Making Observations Jr. Lesson Plan: Nature of Science

Grade Levels: K-3

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This lesson accompanies the BrainPOP Jr. topic Making Observations, and supports the standard of making observations to construct an evidence-based account for natural phenomena. Students demonstrate understanding through a variety of projects.

Step 1: ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

Prompt students to observe their surroundings. Ask:

What do you notice about our classroom? Describe what you see using as many details as you can think of.

Step 2: BUILD KNOWLEDGE

Play the Making Observations movie.
Click the pause button each time a question appears in Annie’s Notebook and discuss it as a class. Then play to see how Annie answers it.

TIP: The pause button turns red to remind you to pause.

Step 3: APPLY and ASSESS

Students take the Easy Quiz or Hard Quiz, demonstrating what they learned about the topic while applying essential literacy skills.

Step 4: DEEPEN and EXTEND

Students express what they learned about making observations while practicing essential literacy skills with one or more of the following activities. Differentiate by assigning ones that meet individual student or grade-level needs.

- Draw About It: Observe a person. Draw your observations. Include as many details as you can.
- Activity: Observe the weather for five days and record your observations.
- Talk About It: Identify different ways to observe a plant.
- Write About It: Observe something you eat for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Record your observations. Be sure to use all five senses.

More to Explore

Be a Scientist Unit: Continue to build understanding around the steps of scientific investigations by exploring more BrainPOP Jr. topics.

Teacher Support Resources:

Lesson Plan Common Core State Standards Alignments

Grade: K

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.1

With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

Grade: K

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.2

With prompting and support, identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.

Grade: K

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.3

With prompting and support, describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text.

Grade: K

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.4

With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.1

Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.2

Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.3

Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.4

Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.7

Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.1

Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.2

Recount stories, including fables and folktales from diverse cultures, and determine their central message, lesson, or moral.

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.3

Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.4

Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.7

Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.1

Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.2

Recount stories, including fables, folktales, and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson, or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text.

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.3

Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.4

Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from nonliteral language.

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.7

Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting)

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.1.2

Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.2

Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.3.2

Determine the main ideas and supporting details of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

Grade: K

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.K.2

Confirm understanding of a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media by asking and answering questions about key details and requesting clarification if something is not understood.

Grade: 01

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.1.2

Write informative/explanatory texts in which they name a topic, supply some facts about the topic, and provide some sense of closure.

Grade: 02

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.2

Write informative/explanatory texts in which they introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding statement or section.

Grade: 03

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.3.2

Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.

Grade: K

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.K.2

Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose informative/explanatory texts in which they name what they are writing about and supply some information about the topic.

Filed as: Be A Scientist, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.1, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.2, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.3, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.K.4, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.1, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.2, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.3, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.4, CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.7