What
Is Natural?
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What
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I chose this inquiry because I really enjoyed it this during the summer workshop. It made me think in a way I never had before. I thought my students would benefit from it and gain a little more insight and respect for the Earth's resources. I liked all the ah-ha moments that this activity created for my students. They occured throughout the activity, but especially when we looked at the matter cycles and when the students reviewed their initial hypothesis. If I had to change something, I would consider not having the students draw so many matter cycles. They had to reconstruct two and use their own objects to draw two. I think they could have reconstructed one and used one every everyday object to draw a total of two cycles. I did connect this to language arts. The students had just finished learning about and doing friendly letters, so that is why I chose the timing of "What is Natural". It was an excellent form of assessment for their learning in science and language arts.
Marci Snively It's amazing what we as adults take
for granted. I was sure this lesson would not be needed for my fifth
graders, but they were quite unaware of the origins of some of the most
basic everyday items in their surroundings. Now everything in their
surroundings has them thinking about natural resources. My students in the past have had their own perception as to what is 'natural'. It's unnerving that students, even in the 7th grade, seem to separate themselves from nature. Our curriculum is based around environmental studies and other life sciences, therefore this inquiry served as a perfect fit into my instruction. This inquiry gave students an opportunity to explain their idea of 'natural'. I had a number of different answers ranging from 'Anything that's outside' to 'Anything that is NOT manmade'. As we utilized our Environmental Study Area as an ideal location, students were able to observe and identify 'natural' objects in the environment. In most cases, their idea of 'natural' was solidified with evidence from their observations. The data sheets reflect this with several descriptions of leaves, plants, insects, etc. The matter cycles portion really drove home the idea that EVERYTHING on the planet is natural. Students were amazed that computers, lights, and buildings have ALWAYS been a part of this planet in one state of matter or another. However, I think this portion of the inquiry could be made into an ENTIRELY different lesson. Matter cycling would be a fantastic culmination activity to a Waste Management (or your Is It Recyclable?) lesson. In the past, I've worked with modules from Lab-Aids (Where is Away?), and this would have made an excellent activity to drive home the concept of matter cycling. This activity fit seamlessly into our ongoing Ecology Unit. It gave my students an opportunity to utilize the Environmental Study Area for a real-life field study. I even distributed some Peterson Field Guides to the 'extra-inquisitive' students. Also, when I distributed objects for sorting, the students were amazed to realize that their social studies books were, in fact, natural. (Does that qualify for cross-curricular integration?) This was an excellent experience with guided inquiry! I recommend doing this at the beginning of a unit geared towards ecology or environmental studies. It can erase a lot of misconceptions students may have concerning separating humans from the rest of the natural world. I WILL be doing this lesson again next year! Mark Campbell I chose this inquiry because I did not think that my students had a good grasp on what all is natural in our world. They really enjoyed being able to leave the classroom to discover other environments and collect samples to be discussed in class. We had a wide variety of samples from out back of our schoolyard. Every student believed they had found natural and unnatural items that they placed in their bags. After working through the matter cycles they started to answer out on their own that they in fact did not have unnatural items. I think they now have a better understanding of how important it is to recycle our natural resources. Nora Keen My 3rd grade class finished the What is Natural? study just before Christmas. They really did learn that everything can be traced back to natural resources and they have a clearer understanding of cycles. This study has an outstanding Family Page. Their answers on it really sparked a lot of discussion and some debate. On the challenge, one girl answered "teeth" and she explained "Teeth need the food and water from your body. They need space in your mouth, but they don't need oxygen." My students also enjoyed this unit because we went outside and really looked at our school yard in a new way. Linda Sebastian Why did I choose this inquiry?
What did I like about this inquiry? The student led discussions that were brought on by this lesson were an unexpected, pleasant surprise. This inquiry achieved a lot by helping students to see the world as being self-sufficient. The students really got into this inquiry. What would I change about this inquiry? At steps throughout the inquiry I would try to stress more critical thinking skills to make sure that the kids stay focused on the task at hand. (This is especially true when you take them out into nature) How did I connect this to other lessons? We began this inquiry after the Is It Recyclable inquiry because it fit so well. As with the Recyclable unit, we have also been incorporating another unit titled "Waste Watchers". The students seem to carry along knowledge and information from one inquiry to the next very well. They have definitely shown a transition of learning since the first inquiry was introduced. Comments: This inquiry is a good supplemental one, however I feel that it needs to be part of a bigger unit or accompany additional inquiries to reinforce the concepts and ideas that the students learn along the way. Joe Ohradzansky I chose this inquiry because I knew it was an area my students needed to explore. I was sure that they would list only living or once living items and rocks and minerals in there purest form as natural. I wanted them to understand that matter cycles and I thought that it would be neat to tie in with our religion classes (I teach in a catholic school). I began the unit just after finishing a boring chapter from the textbook about natural resources. Clearly they hadn't learned much from the text and I'm glad I found this inquiry to make it meaningful for them. I liked the opportunity to explore two environments--one indoor and one out. The students were convinced that we did this so that they could find natural items outside and "unnatural" items inside. I loved the looks on the students faces as they began to see that their assumptions were wrong and why. I e-mailed Hamilton County Solid Waste Management and asked for a Natural Resource Kit (See Related Resources) on Thursday after school and it was on my desk the following Wednesday. I could not believe how quickly I received it! It was a great resource. I have wanted a sample of bauxite for a long time. Julie Frampton I chose this inquiry because it looked fun and in my action class we were studying the different parts of the scientific method, observing being one of them. I really enjoyed this activity... I think that this activity flowed nicely. The kids enjoyed it and picked up on the concepts without me needing to give them multiple reminders. Raymond Friend I chose this inquiry because it covered many concepts including biota, abiota, recycling, matter cycles, where manufactured goods come from, and also because it got us outside for a walk through the woods. The concepts were aligned with the proficiency test.. I liked the observation, questioning, hypothesizing and analyzing that was prompted by this unit. Many students changed their beliefs regarding what is natural after realizing everything comes from a natural resource and that items manufactured by other creatures than man are considered natural. I also liked the unit being ready to copy and do in a very organized fashion... On the Family Page I wasn't sure what a good answer would be for "How much space is needed?" A little? A lot? A mile? etc. On the Data Sheets I would change the Reflections column to something more specific. This caused a great deal of frustration to all of us. I think I would tell them to write 3 things they learned today from our discussion. The only change in the proficiency assessment would be to state they need to draw a matter cycle about something besides metal products, since that cycle is on the front of the test. Even though I told them this, some still copied it. I also suggest running off the cycles and having the students copy them so they remember them. This helped a bit... I received the free Natural Resource Kit (See Related Resources) from Hamilton County Environmental Services in just a few days and we loved it. It helped us see what some natural resources looked like rather than just talking about them. We read the book, Brother Eagle, Sister Sky (Related Resources) and talked about stewardship and respecting the natural world as the Native Americans did. I also downloaded the "Every American Born Will Need" page (Related Resources) about how many minerals we use in a lifetime and sent it home on the back of the Family Page. All of these were great... In summary, it was a great unit. Diane Douglas A few weeks ago my students completed the Ohio Sixth Grade Proficiency Test. After the test, I was looking for some activities that were fun and would allow my students to use higher level thinking skills. I decided to have my students complete the "What Is Natural?" unit. One of the main factors that made me want to do this unit with my students was it gave me a reason to take my students outside to complete observations. When I had a debriefing with my students after the unit, most of them said they enjoyed the outdoor activity the most. I was surprised by how many "natural" and "unnatural" things that they found in the forest line behind the school. This experience has encouraged me to take my students outside as much as possible the remainder of the year. I am already planning another trip to our forest line when we study biomes in a few weeks. The most difficult part of this unit was having the students use their inquiry skills to come up with the idea that all material is natural. The students quickly grasped that all material cycles. The day when the class discovered that all materials cycled, I had so many people want to show me an example of a cycle that I had to limit the number of volunteers. However, my students had difficulty making a connection between the idea of cycling and being natural. I used the overheads that explained that even something man made can be natural and that did help some. All students agreed that everything has to come from something, and there is a cycle for every type of matter, but some students had a difficult time accepting that there is no unnatural material on earth. Even though it was frustrating for the students, it was very interesting to watch them trying to convince each other that there is or is not unnatural material. Eventually, after many examples of why something is natural, the class agreed that everything we know of on earth is natural. I enjoyed teaching this unit and I plan on using it again next year right after the students complete the proficiency tests. Matthew Spangler I chose this inquiry to take advantage of the beautiful weather we were having. Our school has a pond next to it that served as a fantastic natural setting. I really liked the matter cycle pages that explained the origin of all the materials we use daily. I would allow students to work in pairs or small groups to fill out the Data Sheets. The questions I heard while students were working could really be a benefit if they were able to talk more to each other while exploring. Rachel Wood I chose this unit because it was a great review of abiota and biota for my sixth graders, as well as a way to broaden their view of what is natural. We had an awesome first two days as they hypothesized and debated with each other over the varying views of what should be considered natural. Only one student out of seventy-three went even close to the lesson's point! It was eye opening to me when I discovered even "top" students struggled with the origin of cotton and rubber, let alone the cycles covered. The metal, plastic, and glass cycles were well received. Students did struggle with the icon on the sand section of the glass cycle (sand dune, right?). Additionally, I liked the parent letter format on the assessment. I felt this was a real life twist on "tell me what you learned." Another benefit is this was a bad week for absences....being able to print out the lesson plans, background info., matter cycles, etc., for parents to catch their children up was a life saver! So often when we are "out of the book," absentees have to rely on friends' notes and me recapping over recess. Being there and experiencing the discussions is the ultimate, but being able to pass on such organized, easy to follow, and understandable lessons really helps both teachers and students. Thanks for another marvelous lesson! Jenna Miller I chose this inquiry because of its length and subject matter. Most children have a difficult time determining the difference between living and nonliving matter. I believe that this inquiry does a good job of teaching this concept. I liked the matter cycles and how easy they were for the children to understand. I also liked how the children just wouldn't let go of their original hypotheses of what is natural. They were so mad when they had to change their hypotheses at the end... This inquiry also provided a stepping stone for my class to begin discussing our schoolyard project. I felt that this might make them more aware of their responsibility to care for and respect our natural resources. I want them to take ownership in the planning, implementation, and maintenance of our butterfly garden. We began to discuss what we could do to make the schoolyard a more inviting place to be. We discussed how we had all this space to use for science, and yet we didn't have enough "stuff" to observe. I then led them to the idea of a butterfly garden so that when the kindergarten children release the butterflies they are studying, they will have a place to go where we might be able to make observations. Debi Gann |
