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Interactive Science | Dog Breeds Research Project
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In
this 3-day activity students are assigned a dog breed to
research the basic characteristics of, write those facts into
short sentences, and then read these reports aloud. What
students get out of it is a fun learning experience. What you
get out of it is the chance to use their natural curiosity to
lead them though a topic that’s not usually interesting or all
that easy to understand- selective breeding.
This lesson is easy for you to prepare for
and present. It can also adapt to your needs- instead of dogs,
you can research cats or flowers or something from your local
area (like horses).
FREE Teacher Notes preview
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Download this lesson right now for just .99˘
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 .99˘
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200 KB Download |
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Teacher Notes
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►A strong set of
Teacher Notes (shown left), including:
- 7 pages of details, discussion, and information. Illustrated with images to keep you clear.
- Divided into 3 easy-to-follow sections: Materials, Beforehand, and Procedure.
- A 3 day timeline. The details of every day has already been planned out (because this lessons has already been done for years), so you won't have any surprises.
- A teacher/student dialogue, based on actual classroom
discussion, which gives you a truer feel for the lesson.
- 6 Accessories- things you can choose to include to
lengthen and deepen the activity.
►A one-page
Quick Notes document that outlines the lesson. Use this to see just what the essential elements are, or if you find the regular Teacher Notes too descriptive.
►A
list of
the 150 most common dog breeds (shown right). Cut these into little slips that students draw out of a hat.
►A
Student Handout (shown above partially) where they'll put all their work. At the top is prompts for their notes and a photograph of their beloved canine. The bottom half is lined so they can put their facts into sentences.
►An internet link to an easy to read, quality website.
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Dog List
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The Yellow Sheet
It’s a given that the more prepared you are, the better off everyone will be in your classroom. If you aren’t doing enough planning and preparation prior to each lesson and you often feel overwhelmed, check out our
Yellow Sheet. One definition of a successful person is someone who understands what needs to be done first, and they do it. They’re busy like the rest of us, but their priorities are where they should be. We think the Yellow Sheet will help you get organized so that your more important things done first.
Letting Go
To your great relief, none of our lessons will ask you to do everything for every student. In fact, you’ll notice a complete shift of who does what in our lessons. Students, not you, are the ones doing things. Your job is to stand back and make sure the outcomes are what they’re supposed to be, and then move in with dialogue when they’re ready. This may be uncomfortable for you at first. But the rewards are worth it.
By handing over the best part of the lesson to students- the demonstration- you are showing trust. Most students will respond to this by rewarding you (and themselves) with a higher level of maturity, and now everyone’s winning. In our lessons your role is to give students enough clear instruction so they know what to do. But always leave some “play” room that they will use to discover for themselves. Having come upon something amazing with their own hands, they will naturally go further and manipulate variables, enriching the discussion even more. That’s what science really is, and that’s what should be happening in a science classroom.
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