim, 2012). Koohang, Riley
and Smith (2009) present a constructivist model where collaboration, cooperation, multiple
perspectives, real world examples, scaffolding, self-reflection, multiple representations of ideas,
and social negotiation (p. 94) are integral to the learning activities. The first days lesson with
the simulation provides many of the elements that are the foundation of constructivism. In it,
students are using technology to simulate and apply concepts to a real world situations to create
new knowledge. Students are also learning from each other by taking advantage of other
students responses and their perspectives through the student-led class discussion at the end of
both days. The teachers role in both lessons is to facilitate the discussions to get to the idea that
adaptations help some animals survive.
On the second day, students are once again using real life experiences to drive a concept
further and to expand their knowledge of adaptations, survival and natural selection from the
previous day. Students will have to answer the question, Does this new information fit with
what I experience/learned yesterday, or does it not? In other words, students will experience
how knowledge is dynamic and changing (Harasim, 2012, p. 60). These lessons provide
students with opportunities to be active and collaborative learners by constructing their own
knowledge thanks to the careful use of technology.

Rubric for Simulation and Thumb Activity:

3
Simulation
Sheet

2
Student tallies
population count
both before and
after simulation
Students
answers 4
questions

Simulation
Questions

Student answers
all 5 questions

Simulation
Behavior

Student
independently
participates in
simulation.

Thumb Sheet

Student
Student
participates in all participates in 7
10 centers
to 9 centers

Thumb
Questions

Student answers
all 5 questions

Students
answers 4
questions

Thumb
Behavior

Student
independently
participates in
activity.

Student
participate in
activity but
requires teacher
prompting.

Student
participate in
simulation but
requires teacher
prompting.

1
Student tallies
population count
either before or
after simulation
Student answers
3 or less
questions
Student
participate in
simulation but
requires
significant
teacher
prompting.
Student
participates in 4
to 6 centers
Student answers
3 or less
questions
Student
participate in
activity but
requires
significant
teacher
prompting.

0
Student does not
tally population.
Student does not
answer
questions.

Student does not

participate in
simulation.

Student
participates in
less than 4
centers
Student does not
answer
questions.

Student does not

participate in
activity.

References
Harasim, L. (2012). Learning theory and online technologies. New York: NY, Routledge.
Koohang, A., Riley, L., and Smith, T. (2009). E-learning and constructivism: From theory to
application. Interdisciplinary Journal of E-Learning and Learning Objects, 5. Retrieved
from https://learn.umuc.edu/content/enforced/8496-022082-01-2138-GO2-