Biology Partnership
(A Teacher Quality Grant)
Lesson Plan Construction Form
Identifying Information:
Group Members:
Amanda Bloomer – Graceville High School (amanda.bloomer@jcsb.org)
Michelle Kelly – Chipley High School
(michellekelly8289@gmail.com)
Brandi Kolmetz – Marianna High School (brandi.kolmetz@jcsb.org)
Alana Mayeaux – Mariana High School (alana.mayeaux@jcsb.org)
Kacee Pittman – Jackson Alternative School (kacee.pittman@jcsb.org)
Phillip Vosbrink – Chipley High School (phillip.vosbrink@washington.k12.fl.us)
Title of Lesson: Classification
Length of Lesson: 50 minutes. 1 class period that is 50 minutes.
Course Level: Biology (general)
Motivation:
1. On a sheet of paper or white board, students will answer the following prompt that will
be displayed on the board using rally table in 6 minutes:
“Why do you believe it is important that scientist classify organisms into groups so that
different species can be distinguished from one another?”
Directions: Rally Table ( mastery, thinking skills, communication)
In pairs, students alternate generating written responses or solving problems.
I. Teacher poses a problem or provides a task to which there are multiple possible
answers, steps, or procedures.
II.
In pairs, students take turns passing the paper and pencil, each writing an answer or
making a contribution.
III.
Results from each group will be shared with the class.
2. Students will take the Pre test that is enclosed within the folder. Students will have 15
minutes to complete the assessment.
3. Students will watch the following video to introduce them into taxonomy and the tree
of life:
https://www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/tree-of-life/v/taxonomy-and-the-tree-of-life
4. After viewing the video: Students will answer the following question that will be
displayed for the entire class to view on a sheet of paper/ or white board: “ If you
discovered a new organism, what characteristics would you use to classify it?” Utilizing
the Kagan structure Think-Pair-Share.
Think-pair-share (thinking, communication, information sharing)
1. Students think to themselves or write on a topic or question, preferably
one demanding analysis, evaluation, or synthesis, provided by the
teacher.
2. After 30 seconds, students turn to partners and share their responses,
thus allowing time for both rehearsal and immediate feedback on their
ideas.
3. Then they share their thoughts with the class. Through this structure, all
students have an opportunity to learn by reflection and by verbalization.
This works well for generating and revising hypotheses, inductive reasoning,
deductive reasoning, application.
Needed Materials & Set-Up:
Materials:
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▪
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Copies of the handout Student Worksheet – Dichotomous Key Lab, one for every pair of
students.
Copies of the pre-test and post-test, one for each student.
One Ziploc bag containing 10 assorted flavors of Jelly Belly Jelly Beans (Original Flavors) for every
pair of students (These bags may be prepared in advance of the lesson).
Classroom projector – to show a video during the motivation and to display the student
worksheet during the modeling portion of the lesson activity.
Room Set-Up:
Projector screen
Teacher
Student desks
arranged in pairs
Transitions:
▪ When students initially enter the room, all desks are facing the projector for the motivation
portion of the lesson.
▪ At the beginning of the activity, the teacher places the students into partner groups (pairs) and
they slide their desks beside each other in order to share the “Student Worksheet”.
▪ To minimize time for pairings, partners should be a person in close proximity, so each partner
can slide their desk close to each other with minimal distraction or disturbance.
▪ ESOL or ESE students may be paired with appropriate partners that may be helpful.
Community Resource:
An agriculture science instructor would be an ideal community resource to describe how a dichotomous
key may be used to identify a pest weed species in a field of crops.
Outcomes:
Dimensions of K-12 Science Education Standards:
1. Scientific and Engineering Practices – analyzing and interpreting data, obtaining, evaluating, and
communicating information
2. Crosscutting Concepts – patterns, systems and system models, structure and function
3. Disciplinary Core Ideas – LS4: Biological evolution: Unity and diversity
Next Generation Sunshine State Standards:
SC.912.L.15.4 – Describe how and why organisms are hierarchically classified and based on evolution
relationships.
SC.912.L.15.6 – Discuss distinguishing characteristics of the domains and kingdoms of living organisms.
SC.912.N.1.6 – Describe how scientific inferences are drawn from scientific observations and provide
examples from the content being studied.
Content Literacy Standards:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.3 – Follow precisely a complex multistep procedure when carrying out
experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks, attending to special cases or
exceptions detailed in the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.4 – Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domainspecific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades
9-10 texts and topics.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.7 – Translate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a
text into visual form (e.g. a table or chart) and translate information expressed visually or
mathematically (e.g. in an equation) into words.
Specific Learning Outcomes:
1. Given a jellybean students will compare characteristics of the jellybean to a dichotomous key to
determine the next set of instructions correctly. (Analysis)
2. Given the dichotomous key students will compose a table that lists the steps followed to identify
the jellybean accurately. (Synthesis)
3. Given the information from the investigation students will summarize how a dichotomous key
could be useful in classifying living things in 3 to 4 sentences accurately. (Evaluation)
The outcomes will be written on the board for students to copy when the lesson starts. The students’
achievement will be measured by taking up and analyzing the students’ lists, as well as reading and
listening to the summaries from the activity sheet.
Presentation and Participation:
After the motivation (5-10 minutes), the teacher divides the students into pairs, and distributes
copies of the handout “Student Worksheet - Dichotomous Key Lab”, one copy per pair of
students.
▪ The teacher reviews lab safety for the activity with the class (3-5 minutes).
▪ The teacher distributes one Ziploc bag containing 10 assorted flavor original Jelly Belly Jelly
Beans to each pair of students.
▪ The teacher displays the “Dichotomous Key Lab” instruction sheet that the students have on the
projector, and models how to use the dichotomous key using a jelly bean that is tangerine
flavor. (BEHAVIOR-MODELING) (5 minutes)
▪ With a partner, students follow the instructions and complete the data table using the
Dichotomous Key to Jelly Belly Jelly Beans in the student handout. Students alternate using the
key and tasting the jelly beans to see if the correct flavor was determined using the key.
(APPLICATION/PROCESS) (OTHER-COOPERATIVE LEARNING) (20 minutes)
▪ If a flavor is incorrectly identified, the students should retrace the steps of the key and discuss
with their partner where the error may have occurred.
▪ At the conclusion of the activity, the partners should discuss and summarize how a dichotomous
key can be useful in classifying living things. (COGNITIVE – SUMMARIZING) (5 minutes)
Wrap-up:
▪ Ask the students to share their responses to the summary question with the class aloud and give
feedback regarding their responses (OTHER – PROVIDING FEEDBACK) (5 minutes)
▪
Questions:
(3 higher order—analysis, synthesis, evaluation)
(Analysis) Why do you think is it important for humans to classify living organisms?
(Synthesis) Design a classification system for a new clothing store. Explain and justify your choices.
(Evaluation) Based on what you know what changes would take place in the current system of
classification if the DNA sequence were known for every living species? Justify your answer.
Reflection:
1. Students will complete the following follow up activity following completion of the lab
activity, Sorting Seashells in 15 minutes.
http://media.hhmi.org/biointeractive/click/shells_online/index.html
using classroom technology or a computer lab/library.
2. After the lesson concludes, students will take the post test the following day. Students
will have 15 minutes to complete the post test.
3. The instructor will conference individually with students regarding Pre-test/Post-test
scores the following day.
4. Students will receive feedback on their lab regarding the conclusions made within 48
hours after the lab is completed.
Safety:
Safety: CLASSROOM POLICIES
At the beginning of the school year the class will participate in a lab safety lesson. Students will
formally be introduced to all safety procedures and guidelines for any and all labs conducted in
science by the science teacher.
Classroom policies are posted by the teacher on a lab safety bulletin board at the front of the
room visible to all students. Lab Safety icons and rules are also posted on the bulletin. The
following rules are verbally conveyed to the students as the begin class on a regular basis.
1.Conduct yourself in a responsible manner at all times in the laboratory.
Frivolous activities, mischievous behavior, throwing items, and conducting
pranks are prohibited.
2.Lab and safety information and procedures must be read ahead of time. All verbal and written
instructions shall be followed in carrying out the activity or investigation.
3.Eating, drinking, gum chewing, applying cosmetics, manipulating contact
lenses, and other unsafe activities are not permitted in the laboratory.
4.Working in the laboratory without the instructor present is prohibited.
5.Unauthorized activities or investigations are prohibited. Unsupervised work is not permitted.
6.Entering preparation or chemical storage areas is prohibited at all times.
7.Removing chemicals or equipment from the laboratory is prohibited unless authorized by the
instructor.
SAFETY POLICIES SPECIFIC TO THIS LESSON:
The teacher will verbally instruct all students to follow basic science
classroom guidelines – specifically focusing on the following:
1.Students must STAY with their designated partner until instructed otherwise.
2.Horseplay or off-task behaviors will NOT be tolerated.
3.Students must work collaboratively and respect others’ ideas and opinions.
4.Students must be sure to wash hands before and after activity.
5.Students should maintain a clean working station and discard any jelly beans that fall to the
floor.
6.Teacher should be aware of any food allergies or sensitivities that students may have that
pertain to this lab activity.
7.Students are only allowed to taste the food items (jelly beans) that are provided by the
teacher. No other jelly beans or food items are permitted to be tasted or used in this activity.
Transformative:
(Accommodations for at least 2 special needs students)
Attention Deficit: Make sure that this student would have preferential seating to avoid
distractions. Allow student to take a break during an appropriate transitioning time if needed.
This student should be paired with a partner that can support them with help if necessary.
Hearing Impaired- Student gets preferential seating close to the teacher.
Adaptive hearing device or microphone is used by the teacher for louder voice projection. This
student should be paired with a partner that can support them with help if necessary.
ESOL Students: All ESOL students will receive a Dichotomous Key that includes color swatches
(ATTATCHED).Teacher should closely monitor student’s progress and check for understanding.
Utilize:
Strengths:
1.Students will have partners to assist them.
2.Students are able to apply their knowledge of classification by creating a dichotomous key.
3.Students are able to assess themselves by correctly constructing a dichotomous key and
performing a taste test to check for accuracy.
Challenges:
1.Students may get confused on jelly beans with similar characteristics.
2.Students may misidentify jelly beans on their dichotomous key.
3.Students will not be able to correctly construct the dichotomous key. Remind them when in
doubt ask their partner for help.
4.Prior to teaching this lesson again, the teacher should address all weaknesses encountered
during this activity as well as any misconceptions and frequent errors found during the post test
and the assessment data of the activity.
Possible Re-teaching events:
1.During the investigation, the teacher will circulate and closely monitor students. The teacher
can model one example or walk students through classifying one jellybean prior to engaging
students in their individual groups.
2.If at any time a student becomes confused or frustrated, the teacher can use that opportunity
to differentiate instruction.
3.Have one member of each group rotate to another group and see how they created their
dichotomous key, then rotate back to original group with new information.
4.After analysis of the post test, each commonly missed question will be addressed during
review the next class period.