Students explore various habitats (forest, desert, water, rainforest, and wetland), investigating how plants and animals survive within them, and compare and contrast the information that they gather.
In this unit, 2nd grade students explore different habitats (forest, desert, water, and rainforest) and investigate how different plants and animals survive in each habitat. Rather than just learning facts about the habitats, students examine the connection between parts of each habitat and how those connections are crucial for survival. Using the Next Generation Science Standards as a guide, students are challenged to use the information they learn about different habitats to compare how different plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs. Students will also be challenged to compare the differences in the kinds of living things that are found in different areas and why those differences exist. This unit builds on the 1st grade Animals unit, in which students learned about different types of animals and their characteristics, and prepares students for a 3rd grade unit in which they will analyze animal adaptations with regard to animal habitats. This unit uses the Bobbie Kalman Introducing Habitats series as mentor texts. These texts were chosen because of their clear representations of the different habitats and their accessibility. The texts in this unit support student understanding of key genre features while also allowing multiple opportunities to develop fluency. Over the course of the unit, the majority of heavy thinking and analysis should be on students. By the end of the unit, students should have a deeper understanding of key components of informational texts, and students should be able to transfer those understandings to other complex informational texts. Students will also write daily in response to the text, with a focus on using complete sentences and recognizing run-on sentences. Students will also begin writing longer informational texts in which they synthesize and teach back the content they are learning about the different habitats.
Some of the links below are Amazon affiliate links. This means that if you click and make a purchase, we receive a small portion of the proceeds, which supports our non-profit mission.
Book: A Desert Habitat by Bobbie Kalman and Kelley Macaulay (Crabtree Pub Co. 2006) — IG470L
Book: A Forest Habitat (Introducing Habitats) by Bobbie Kalman and Kelley Macaulay (Crabtree Pub Co. 2006) — IG520L
Book: A Rainforest Habitat by Bobbie Kalman and Molly Aloian (Crabtree Pub Co. 2006) — IG470L
Book: Water Habitats by Bobbie Kalman and Molly Aloian (Crabtree Pub Co. 2006) — IG510L
See Text Selection Rationale
This assessment accompanies this unit and should be given on the suggested assessment day or after completing the unit.
?
?
Complete sentences are the foundation for all writing. In this unit, students learn to differentiate between a fragment and a complete sentence. They also learn to identify and correct a run-on sentence. We recommend using our guide Sentence-Level Feedback and Support (K-5th Grade) to provide individual and small-group feedback to ensure that all students are able to use complete sentences by the end of the unit.
In this unit, students begin to explore how to use informational text features in their own writing. After exploring why authors use particular text features in a mentor text, students will use the text feature in their own writing. This unit serves as a launch to using text features.
All core texts in the unit are written with predominantly one-syllable or simple two-syllable words that require students to use knowledge of common spelling-sound correspondences when reading. Words that are not easily decodable are often irregularly spelled high-frequency words, or genre-specific vocab; therefore, students should practice using decoding strategies and word analysis strategies when reading.
The main fluency focus of this unit is on reading an informational text with the right expression and intonation to show interpretation of the passage. This includes knowing how to read different text features to highlight the features purpose. This also includes rereading and self-correcting in order to figure out the meaning of domain-specific or tricky words.
Each text is read for a minimum of four days. On days three and four when students are reading for fluency and to build a deeper understanding, have students pick a short section of the text to reread in order to self-assess their own fluency. Students can either score their own fluency on the Reading Fluency Rubric (3rd-5th Grade) or get feedback from a partner.
Partners should use the language of the teaching points when giving targeted feedback.
If desired, pick sections of the text to use as a fluency checkpoint. Score students on the Reading Fluency Rubric (3rd-5th Grade).
?
burrow carnivore coral reef depend desert energy forest freshwater habitat herbivore lake living thing nest non-living thing ocean omnivore pond rainforest river saltwater shore swamp tide pool waterproof
forest floor
?
A Rainforest Habitat
A Desert Habitat
Water Habitats
A Forest Habitat
RI.2.1
SL.2.1
Identify questions about forest, desert, rainforest, and water habitats by asking and answering what questions about key details in a text.
A Forest Habitat pp. 1 – 15
RI.2.1
RI.2.4
RF.2.4
Identify key information about forest habitats by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
A Forest Habitat pp. 16 – 31
RI.2.1
RI.2.3
Explain where different plants and animals in forest habitats live and get their energy by asking and answering where questions about key details in a text.
A Forest Habitat — entire text
RI.2.1
RI.2.2
RI.2.5
RF.2.4
Explain how the author uses various text features to teach us about a forest habitat by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
A Forest Habitat — entire text
RI.2.1
RI.2.3
SL.2.1
Create a visual representation of a forest habit that shows how plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs.
Produce complete simple sentences orally and in writing.
A Forest Habitat — entire text
RI.2.1
W.2.2
Write a page in an informational book that explains how plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs in the places they live by writing complete sentences using key details from the text.
A Desert Habitat pp. 1 – 17
RI.2.1
RI.2.4
Explain what types of plants and animals live in the desert and why they live there by asking and answering who and why questions about details from the text.
A Desert Habitat — pp. 18-end
RI.2.1
Explain how plants and animals in the desert survive by asking and answering how questions about key details in a text.
A Desert Habitat — entire text
RI.2.1
RI.2.2
RI.2.5
RF.2.4
Explain how the author uses various text features to teach us about a desert habitat by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
A Desert Habitat — entire text
RI.2.1
SL.2.1
Create a visual representation of a desert habitat that shows how plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs.
Produce complete simple sentences orally and in writing.
A Desert Habitat — entire text
RI.2.1
W.2.2
Write a page in an informational book that explains how plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs in the places they live by writing complete sentences using key details from the text.
A Desert Habitat
A Forest Habitat
2-LS4-1
SL.2.1
SL.2.6
L.2.6
Compare and contrast how plants and animals in two habitats depend on their surroundings to meet their needs by identifying key details from two texts.
Water Habitats pp. 1 – 17
RI.2.1
RI.2.4
Identify key information about water habitats by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Water Habitats — pp. 18-end
RI.2.1
RI.2.4
Describe what life is like in a pond, river, and swamp, and how plants and animals depend on their habitats by asking and answering how questions about key details in the text.
Water Habitats — entire text
RI.2.1
RI.2.2
RI.2.5
RF.2.4
Explain how the author uses various text features to teach us about a water habitat by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
Water Habitats — entire text
RI.2.1
SL.2.1
SL.2.6
Create a visual representation of a water habitat that shows how plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs.
Water Habitats — entire text
RI.2.1
RI.2.3
W.2.2
Write a page in an informational book that explains how plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs in the places they live by writing complete sentences using key details from the text.
A Rainforest Habitat pp. 1 – 17
RI.2.1
RI.2.4
RF.2.4
Identify key information about what makes a rainforest habitat unique by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
A Rainforest Habitat — pp. 18-end
RI.2.1
SL.2.1
Explain how animals in the rainforest survive by asking and answering questions about key details in the text.
A Rainforest Habitat — entire text
RI.2.1
RI.2.2
RI.2.5
RF.2.4
Explain how the author uses various text features to teach us about a rainforest habitat by reading with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
A Rainforest Habitat — entire text
RI.2.1
SL.2.1
Create a visual representation of a rainforest habitat that shows how plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs.
A Rainforest Habitat — entire text
RI.2.1
W.2.2
Write a page in an informational book that explains how plants and animals depend on their surroundings and other living things to meet their needs in the places they live by writing complete sentences using key details from the text.
A Forest Habitat — entire text
Water Habitats — entire text
SL.2.1
SL.2.6
Compare and contrast how plants and animals in two habitats depend on their surroundings to meet their needs by identifying key details from two texts.
W.2.2
W.2.5
L.2.2
Revise the pages in your informational book by correcting run-on sentences and adding appropriate punctuation.
W.2.2
W.2.5
L.2.2
Create a front cover and table of contents to add to an informational book about habitats.
A Rainforest Habitat
A Desert Habitat
Water Habitats
A Forest Habitat
SL.2.1
Design a zoo habitat for a given animal using their knowledge of plant and animal relationships and habitat features from the unit.
Assessment
?