Process

This lesson is organized with a scenario that the students have to respond to by researching animal adaptations. The students will first be asked to research information on their own. First you will assign students to a team of 3 students. Each student will be assigned a role to play. The possible roles are as follows: Professor of Protective Coloration, Specialist of Structural and Behavioral Adaptations, and Master of Migration and Hibernation.

Once they have been assigned a role to play, they will conduct research on their topic. Students will then meet with their group to discuss the topics, as mentioned in The Task.

Students will work collaboratively to create an illustration of the mystery animal and its environment. Students must also write a paragraph explaining their illustration and why their group chose the adaptations that they did.They will then make a presentation that compiles their research and demonstrates their findings. Group presentations should last about 3-5 minutes per group.

There are several steps that the teacher must take in order to make this lesson successful.

1. Familiarize yourself with the different animal adaptations using your own resources or those provided on the resource page.

2. Divide students into groups of three based upon whom you feel would work well together and complement each other. Keep in mind that leadership and performing roles will be necessary for each group. Try to make sure that all learning styles are present in each group.

3. Instruct students about how to begin the WebQuest assignment. If students have never done Internet research before, briefly review this process with them. The WebQuest, however, will clearly guide them through the research process.

The time allocated to the WebQuest can be according to the following schedule:

1-week plan:

Days 1 and 2 should be dedicated to individual work (Allow 30 minutes a day for students to work on their research and complete their worksheets).

Days 3, 4, and 5 should be dedicated to group work (Allow 30 minutes a day for students to present their research to their group, make an illustration, write their paragraph, and prepare their presentation).

Depending upon the time and computer availability in your class, this plan can be amended. If you are using this WebQuest as an enrichment activity for gifted students, it can be completed as a weekly assignment with more time allocated each day.

4. As students begin their work, periodically check with them to be sure they are completing their assignments. Act as a resource for students to provide them with any helpful hints about animal adaptations and technology use.

5. Give students materials to create their illustrations that describe their mystery animal. Have storage spaces in the classroom in which students can store their individual materials.

6. Give students ample time and space to work on their projects. Monitor and check in periodically to make sure the groups are on task. Remind students that their group work is not centered on the computer, but instead on their illustrations and presentation.

7. Have the students review the evaluation page of the WebQuest so to make sure they have completed all the requirements. Have them turn it all in to you on the final day.

8. Review the evaluation page and set up times for each group to perform their presentation for the class.

9. Evaluate their work according to the grading rubric.

This WebQuest is designed for novice to advanced teachers due to its ease of use. As long as the teacher has a good background knowledge of animal adaptations no other prior knowledge is necessary.

This lesson could also be used as an interdisciplinary project with an English class. Since this lesson is part of a unit on life science, it can be used to introduce or elaborate upon other significant topics about animals and their environments.

This WebQuest addresses the needs of diverse learners by incorporating research, individual work, group work, listening skills, presenting skills, visual, auditory, and kinesthetic components. Use this lesson as outlined or feel free to modify it if you wish. Have fun!