1. Essential Questions: What adaptations does your animal have that allow it to survive in its habitat? How, specifically, do these traits allow the animal to exist in their environment? To respond, consider: -What strengths does it have? -How is its body equipped for its habitat? Consider the climate. -How does it get its food and eat? -How/where does it make a shelter? -How does it defend/protect itself from others? Apply knowledge learned from your ecosystem research project. Next These materials are © 2014 Shelly Bell, all rights reserved. Image courtesy of: http://vetmed.illinois.edu/wildlifeencounters/grade5_8/lesson2/adaptations.html Adaptation: a quality in an organism allowing it to be better able to survive in a particular place or situation. vetmed.illinois.edu

2. 2. Information Sources To find resources, please visit our classroom website: Miss Bell's Website Go to the “More” tab Choose “Ecosystems” You will find links to internet resources I have previewed for you. In some cases, you will find all the information you need. However, you may choose to explore an animal or plant in more detail by doing additional searches. Tips: When searching additional sources, type the animal or plant’s name and the word adaptations after it. Ex: owl adaptations Next These materials are © 2014, Shelly Bell, all rights reserved.

3. 3. Student/Team Tasks Once your team has been assigned an ecosystem, your team will visit our class website and research each of the links for your ecosystem. You will then decide on an animal to research adaptations for. As a team, research your animal to determine the adaptations it uses to survive in its habitat. Each member must fill in their own assignment sheet and bubble map based on your discussions. Your goal is 6 adaptations, but you must have 4 for full credit. Be sure to cite the websites used that information was paraphrased from at the bottom of your assignment sheet. Reference your assignment sheet for detailed steps. Owls Fringed feathers muffle sounds to help them catch prey. Flexible necks to help them track their prey. Large eyes, set forward result in excellent depth perception. Gizzard allows them to eat food whole and separate the indigestible parts. Their eyes allow for them to see easily at night for hunting. Sharp tallons for catching prey in flight. Next These materials are © 2014, Shelly Bell, all rights reserved.

4. 4. The Assessment Activity Independently, use your iPads to create an Explain Everything project. You will have a title which names your animal. Include a topic sentence which includes your animal and a definition in your own words of what an adaptation is. Provide separate sentences for each adaptation and include evidence of how it helps the animal to survive. End with a concluding sentence. Provide a picture from the Internet of your animal. Next These materials are © 2014, Shelly Bell, all rights reserved. Owl image courtesy of: synchrosecrets.com

5. 5. Enrichment Activities Please visit: Miss Bell's Ecosystem Page for a list of potential websites as you enrich your independent projects with an animal and plant adaptation for your ecosystem by applying the same process. Below are a few great websites.Miss Bell's Ecosystem Page MGB NetDuckstersMGB NetDucksters Prezi.comScience.weebly.comPrezi.comScience.weebly.com tburg.k12.ny.us Next These materials are © 2014, Shelly Bell, all rights reserved. Image fromhttp://4.bp.blogspot.com

6. 6. Teacher Support Materials This project aligns to Common Core State Standards for next generation science and writing: LS1.A - Structure and Function: Plants and animals have both internal and external structures that serve various functions in growth, survival, behavior, and reproduction. www.nextgenscience.org W.4.7 - Conduct short research projects that build knowledge through investigation of different aspects of a topic. W.4.8 - Recall relevant information from experiences or gather relevant information from print and digital sources; take notes and categorize information, and provide a list of sources. cde.ca.gov It also addresses much of the ISTE National Educational Technology Standards and Performance Indicators for Students www.iste.orgwww.iste.org Supported materials include the following worksheets that can be found at the bottom of my webpage. Miss Bell's Website These materials are © 2014 Shelly Bell all rights reserved.

7. References Next Generation Science Standards http://www.nextgenscience.org/sites/ngss/files/4%20combine d%20DCI%20standards%206.13.13.pdf California State Standards http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/cf/documents/glc4thgradecurriculum.pdf