Example Lesson Extensions
In the Cornerstone Kit, Mayhem at the Museum, the lesson I'm Adaptable introduces students to the fascinating ways animals develop physical traits to help them survive in their environments.
The core objective is to have students explore, design, and create adaptations that allow animals to thrive in different habitats. Students begin with an animal charades game, acting out various adaptations to engage with the concept of survival traits before transitioning into a hands-on creation challenge where they build their own adapted animals.
The lesson fosters scientific thinking by encouraging students to consider why animals have specific adaptations and how those features contribute to survival in different environments.
How the Extensions Modify the Original Lesson
Each extension builds upon the lesson’s adaptation and survival themes while emphasizing different learning outcomes:
1. Writing a Short Story About the Animal’s Adaptations
- Modification: Extends the lesson from a hands-on model-building exercise to a creative writing activity where students develop a narrative about their adapted animal. The story could explain how the animal developed its adaptation, how it helps in daily survival, or how it interacts with other creatures in its habitat.
- Student Outcome: Reinforces cause-and-effect thinking as students consider how an adaptation influences an animal’s behavior and survival. Strengthens early literacy and communication skills by connecting scientific understanding with storytelling.
2. Creating a Three-Dimensional Model of the Animal’s Environment
- Modification: Adds an environmental component to the lesson, challenging students to construct a physical model of their animal’s habitat. Using materials like cardboard, clay, natural elements, and craft supplies, students build a small-scale representation of their animal’s environment, including water sources, shelter, predators, and food sources that affect survival.
- Student Outcome: Helps students understand the interdependence between animals and their environment. Encourages spatial reasoning and hands-on creativity while reinforcing habitat-based adaptation concepts.
3. Researching Animal Adaptations Using a Digital Resource
- Modification: Introduces an independent research element, allowing students to explore real-world examples of adaptations through an educational website. Students can look up specific species, compare adaptations, and identify animals with similar survival strategies to the ones they created in class.
- Student Outcome: Encourages early research skills and introduces students to digital literacy by navigating educational websites. Helps bridge classroom learning with real-world scientific knowledge.