Snake Lesson Plans

By David Wines

Rationale

Effective teaching requires more than simple regurgitation of knowledge. Effective teaching requires planning. It requires an understanding of how people learn, and the willingness to adapt teaching styles for the benefit of the learner. Effective teachers know how to measure academic gains. They know when to review information, and when to move on. Before creating a fifth grade unit on the snakes of Oregon, I feel that it is necessary to outline my understanding of what effective teaching is.

Teachers should have learning targets that align with the varied needs of the students. This includes creating adaptations for students with special needs. Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, every child is entitled to a free and appropriate public education; an education that allows them to learn in the least restricted environment. Many times, the least restricted environment might be working with a peer. It is the responsibility of the teacher to ensure that their needs are being met in the classroom. It is also important to be aware of the varied ways that individuals tend to learn. Some students learn from listening, and a lecture serves them fine. However, others learn through kinesthetic movement. Should their needs be ignored? An effective teacher can find ways to alter lessons so that every student has a chance at success.

Education is undergoing changes. With questions of accountability rising, it is important for educators to measure their students' gains through observable targets that align with the state standards. Teachers need to be able to show parents and administrators the work of their students. It is not enough to tell a parent at a conference, "yes, Johnny is doing just great." Parents, rightfully so, want to see what their child is doing in the classroom. They want to know that they are receiving the best education possible. They want to know that their son/daughter is making progress toward passing the benchmarks. That is why it is equally important for teachers to be able to link their lessons to the state benchmarks.

Technology is a reality of the future. Teachers need to be able to help their students access technology in an educational manner. Computers shouldn't be classroom baby-sitters. Children should be able to use computers to enhance their learning. They should be able to conduct research on a computer. They should be able to use a word processing program. They should help students synthesize information in a meaningful way.

I plan on writing a unit on the snakes of Oregon that contains the characteristics of effective teaching described within this rationale. Teaching is not simply regurgitating information. Teachers should understand their students, and their needs. It is the responsibility of teachers to help their students acquire the skills required to become successful.

Goals and Objectives

In preparing to teach students about snakes, it is important to research goals and objectives that link to state and national standards. Teachers have the responsibility to link their instruction with standards. I will outline my unit goals and objectives, and link those goals and objectives to the state and national standards that apply.

Unit Goal 1: Each student will explain and analyze the interaction of energy and matter.

· This goal is identical to an Oregon State Content Standard, under the umbrella of physical science.

· This goal coincides with the National Standard—students will, “understand the structure and properties of matter, and the sources and properties of energy.”

Unit Goal 2: Each student will describe the characteristics, structure, and functions of organisms.

· This goal is identical to an Oregon State Content Standard, under the umbrella of life science.

· This goal coincides with the National Standard—students will, “understand the structure and function of cells and organisms.”

Unit Goal 3: Each student will describe how related animals have similar characteristics.

· This goal is adapted from an Oregon State Content Standard, under the umbrella of life science.

· This goal coincides with the National Standard—students will, “understand biological evolution and the diversity of life.”

Unit Goal 4: Each student will describe a habitat and the organisms that live there.

· This goal is adapted from an Oregon State Content Standard, under the umbrella of life science.

· This goal coincides with the National Standard—students will, “understand relationships among organisms and their physical environments."

Objectives: All unit objectives are described within the lesson plans. Each unit objective is linked to a state benchmark. Each benchmark listed coincides with one of the four goals written above.

All national standards were retrieved from the McREL website, www.mcrel.org/standards/index.asp.

All state standards were retrieved from the 2002 Oregon Standards Guide, available from the Oregon Department of Education.

Snakes: Lesson 1

Context:

· This lesson is designed for students in a fifth grade classroom.

Benchmark:

· The students will explain the relationship between animal behavior and species survival.

· The students will classify a variety of living things into groups using various characteristics.

Objectives:

· Students will complete an attitude survey regarding their feelings about snakes.

· Students will participate in a discussion designed to dispel the myth that snakes are evil.

· Students will write an outcome statement (I learned… I feel… I didn't know that…) regarding snakes.

Method:

· Materials: The teacher will need to provide the students with an attitude survey. The students will only need their basic supplies.

· Time: This lesson should take 50 minutes.

· Adaptations: The challenged students should be able to participate without adaptations. If a student needs help reading the survey, the instructor could read the questions aloud.

· Behavior: The teacher will remind the students of the expectations. Students should remain respectful of everyone at all times.

Procedures:

Prior Knowledge:

The instructor will:

· Ask the students to list the top five animals they are most fearful of.

· Survey the responses (snakes should appear somewhere on the list).

· Hand out an attitude survey. The survey asks the students to rate the following statements as either 1, disagree; 2, agree; or 3, strongly agree.

· Snakes are mean.

· Snakes are ugly and gross.

· Most snakes are poisonous.

· Snakes are slimy.

· Endangered species that are cute or intelligent, such as pandas and whales, should be saved before endangered snakes.

Instruction:

The instructor will:

· Have the students share their responses in groups of four. Have each group tally their responses.

· Tally the totals on the board.

· Have the students get into a circle for a discussion on general attributes of snakes. Presumably, most students agreed with the statements on the survey. I suppose if your class is a real snake-loving bunch, the discussion wouldn't be necessary.

· Address question one. Students should understand that snakes, like many other animals, exhibit a variety of behaviors. Some species of snakes are quite docile, whereas others are more aggressive. Behavior that students may label as "mean," such as eating other animals or biting people, is merely a snake's way of surviving.

· Address question two. Although some people may believe that snakes are ugly and gross, it is important for them to know that snakes evolved such features to help them survive. For example, a snake's steamlined body can fit into animal burrows.

· Address question three. Fewer than 10% of snakes have venom that can hurt humans.

· Address question four. Snakes are not slimy at all. Rather, their skin is dry and can be smooth.

· Address question five. It is important that we protect all living things, because every species has a role to play within their habitat. For example, snakes eat rodents that spread disease.

Guided Practice:

The instructor will:

· Allow further discussion as needed to clarify the information given.

Independent Practice:

The instructor will:

· Ask the students to write an outcome statement regarding what they have learned about snakes.

Closure:

· Today we started down a long road of snake explorations. For the next few weeks we will be learning about the various snakes of Oregon.

Snakes: Lessons 2

Context:

· This lesson is designed for students in a fifth grade classroom.

Benchmark:

· The students will identify various forms of energy including heat.

· The students will explain the relationship between animal behavior and species survival.

· The students will classify a variety of living things into groups using various characteristics.

Objectives:

· Students will complete a comparison chart describing the differences between humans and snakes. They will specifically consider winter activity, vision, sense of smell, and skin.

Method:

· Materials: The teacher will need to provide the students with a comparison chart. The students will only need their basic supplies.

· Time: This lesson should take 50 minutes.

· Adaptations: The challenged students should be able to participate without adaptations. A vocabulary list will be sent home with the students so they can spend extra time learning the new vocabulary. If a student needs help writing answers, they can enlist the help of a classroom aid.

· Behavior: The teacher will remind the students of the expectations. Students should remain respectful of everyone at all times.

Procedures:

Prior Knowledge:

The instructor will:

· Remind the students of the previous day's discussion by reading some of the students' outcome statements.

· Ask the students to characterize human skin, smell, vision, and winter activities in a brainstorming session.

Instruction:

The instructor will:

· Tell the students that snakes have much different characteristics than humans when comparing skin, smell, vision, and winter activity.

· Describe why snakes hibernate in the winter. Explain that snakes are ectothermic, requiring external heat sources to raise their body temperatures to a level where they can remain active. Highlight the fact that snakes go into a winter "sleep", because their metabolism has slowed down a great deal.

· Describe that a snake's sense of smell is controlled through its tongue. Snakes flick their tongues out to pick up tiny particles in the air, or on the ground.

· Describe a snake's vision. Most snakes see a different visual field with each eye. This lack of binocular vision means that most snakes don't see an area with a sharp definition. However, snakes are effective at seeing movement.

· Describe a snake's skin. Snakes have a relatively thick skin, when compared to humans. Their thick skin retains water. Moreover, they shed their skin. Finally, snakes have epidermal scales

Guided Practice:

The instructor will:

· Allow for questions.

· Ask the students, "why do you think that snakes and humans don't share these characteristics?" The instructor shouldn't provide definite answers. However, he/she should encourage the students to research an answer if they want to do so for a class reward. This is designed to help prepare the students for further investigation into our study of snakes, and give them extra practice conducting research for upcoming lessons.

Independent Practice:

The instructor will:

· Have the students fill out the comparison chart based on what was discussed. The students don't need to write lengthy answers, but should simply understand the basic differences between humans and snakes in the given characteristics. Recognizing similarities and differences is the most effective learning strategy based on extensive research.

Closure:

· "We are starting to learn some of the key features of snakes. Pretty soon we will start concentrating on the snakes that we can find in our own state. Before we do that, we need to understand the various habitats that they live in.

Snakes: Lesson 3

Context:

· This lesson is designed for students in a fifth grade classroom.

Benchmark:

· The students will explain the relationship between animal behavior and species survival.

· Describe weather in measurable quantities including temperature.

· Interpret data over a period of time and use information to describe changes in weather from day to day, week to week, and season to season.

Objectives:

· The students will participate in a role playing activity that illustrates the diversity of snakes throughout Oregon.

· The students will fill out data on a map of Oregon in regards to temperature.

· The students will write an outcome statement, trying to put all of the pieces together.

Method:

· Materials: The teacher will need to bring something to mimic snake food. Moreover, the teacher will need to bring duct tape, and a blank map of Oregon. The students will only need their basic supplies.

· Time: This lesson should take 50 minutes.

· Adaptations: The challenged students should be able to participate without adaptations. If a student has a physical disability, they could be given something to help extend their reach so they could participate in the activity.

· Behavior: The teacher will remind the students of the expectations. Students should remain respectful of everyone at all times.

Procedures:

Prior Knowledge:

The instructor will:

· Remind the students of what they learned about snakes being ectothermic.

Instruction:

The instructor will:

· Provide the students with information regarding how being an ectotherm controls everything that a snake is able to do. Specifically discuss how snakes have an ideal range of temperatures from which they can operate. If a snake is too cold, it can't escape a predator. Also, a slow, cold snake will have a difficult time hunting for food.

· Describe Oregon as being divided into four sections: the coast, the Willamette Valley, the Cascades, and the Great Basin. Give the students a blank map of Oregon that they can mark on.

· Explain that the Pacific warms very cold air, and cools very hot air. Infer why this would keep the daily and seasonal fluctuations at a minimum. Ask the students what might happen as the distance from the Pacific increases. If nobody guesses, tell them that the fluctuations increase.

· Remind the students about how temperature generally decreases with increased elevation. Infer what effect this might have on the Cascades.

· Finally, help the students understand that the Great Basin experiences the most seasonal and daily fluctuations due to its distance from the Pacific.

Guided Practice:

The instructor will:

· Move all of the desks to the edges of the room. Using duct tape, divide the room into the coast, the Willamette Valley, the Cascades, and the Great Basin.

· Divide the class up. Five students will be snakes in the Great Basin. Those students will be able to walk since it is warm enough for them to move freely. Five students will be assigned to the Cascades. Since the temperatures are much colder, they will be forced to slide around on their backs. Five students will be in the Willamette Valley. They will be able to hop on one foot. Finally, five students from the coast will be selected. Those students can crawl on all fours.

· Tell the students that you will be equally dividing potential food sources (green slips of paper) around the room. Also tell them that you will be a predator, and if they get touched by both of your hands, they are no longer involved in the demonstration.

· Ask for predictions of who will get the most food, and still be able to avoid predation.

Independent Practice:

The instructor will:

· Have the students participate in the simulation. As the instructor, make sure that you get a good number of students from the Cascades, and the coast.

· Compare the results of the simulation with the predictions, and discuss.

· Outcome statement.

Closure:

· Starting tomorrow, we are going to start taking a closer look at specific snakes in Oregon.

Snakes: Lessons 4 & 5

Context:

· These lessons are designed for students in a fifth grade classroom.

Benchmark:

· The students will describe the life cycle of common organisms.

· The students will explain the relationship between animal behavior and species survival.

· The students will describe weather in measurable quantities including temperature.

· The students will interpret data over a period of time and use information to describe changes in weather from day to day, week to week, and season to season.

· The students will collect, organize, and summarize data from investigations.

Objectives:

· Students will work in groups of two to research a specific snake. The snakes will be assigned. Students must research physical characteristics, habitat, prey, predators, behavior, and anything else that they find interesting. They will create a one-page paper that outlines the snake that they are researching. They must include a picture of their snake on the page that they will turn in.

Method:

· Materials: The teacher will need to provide the students with access to research materials such as field guides, encyclopedias, and the Internet. The students will need access to computers in order to produce their paper.

· Time: Each lesson should be 50 minutes in length.

· Adaptations: The challenged students will be paired with gifted students to do their research.

· Behavior: The teacher will remind the students of the expectations. Students should remain respectful of everyone at all times.

Procedures:

Prior Knowledge:

The instructor will:

· Remind the students of everything that they have learned about snakes.

Instruction:

The instructor will:

· Tell the students that they are going to be paired with a partner, and assigned a snake to research. Every snake that will be research lives in Oregon. The students will be told that their research report will result in a presentation. Moreover, the instructor is going to make copies, and bind all of the reports so that each student has a field guide for the snakes of Oregon. The students will then be told of the requirements of the project. They must research physical characteristics, habitat, prey, predators, behavior, and anything else that they find interesting. Finally, they will be informed that they need to find a picture of their snake.

Guided Practice:

The instructor will:

· Take the students around the room to show them the variety of resources that they can use. They will be given a quick reminder on how to do an Internet search.

Independent Practice:

The instructor will:

· Allow the students to conduct their research, answering questions as needed.

Closure:

· "The end result of this project is going to be a field guide that you can keep with you to identify snakes that live in Oregon. I never had the chance to do anything cool like that when I was a fifth grader."

Snakes: Lesson 6

Context:

· This lesson is designed for students in a fifth grade classroom.

Benchmark:

· The students will explain the relationship between animal behavior and species survival.

· The students will describe weather in measurable quantities including temperature.

· The students will interpret data over a period of time and use information to describe changes in weather from day to day, week to week, and season to season.

· The students will collect, organize, and summarize data from investigations.

Objectives:

· The students will give a group presentation on a snake of Oregon that they conducted research on.

Method:

· Materials: The teacher will need to provide a slide projector, with slides depicting the various species of snakes in Oregon. The instructor will also provide the students with a field guide, created from the various reports turned in for the presentations.

· Time: This lesson should take 90 minutes.

· Adaptations: The challenged students are paired with the gifted students for this presentation.

· Behavior: The teacher will remind the students of the expectations. Students should remain respectful of everyone at all times.

Procedures:

Prior Knowledge:

The instructor will:

· Applaud the students for all of the work that they put into their projects.

Instruction:

The instructor will:

· The students will be given about five minutes for their presentation.

· Students will be encouraged to look through their new field guides as the presentations continue. They will be tested on the various species of snakes in Oregon, so their attention is crucial.

Guided Practice:

The instructor will:

· Students will have a chance to ask questions.

Independent Practice:

The instructor will:

· Students will give their presentations.

Closure:

· "All of your hard work is going to be rewarded tomorrow. I have a very special surprise in store for you."

Snakes: Lesson 7

Context:

· This lesson is designed for students in a fifth grade classroom.

Benchmark:

· The students will summarize, analyze, and interpret data from an investigation.

Objectives:

· The students will write two outcome statements regarding today's lecture.

Method:

· Materials: The teacher has invited a guest lecturer. The students will only need their normal supplies.

· Time: This lesson should take 50 minutes.

· Adaptations: The challenged students may need help writing from an instructional assistant.

· Behavior: The teacher will remind the students of the expectations. Students should remain respectful of everyone at all times.

Procedures:

Prior Knowledge:

The instructor will:

· Remind the students of how much they have learned about the various snakes in Oregon.

· Introduce today's very special guest. "Students, I want to introduce you to a man that exudes greatness. A man who has intellectual abilities far beyond those most humans can imagine. A man that has the power to change misconceptions with a single lecture. Simply put, a man who knows his herps. His name is…drum roll please…Dr. Tom Titus!"

Instruction:

· Dr. Titus will conduct a lecture about being a herpetologist. Dr. Titus will also bring a snake to the lecture, in an attempt to alleviate any fears and misconceptions still surrounding snakes.

Guided Practice:

· Students will have a chance to ask questions.

Independent Practice:

· Students will have a chance to handle a snake from Oregon.

· Students will write two outcome statements.

Closure:

· "I hope that everybody enjoyed our special guest today. Let's give him a hand (an enormous applause erupts). Okay, tomorrow we are going to have a test to see how much you learned about snakes in Oregon."

Test

Name ____________________________________ Date ________________

1. (25 Points) Based on everything that has been learned regarding snakes in Oregon, write a story about a snake (not one that you researched). Please tell your story from the perspective of the snake. Include information regarding daily activity, habitat, and at least two references to general characteristics of snakes. Please use your own paper to do this story.

2. (5 Points) Why is there less diversity of snakes in the Cascades than in the Great Basin?

3. (5 Points) What effect does the Pacific Ocean have on the diversity of snakes in Oregon?

4. (5 Points) Humans and snakes have similar

a. means of smelling

b. eyesight

c. habits in the winter

d. none of the above

5. (5 Points) True or False: About 35% of snakes are venomous.

6. (5 Points) How would you describe the skin of a snake.

7. (10 Points) Discuss the most valuable thing you learned while studying snakes in Oregon.

Resources:

Brown, H., Bury, R., Darda, D., Diller, L., Peterson, C., Storm, R. (1995). Reptiles of Washington and Oregon. Seattle, WA: Seattle Audubon Society.

Cahill, M. Discovery School.Com: Snakes. Retrieved July 3, 2002 from http://school.discovery.com/lessonplans/programs/snakes/

.

Collins, J. Snakes of North America. Retrieved July 11, 2002 from http://www.pitt.edu/~mes2herp/SoNA.html.

Marzano, R., Pickering, D., Pollock, J. (2001). Classroom Instruction that Works: Research-Based Strategies for Increasing Student Achievement. Alexandria, VI: ASCD.

Nussbaum, R., Brodie, Jr., E., Storm, R. (1983). Amphibians and Reptiles of the Pacific Northwest. Moscow, ID: University of Idaho Press.

Simon, H. (1973). Snakes: The Facts and the Folklore. New York, NY: The Viking Press.

Smithsonian Institute. Examine Your Attitudes. Retrieved July 3, 2002 from http://www.si.edu/harcourt/h_si/siyc/herps/lesson1.html.

Titus, T. Amphibians and Reptiles of Oregon. Retrieved on July 11, 2002 from http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~titus/herp/.