We'll be writing / typing an expository paper using Inspiration, WriteSite, and Pages which will include the following paragraphs:
• Description of their assigned endangered animal including it's special features (adaptations - ie: why does it have spots?)
• Habitat - what continents, countries is it found, also what ecosystem - forest? jungle? desert? ocean? a particular tree?
• Predator/prey (food chain) - who are it's enemies? Who does it eat?
• Family Life / Social Interaction - Behavior
• Endangered Information: why it is endangered, why it should be protected, and what efforts have been made to protect it.
• It will also include an introductory & concluding paragraph.
See our webpage, "Questions to Explore" and Scaffolded Paragraphs for more details & examples of each paragrah
Although we'll use some class time to read & write about their animal, they will need some help gathering resources. That will likely mean a trip to the public library or bookstore since our school library is fairly limited. Students need to have at least 1-2 books; they may use reliable interenet sources; they may use magazines ("Ranger Rick", "3-2-1 Contact" are helpful magazines) to supplement their reading material. Videos (Nat'l Geographic) can also be a useful supplemental resource. I have several reliable links listed on our class website for this project, as well as who's assigned to what animal (so they can share resources) and any other information that might be helpful.They will be creating a technology slide show project to present to the class using Keynote. They will present their final projects the week before Spring Break.
This is a big project which will require a lot of our Lifeskills: organization, responsibility, initiative, integrity. We have been learning how to read and make use of non-fiction books. There are many skills and strategies to apply: using keywords to find topics in an encyclopedia, how to find the important information you need, how to take notes, how to make use of the different types of text structures in non-fiction books like captions, bold words, side-bars, graphs, headings, first sentences of paragraphs... Non-fiction reading requires very different skills than reading narratives. Our written report will have more of a persuasive emphasis rather than just a straight expository report.
