Migration Lesson Plan: Discover why, where, and how animals migrate

This lesson accompanies the BrainPOP topic Migration, and supports the standard of applying scientific ideas to understand the natural world, including building understanding of why animals migrate. Students demonstrate understanding through a variety of creative projects.

Step 1: ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

Display images of animals that migrate like Canadian Geese, elephants, and locusts. Create a list of questions students have about how and why animals migrate. Ask:

• All of these animals migrate. What do you think it means to migrate?
• What questions do you have about these animals and their migrations?

Step 2: BUILD BACKGROUND

• Read aloud the description below the Movie player.
• Play the Movie, pausing to check for understanding.
• Have students read one of the following Related Reading articles: “Way Back When” “Quirky Stuff,” “In Depth,” or “Trivia” Partner them with someone who read a different article to share what they learned with each other.

Step 3: APPLY
Students synthesize their ideas and express them through one or more of the following creative projects. They can work individually or collaborate. 

• Make-a-Movie: You are an animal that migrates. Explain where, why and how you migrate.
• Make-a-Map: Make a concept map identifying various reasons for migration and the methods and adaptations that help animals  migrate.
• Creative Coding: Code a newscast headline about the migration of a specific species.

Step 4: REFLECT & ASSESS 

• Reflect: After sharing creative projects with each other, students reflect on what they’ve learned about solstice and equinox. Prompt them by asking questions such as: 
  • What are some adaptations different animals have that help them migrate?
  • What are the main reasons animals need to migrate?
  • How does migration help animals survive?

• Assess: Wrap up the lesson with a Migration Challenge.

Step 5: EXTEND LEARNING

Watch a primary source video clip of a weather radar that’s picked up signs of animal migration. Then answer the accompanying questions using evidence from the video.