2nd Grade
Curate - Make meaning for oneself and others by collecting, organizing, and sharing resources of personal relevance.
Inquire - Build new knowledge by inquiring, thinking critically, identifying problems, and developing strategies for solving problems.
Explore - Discover and innovate in a growth mindset developed through experience and reflection.
1.3 Knowledge Constructor - Students critically curate a variety of resources using digital tools to construct knowledge, produce creative artifacts and make meaningful learning experiences for themselves and others.
1.4 Innovative Designer - Students use a variety of technologies within a design process to identify and solve problems by creating new, useful or imaginative solutions.
V. A. 1. Learners develop and satisfy personal curiosity by: Reading widely and deeply in multiple formats.
IV. B. 4. Organizing information by priority, topic or other systematic scheme.
III. D. 1. Learners actively participate with others in learning situations by: Recognizing learning as a social responsibility.
Learners act on an information need by:
Learners identify collaborative opportunities by:
Learners engage with new knowledge by following a process that includes:
3. Generating products that illustrate learning.
4-5 weeks or months, depending on how often you see students
This lesson was created by Claudia Howerton from Manor Hill Elementary School in the Liberty 53 School District.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Students will use resources to research animal pollinators. Once they have a background for characteristics of pollinators they will put the research facts to use designing their own idea for a “super pollinator.” Students will then create a model of the pollinator and write a non-fiction book about their pollinator.
Pollinator Research Non-fiction resources about pollinators (bee, monarch butterfly, hummingbird, and bat)
Pollinator Information Collector/Organizer (1 each student)
Chart paper Markers Super Pollinator Design Super Pollinator Plan (1 each student)
Variety of craft supplies including: styrofoam spheres (different sizes,) wiggle eyes, chenille sticks, wooden shape pieces, foam pieces, colored puff balls, etc.
Hot glue and hot glue gun (low temp if you want students to use them)
Sharpie/permanent Markers (to color the styrofoam balls)
Book Design Super Pollinator Book Rough Draft Template (1 for each student)
iPad ( Keynote, Google Slides, or Book Creator)
I can use different resources to research.
I can take notes and organize information.
I can use the design process to develop my own ideas.
I can add text, drawings, and pictures to create a final product.
I can share what I have learned with other people.
Introduction (1 day, 55-minute class session)
Show students the “Hero of the Planet” slide. Ask the class if they agree with the caption for the photo. Have a class discussion about why they agree or disagree.
After the conversation, show the students the article and talk about reliable sources. Then slowly talk through each slide of the 7 things they should know about pollinators. Do not read the slides to the class, use the information as talking/discussion points.
After the article discussion, ask students if their opinion has changed and why?
Last, show the short video about the robot bee. Tell students that scientists are working on solutions for this problem currently. Ask them what things these scientists are experts in to be able to do their jobs?
Present the project to students, and let them know they will be scientists that need to build their background knowledge on the topic of pollinators to be able to design a super pollinator.
Pollinator Research (2-3 days, 55-minute class sessions)
Pollinator Information Collector/Organizer (1 each student)
Each student needs a pollinator information collector/organizer and a pencil. The teacher needs chart paper and markers with the same organizer chart as the students drawn on it.
The research part is done as a whole class to demonstrate how to look for facts in research about a topic, collect facts, and organize them using a graphic organizer.
Gather the class around the resource you will be using to find facts, each student needs to be able to write and collect facts as you read through the resource together (we used PebbleGo.)
Start with the honeybee, read sections about each heading, and talk about going through the process. Let students know that you will say out loud what you are thinking in your head as you write facts for honey bees. They should write the same notes you take at this point.
When you have finished honeybee, use a resource to find information about monarch butterflies. This time ask students what they would write/collect after each section and add it to the whole class chart. Again students should write down the same thing you are writing on the chart. (Note: because bees and butterflies are familiar to students they might try to add things from their background knowledge, not from the resource, I typically have a conversation about that and only add what we are reading at the time.)
Do honey bees and monarch butterflies one day and hummingbirds and bats another day. Sometimes it takes a 3rd day to finish depending on how quickly students write. Also, they should start noticing some similarities about pollinators in general, and encourage these conversations, it helps in the designing stage. They will use this research to help them design their prototypes and write their super pollinator book.
Super Pollinator Design (3-4 days, 55-minute sessions)
Super Pollinator Plan (1 each student)
Give each student the super pollinator planning page.
Students will give the pollinator a name and draw its picture at the end of the designing session, so have the find the pollinator body section first.
Work through each section as a class, talk about the parts, and have students choose what they imagine for their pollinator as you move through each section. Allow students to have their research with them, so they can reference it if they need it to make decisions.
When all the choices have been picked, have students draw a detailed picture of the pollinator and give it a name. Be sure to check that the drawing matches the choices the student made in the plan. After the plans have been completed, students will start constructing prototypes of their pollinators using craft supplies.
Before students start constructing, show them the materials they are allowed to use and brainstorm what each could be used for referring to the design page while you talk.
Be sure the supplies used in the model match the picture and talk about how they have a plan and need to stick to it.
This helps cut down on being excited to use all the supplies.
Construction usually takes a couple of days and then we display them in the library.
Book Design (multiple days, is less time if you can partner with classroom teachers to work on the rough draft, then you work with them on Keynote or other presentation tools to create the final product)
Super Pollinator Book Rough Draft Template (1 for each student)
iPad ( Keynote, Google Slides, or Book Creator)
Each student needs the template from above and their research notes to create a book. Students will work through the template to write a rough draft about their pollinator. Referring back to the research notes and the design page.
Once students have filled in the entire template they may sketch pictures that will go with their writing.
Lastly, use the rough draft template to put the words and pictures into a presentation tool like Keynote and present it as a book.
Super Pollinator Scoring Guide
Students could be partnered up to do the work.
The teacher could choose one set of lessons to complete and not do the project as a whole.
