honey bee project
General Layout
We will be doing this project over the course of several weeks. The project is broken into 3 phases. Phase 1 of the project will begin on Wednesday, April 5. Phase 3 of the project will end in a culmination event (hosted for other third grade classes). I am not yet sure when this will be. I will update this page and add picture as we go through the process! |
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wHY DO A PROJECT?
Project-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered pedagogy that involves a dynamic classroom approach in which it is believed that students acquire a deeper knowledge through active exploration of real-world challenges and problems. ... It is a style of active learning and inquiry-based learning.
Okay, but why do it on bees?
Our curriculum asks us to meet this standard in studying plants:
3.L.2Understand how plants survive in their environments.
So, of course, we learn all about plants. We learn about their life cycle (bean dissection, growing our own plants), we learn about the parts of a plant (our inquiries, growing our own plants), we learn about different types of soil, we learn about plant adaptations, and we learn about pollinators. In general, a majority of the plants that we know, love, and eat today are only there because of pollinators like bees. So, after we study all of those other things, we're going to study bees (AND ALIGN ALL OF OUR STUDY BACK TO THAT ORIGINAL QUESTION - how do plants survive in their environments).
Okay, but why do it on bees?
Our curriculum asks us to meet this standard in studying plants:
3.L.2Understand how plants survive in their environments.
So, of course, we learn all about plants. We learn about their life cycle (bean dissection, growing our own plants), we learn about the parts of a plant (our inquiries, growing our own plants), we learn about different types of soil, we learn about plant adaptations, and we learn about pollinators. In general, a majority of the plants that we know, love, and eat today are only there because of pollinators like bees. So, after we study all of those other things, we're going to study bees (AND ALIGN ALL OF OUR STUDY BACK TO THAT ORIGINAL QUESTION - how do plants survive in their environments).
PHASE 1
The first step in our project was to share our prior knowledge. Students brought in a story and picture about an experience they have had with bees. They shared these stories and were a great way to start our conversation. From there we discussed everything we already knew about bees, from the basics to more advanced knowledge. Our next step was to figure out what we needed to learn. Students wrote questions on sticky notes and we were able to organize them into 5 main topics. These 5 topics became the 5 research groups. Students chose which group they wanted to be a part of and that is the subject they will spend the project researching.
PHASE 2
Phase 2 will include all of the research we're doing. The first thing we did was interview a guest expert. A beekeeper came into our class and the students were equipped with some of our inquiries. As the beekeeper presented they took notes on their topic. They then asked her to clarify anything they were still missing. From that point we moved into our research. Students will be using books, articles, websites, and videos to research their particular topic.
Resources for research
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
WHY ARE BEES IMPORTANT?
HOW CAN WE HELP BEES?
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HIVE/COLONY/HONEY
WHY ARE BEES BECOMING ENDANGERED?
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PHASE 3
Phase 3 (which will happen after we return from track out) will be the part of the project where students use all of the knowledge they've acquired to create a way to present their information. Groups will be able to make posters, models, and actual useful products to show what they've learned through their research.