3rd Grade ELA/Science Unit: Living and Non-Living Things
Course: 3rd Grade ELA/Science
Teacher: S. Green
Content Standards: Science
0307.2.1 Distinguish between living and non-living
things
0307.2.2 Determine how plants and animals compete for
resources such as food, space, water, air, and shelter
0307.3.1 Identify the basic needs of plants and animals
0307.3.2 Recognize that animals obtain their food by
eating plants and other animals
0307.4.1 Select an illustration that shows how an
organism changes as it develops
0307.5.1 Investigate an organisms characteristics and
evaluate how these features enable it to survive in a
particular environment
0307.5.2 Investigate populations of different organisms
and classify them as thriving, threatened, endangered, or
extinct
0307.5.3 Match the organism with evidence of its prior
existence
Date of Instructional Delivery:
Number of Instructional Days: 14 Days
Common Core Literacy Standards:
RI.3.1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate
understanding, referring to the text
RL.3.3: Describe characters in a story (e.g., their
traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their
actions contribute to the sequence of events.
RL.3.7: Explains how illustrations contribute to the
work
RI.3.2: Determine the main idea/recount details and
explain how they support the main idea
RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between a series of
historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or
steps in technical procedures in a text, using
language that pertains to time, sequence, and
cause/effect.
RI.3.4: Determine the meaning of general academic
and domain-specific words and phrases in a text
relevant to a grade 3 topic or subject area.
RI.3.5: Use text features and search tools (e.g., key
words, sidebars, hyperlinks) to locate information
relevant to a given topic efficiently.
RI.3.7: Use information gained from illustrations
(e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to
demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where,
when, why, and how key events occur).
W.3.2a: Introduce a topic and group related
information together, include illustrations when
useful to aiding comprehension.
W.3.2b: Develop the topic with facts, definitions, and
details.
W.3.2c: Use linking words and phrases (e.g., also,
another, and, more, but) to connect ideas within
categories that unfolds naturally.
W.3.6: With guidance and support from adults, use
technology to produce and publish writing (using
keyboarding skills) as well as to interact and
collaborate with others.
W.3.7: Conduct short research projects that build
knowledge about a topic.
L.3.2g: Consult reference materials, including
beginning dictionaries, as needed to check and
correct spellings.
L.3.4d: Use glossaries or beginning dictionaries,
both print and digital, to determine or clarify the
precise meaning of key words and phrases.
Student Learning Targets (How will these be communicated?)
I can
Observe fish in our class aquarium and how they live in its surroundings. Record observations on chart.
Collaborate with a partner and compare what was recorded on your chart.
Communicate observations both orally and in writing.
Identify living and non-living things.
Determine the basic needs that both plants and animals must have to survive.
Identify how plants and animals compete for food, water, air, space, and shelter.
Create a food chain that shows how animals compete with each other.
Determine the tools that an animal uses to survive in its habitat.
Observe different illustrations that show an organism and evidence of it from long ago.
Compare and Contrast different animals and features in different habitats.
Create a diorama of an animals habitat
Write a research paper about your favorite animal that lives in the habitat of your diorama.
Create a diagram to show the development of an animal.
Explain what it is for an animal to be extinct, endangered, thriving, or threatened.
Enduring Understandings:
Knowing the effect that plants and animals
have on each other is the basis for
understanding how they survive on this planet.
Recognizing the basic needs that plants and
animals require to survive.
Essential Question/Driving Question:
What are the basic needs that plants and
animals require?
How do plants and animals affect each other in
their survival?
Learning Progression of Concepts/Skills: (In which order will the concepts and skills be taught during this unit of study?)
What formative assessments will be used to measure/inform student understanding: (During the progression)
Ongoing ELA Standards:
L.3.6 Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic and domain-specific words,
including those that signal spatial and temporal relationships.
SL.3.1 Engage in a range of collaborative discussions with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on
others ideas and expressing their own clearly.
Ongoing Science Standard:
CFU [Link].3 Maintain a science notebook that includes observation, data, diagrams, and explanations.
2 Days
GLE 0307.2.1 Categorize things as living or non-living.
SPI 0307.2.1 Distinguish between living and non-living things.
CFU 0307.2.1 T- Chart write and illustrate 3 living and non-living things and identify the trait that makes each one
living or non-living.
5 Days
GLE Explain how organisms with similar needs compete with one another for resources.
SPI0307.2.2 Determine how plants and animals compete for resources such as food,
space, water, air, and shelter.
GLE 0307.3.1 Describe how animals use food to obtain energy and materials for growth
and repair.
CFU 0307.2.3 Construct a diagram that shows a natural food chain that demonstreates
understanding of animals competing for food sources.
CFU 0307.3.2 Create a chart to show how plants and animals satisfy their energy
requirements.
7 Days
SPI 0307.4.1 Select an illustration that shows how an organism changes as it develops.
SPI 0307.4.2 Distinguish between characteristics that are transmitted from parent to offspring and those that are
not.
SPI Investigate an organism's characteristics and evaluate how these features enable it to survive in a particular
environment.
GLE 0307.5.2 Classify organisms as thriving, threatened, endangered, or extinct.
CFU 0307.4.1 Differentiate among the stages in the life cycle of a butterfly, mealworm, frog, and plant.
CFU 0307.4.5 Make a list of human characteristics that are transmitted from parents to offspring.
CFU Create representations of animals that have characteristics necessary to survive in a particular
environment/.
Assessment of Student Mastery of Concepts/Skills: Summative: (How will you check for understanding at the
end of the unit?)
Science Notebook
Entries
Picture Sort of
living and nonliving things
Create a diorama of
an animal's habitat
Write a report
about an animal of
choice
Quizzes
Exit Tickets
Think-Pair-Share
Academic: Choice
Menu
Summative
Assessment
High probability strategies to be used to develop/enhance CONCEPTS and SKILLS (including technology):
Daily Homework and Practice
Daily reinforcing effort and recognition of hard work
Daily Setting of Objectives and Providing Feedback
Cues, Questions, and Thinking Maps
Identify likes
and diffrences
Coopertive
Learning
Think-Pair-Share
Identify
similarities and
differences
Summarizing
and Note-Taking
Cooperative
Learning
Identify
Connections
between items
Nonlinguistic
Representations
Cooperative
Learning
What Instructional activities and/or tools will engage and create interest for students?
Zoo Trip to see plants
and animals.
Thinking Maps
T-Charts
Science Notebook
Science Textbook pgs.
34-37
pgs. 52-53 pgs. 76-77
pgs. 100-101
Class Discussion with
all students
participating
How will differentiation occur?
Students will be grouped
Science Kit: Animals
Lessons 1-4
Science Textbook:
pgs. 34-63
Who's New at the
Zoo by Janette Oke
Animals, Animals by
Eric Carle
Habitat Diorama
Science Notebook
(Journal)
Science Textbook:
pgs. 66-131
Class Discussion with
all students
participating
Academic Choice
Menu
What interdisciplinary connections will students
make?
Students will get a choice in some activities
Students will choose animal to write about and the
habitat for the diorama
Creating Visual displays
Reading Informational Texts
Presentations with Animal Reports and Dioramas
