STEM: Doodle-Trees (Trees and the Four Seasons)
In this lesson, students will work in pairs using the 3Doodler to doodle 4 tree branches as models of the 4 seasons, i.e., winter, spring, summer, and fall. This is a great activity for introducing a unit on plants, trees, or the climate of the four seasons.
Knowledge
Students have
explored trees and environmental changes related to the four seasons.
had practice using the 3Doodler to draw lines, shapes and fill.
explored trees and environmental changes related to the four seasons.
had practice using the 3Doodler to draw lines, shapes and fill.
Objectives
Students will
doodle 4 tree branches as models of trees during each of the four seasons.
discuss the climate and how it affects trees during each of the four seasons.
share activities that are relevant to each of the four seasons.
identify the 4 seasons as a pattern in nature.
doodle 4 tree branches as models of trees during each of the four seasons.
discuss the climate and how it affects trees during each of the four seasons.
share activities that are relevant to each of the four seasons.
identify the 4 seasons as a pattern in nature.
Materials
Students will need
3Doodler (1 per group)
white paper (2 per pair)
pencil (2 per pair)
small tree branches (4 per pair)
Doodled Season Trees Slides (for teacher to project on the board)
3Doodler (1 per group)
white paper (2 per pair)
pencil (2 per pair)
small tree branches (4 per pair)
Doodled Season Trees Slides (for teacher to project on the board)
Lesson Plan
Instructions
Step 1 - PREPARATION
Divide students into pairs before taking them outside to find 4 branches for this activity that are relatively the same size.
Take students on a nature walk to collect the branches. Look for branches with bends and twists that split into multiple branches, rather than a straight twig.
Print out 1 copy of the My Tree Throughout the Seasons Poem for each pair.
Step 2
Whole group: Project your tablet or computer screen on the board for students to view the My Tree Throughout the Seasons Poem.
Step 3
Hand out the poem for students to follow along as you read it together.
Ask: Which seasons are mentioned in this poem? Have students circle each season with a pencil.
Ask: What color do the leaves change to in each season? Have students circle each related color.
Ask: What colors do the leaves return to at the end of the poem? Why?
*Note the repeated cycle of the seasons.
Step 4
Share the goal: In this session, students will doodle their tree branches as models of a tree in each of the four seasons.
Step 6
Discuss the change in colors during each season, and which Eco-plastics students may use for each season, e.g., fall (red, yellow, green, and orange), winter (white), spring (red and green) summer (green).
Step 7
Model how to doodle a branch for each of the four seasons. Note that students can lay the branch down on a sheet of paper to doodle. Demonstrate how to create a stencil for the green tuft of the springtime tree.
*Note that students' outcomes may vary and that is okay.
Step 8
Hand out 4 branches, a 3Doodler, Eco-plastics in a variety of colors, pencils, and paper to each pair.
Step 9
Circle to assist and assess as students work together.
Divide students into pairs before taking them outside to find 4 branches for this activity that are relatively the same size.
Take students on a nature walk to collect the branches. Look for branches with bends and twists that split into multiple branches, rather than a straight twig.
Print out 1 copy of the My Tree Throughout the Seasons Poem for each pair.
Whole group: Project your tablet or computer screen on the board for students to view the My Tree Throughout the Seasons Poem.
Hand out the poem for students to follow along as you read it together.
Ask: Which seasons are mentioned in this poem? Have students circle each season with a pencil.
Ask: What color do the leaves change to in each season? Have students circle each related color.
Ask: What colors do the leaves return to at the end of the poem? Why?
*Note the repeated cycle of the seasons.
Share the goal: In this session, students will doodle their tree branches as models of a tree in each of the four seasons.
Discuss the change in colors during each season, and which Eco-plastics students may use for each season, e.g., fall (red, yellow, green, and orange), winter (white), spring (red and green) summer (green).
Model how to doodle a branch for each of the four seasons. Note that students can lay the branch down on a sheet of paper to doodle. Demonstrate how to create a stencil for the green tuft of the springtime tree.
*Note that students' outcomes may vary and that is okay.
Hand out 4 branches, a 3Doodler, Eco-plastics in a variety of colors, pencils, and paper to each pair.
Circle to assist and assess as students work together.
Wrap Up
Assessment
Possible Extensions
Vocabulary
air - the invisible gaseous substance surrounding the earth, a mixture mainly of oxygen and nitrogen.
carbon dioxide - a colorless, odorless gas produced by burning carbon and organic compounds and by respiration. It is naturally present in air (about 0.03 percent) and is absorbed by plants in photosynthesis.
collaboration - to work jointly with others or together especially in an intellectual endeavor.
energy - the strength and vitality required for sustained physical or mental activity.
fall - the third season of the year, when crops and fruits are gathered and leaves fall, in the northern hemisphere from September to November and in the southern hemisphere from March to May.
food - any nutritious substance that people or animals eat or drink, or that plants absorb, in order to maintain life and growth.
grow - (of a living thing) undergo natural development by increasing in size and changing physically; progress to maturity.
oxygen - a colorless, odorless reactive gas, the chemical element of atomic number 8 and the life-supporting component of the air. Oxygen forms about 20 percent of the earth's atmosphere, and is the most abundant element in the earth's crust, mainly in the form of oxides, silicates, and carbonates.
plant - a living organism of the kind exemplified by trees, shrubs, herbs, grasses, ferns, and mosses, typically growing in a permanent site, absorbing water and inorganic substances through its roots, and synthesizing nutrients in its leaves by photosynthesis using the green pigment chlorophyll.
problem-solving - the process or act of finding a solution to a problem.
season - each of the four divisions of the year (spring, summer, autumn, and winter) marked by particular weather patterns and daylight hours, resulting from the earth's changing position with regard to the sun.
shelter - a place giving temporary protection from bad weather or danger.
soil - the upper layer of earth in which plants grow, a black or dark brown material typically consisting of a mixture of organic remains, clay, and rock particles.
space - a continuous area or expanse that is free, available, or unoccupied.
spring - the season after winter and before summer, in which vegetation begins to appear, in the northern hemisphere from March to May and in the southern hemisphere from September to November.
summer - the warmest season of the year, in the northern hemisphere from June to August and in the southern hemisphere from December to February.
sunlight - light from the sun.
tree - a woody perennial plant having a single usually elongate main stem generally with few or no branches on its lower part.
water - a colorless, transparent, odorless, tasteless liquid that forms the seas, lakes, rivers, and rain and is the basis of the fluids of living organisms.
winter - the coldest season of the year, in the northern hemisphere from December to February and in the southern hemisphere from June to August.
Educational Standards
Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 2 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.
Students will discuss the four seasons and their impact on trees.
Build on others' talk in conversations by linking their comments to the remarks of others.
Students will build on the talk of others during whole group and partner work throughout this project.
Patterns in the natural world can be observed and used as evidence.
Students will identify the pattern of the seasons, and their understanding will be reflected in their doodled-trees.
Use a model to represent relationships in the natural world.
Students will work in pairs to doodle one tree branch for each season, each one having characteristics of the season it represents.
Events have causes the generate observable patterns.
Students will associate the climate of each season with its impact on trees.
Decompose (break down) a larger problem into smaller sub-problems with teacher guidance or independently.
Students will break down the process of investigating trees throughout the seasons by doodling models of trees, and discussing how trees change throughout each season.
Use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves their practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways.
Students will use a 3Doodler to create 3D models of a tree during each of the four seasons.
Use collaborative technologies to work with others, including peers, experts or community members, to examine issues and problems from multiple viewpoints.
Students will work with a partner and peers throughout all phases of this activity.
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