Title: Penguin Body Parts
Teacher: Collette Leiter
Grade: 1st
Date: 2/10/09
Time: 1:00-1:30
Key Question: What are the body parts of the Emperor Penguin and how do they help the penguin survive in its habitat?
Objectives: Students will label the body parts of a penguin.
Students will write legible journal entries.
Standards: SC.03.LS.04 Describe a habitat and the organisms that live there.
EL.01.WR.15 Print legibly and space letters, words, and sentences appropriately.
Materials: 20 copies of Penguin Body Part paper, The Penguin Who Wanted to Fly, by Catherine Vase, journals
Preparation: Make 20 copies of Penguin Body Part paper. Draw a replica of the penguin on the board.
Hook: “We’ve been learning so much about penguins. What are some of the things that you have learned? Today we are going to learn about a penguins body parts and how those parts help the penguin function in their habitat.”
Procedures: (7 min) Bring the students to the carpet by color groups. Read The
Penguin Who Wanted to Fly. After you read ask the students why a penguin can’t use its wings for flying. Ask what penguins wings are used for. Explain that they help the penguin swim. Tell the students that they are going to find out what the other parts of the penguins body do. Send them back to their seats by color groups.
(15 min) Pass out a copy of the penguin body to each student. Have them label the parts as you do on the board. Explain what each part does as you write it:
Wings- swimming in water and balancing on land
Beak- catching fish and feeding chicks
Webbed feet- swimming and holding eggs and chicks
Tail- helps maintain balance on land
White Belly- Camouflages from sea animals who mistake whiteness with the reflection of the surface water. Black back camouflages from above.
Feathers- for warmth
(8 min) Write journal prompt on the board: Tell about a Penguins body part and what it does. Allow the students to finish their body page before doing the journal. Some students may not get to the journal. Have students that get done early draw a picture to go along with their journal.
Closure: “We learned some really great facts about a penguin bodies today. Can
anybody tell me something that they learned.” Call on two or three students to share. Have students place work in penguin folder. Tell students that tomorrow they are going to do a science experiment to show how feathers and fat help keep the penguins warm.
Accommodations:
Have ESL and special needs students team up with a student that I feel
will be able to help them. Depending on the student’s ability, only have them label a certain amount of body parts. Let them draw symbols for words.
Assessment: The labeled penguin will show writing and comprehension skills. I will be
able to tell what pace the student is at or if they were on task according to how much they get done. During the lesson I will observe students.