Lesson+One

//Science & Technology // – This lesson introduces the concept of rainforests and the threats they face through a picture book. Students are given the opportunity to locate rainforests on a map of Australia and share personal experiences and new knowledge. |||||| **Links to other KLAs ** //English //– The lesson is focused on a picture book to introduce the topic of rainforests (reading). f //HSIE – ////Locates rainforests in Australia and explains their significance. // || //Living Things LTS2.3 // – //Identifies and describes the structure and function of living things and ways in which living things interact with other living things and their environment. // //f // //Environments ENS2.5 ////**– **////Describes places in the local area and other parts of Australia and explains their significance. // //<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">f // //<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">f // //<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Talking and Listening TS2.1 //**<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';"> - **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Communicates in informal and formal classroom activities in school and social situations for an increasing range of purposes on a variety of topics across the curriculum. <span style="color: #ffffff; font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">f //<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Reading RS2.5 – //<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Reads independently a wide range of texts on increasingly challenging topics and justifies own interpretation of ideas, information and events. |||||| **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Indicators ** <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Describes the structure of rainforests as well as how the plants, animals and humans interact. <span style="color: #ffffff; font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">f <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Locates rainforests in Australia and explains their significance. <span style="color: #ffffff; font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">f <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Participates in class discussions and contributes to smaller group discussions. <span style="color: #ffffff; font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">f <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Participates in class reading, discussing insights gained from the reading. <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Reads a map of Australia, successfully labeling rainforests and describes findings. || <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Students will need to have had previous experience in reading maps and locating specific areas on maps, as well as interpreting their findings and explaining their significance. However, no other knowledge (for example, semantic knowledge) is required, as this lesson is focusing on introducing the topic of rainforests to students, building on their knowledge and gaging how much they already know. |||||| **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Resources ** <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Picture book //Where the Forest Meets the Sea// by Jeannie Baker. <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Markers <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Whiteboard <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- 5 Maps of Australia (A3 size) <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Handout (list of rainforests in Australia- see Appendix below) <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Video //Saving Sumatra// by Greenpeace (see Resource 3) <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">- Smart board || f Following the discussion, the teacher pulls out the picture book //Where the Forest Meets the Sea// by Jeannie Baker and asks students questions such as: This is to get students thinking about what the story will be about and its relevence to the topic the teacher has introduced prior the reading. The teacher then reads the picture book to the students, questioning students throughout the reading, and prompting them to think about the animals, plants, and how they interact, the structure of the rainforest, and human impact. || Students are seated on the floor infront of the teacher, listening and participating in class discussion, presenting their ideas on what they think a rainforest is. f Students at this point are listening attentively to the teacher as the book is read to them, looking at the pictures in the story. Students are also answering questions about the reading and participating in class discussion. || 15 mins || Once again, student ideas and opinions are added to the class brainstorm, mapping their growth in understanding around the topic of rainforests and their importance. f After the class discussion around the book, the teacher then reveals that the rainforest Jeannie Baker based the story around is found in Australia and that it is called the Daintree Forest. The teacher then pulls out a number of maps of Australia (on A3 paper), and the prepared handouts which list the Australian rainforests, telling students that they will be working in groups, locating the Daintree Rainforest and the other Australian rainforests. The teacher then splits the class up into 5 groups of 4 and tells them to move to a table, giving each group a map and a handout which lists the rainforests of Australia. Once students are seated, the teacher hands out a number of markers to each group and tells students to circle the rainforests on the map when they find them. The teacher reminds students to look at the key on the map for hints. The teacher then walks around the room, helping any groups which are struggling, answering any questions and prompting students to think about where they think rainforests would most likely be found (e.g. along the coast etc). f When students have been given sufficient time to find and label the rainforests on the map, the teacher then calls students back to the floor, telling students to sit with their group and have their map between them. The teacher then calls on each group one by one to stand up and show the class their map, describing their findings and their significance. The teacher tells each group to share any new knowledge or describe an ideas they may have around the significance of rainforests, and these are added to the class brainstorm. The purpose of this activity was to have students locating Australian rainforests to see how very few there are in Australia, and thus then thinking about the importance of conserving them. || Students are still seated on the floor, listening to others in the class and participating in the class discussion. Students are answering questions about the picture book and sharing the knowledge they have gained from it about the structure of rainforests, the interaction amongst living things and such, giving their insight and opinions. f f  f  f Students at this point are listening for teacher instruction, moving to form groups and sit at tables when told to do so. Students are then working within their groups, participating in group discussions with group members. Students are reading the map and using the key to find the listed Australian rainforests, labeling them once found. f f Students are listening for teacher instruction and move to sit on the floor in their groups, taking the map they were labeling with them. Students then describe their findings in their groups when called on, sharing new knowledge and participating in class discussion. || 10 mins f f  f  f  f  f  f  f  f  f  f 15 mins f f  f  f  f  f  f  f  f 10 mins || - Gather informal diary entry of students progress, feedback and discussions - Collect maps to examine whether students have been able to find the Australian rainforests || - Were students engaged? - Were students able to use maps? - Did students understand the concept during the lesson? What do they need to learn net lesson? - Were activities appropriate to help students develop their understanding? - Could students understand the relevance to this topic to their everyday lives? || <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif; font-size: 48px;"> <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif; font-size: 48px;">  <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif; font-size: 48px;">  <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif; font-size: 48px;">  <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif; font-size: 48px;">**APPENDIX** <span style="color: #008000; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif; font-size: 200%;">**List of Rainforests in Australia:**
 * <span style="color: #00b0f0; font-family: 'Cambria','serif'; font-size: 37px;">Lesson 1 out of 10 **
 * **__<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Exploring Rainforests __** ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Key Learning Area **
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Outcomes **
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Previous Knowledge **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">SEQUENCE OF TEACHING/LEARNING EXPERIENCES ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Teacher ** || **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Students ** || **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Time ** ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Introduction ** ||
 * The teacher starts the lesson by telling students that they will be doing a unit on rainforests. The teacher asks students what they think a rainforest is, if anyone has been to a rainforest or what they expect to find there. This is just a short discussion to gage student prior knowledge. Student ideas and opinions are recorded in a class brainstorm on the whiteboard.
 * What do you think the story is about?
 * Has anyone read this book before?
 * What does the cover tell us about the story?
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Body ** ||
 * When the reading is complete, the teacher leads another class discussion around the book, getting students to expand on their previous knowledge by describing new knowledge which has been gained. The teacher asks questions such as:
 * What has the story told us about rainforests? Their structure?
 * Were your predictions about the book correct?
 * How do the plants and animals interact?
 * How have humans been interacting with rainforests?
 * Where do you think this rainforest is found?
 * Do you think all rainforests are the same? Why or why not?
 * Why are rainforests important?
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">Conclusion ** ||
 * To finish the lesson, the teacher then discusses with the students the knowledge they have gained throughout the lesson about rainforests, their structure etc. The teacher also discusses the importance of conserving rainforests with students, questioning them about how they think rainforests are beneficial to local communities, the climate, and the species that live within them. The teacher shows the class the video //Saving Sumatra// by Greenpeace, to consolidate their learning. After the viewing, the teacher then tells the students that this is happening in not only Sumatra but rainforests around the world. The teacher should then show the class the last page of //Where the Forest Meets the Sea// again, to highlight how the same thing is happening to the Daintree Forest. The teacher then ends the lesson by highlighting once again the importance of conservation. || Students are listening and participating in class discussion, expressing their iseas and describing what they have learned. Students are then watching the video the teacher puts on the smart board and looking at the last double page spread of the picture book, listening to the teacher. || 10 mins ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">ASSESSMENT ||
 * - Observe students participation, classroom discussion and group work.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Cambria','serif';">EVALUATION ||
 * - Were learning outcomes acheived?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Daintree Rainforest (Queensland)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Errindundra Forests (Victoria)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Gondwana Rainforests of Australia (NSW/Queensland)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Goolengook Rainforest (Victoria)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Lamington** **National Park** **(Queensland/NSW)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Limpinwood Nature Reserve (NSW)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Mount** **Warning National Park** **(NSW)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Springbrook** **National Park (Queensland)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Tarkine Rainforest (Tasmania)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Tarra-Bulga** **National Park (Victoria)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Wielangta** **Forest (Tasmania)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**Wollemi** **National Park** **(NSW)**