Project Template

Name

Amanda Durham

Date

July 3, 2015

Project Title

Plants and our environment

Grade Level/Subject Area(s)

5th grade Science

Purpose

Students will understand how much of an impact plants

have on our environment and how we rely on them as a
food source. Students will gain knowledge of different
plant species, how they grow, how they contribute to our
eating habits, and how we can continue to help them
grow.

CCLS/ISTE Standards

ISTE Standards:

1:Creativity and innovation

Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct
knowledge, and develop innovative products and
processes using technology.
b. Create original works as a means of personal or group
expression

2:Communication and collaboration

Students use digital media and environments to
communicate and work collaboratively, including
at a distance, to support individual learning and
contribute to the learning of others.
a.Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers,
experts, or others employing a variety of digital
environments and media
b.Communicate information and ideas effectively
to multiple audiences using a variety of media
and formats

3:Research and information fluency

Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate,
and use information.
b.Locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize,
and ethically use information from a variety of
sources and media

4:Critical thinking, problem solving,

and decision making
Students use critical thinking skills to plan

and conduct research, manage projects, solve

problems, and make informed decisions using
appropriate digital tools and resources.
a.Identify and define authentic problems and
significant questions for investigation
b.Plan and manage activities to develop a solution
or complete a project
Common Core Learning Standards: Grade 5
RI5.4
Determine the meaning of general and domain specific
words and phrases in a text relevant to grade 5 topic or
subject area
RI5.9
Integrate information from several texts on the same topic
in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably
W5.2
Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and
convey ideas and information clearly
W5.7
Conduct short research projects that use several sources
to build knowledge through investigation of different
aspects of a topic
W5.9
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to
support analysis, reflection, and research
SL5.1
Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions
with diverse partners
SL5.4
Report on a topic or text or present an opinion,
sequencing ideas logically and using appropriate facts
and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or
themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace
SL5.5
Include multimedia components and visual displays in
presentations when appropriate to enhance the
development of main ideas or themes
Desired Outcome - Knowledge

- Students will know the different species or

kinds of plants
- Students will be able to label the essential
parts of plants
- Students will know where certain plants
grow
- Students will understand that plants are
essential to human life as a food source
- Students will have more knowledge on how
to help make sure plants are being well taken care

of in our community
Desired Outcome - Skills

Essential Question(s)

- Students will increase their communication

skills with peers in the class and within their
community
- Students will have more exposure on how
to conduct research
- scientific research on plants
- how to get their community
involved in a community event
What impact do plants have on our environment?
How can we continue to help them grow as a part of our
community food source?

Project Plan
Phase 1: Activity(ies) to set the
stage for the project

To get students thinking about our new unit, we are all

going to contribute to a class/school garden! Within the
courtyard we will plant several different types of plants
(flowers, fruits, and vegetables). As we are planting,
students should be sharing their background knowledge
on what they know about plants and how to plant them.
The teacher will explain to students what each seed is
and how they should be planted so that they will grow
successfully.
***All students should be involved within physically
planting the seeds and conversing with one another
about the topic of plants.

Phase 2: Activity(ies) that engage

students in learning (including field
trips, other explorations, visiting
experts, etc.)

For the majority of this unit, students will be learning

about plants and their importance in our environment.
Students will be learning about the different kinds of
plants, their parts, where they are located/grow the best,
the impact they have on human life, and how we can
help to ensure a healthy plant life in our community.
Students will be participating in various small group
discussions, plant experiments, reading informative
literature, and conducting research.

Phase 3: Activity(ies) in which

students share their knowledge in
a culminating event, as well as
reflect on the project and their
learnings

In the last phase of our unit, students will plan to share

their resources from our class/school garden! Students
will plan and organize a community event to help others
be as knowledgeable as we are now, find a reliable
speaker to come and share their knowledge, and find a
food shelter that would accept our plants (food- fruit and
vegetables) for those in need.

Project Schedule

Time Frame

Objective

Task

DAY 1

Students will be exposed to various

plant seeds and help plant them.

Class members and teacher will plant

seeds (flower, fruits, vegetables) in
the schools courtyard.

DAY 2, 3, & 4

Students will comprehend the

various kinds of plants and be able
to explain if they are a flower, fruit, or
vegetable through completing their
graphic organizers.

Through reading informational text,

looking at photographs, and walking
through the schools small
backyard/forest students will be
exposed to the various forms of
plants.

- flowers
- fruits
- vegetables

Students will be completing graphic

organizers to sort the kinds of plants,
describing what they look like,and
how they grow. Students will be
focusing more specifically at fruit and
vegetable plants that we as humans
could/can use as a food source.
DAY 5, 6, & 7

Students will discover where these

certain plants grow based on climate
and their environment.

Through class discussions, reading

informational text, watching video
clips, and looking at maps, students
will get a more precise idea of where
certain plants grow. Students will be
adding to their graphic organizer,
contributing details of the type of
environment and climate these plants
need to grow.

DAY 8, 9, & 10

Students will be able to identify the

parts of plants successfully on their
labeling plant chart.

Through class discussions, reading

informational text, and watching video
clips, students will be able to identify
the different parts of plants and what
they are used for. By understanding
where these parts are located on a
plant and what they are used for,
students will gain a better insight to
how we can help them successfully
grow.

DAY 11 & 12

Students will understand the impact

that plants have on us humans as a
food source.

Through class discussions, reading

informational text, and watching video
clips, students will be able to see how
much us as humans rely on plants as
a source of food. The teacher should
be explaining that the various plants
we planted of flowers, fruits, and

vegetables are used for humans to

consume.
DAY 13, 14, 15, & Students will conduct research on
16
their assigned topic using the
internet.
Students will create an informational
pamphlet within their assigned
groups.

Over the next few days students will

be conducting their own research to
see
- Which plants we eat in
our area of upstate NY
- Which local farms
produce plants that we use as
a food source
- Websites/links/online
groups of community
resources that provide
information on how to keep our
community plants healthy
Students will be broken up into 6
groups (2 groups working on the
same topic). Each group is
responsible for conducting the
research using an individual laptop to
find reliable information on their
assigned topic. Once students have
gathered their information, they are
going to create a pamphlet. The
pamphlet will contain 3 sections (1 for
each topic) so after each group has
input their information the other 2
groups will include their information.
The first 2 days should be spent
conducting research while the last 2
days should be spent inputting
information into the pamphlet.
Students should be using their prior
knowledge and experience on
designing the layout of their pamphlet.
All students from each group should
equally contribute to the pamphlet.
The students should be aware that the
pamphlet is going to go out into the
community so that others are aware of
how we can continue to help our
community plants flourish as a food
source.

DAYS 17, 18, 19,

20 & 21
(or more days

Students will plan and organize a

community event to report their
findings of how plants have an

In the final days of our unit, students

will be organizing and creating their
own event to present to the public!

depending on
impact on our environment. Students
how well students will plan and execute this event with
are working)
only teacher guidance, most of this
work should be lead by the students.

While this whole event is going to be

student centered, each student is
going to be assigned a specific task
with teacher guidance.
- Students will organize
a school event/assembly to
inform the public about the
importance of plants on our
environment as it relates to our
food source. Students will
need to coordinate with the
Principal to come up with a
date, time, and reserve the
auditorium. Students will also
need to plan what will happen
at this assembly and how they
are going to get their point
across.
- Students are also
required to have 1 professional
individual from our community
to come in at our
event/assembly to share their
knowledge. Students will need
to conduct research to see
who is a reliable candidate for
our purpose, decide on 1
speaker, and contact that
individual and invite them to
speak at our event.
- Students will also need
to research a community food
shelter/panty that would
accept our fresh plants of fruits
and vegetables as a food
source. The students should
contact this organization to
make sure they would like to
receive our donation of food
from our class/school garden
and ask if they would join us
for our event.
- Students will also need
to make this public knowledge,
so creating a newsletter or
flyer is a requirement to get
the event notice out there. 3
separate flyers should be
created that can serve as a
notice for our event. Students

may use any web or computer

tool they feel will work best,
but using a piece of
technology is required.
DAY 22
(or last day of
unit)

Students will successfully write a one At the end of the unit, students will
paragraph response to their newly
complete a one paragraph response
gained knowledge on our plant unit.
indicating how they liked the
experience of our unit and how it
helped them learn the importance of
plants as a food source for humans.
Students should be including at least
3 specific details that we covered
throughout our unit.

Monitoring/Assessing the Project

Benchmarks/Formative
Assessments

Throughout the unit, the teacher will be using an informal

checklist to keep track of students participation in class
discussions, activity sheet assignments, and group work.
When students are conducting research to input within
their pamphlet, the teacher will be conferencing with each
group to make sure students are on the right track,
everyone is contributing, and that the information is
reliable.
When students are planning and organizing their final
event, the teacher will be checking in with each student or
role to make sure they are on the right track, everyone is
contributing, the information is reliable, and to see if they
need any help or direction.

Assessing the Project (Include

rubric(s))

After students have learned about the different parts of

plants, they will be labeling a diagram of the plant. The
teacher will be collecting this as an assessment to make
sure students are understanding what the different parts
of a plant are and what they are used for. This
assessment will be graded out of 10 points, each point
earned for successfully labeling each part of the plant.
When students have finished their pamphlet on which
plants we use as a food source in upstate NY, local farms
that provide this, and community resources, the teacher
will collect it for an assessment. The teacher will of course
keep in mind that this was a group effort, and will ask
students to complete a peer evaluation on how they
thought their group members performed and added to
their project.

In the final days of the unit, students will be

planning/creating/organizing a community event
explaining the impact plants have on our environment.
Each student will be assigned a role or have a specific
task for the final project. Students will be graded on the
success of their contribution to the project and also their
effort.
At the end of the unit, students will complete a one
paragraph response indicating how they liked the
experience of our unit and how it helped them learn the
importance of plants as a food source for humans.
Students should be including at least 3 specific details
that we covered throughout our unit.
Evaluating the Experience

Students will complete several group evaluations to grade

how well they believe their group members contributed to
the assignment.
At the end of the unit, students will complete a one
paragraph response indicating how they liked the
experience of our unit and how it helped them learn the
importance of plants as a food source for humans.
Students should be including at least 3 specific details
that we covered throughout our unit.

Rubric for Informational Pamphlet

Criteria

Appropriate 5th
grade writing

The pamphlet is
complete with
appropriate 5th
grade writing
with no spelling
errors

The pamphlet is
complete but
contains a few
spelling errors

The pamphlet is
almost complete
but contains
more than 3
spelling errors

The pamphlet is
not complete
and does not
show
appropriate 5th
grade writing
skills

Content

The pamphlet
contains the
appropriate
content of which
plants we eat in
upstate NY, local
farms that
provide these

The pamphlet
contains
appropriate
content but is
difficult to follow

The pamphlet
does not contain
consistent
appropriate
content, and it is
clear that some
details are
missing

The pamphlet
does not contain
appropriate
content of the
selected topics

plants, and
helpful
community
resources
Reliable
sources

Sources have
been checked by
the teacher and
they are listed in
the pamphlet

Most sources
have been
checked by the
teacher but not
all are included
in the pamphlet

Sources have
not been
checked by the
teacher and only
a few are
included in the
pamphlet

No sources were
used within the
pamphlet

The response is
complete but
contains a few
spelling errors

The response is
almost complete
but contains
more than 3
spelling errors

The response is
not complete
and does not
show
appropriate 5th
grade writing
skills

The response
contains some
content but only
includes 2
specific details

The response
does not contain
the newly
learned content
with only 1
added detail

The response
does not contain
any of the newly
learned
information

Rubric for Final Response

Criteria

Appropriate 5th The response is

grade writing
complete with
appropriate 5th
grade writing
with no spelling
errors
Content

The response
contains the
appropriate
newly learned
content including
3 specific details