Habits and Habitats
A Classrooms Unleashed Program
for Third Grade Students
Students become ecologists and learn about habitats, survival of organisms and the impacts of environmental change. A a field study to River Bend Park and in-class lessons are part of the Habits and Habitats program. Students work to solve the mystery of why the deer population is in decline in California, through hands-on learning experiences about habitats, environmental change, and habitat restoration.
All of our lessons are backward designed from Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core for third grade. In addition to the Sierra Nevada Journeys-led lessons, classroom teachers will be provided with 3-4 easy-to-use learning experiences to reinforce concepts and vocabulary, as well as pre- and post-assessments.
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
Classroom Lesson: IT’S ALL CONNECTED
Students are introduced to their role as ecologists and the science mystery they will be solving: Why is the deer population in California decreasing? Students research deer behavior and characteristics and act out a simulation to discover the impact of environmental change on the survival rates of the deer population.
Students work together to sort images of different environmental changes in their final effort to determine the main cause of the decline in the deer population in California. They’ll also be introduced to the concept of habitat restoration and work with a team to build a model of a habitat restoration plan to support the local deer population.
Outdoors at a local Nature Area: ECOLOGISTS IN THE FIELD
Students take their learning outside at River Bend Park as they explore local ecosystem connections. Through games and activities designed to hone observation and critical thinking skills, students act as ecologists in the field, looking for evidence of environmental change in an effort to solve the mystery of the shrinking deer population.