Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

30 minutes	Part B: Describing Invertebrates - From Images
40 minutes	Part C: Describing Invertebrates - Outside
5 minutes	Reflection

Part A: Activating Prior Knowledge

Step 1.

Begin this lesson by posing the following scenario to students:

Imagine if you were meeting an alien from another planet and you needed their help to find your missing cat. However, this alien has never seen a cat, let alone any other Earth animals. What could you tell the alien about the cat? What descriptive words would you use?

Invite students to share their ideas through a class discussion, recording keywords and terms on the board. For example:

Neat, round head
Long, slender body
A long, thin tail that swishes from side to side and stands straight up sometimes
Short, soft orange and cream striped fur over the whole body
Two small, soft, pointed ears with very short hair on the outside and pink skin on the inside
Large, wide green eyes
A small, pink, wet nose
Long whiskers that stand out to the side from the cheeks
A smiling mouth that opens to reveal small but very sharp teeth
Four sleek legs
Feet with soft fleshy pads underneath and very sharp, translucent claws
Very loud meow, especially at dinner time!

Step 2.

After you have collected a decent number of words, take a moment to talk about the words that you have recorded - can you classify any of these words as either nouns or adjectives? Remind students that nouns are naming words, and adjectives are words that describe nouns. Use a blue pen to highlight the nouns and a red pen to highlight the adjectives. In this lesson, the focus will be on using interesting adjectives/describing words.

Step 3.

You can then invite students to imagine how these words and terms could be put together to describe a cat - is there anything missing? Do you think the alien could find the cat based on these descriptive words you chose?

Explain to students that scientists use descriptive words to describe any species that they find - using descriptive words helps other scientists (and non-scientists) to understand not only the physical appearance of the species but also the ways they may move and behave. Videos and photos are also good but words capture something about the species that can be quickly read and understood.

In this lesson, students will be observing invertebrates and describing their appearance and movements.

Part B: Describing Invertebrates - From Images

Preparation:

Print and cut out the Invertebrate Flashcards - Years 3 & 4. You can keep the final information pages for reference during any discussions.

Step 1.

Take a few moments to review student understanding of invertebrates:

Vertebrates are animals with a backbone (vertebrae) and bony skeleton. People and cats are examples of vertebrates
Invertebrates are animals without a backbone or bony skeleton. Insects, slugs, snails, worms, jellyfish and octopus are all examples of invertebrates.

Explain to students that in this lesson they will be focusing on invertebrates they might find in the schoolyard.

Step 2.

Break the class into eight groups and give each group one of the invertebrates featured on the flashcards.

Working in their groups, students come up with as many descriptive words and statements as they can to describe the appearance of their invertebrate, without actually saying what it is.

Encourage students to focus on:

Number of legs
Wings if they can see them
Whether they can see antennae and mouthparts
Colours
Head, thorax and abdomen (see Invertebrate Anatomy)
Other interesting features

Step 3.

Once complete, invite each group to share the invertebrate they focused on. The aim here is that each student has a basic understanding of the invertebrates they might find in the schoolyard and how they might be described.

Part C: Describing Invertebrates - Outside

Step 1.

Explain to students that they will now be heading outside to observe invertebrates in their natural habitat. They will be doing a drawing of this invertebrate, and recording a series of descriptive words and terms about the physical appearance and movements of the invertebrate.

Before heading outside, remind students of our Outdoor Learning Tips and any code of conduct for working with animals (i.e. don’t touch, don’t harm).

Step 2.

Ensure each student has a workbook/paper and a pencil. Head outside and invite students to settle somewhere close to the ground. It may take a while to notice any invertebrates; encourage students to sit quietly and calmly until they notice one.

Each student should work independently. If it helps, explain that they can do a drawing of the invertebrate they are watching, as this can help them to notice things they might otherwise miss. However, the most important thing is for students to record their observations using descriptive keywords and terms.

Explain to students that in addition to describing the features of the invertebrate they are observing, they should also think about how they would describe the way the invertebrate is moving and what it is doing.

Step 3.

Once complete, invite each student to pair up with a classmate, ensuring that each student is unaware of the invertebrate that each of them observed.

Students should take turns imagining they are an alien. The 'human' students describe their invertebrates to their 'alien' partner using only the words they recorded, keeping the name and their own reference drawing secret. The 'alien' listening to the description of the invertebrate has to draw what they hear.

Once complete, invite students to reveal the invertebrates they were describing and to compare the drawings the ‘aliens’ created to the invertebrate that was being described.

Step 4.

Invite each pair of students to reflect on what went well and where more descriptive words and terms would have been useful. Students should keep a record of what further information is required.

Step 5.

Finally, students should create a ‘who am I?’ text for the invertebrate they observed. The aim of the text is to slowly reveal the invertebrate through each sentence (or keywords, depending on age and ability).

Students could create a second page to accompany their text that includes the name of the invertebrate and a drawing. This could be used as the big reveal!

Here is an example of the 'who am I?' text: Who Am I? Example

Reflection

Invite students to work independently to use between five and ten keywords (depending on age and ability) to describe themselves.

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching practice today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

Describing Invertebrates - English and Science

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