Everything is Interconnected

A Transdisciplinary Botany Unit for 2nd Grade

Unit Designers: Laurie Robben, Carolyn Sackstein, Karrie Martineau, and Charill Pierce

2nd Grade Transdisciplinary Unit: Let’s Grow!

Theme: Living things are an important part of our environment

Topic: Botany

Unit Designers: Laurie Robben, Carolyn Sackstein, Karrie Martineau, and Charill Pierce

Transdisciplinary: Transdisciplinary learning is the exploration of a relevant issue or problem that integrates the perspectives of multiple disciplines in order to connect new knowledge and deeper understanding to real life experiences. Transdisciplinary units culminate in authentic assessments with a genuine audience. Transdisciplinary units weave throughout the school day and are taught though multiple disciplines. Although content may be grounded in a discipline, the unit is not considered a science unit or social studies unit.

Inquiry: A student-centered, active learning approach focusing on questioning, critical thinking, and problem solving. It's associated with the idea "involve me and I understand."

Unit Summary: This unit covers topics in the areas of science, social studies, math, language arts, media, and art. The unit exposes the students to the idea that everything is somehow connected. This awareness will stem from knowledge that living things interact.

Preparing to work with art and media: Part of this unit is being covered by the art teachers, and with the assistance of media. Here are some suggestions for preparing the students to work on this topic with multiple teachers:

Meet with the art teacher as you are planning your calendar. The art teacher cannot start the plant unit until the students have started growing their bean. You cannot do the end of the unit performance task until photos are taken and printed. For this, you will need students to be familiar with digital photography and collaborate with media to have prints made of their plant’s growth. Keep that in mind.

Place your science notebook in a folder that can be easily carried to media and art. The media and art teachers will be using the information in the science notebook and adding additional materials to the notebook.

Teachers need access to digital cameras throughout the unit.

Enduring Understanding: Living things are an important part of our environment.

Essential Question:How is everything interconnected?

2nd Grade Transdisciplinary Unit: Let’s Grow!

Unit Questions:Science

How does one living thing rely on another?

Math How can our math tools help us examine the world around us?

Social Studies How do people interact with the environment around us?

Reading See Greenwich Literacy Team Unit Plan for Content Area Literacy

Writing See Greenwich Literacy Team Unit Plan for Content Area Literacy

Media How can I use technology to communicate information?

Art How is the environment represented in art?

2nd Grade Transdisciplinary Unit: Let’s Grow!

Curriculum Standards

SCIENCE:Connecticut Content Standard2.2 – Plants change their forms as part of their life cycles.

GLC Descriptor Lesson in which addressed1 Flowering plants progress through a sequenced life

cycle. First, seeds sprout (germinate), then seedlings grow into adult plants with leaves and flowers. If the flowers are pollinated, seeds develop that will grow into new plants to continue the life cycle.

2 Roots, stems, leaves, flowers and seed are structures that develop during different stages of the plant's life cycle.

3 Seeds contain the beginning of a new plant (embryo) and the food (energy source) the new plant needs to grow until it is mature enough tot produce its own food. Different plant varieties produce seeds of difference size, color and shape.

4 Environmental conditions, such as temperature, amount of light, amount of water and type of soil, affect seed germination and plant development.

5 A plant's seed will grow into a new plant that resembles but is not identical to the parent plant or to other new plants. For example, marigold plants produce marigold seeds that grow into new marigold plants. Individual marigolds, however, vary in height, number of leaves, etc.

6 Seedlings are young plants that produce the structures that will be needed by the plant to survive in its environment: Roots and leaves begin to grow and take in nutrients, water and air; and the stem starts to grow towards sunlight.

7 Adult plants form more leaves that help the plant collect sunlight and air to make its food. They produce flowers that are the structures responsible for reproduction.

8 Flowers have structures that produce pollen, attract pollinators and produce seeds that can grow into new plants. Some flowers have structures that develop into fruits, berries or nuts that contain the seeds that can grow into new plants

9 Some seeds fall to the ground and germinate close to the parent plant, other seeds are carried (dispersed) by wind, animals, or water to place far away. The structure of the seed is related to the way it is dispersed.

2nd Grade Transdisciplinary Unit: Let’s Grow!

Connecticut Inquiry StandardsA

INQDescriptor Lesson in which addressed

1 Make observations and ask questions about objects, organisms, and the environment.

2 Use senses and simple measuring tools to collect data.3 Make predictions based on observed patterns4 Read, write, listen and speak about observations of the

natural world.5 Seek information in books, magazines, and pictures.6 Present information in words, and drawings.7 Use standard tools to measure and describe physical

properties such as weight, length and temperature.8 Use nonstandard measures to estimate and compare the

sizes of objects.9 Count, order and sort objects by their properties.10 Represent information in bar graphs.

2nd Grade Transdisciplinary Unit: Let’s Grow!

Grade-Level ExpectationsGLE

Descriptor Lesson and Text in which it is found

1 Use senses and simple tools to observe and describe the roots, stems, leaves, flowers and seeds of various plants (including trees, vegetables and grass).

2 Use magnifiers to observe and diagram the parts of a flower.

3 Describe the functions of roots, stems, leaves, flowers and seeds in completing a plant's life cycle.

4 Record observations and make conclusions about the sequence of stages in a flowering plant's life cycle.

5 Compare and contrast how seeds of different plants are adapted for dispersal by water, wind or animals.

6 Conduct a fair test to explore factors that affect seed germination and plant growth.

2nd Grade Transdisciplinary Unit: Let’s Grow!

Greenwich Literacy Team Student Learning GoalsReading

Read poetry to understand the world around us. Read nonfiction to obtain relevant and specific information.

Writing Construct poetry to represent living things in the environment. Write in an orderly and purposeful way. Revise and edit to ensure sequential order.

GPS UbD Arts Curriculum: Expressing Personal Ideas/Creating

- Creating in the arts uses imagination, self-discipline, problem solving, and experience.

- Process impacts product.Responding to the Arts

- Artistic expression can be analyze, described, and evaluated, both intellectually and emotionally in a variety of ways.

- Responding to the arts enhances ones life and influences ones personal expression.Interpreting Symbolic Expression/Literacy

- Each arts discipline is a language onto itself communicated through a unique system of symbols and terms.

- Literacy in the arts is valuable in facilitating the transfer of artistic expression.Making Connections to and Through the Arts

- The arts connect to other disciplines, personal experiences, and daily life.

GPS Media GLEs:

Media

2.3: Communicate: Students interpret, evaluate and communicate using digital and visual media.1. In a collaborative group, use a variety of technologies to produce a presentation for a curriculum area.

* Take daily digital pictures to record a changing phenomenon (ex: growth of daffodil).

2nd Grade Transdisciplinary Unit: Let’s Grow!

Unit Lesson Overview

I. Introduction 1. Pre-assessment: KWL2. Virtual labeling the parts of a plant

II. Plant Growth 3. Compare and contrast varieties of seeds.4. Using scientific tools to observe and record observations of seed.5. Apply the basic steps of the inquiry process to further their understanding of germination.6. Conduct 10-day growing trial of selected bean seed.7. Generalize and conclude observations of the plant life cycle (germination, pollination, dispersal, etc). 8. Understand that all living things require certain things to survive.

III. Harvest9. Performance Task: Photostory

IV. Optional Investigation10. Plant a class garden on school grounds (indoor or outdoor).

V. LANGUAGE ARTS: Greenwich Literacy Team Units - Content Area Literacy

VI. MEDIA: Photostory

VII. ART: Bean Mosaic Investigate Classic Representations of Plant Life in Art.

VIII. MATH: Measure and compare plant growth. Generate measurement data.

VIV. Summative Performance Task – Photostory

IX. Extension Activities