Amp Up Your Unit on Plants!

Ginkgo

It's time for your unit on plants.  Excited or dreading it?

As I sat down to begin the writing of this post, my initial thought was to lead with, "I just love teaching plants!" And then it occurred to me that I begin almost all of my blog posts on biology topics in the same way.  But the truth is.... I am excited to begin teaching almost any topic in biology. I love them all!  I am sure that I have a least favorite unit to teach, but I would have to give that some thought to determine which unit it is. That is probably a topic for another blog post.....

So back to plants.  Having taught school for over 30 years, I have taught thousands of students and have interacted with many, many teachers during this time.  What I know is this:  Students don't like studying about plants (too boring!) and teachers don't like teaching about plants (students don't like it!) As a result, I have noticed that many middle and high school life science and biology teachers will either:

1. Leave plants out of the curriculum entirely, or ...
2. Skip through it too quickly, leaving out the depth that this unit deserves.

I find plants fascinating.  And because I do, I look for ways to make it interesting for my students.  Not the topic of this blog post, but have you ever tried the C-Fern labs from Carolina Biological?  My students literally shout with excitement when they see (using a microscope) the sperm cells swimming to the egg and the frantic mob of sperm that surrounds the egg.

Students love lab work and it definitely helps makes the class more interesting and exciting, but we all know that the "down and dirty" classroom days are needed to teach the information to our students.  I developed this set of 34 warm up / bell ringer / interactive notebook pages to use with my students while teaching about plant evolution and classification.  I am really excited about this set, and I feel that it is one of the best sets that I have written.

• If you complete these pages with your students, I guarantee that your students will come away with a solid foundation and knowledge base about the evolution and classification of plants.

Click image to view product in my TpT store.

• These pages are NO PREP for the teacher!!  I have done all of the prep work for you. You can spend more time concentrating on your teaching.

• Don't use these pages the same way everyday.  Use some as warm ups, and others as homework assignments.  Some will make great quizzes.  I like to add a page or two of these as a lab station while carrying out our plant experiments.  While lecturing, I will break up the lecture time by having my students complete one of the pages for review and reinforcement.

What topics are covered?  These 34 warm up pages cover the topics commonly found in an introductory unit on plants.  Highlights include: Characteristics of plants, the plant life cycle, alternation of generations, the evolution of plants, the transition of plants to land, classification of plants, nonvascular and vascular plants, the bryophytes, the liverwort life cycle, the moss life cycle, the fern life cycle, the seed plants, gymnosperms and angiosperms.

What topics are not covered?  Plant structure and function, plant responses, and plant reproduction are covered in different sets.  Links to these sets are seen below.

Plant Structure and Function

Plant Reproduction

Thanks for stopping by, and have fun teaching!

Science Fun this Thanksgiving!

This science-y activity is a perfect way to celebrate Thanksgiving in your science classroom.

In the fall of 1621, the members of the Plymouth Colony, along with their Wampanoag friends, celebrated with a feast of Thanksgiving.  For three days all of the participants feasted, played games, sang, danced, and gave thanks for their blessings.  The menu for this first Thanksgiving feast included deer, corn, shellfish, vegetables and roasted meats.  Although the menu has changed a bit over time, we Americans still celebrate a time of Thanksgiving with a very large meal!

Are you looking for an activity to do in your science classes as the holidays approach?  I have just written a new activity that uses a dichotomous classification key to identify the scientific names of the foods that were eaten at the first Thanksgiving celebration.  Students will use their critical thinking and problem solving skills to make observations about the different foods while they navigate the dichotomous key to the correct scientific name.

This is a perfect way to combine science with the observance of a wonderful holiday tradition.  These images will give you a better idea of what is involved in the activity.

You can find this activity in my TpT store by clicking this link:  Dichotomous Key to Thanksgiving Dinner.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Classification and Taxonomy: Reviewing Important Concepts

This Kingdoms of Life Mix and Match Game is an excellent way to review the concepts of classification and taxonomy.

When teaching a unit on classification and taxonomy, the presentation of the six kingdom classification system seems pretty easy and straight forward, right? When I ask my students what kingdom frogs belong to, I know without a doubt that they are going to say "Animalia."  For our middle and high school life science students, learning which organisms belong to which kingdom is a simple task that is quickly and easily mastered.

But when I ask my students questions like these, they will hesitate.  And often give the wrong answer.

• Name the kingdom that contains heterotrophic plants.
• Name the kingdom in which all members are autotrophs.
• Name the kingdom that contains prokaryotes with peptidoglycans in their cell walls.
• Name two kingdoms in which all members are heterotrophs.
• Name the kingdom that contains organisms with specialized cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems.
• Name the kingdom in which all members have cell walls composed of cellulose.

Click image to view
product in my TpT store.

I have fallen in love with using mix and match card sort games as a way of reviewing and reinforcing concepts in my science classes.  My latest creation is this Kingdoms of Life Mix/Match Game.  

Students are given 6 larger cards.  Each large card has the name of one of the six kingdoms in the 6-kingdom classification system.  The set also has 80 "answer cards."  Students are tasked with matching the answer card to the correct kingdom.

The game comes with student answer sheets and a 7-page teacher guide.  The student answer sheets are optional, but I always have my students record the answer card statements on the answer sheet.  Writing is a way of studying, and the answer sheets make a great study guide for the unit test.  The teacher guide has lots of suggestions for how to use the game, directions for set up and implementation, and of course, a complete answer key.

The game is perfect for all life science students of different ability levels because you can easily differentiate the game for any group of learners.  By selecting which answer cards to use, you can make the game perfect for any ability level.

If you like this idea, you might want to check out my other mix/match games:
Cell Organelles Mix Match
Organic Compounds Mix Match 

Insects: A Dichotomous Classification Key Activity

Dichotomous Classification Keys:  KIDS LOVE 'EM!

There is just something about working through a classification key that is fun.  I love them, the students love them .... and the result is a classroom activity that is stimulating, educational, and ... well, it is just FUN!

In my 30+ years of teaching biology, I always look forward to my unit on classification and taxonomy. As a result,  I have developed quite a few teaching materials and lessons on this topic.  After posting these materials in my TpT store, I began to get more and more requests for additional activities that use a dichotomous classification key.  Well, here is the newest addition to this type of activity.

Click image to view product in my TpT store.

There are actually two activities in this product.  Students begin by using the included dichotomous key to the insects to identify 9 different insects. Second, students are given pictures of a representative organism from each of the five classes of the Phylum Arthropoda.  Students are asked to make good observations and develop their own dichotomous key for these arthropods. The dichotomous key and the two pages of pictures can be laminated and used year after year.  Student handouts include 2 pages for their written work. Analysis and follow up questions are also included to extend the activity.

I wrote this activity in response to requests from many upper elementary and middle school teachers.  Therefore, I feel this activity is most appropriate for grades 4-7.  However,  my experience teaching high school tells me that my first year biology students will love this as an introduction to classification.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed developing it.

Links to this and related products:

Insects: A Dichotomous Classification Activity
Dichotomous Key to a "Crazy" Animal Kingdom
Dichotomous Key to the Genus "Smiley"
FREE Dichotomous Key to Holiday Giving and Community Service
Classification and Taxonomy Task Cards

Holiday giving ... With a Science Twist!!

Your students will have a blast with this dichotomous  classification key!

(It's educational ... sort of ....)

Very rarely in my high school biology classes do we have the time to devote to a holiday activity.  I make an exception each year for this fun, but very important activity.  I do this activity each year to remind my students of the importance of community service and “giving back” to our community. 

The purpose of the activity is very simple:  To put together stockings of candy and Ziploc bags of toiletries that can be donated to a local charity.

This is a free download from my TpT store, and is suitable for grades 5-12. Click here to download.

Just before Thanksgiving, I place a donation box in my room.  I explain to my students that I am collecting their spare change for a service project that we will do just before school is out for the holidays.  I talk briefly about being thankful for what we have, and that we have an obligation to help others who are less fortunate than us.  I ask them to place their donations in the collection box whenever they have a bit of change in their pockets to spare.  I encourage them to give what they can, and that all donations are a personal and private matter.   I accept the donations for about 3 weeks prior to the activity.  The students are not allowed to ask each other how much they donated, etc.  I use this change to purchase the items needed for the activity.  

Students will use the dichotomous classification key to identify each of the candies and each of the toiletries seen above.  Each item has been given a very special and unique name for this fun activity!  Ok, I'm going to admit that the science is a little "shaky" in this activity, but the students deserve a break from time to time, and they do love doing this activity.

The end result is that you have stockings of candy and bags of toiletries to donate to a food bank, a nursing home, a homeless shelter, or other charity of your choice.

I hope you have a wonderful holiday season with your students and families!

Evolution and Classification Warm Ups and Interactive Notebook Pages

Do you love teaching about evolution or dread it?

I am the biggest biology nerd ever, so I love ALL of biology.  But I really, really, really love teaching about evolution, followed up with classification.  My first year biology students have very poor (and uninformed!!) ideas and knowledge about evolution.  For many of them, it is the first time they have been taught about it.  Others come with a lot of misinformation.

This makes for such a fun teaching situation!  Just for kicks, ask your students about their opinions on the topic of evolution BEFORE you teach them the unit. I am always amazed at their misconceptions and poor knowledge base.  When you have finished teaching your unit, ask the students again about their opinions.  I love that over the course of a couple of weeks the opinions of many will be changed, and the knowledge level of all has been increased.

And the best part?  There is never a dull moment in class.  I love the discussion and the questions and the arguing!  I love to see the wheels turning in their brains.

Since this material tends to be new for most of my students, I developed a set of 61 warm ups / bell ringers / interactive notebook pages to use during the unit.

There are so many ways to use these pages.  I have my students keep a "Biology Warm Up Notebook."  It is a perfect way to review and reinforce material from the previous day, and it is a fantastic classroom management tool. 

My students come in, grab the warm up and get right to work. By the time I have finished taking roll, answering questions, dealing with the "stuff" that we teachers always have to deal with, my students are settled down and are already hard at work. There are too many pages to be completed in class, so I often use them as homework assignments, and review guides for the unit test.

Keeping a "warm up" notebook provides a perfect way to
review for the semester exam or end of course testing.

Below is a table of contents.  The 61 pages include all of these titles.

Here is a look at format.....

As always, I hope you are having a terrific year with your students.

Links to all Warm Ups / Bellringers/ Interactive Notebook Topics:

Introduction to Science

Cell Structure and Function

Ecology

Genetics

DNA, RNA, and Protein Synthesis

Evolution and Classification

Dichotomous Classification Keys: Science Students Love Them!

Dichotomous classification keys are often used in field guides to help the user quickly and easily identify trees, flowers, insects, frogs, etc.  They are also a very effective teaching tool in our science classrooms.  They can be used to teach scientific terms and characteristics of any type of living organism.  But I think one of the most important uses in our classroom is the fact that they reinforce observation skills, and strengthen problem solving and critical thinking in our students.

I receive many requests for classification keys on different topics.  Over the years, I have developed quite a few activities that use the dichotomous classification key.  

My newest is called "Dichotomous Key to the Genus Smiley."  In this simple key, students first learn how to use a dichotomous key.  But the best part of this activity is that students are also required to develop their own dichotomous key to key out 6 different insects.  This requires a higher level of thinking and problem solving that provides excellent practice of these skills for our students.

Dichotomous Key to the Genus "Smiley"

Additional products that use the dichotomous classification key are:

Dichotomous Key to a CRAZY Animal Kindgom

Freebie!  This is one of my favorites: Dichotomous Key to Holiday Giving and Community Service

Let's Build a Cladogram!

Let's Learn to Use and Build a Dichotomous Key!

Lab: Use of Dichotomous Key in Classification

Click here to view all of my classification/taxonomy products.

Teaching Classification and Taxonomy = FUN!!

What is this organism?  

What characteristics does it have? To what other organisms is it related? Is it a vertebrate or an invertebrate? What does it eat? What role does it play in the ecosystem?

All biology teachers have particular topics that they really don't like to teach, and topics that we LOVE LOVE to teach. Teaching classification is a topic that I LOVE!

Classification and taxonomy involves problem solving and critical thinking.  Basically a taxonomist is a "living organism detective."

Teaching classification and taxonomy in a biology class can be such a fun unit of study. By incorporating hands-on activities, you can transform textbook concepts into learning experiences that captivate students and deepen their understanding of the diversity of life on Earth. You can bring the world of classification and taxonomy to life by exposing your students to the amazing living organisms around them.

If this is already TL;DR, skip straight to the bottom of the post to see my TPT offerings on classification and taxonomy.

You’ll want to begin your unit by teaching the basics. Before students can get their hands on fun activities, they are going to need to know the basics of the work of Linnaeus, binomial nomenclature, characteristics used to classify living organisms, cladistics, and the 6-kingdom classification system. Once the students have this basic knowledge, the fun can begin.

Click any image to view the resource.

This time-saving PowerPoint and Notes Set will provide the instruction your students need. The images, photos, and graphics are colorful and appealing and will hold your students' attention. It includes notes for the teacher, an outline of notes for students to fill, and both printable and digital options.

After teaching for many years, this I know to be true: Kids love a dichotomous classification key! Dichotomous keys are invaluable in teaching students how to identify and classify organisms. A dichotomous key presents a series of choices that lead the user through a sequence of steps to arrive at the correct identification. The process not only reinforces critical thinking skills but also promotes a deeper understanding of the characteristics that differentiate species.

The following variety of engaging dichotomous keys cover a wide range of organisms. Even when students have mastered how to use a dichotomous key, they will never complain if you give them more. My favorite type of classification key activity involves two parts: Students begin by using a dichotomous key that is included in the activity, followed by students writing their own classification key to identify a given set of organisms. 

Cladograms are another essential tool for teaching classification and taxonomy. These tree-like diagrams illustrate the evolutionary relationships among different species based on shared characteristics. By constructing cladograms, students can visualize how species are related and trace their evolutionary history.

This exercise not only fosters a better understanding of evolutionary biology but also enhances students' ability to analyze and synthesize information.

Task cards are a versatile and interactive way to reinforce key concepts in classification and taxonomy. These cards can be used in a variety of ways, from individual practice to collaborative group activities. Each card presents a specific task or question related to classification, prompting students to apply what they have learned. I prefer to use them in a lab rotation style. Kids love to be up and moving!

Finally, my high school kids love to color! This classification color by number activity is perfect for classwork, homework, or your sub folder.

There are just so many fun things to do when teaching classification. I always have to make myself wrap up the unit and move on to a new topic! By using hands-on activities, you will provide your students with meaningful and memorable learning experiences that will stay with them long after the class is over.

Check out these resources and hands-on activities for your classification unit.

• Classification and Taxonomy Complete Teaching Unit Bundle
• Classification and Taxonomy PowerPoint and Notes Set
• Lab: Classification Using Dichotomous Keys
• Let's Build a Dichotomous Key!
• Let's Build a Cladogram!
• Dichotomous Key for Arthropods and Insects
• Kingdoms of Life Card Sort Game
• Dichotomous Key to the Genus Smiley
• Classification Key Task Cards
• Classification Color by Number Activity