What Happened to the Animals?


Goal: To increase students' awareness of effects of volcanic eruption on wildlife in the surrounding area, and implications of those effects.

Objectives: Students will

  1. Name animals in the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument

  2. Apply the Expert Group/Learning Team approach to study and identify conditions of animals' existence prior to, and after, the May 18 eruption

  3. Write a story from an animal's point of view.
Key Concept: All life is interrelated and interdependent; destruction of or benefit to any element of the web of life has significant impact upon the system as a whole.

Summary: Students learn about effects of eruption on animals through a cooperative learning activity. They utilize the information they gather to compare and contrast conditions before and after the May 18 eruption at Mount St. Helens. To synthesize their learning, they apply what they have learned to writing an original story about the eruption's effects from an animal's point of view.

Content Areas: Science (zoology, botany,) environmental studies, language arts

Materials Needed:

Handout:

  1. Expert Group/Learning Team Notes
  2. Mount St. Helens Revisited #1
  3. Mount St. Helens Revisited #2
  4. From Lava to Life
  5. Reference materials

Instructional Strategies:

  1. Clustering/Mindmapping
  2. Cooperative Learning
Evaluation: Teacher feedback/whole-class discussion of effectiveness of the cooperative learning format; completeness of notes on individuals' Expert Group and Learning Team handouts; whole-group or individual story product, according to pre-established criteria.

Instructional Sequence:

  1. As a whole-class group, conduct a brainstorming session in which students identify probable animal types in the MSH National Volcanic Monument. Ask students to consider what effects the eruption must have had on their lives. Discuss with students the interrelatedness of animal life, and the potential for new revelations about the web of life that has resulted from the Mount St. Helens eruption. Invite students to list other events which significantly impact wildlife, including manmade disturbances.

  2. If students have not previously worked with this system, explain the Expert Group/Learning Team development process.

  3. Divide class into Learning Teams of 6-9 students each. Within those groups, assign students to Expert Groups of 2-3. Distribute handout. Provide reference materials. Instruct each Expert Group to learn as much as possible about effects of the eruption on wildlife in general, and to pick one animal or animal group to focus on in particular. Allow time for these Expert Groups to research and prepare for reports to their Learning Teams. Provide the handouts which outline the groups' tasks.

  4. As students work, monitor closely their groupwork behaviors: contributing, listening actively, facilitating, leading, etc. Prepare to share with students your evaluation of their cooperative learning skills as a follow-up to this activity. Provide task assistance as necessary, reviewing procedure and clarifying directions. Establish the group norm that questions of the teacher must come not from individuals, but from the group as a whole; in other words, they must decide that this is something they all need to know, before the teacher's assistance is requested.

  5. Following the Expert Group/Learning Team activity, conduct whole-class discussion on the eruption's effects on wildlife. Invite groups to share results of their research on particular animals or animal groups. List their responses on the chalkboard, under three columns headed "Animal Name" "Before the Eruption" "After the Eruption". Direct them to contribute to the lists words, phrases, brief descriptions that compare before and after. These will serve as stimulus for the creative writing activity to follow.

  6. Assign the writing of a story about the eruption from an animal's point of view. This assignment may be a whole-class or individual effort. Establish criteria by which the writing assignment will be evaluated; e.g., accuracy of facts, originality of presentation, criteria reflecting skills currently being taught in language arts, etc. Establish what information is to be included; e.g., food, habitat, rearing of young, physical characteristics, adaptations, numbers, distribution, etc. (This discussion may reveal that additional research is required. If so, return to the small-group format.)

  7. Provide time for the sharing of stories, and announce or suggest possible alternatives for the style of presentation to be used.

  8. Remember to follow up with teacher feedback concerning, and whole-group evaluation of, the cooperative learning components of this lesson.

Extension:

  1. Choose one of the stories and, as a whole-class group, create a play. Rewrite the story in script form, assign performance roles, set up rehearsal schedule, arrange for a viewing audience.




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