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Lesson 8: What Can We Learn From Fossils – Grade: 4; Time: 2 hours (2 lessons; 1 per hour)

NB Elementary Science Curricula

- General Curriculum Outcome (GCO): Earth and Space Science: Rocks, Minerals, and Erosion

- Specific Curriculum Outcomes (SCO):

Students will be expected to:

o (Erosion and Weathering)

▪ describe the effects of wind, water, and ice on the landscape (301-5) [knowledge];

▪ demonstrate a variety of methods of weathering and erosion (301-6) [knowledge];

o (Record in Rocks)

▪ Identify and describe rocks that contain records of the Earth’s history (300-7) [knowledge]

Other Integrated NB Curricula Outcomes:

Language Arts:

- GCO: Speaking and Listening

o Specific Curriculum Outcomes (SCO):

▪ 1. Students will be expected to speak and listen to explore, extend, clarify, and reflect on their thoughts, ideas, feelings, and experiences.

• ask and respond to questions to clarify information and explore solutions to problems (e.g., using an interview format)

• listen critically to others’ ideas or opinions expressed

- GCO: Reading and Viewing

o Specific Curriculum Outcomes (SCO):

▪ 5. Students will be expected to interpret, select, and combine information using a variety of strategies, resources, and technologies.

• answer, with assistance, their own and others’ questions by seeking information from a variety of texts

▪ 7. Students will be expected to respond critically to a range of texts, applying their understanding of language, form, and genre.

• use their background knowledge to question information presented in print and visual texts

• identify conventions and characteristics of different types of print and media texts that help them understand what they read and view

• respond critically to texts

- GCO: Writing and Other ways of Representing

o Specific Curriculum Outcomes (SCO):

▪ 8. Students will be expected to use writing and other forms of representation to explore, clarify, and reflect on their thoughts, feelings, experiences, and learnings; and to use their imaginations.

• use strategies in writing and other ways of representing to

o formulate questions and organize ideas

o record experiences

• experiment with different ways of making their own notes

▪ 10. Students will be expected to use a range of strategies to develop effective writing and other ways of representing and to enhance their clarity, precision, and effectiveness.

• Demonstrate an understanding of many conventions of written language in final products

• Use technology with increasing proficiency in writing and other forms of representing

• Demonstrate a commitment to shaping pieces of writing and other representations through stages of development

• Select, organize, and combine relevant information from two or more sources to construct and communicate meaning

Learning Objective –

Throughout this lesson, the students are expected to learn about the effects of environmental impacts on fossils, like Erosion and Weathering, where we will discuss and describe the effects of wind, water, and ice on the landscape (301-5) and demonstrate a variety of methods of weathering and erosion (301-6) as well as identifying rocks that contain records of the Earth’s history (300-7). Students are also expected to learn how to make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation. Furthermore, students are expected to recognize the kind of information that can be accumulated by studying fossils.

Materials –

- Paper

- Leaves, clay, toy creatures,

- Scissors

- Pencils and coloring tools

- Formative checklist – Appendix A

- Dinosaur Fossil Images – Appendix B

- Newspaper article worksheet – Appendix C

Differentiation –

- iPad usage for assistance for students who will require such support during their fossil creation newspaper article writing

BEFORE THE LESSON:

Explain to the students that lesson will be done within 2 classes. The purpose of the first lesson is to have students make a rough draft of a fossil drawing. The second lesson is to have students use their knowledge on fossils, like what we can learn from them and how they are made to prepare and a newspaper article that they will present to the class. This lesson aims to show students the environmental impacts of weathering and erosion on fossils. Because this lesson is seemingly two lessons combined into one, the first lesson will cover the engagement and exploration unit, while the second lesson will cover the explanation and expansion. Throughout this lesson, students will be expected to communicate information and ideas effectively and clearly, and to respond personally and critically. An ongoing formative evaluation will be done throughout.

DURING THE LESSON:

Engagement – How are fossils formed and what can we learn from them? (30 minutes)

|What the teacher will do: |What the student’s will do: |

|To begin the lesson, remind the students that a fossil is what is left from a living |- Students will engage in an in-class discussion |

|thing that died long ago. |prompted by the teacher as a refresher on what a |

| |fossil is and how they are formed. |

|Vocabulary for this lesson: | |

|Paleontologist – a scientist who studies fossil animals/plants that lived a long time |- The students will be sure to use proper |

|ago |vocabulary while in discussing, including the |

|Excavation – the place where paleontologists dig for fossils Extinct – when a type of |terms paleontologist, excavation, and extinct, |

|animal or plant that was alive once is no longer on earth |weathering, and erosion |

| | |

|Explain that most fossils are found in layers of rocks (use example of Joggins Fossil |- The students are to engage in discussion about |

|cliffs). Most form after a plant or an animal dies and is covered rapidly with dirt and |the two types of fossils (mold and cast) and |

|sand. Layers of dirt and sand turn to rock over many years. Mention that no one knows |participate in class wide discussion questions |

|for sure how fossils got where they are found. All scientists who study fossils try to |provided. |

|explain what they find. | |

| | |

|They will then be given an introduction to environmental factors that make fossils. | |

|Weathering and erosion will be will be a focus concept in this lesson. | |

|We will focus on describing the effects of wind, water, and ice on the landscape (301-5)| |

|as well as demonstrating a variety of methods of weathering and erosion (301-6). | |

| | |

|Discussion Questions: | |

|- What can you learn about an object from the tracks it makes? | |

|- How are all fossils alike? | |

|- Why do paleontologists need shovels, brushes, and drills to do their work? | |

|- How can you tell the difference between and animal fossil or a plant fossil? | |

| | |

|( Animal fossils include bones, teeth, feathers, and shells. These may be replaced by | |

|stone. Marks left by animals, such as tracks, are another kind of fossil. Plant fossils | |

|include leaves, twigs, and flowers. | |

Exploration – Create your fossil (30 minutes)

|What the teacher will do: |What the student’s will do: |

|To begin this activity, the teacher will begin a class discussion on what we already |Students will use provided supplies and create a |

|know about fossils. |fossil from the information they have learned |

|Students will be given supplies and asked to create a model of-=- a fossil drawing using|throughout the unit this far. |

|their prior knowledge of fossils. Students have already been taught what fossils are, |Students will share supplies among their |

|how fossils are formed, and what they look like. |classmates. |

|After the students are finished drawing their fossil, they are asked to explain to the | |

|class that if we were paleontologists and found that fossil, what could we learn from | |

|it? | |

Explanation – Newspaper article (40 minutes)

|What the teacher will do: |What the student’s will do: |

|The teacher will explain to the students that they will be creating a newspaper |Students will select which fossil they would like |

|article about the discovery of a fossil and its environment – Students can select |to create their newspaper article about. In |

|fossils from one of the activities and draw or describe it on special paper to go on |previous years, students choose to use the fossil |

|bulletin board in hall. |they have drawn from the previous lesson and create|

| |a good copy along with an explanation of the |

|See Appendix C for newspaper template. |fossils environment. (Ie: what it is, where it was |

| |found, what it may have looked like before it |

| |fossilized) |

Elaboration – Wrap up on what we can learn from fossils (20 minutes)

|What the teacher will do: |What the student’s will do: |

|To conclude the lessons of the past 2 days, the teacher will have the students |Students will respond individually to all of the |

|complete all of the following questions in their science log. These questions act as a|following questions in their Science Log Book. |

|summary of the topics that were covered: |Students will complete the final wrap up projected,|

| |where they will be showen a fossil or an organism |

|1. What can we learn from fossils? Fossils are evidence of things that lived long ago.|and are required to draw how they think it may have|

|Some fossils are found in rock layers. Scientists use them to learn what Earth was |once looked. They will then be shown the actual |

|once like. |organism. |

| | |

|2. Vocabulary: What is an extinct animal? | |

| | |

|3. Which is the first step in a fossil being formed? | |

|A. The layers change to rock | |

|B. A scientist finds its bones/ parts | |

|C. The animal/plant dies. | |

|D. A scientist brushes off soil. | |

| | |

|4. What can scientists learn by studying fossils? | |

| | |

|Final Wrap up project – Show a picture of a fossil of an organism and get the students| |

|to draw how they think it would look according to the fossil? Then show the actual | |

|organism afterwards? (Appendix B) | |

Evaluation

|What the teacher will do: |

|Throughout both lessons, the teacher will use a formative assessment check list to monitor the students’ progress during class discussions |

|and activities. The teacher will also collect the final discussion questions that summative what was learned through the first lessons. |

|They will be marked on their attention to detail, proper vocabulary, and understanding of the topic. For part 2 of the lesson, the students|

|completed newspaper article will be collected and marked accordingly. |

AFTER THE LESSON:

Follow up steps for students:

- After the lesson, students will be asked to come the following day with a picture or example of a fossil and orally describe to the class what type of plant/ animal they think it once was.

Teacher reflections/notes for next time:

|Overall Comments: |Suggestions: |

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