Our Big Backyard

This activity is designed to teach students observation skills (using the senses), and how to record data in order to compare and contrast living things over a period of time. A focus will be on the physical properties of the living things, but listening for sounds to help with identification will also be done. Students will be encouraged to ask and answer "I wonder" questions, and try to predict if they will have similar or different observations over the year.

Vocabulary:
Habitat, living vs. non-living, phonology, data collecting, physical properties

This activity is intended for 1st graders, who should have a good grasp of the five senses and observing the natural world (standards in Kindergarten). This activity will come after lessons on living versus non-living things, as well as what a habitat is. We will also have done a similar activity to this outside in our own school backyard. That way students will know what kinds of observations will help in our data collection, as well as what kinds of physical properties to look for and how to record the data. Before beginning the school backyard observation as a class, the students would have heard and discussed Investigating Your Backyard by Natalie Lunis, a National Wildlife Federation big book. We would then make a list (indoors) of what we observed and what we're wondering about.

Introduction: Review the observations and "I wonder" list from our school backyard activity. Tell the students that we're going to move from our school backyard to their own backyard at home.
This may seem like a daunting task for 1st graders as to where to start and what to look for and listen to without the teacher's help, but we'll break it down into something more manageable for those who need it.

The students will listen to Under One Rock, by Anthony D. Fredericks. This book really does a fabulous job of taking a large habitat (like a backyard) and narrowing it down to a small space: under a rock. This concept could be applied to a tree, a garden, and sandbox, whatever is in the habitat of the students' backyards.

Students will be recording their observations in a nature journal. The booklet (a notebook, stapled sheets of paper, student-created journal) is sectioned off into four sections, one for each season. On the first page of each section is a page to help with what to observe. There are four boxes labeled with the senses: a picture of an eye for seeing, ear for hearing, hand for touching, and nose for smelling (just like our paper was for our school backyard observation). I color code these pages to help the students know what season to journal on. On the back is the title, "I wonder..." where the students can draw or write what their observations make them wonder about, which could lead to future lessons in our classroom. I include other pages for those kids who want to make more observations of their backyard instead of just the four required. I include a ribbon bookmark (I took a book making class and learned how to put the ribbon in a book binder) to help the students know where they should make their journal entry.

We talk about how to use drawings and some words to record the data, and how the date and weather should also be recorded (I put a reminder on each seasonal page). Each observation should be done for about 20 min.

Digital pictures are also a nice addition to the display, as well as real-life things from nature-we talk about what's appropriate from nature and what should be brought in as a photo. I make sure to send a note home to parents letting them know about the project and ways they can help (not totally take over) their child with the backyard observations. If students live in an apartment, or are in an urban setting, read the book Nature in the Neighborhood, by Gordon Morrison. It talks about nature seen in a city lot and gives nature facts with each illustration. I'd also make the arrangement for a student to adopt our school grounds as their backyard.

After each required observation I collect the notebooks to see how students are doing and what they are learning-great too for writing assessment! Throughout the year, I also include Morning Meeting (Responsive Classroom) sharing about their backyard and what they are noticing (informal assessment). We have an "Our Big Backyard" bulletin board where we record our school and home findings through the year (phonology), and places where we can include graphs and Venn diagrams about what we're observing.

1.I.B.1.-The student will raise questions about the natural world, make careful observations, and seek answers.
1.II.A.1.-The student will understand that objects have physical properties.
1.IV.B.1.-The student will observe plant and animal life cycles.
1.IV.D.1.- The student will understand that there is a variation among individuals of one kind within a population.