Earthworms, Snails and Hermit Crabs
Integrating Science and Literacy with a Terrarium (Virtual Tour)
Stage of Literacy Development:
Stage 2: Consolidation / FluencyStage 3: Literacy for Growth
Ages:
7-12
Grade Range:
2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6thFood Groups:
Primary: Motivation for Literacy, Text Structures & Genres
Transcript
This is an example of how I integrate science with literacy. I think its really important to give children really experiences with animals when were doing our biology unit in science. This is a terrarium. We've put plants in here and sticks, and earth. I put a variety of things in here depending on the year. Sometimes I put in earthworms, sometimes snails, and sometimes hermit crabs. The children of course love this activity. They love all the different kinds of things that they can do when they observe these animals. And of course, I'll make them write about it again. We read fiction stories, for example Eric Carles, A House for Hermit Crab. We also have books here on slugs and snails and on earthworms. Using this as a launching point for your literacy activities will always be engaging for your children, whether you're asking them to write a non-fiction account of something that they've learned about the animals in the terrarium or whether you're asking them to write a narrative.
Related References
Activity Objective
The goal of Earthworms, Snails and Hermit Crabs: Integrating Science and Literacy with a Terrarium (Virtual Tour) is to provide students with opportunities to write narratives by writing about a real-world experience.
Quick Tips
Additional Comments:
- Add new items to the terrarium throughout the year. - Take a nature walk with your students and collect found items to include in the terrarium. - Provide students with opportunities to observe the items and creatures in the terrarium. Give each student a journal in which they can record their observations. - Reading a variety of fiction and non-fiction texts related to habitats is engaging and integrates literacy with science. - Integrated instruction is a teaching approach that connects different subjects according to a selected theme or topic. - Integrating literacy with other curriculum areas encourages self-expression, is motivating and engaging and involves thinking critically.
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