Final Lesson: Our Amazing Body Compared With Other Mammals
Holly Allen
Grade Level: Third
Time Frame: This lesson will extend over several class periods.
Objectives:
NCSCOS Third Grade Science
4.01 Identify the skeleton as a system
of the human body.
NCSCOS Third Grade Technology
3.04 Identify, discuss, and use multimedia to present
ideas/concepts/information in a variety of ways as a class.
Materials:
Computers for each student (computer lab)
PowerPoint
Internet
Key Questions:
What have my students learned about the human skeleton?
How does our body compare to other mammals?
Procedures:
Day 1
1. I will begin by reviewing what we have learned. We will
return to the PowerPoint we created during our first lesson and see if
we have answered our questions.
2. We will discuss the databases each child has created; they
will confer with a friend, then print them out and hand them in.
3. I will introduce our final project: a comparison PowerPoint
between the human skeleton and the skeleton of another mammal. I
will explain that each child will select a mammal (we will spend a few
minutes reviewing the charcteristics of mammals), research its
skeleton, then create a PowerPoint with at least ten slides that
compares the human skeleton and their mammal's skeleton. They
must include an introductory page on the human skeleton, a page on
their mammal's skeleton, a few pages about what is alike, a few pages
about what is different, a page speculating about why they are
different, and a page listing their sources. They must include at
least five appropriate pictures that they found on the internet and
cite them correctly.
Days 2- 5
1. Students will research their animals and begin compliing
information for inclusion in their PowerPoint. Teacher will
circulate to make sure that each child is moving forward in an timely
manner.
Day 6
1. Students will share their completed PowerPoints with the
class, as well as their completed databases from earlier lessons.
Students and teachers will ask questions and the student sharing will
serve as the expert on his animal.
Assessment
Students will be assessed on the completeness, correctness, and
appearance of their PowerPoint. Students will be asked to answer
the following questions:
Higher Order Thinking Skills
Recall: Share three specific things that you learned about bones, joints, or muscles.
Analysis: Sort the following bones into categories based on their purpose.
Skull, patella, femur, tibia, ribs, phalanges.
Comparison:Compare and contrast what you learned about your mammal and the human skeleton.
Inference:
What if instead of stubby toes, we had long fingers on our feet?
How would this change how humans lived? Give at least three ideas
with support.
Evaluation: What part of this unit helped you learn the best? What part would you change?
The questions will be evaluated by the teacher.
Differentiation
Throughout this lesson, the teacher will circulate to
ensure that all students understand what is being done. She may
change requirements, offer extra help, or modify questions at any point
to help ensure that each child is able to best show off what he/she has
learned. The previous questions may be read aloud, and answered
verbally.
Next Steps
The students will be ready to move onto a new unit of study. The
teacher may return to this unit often throughout the year, as the
skeletal system is something that is readily accessible to students.