Olivia Lee

4.8.15

Lesson Title- Polar Bear Tracking activity

SOL: 4.5 Living Systems b) organization of populations, communities, and ecosystems and how
they interrelate.
http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/where_we_work/arctic/wildlife/polar_bear/tracker/

Objective(s)
-

TSW be able to recognize

TSW define an ecosystem
TSW define the term migration
TSW analyze the interactive map
TSW comprehend that Polar Bears migrate with ice movement
TSW create questions for peers
TSW demonstrate comprehension by answering the questions written by peer
TSW be able to recognize that the bears ecosystem and migration patterns are interlinked
through Excel.

Materials Needed
-

Lab
Internet
Blank sheet of paper
The worksheet on Blackboard
Interactive map and website
Active board
Camtasia
Excel
Audacity
PowerPoint

Introduction

Olivia Lee
4.8.15

*As a class we will orally define vocabulary*

Vocab:
I.
II.
III.

Ecosystem
Migration
Ice movement

Sequence:
1. Have each child download the worksheet via blackboard
2. After talking about vocabulary, transcribe into the worksheet
3. Children will then identify the continents of the map on their globe diagram that is within their
word document
4. On the website attached, let the children explore the scientists research and the different years so
they may be able to understand the change of ice overtime
5. Answer questions on worksheet together by letting children come to the board and interact with
the online map
6. Then tell them that Polar Bears migrate with the ice. (It moves, they move!)
7. Finish worksheet
8. Now have students create a chart in excel about the numbers of polar bears and how this varies
yearly. I, as the teacher, will show them how to do this in a Camtasia tutorial. This will give my
4th graders their first experience with Camtasia.
9. Have the children pull out a scratch piece of paper and let each child write 3 questions for their
peers to answer. Now each student will record their questions on Audacity and save the file to
put into their PowerPoint later on in the activity.
10. The next class block each child will make an interactive PowerPoint to show off their findings.
This PowerPoint will include their Audacity question recording. These questions will be placed
at the end of their PowerPoint. After the student plays their Audacity recording, their peers will
respond to the questions in their science notebooks. Students will be presenting at a later date.
Closure/Transition- Explain that Polar Bears are just one type of animal that migrates with its
ecosystem! Finally have the class brain storm on possible reasons as to why scientist would want to
study these wonderful Polar Bears.

Olivia Lee
4.8.15

Assessment- As a teacher I will collect the students notebooks and check their answers for correctness
and leave comments as to why they are correct or incorrect and take a completion grade! Then return
and discuss as a class at a later date.