Throughout this project, our students will develop an appreciation and understanding of the tidepool habitat through observation, close research, and outdoor field experiences. Students will develop an understanding of water and water habitats through inquiry in the classroom and in science. They will make observations of water and liquid density using their senses, ask questions about water, and make predictions about evaporation through experimentation and observation. Students will be able distinguish between living and nonliving things, and understand that water is essential for all living things. Students will be able to identify parts of the water cycle and how it affects the animals living in the tidepool. Students will participate in fieldwork that will expose them to this habitat. Students will know that a tidepool is a habitat that changes when the tide moves in and out, and the animals that live there have special features that help them survive. Students will be able to describe a variety of plants and animals found in the tidepool habitat and identify how they interact with each other and the environment. Students will use observation and inquiry to understand that all animals need food and water to live and grow (survive), and that animals depend on each other and live together in a habitat. Each student will become an expert on one of the animals in the tidepool, and ask questions on how their animal moves, finds food, eats, and survives. Students will pair with 4th graders to help with research and writing. Each student will write their own nonfiction book (“All-About” book) about their animal. Students will engage in scientific illustration, including the critique and revision process. We will use a model (tidepool wall in the classroom) to represent the relationship between the needs of different plants and animals and the places they live. Students will collect a variety of data from the tidepools, organize the data into graphs and diagrams, and analyze that data by counting the number in each category and comparing. Throughout the next few months, students will be listening to and reading grade appropriate texts about the animals and plants we are studying. Culminating our study, student will communicate solutions with others, in oral and written form, that will reduce the impact of humans on the land, water, and living things in the local environment. ​ Products: Painted animal art with chosen tide pool animal Conservation posters about our animals Play pieces for a tidepooling kit - donated to Birch Aquarium "All About" animal books Class book: Tidepool Creature Features to Treasure Class habitat mural in room 145 Timeline: December - What is science? Students wonder about water and make observations using the scientific method to study evaporation. Introduction to water, the water cycle, and the ocean Sink or Float in science exploratory The scientific method (evaporation study) Living vs. Non-living January - Begin tidepool recreation wall in room 145 (add non-living and living features to wall) Begin habitat study in science (building a pond aquarium) Fieldwork to Birch Aquarium - Jan. 13 - to learn about animals and their special adaptations Introduce animals we might find in the tidepool Read books about tidepool and ocean animals Visit Carlsbad tidepools to see animals in a local environment Mussel clump dissection (looking for small animals that live in the mussels) and add mussels to the wall Choose our animals! Begin scientific drawings of our animals (1st/2nd drafts) Introduce the critique process What lives in a shell? (science) February - Collaborate with 4th grader researchers on our "all about" books Continue with drawing critiques and begin 3rd and 4th drafts of our drawings Begin painted paper artwork in science for each animal Add brittle stars and sea urchins to the tidepool wall How we can protect the natural tidepool habitat? How we can tell others about the special creature features (adaptations) of our animals? Start book page prototypes. Fieldwork to Swami's Tidepools to see more animals and try to find our own animal. Discuss ways to translate our ideas at Exhibition. Get critique on our writing ("all about" books) March - Practice sharing our "all about" books with others at our school Finish painted paper artwork and finalize book pages about a special feature of our animals Learn about predators, cousins, and other additional adapations (special features or creature features) of our animals Discuss food chains and food webs. How do our animals interact? Put finishing touches on our books and self-assess our work Exhibitions: March 9 at Birch Aquarium and March 15 at HTeNC

i will have four living organisms for students to observe (pill bugs, dragonfly nymphs, damselfly nymphs, superworms) but I do not want students to know what they are. My goal is for students to design their own inquiry/investigation/research process to discover the truth for each species. Each species will be set up at one of four separate stations. Students will work in groups of three. students will make qualitative and quantitative observations and drawings / diagrams of the four different organisms. I want students to explore and push their own curiosity to guide their investigation. How will we solve the mystery of "what are these species"? What animals are we observing? What are some of the questions that we can ask that would help us investigate and eventually identify these 4 different species?

Students can ask questions about organisms in their environment that they are interested in and then design experiments to learn more about those organizisms. Students can predict how human activities could effect my ecosystem and environment both positively and negatively. Students can notice changes in the world around them that lead to changes in their ecosystem and ask how they might feel a connection to the things around them. Students study natural systems outside of the classroom while doing investigations inside the classroom and make connections between the two and make sense of each other.

American History, Government and Economics

Using the CKLA curriculum - we wanted to create a project focusing on Plants, Farms, Seasons and Weathers, and finally taking care of the earth. At the same time incoporating science, social studies, math, and ELA kindergarten standards to the project.

Project Zero: The Modern Mirror (Diagnostic & Introductory Unit) Driving Question: How do the core tensions of the past continue to drive modern conflict, and why do certain historical arguments remain unresolved across centuries? Objective: Introduce the 6 overarching course themes (Social, political, economic, cultural, environment). Students conduct a research sweep to prove that 21st-century headlines are simply unresolved historical arguments. There will be a final project that this connects to at the end of the year that requires them to use their skills to analyze the change in more depth. The Front-Page Comparative Wire (Infographic Brief) Format: A split-screen digital front page or infographic comparing a 21st-century news item side-by-side with a historic archival front page or historical document excerpt. Student Experience: The student acts as a news editor pitching a "Then vs. Now" story arc to their editorial board (the class). In 3 minutes, they walk through the contemporary headline, unpack the chart/graph in the center, and explain how the underlying conflict mirrors the historic anchor. Why it Works: Directly bridges English text/media analysis with AP World History source comparison right out of the gate.

Students create an environmentally sustainable redesign for a community space, such as a park, library, public square, empty lot, or community center. Students visit the space; research the local context, needs, resources, and constraints; and investigate principles of environmentally sustainable design as they develop their solutions for presentation to key stakeholders.