We Bee Scientists: Grade 3: Surviving in the Sonoran Desert!
This set of 3 units offers an in-depth look into living things in the Sonoran Desert, the roles they play, how they interact, the way energy flows through food webs, and the internal and external structures and functions of plants and animals that live in the Sonoran Desert. This free, hands-on, all-inclusive curriculum will have your students developing models, engaging in higher-level thinking, using critical thinking skills, making connections, constructing explanations and more, all while learning about the amazing and diverse Sonoran Desert.
What’s included:
- 3 fully comprehensive units that lead students to answer the driving question “How do Living Things Survive in the Sonoran Desert?”
- Lesson Plans: Each unit has step-by-step lesson guides to prepare your teaching. Lessons are hands-on, incorporate multiple science and engineering practices, and will have your students completely engaged!
- Worksheets: Each unit includes worksheets, assessments, and student self-assessments that you can use to evaluate student learning.
- Slide Shows: For each unit, you will also have access to a slide deck that is ready for you to present and teach with! Slides include activities, high-quality photo resources, and explanations to accompany all the exploring your students will do.
- Assessments
3.L1U1.5 - Develop and use models to explain that plants and animals (including humans) have internal and external structures that serve various functions that aid in growth, survival, behavior, and reproduction.
3.L2U1.7- Develop and use system models to describe the flow of energy from the Sun to and among living organisms.
3.L2U1.8 - Construct an argument from evidence that organisms are interdependent.
UNIT 1: Producers, Consumers, Decomposers, Oh My! Students will be able to identify and describe the different roles in an ecosystem and the importance of relationships and interactions between living things in the Sonoran Desert. Students will develop an argument, using evidence, about why living things need other organisms to survive.
UNIT 2: Energy in the Desert. Students will be able to explain how energy flows through living things in the desert by creating food chains and food webs, and exploring what happens when a living thing is removed from the desert. Students will construct an argument about what would happen to the Sonoran Desert ecosystem if a Mesquite Tree were removed.
UNIT 3: Bits and Pieces in the Sonoran Desert. Students will be able to identify and explain the different structures of desert plants and animals, and the function of those structures to help animals and plants survive in the Sonoran Desert. Students will create a model of their very own original plant or desert animal, including at least 3 structures they learned about that help animals and plants survive in the Sonoran Desert.
Google Classroom Code
To join our Google Classroom, sign in to your Google account. Navigate to Classrooms (either through your Google waffle or by searching Google Classrooms), and then select the plus sign in the upper right corner of your screen. Enter your Classroom Join Code cuqro3r. Joining our Google Classroom allows you to communicate with us about the curriculum, and allows us to notify you of any support or updates to material we may offer.
