Station 1- Shell-tastic!

Directions

  1. Familiarize yourself with the different shells provided, specifically look at their color, size and shape.
  2. Agree on a way to split the shells into two groups, in your science notebook write the qualifications of the two groups
  3. Repeat Step 2 with 3 groups
  4. Repeat Step 2 with 4 groups
  5. Make sure you write down the qualifications of the groups for each step!

Questions

  1. How difficult was it to make two groups of shells? Two? Three? Four?
  1. What would be the benefits for grouping shells in this way?
  1. How difficult would it be to put the shells into 10 groups? (See if you can!)

Station 2- Let it Snow!

Directions

  1. Use the Snowflake Dichotomous Key to identify each lettered snowflake sample. Start by putting the snowflake letter in the column that says “Snowflake Letter”.
  1. Go to the first part on the Snowflake Dichotomous Key. Read the two clue questions. Pick the one that best describes your snowflake and then follow the “go to” directions.
  1. Record each question number and letter combination that you select as you go, under “Questions Answered”. Remember for each snowflake you identify, you must always start with part/question one on the dichotomous key.
  1. Continue until you have identified the scientific name of the snowflake. Write the name of the snowflake under “Scientific Name of the Snowflake”

Station 2—Animal Safari

Directions

1)Log on to the computer (first group only)

2)Open Google Earth and find the search bar

3)One at a time, type in the exact coordinates for each box. Don’t forget direction (N, S, E, or W)!

4)Google Earth will take you to that coordinate. Use the tools on the right hand side of the map to zoom in and discover the hidden animal.

5)After you have concluded what the animal is, write down your answers next to the appropriate coordinate.

Questions

  1. Did you notice anything different about the habitats each animal was located in? Explain in the third column.
  1. Do all of the animals fall under the same classification? Ex. Mammals, Birds, Reptiles, Amphibians, Fish
  1. Could we classify animals based on where they live? How? As a group, come up with some examples.
  1. Imagine you are sending an alien on a real safari and they’ve never seen an animal before. How would you tell the alien where to find an animal? What characteristics would you use to describe that animal? Remember, they don’t know what an ‘elephant’ is or looks like. BE SPECIFIC!

Station 4- Survival

Directions

  1. Get your animal card from the station and look at the back to find the population numbers. Take a look to see if you can find any trends with the numbers.
  1. Use the numbers to create a graph that shows the trend of your animal’s population over time. Don’t forget to label the two axis with titles.The year should be on the X-axis and the population number should be on the Y-axis.
  1. When you’re done, move on to the questions with a partner!

Questions (Discus with your Group)

*Remember you answers or write them down to share if another group finishes.

  1. Describe what the graph tells you about the population of your animals.
  1. What are some reasons that could explain the changes of your animals’ population?
  1. What characteristics set your animal apart from each other? How might these differences affect how they survive?
  1. Can you pick another animal and explain what characteristics make it able to live in its environment? If you have time, can you think of a plant that has special characteristics that help it survive in its environment? (Example: Cacti have special abilities to store water longer than other plants so they are able to live in the desert.)