Project Overview

Square of Life is an Internet-based collaborative project that allows students to share information about the plants, animals and non-living objects found in their schoolyard environment with other students from around the country and the world. This project, developed by the Stevens' Institute for elementary level students in grades 1 to 6, boasts repeating projects among diverse school populations.

For this projects, we will be working with a fifth grade class, focusing on Science standards. This project will be used in its shortened format as a supplement to the Foss Environments unit. Abbreviated lesson plans that allow participation in the collaborative portions of the project are available in the Teacher Area on the Square of Life site.

Major Learning Objectives

Students will be able to:
- Define environment
- Describe their classroom environment
- Describe their school environment
- Understand how to place objects on a map
- Record scientific observations
- Compare predictions to known facts
- Classify objects
- Create representations of objects based on descriptions
- Compare and contrast sets of objects
- Communicate information to others

State Science Standards

1SC-F2. Construct models (e.g., a volcano, a paper airplane, a solar system) that illustrate simple concepts and compare those models to what they represent
1SC-F3. Identify and record changes and patterns of changes in a familiar system 1SC-F4. Describe relationships among parts of a familiar system (e.g., a bicycle, a park, a clock)
1SC-E3. Organize and present data gathered from their own experiences, using appropriate mathematical analyses and graphical representations
1SC-P2. Compare observations of the real world to observations of a constructed model (e.g., an aquarium, a terrarium, a volcano)
4SC-E7. Explain and model the interaction and interdependence of living and non-living components within ecosystems, including the adaptation of plants and animals to their environment
6SC-E3. Describe the composition (including the formation of minerals, rocks and soil) and the structure of the earth

Implementation Issues

- This project requires students to work in collaborative groups. To be successful, students may need coaching or guidelines for group work. Additionally, the teacher should take care to create student goups balanced for abilities and learning styles.
- This project, like any Science activity, requires many materials for the student activities. While none of the materials are expensive or difficult to obtain, the teacher may find it benificial to review the plans and gather materials before beginning the project.
- This project allows classes to partner with another class (located in another part of the country) for the duration of the project. If the teacher chooses to do this, they should arrange for a partner classroom through the Teacher Pages on the Square of Life site well before the beginning of the project. Furthermore, a partnership with another classroom will require careful planning by both teachers, outilining roles and expectations, before students begin sharing.
- This project allows students to post thier work and pictures on the Square of Life web page. While this is certain to appeal to the students and add authenticity to their work, the teachers needs to be certain to get proper permissions for student work and/or photos to be published on the web and to abide by the district's Acceptable Use policy.