martes, 15 de noviembre de 2011

Solving mysteries Fifth grade

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson often drew different conclusions from the same clues, the same pieces of information. They then looked for additional evidence to prove that something was true.

The process of solving a mystery and the process of writing a research paper have several things in common. Both require gathering and studying clues, evidence, and information; weeding out "red herrings" or irrelevant information; organizing thoughts; and presenting accurate conclusions.

You are a self-employed research writer. You have been hired by the Unsolved Mysteries Society to conduct background research for an upcoming documentary. It is very important for you to provide accurate information, because the people at the Unsolved Mysteries Society pride themselves on presenting nothing but facts. Your professional reputation (and your future paychecks!) will be affected by the quality of the report you produce for them.

Task

The Unsolved Mysteries Society has commissioned a research paper of at least 1500 words analyzing the information about one of these topics:

Atlantis, a lost civilization?

In about 360 B.C. the Greek philosopher Plato wrote about the city of Atlantis and its destruction. People thought it was just a nice story until the 1800s, when a scholar announced that the city might actually have existed. People have been trying to find it ever since. Was Atlantis real or not?

The Bermuda Triangle

In the Atlantic Ocean, bounded by the island of Bermuda; Miami, Florida; and San Juan, Puerto Rico, is an area where planes and ships have been known to disappear without warning. The U. S. military insists it's all coincidence. But what do YOU think?

Bigfoot, a.k.a. Sasquatch

For more than 400 years people have reported finding footprints of an astonishingly large human in the western United States and throughout the world. Real or hoax? You decide.

Crop Circles

Long before Mel Gibson made the movie Signs, people have tried to make sense of crop circles. People have confessed to making some as practical jokes. But evidence left at others suggests there may be something else at work.

Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhart captured the American imagination as a daring pilot at a time when most women were not allowed to work outside the home. On July 2, 1937, she disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to fly around the world. Her plane was never found. What happened to her?

Easter Island

In the middle of the Pacific Ocean sits a collection of huge stone carvings. The Easter Island Moai have been the subject of speculation for centuries. How did the native people move and carve all that stone? And why?

.

Your paper will explain what facts are known, what theories have been presented to explain the facts, which theory has the most support, and what aspects of the mystery remain unexplained. The producers will use this information as they prepare the script of the documentary.

The process of conducting and presenting research has several steps.

Choose an unsolved mystery.

Atlantis, a lost civilization?

The Bermuda Triangle

Bigfoot, a.k.a. Sasquatch

For more than 400 years people have reported finding footprints of an astonishingly large human in the western United States and throughout the world. Real or hoax? You decide.

Crop Circles

Amelia Earhart

Easter Island

Find facts and theories about the mystery.
Take notes from books, magazine articles, and the Internet. Keep track of your sources, especially the page numbers of print materials and the URL (Web address) of any online materials. Ask your teacher for a format for your notes.
Think about what you have learned.
Do you have any unanswered questions? If you do, you may need to continue your research.
Organize the material you have gathered into a useful form.
Some people like graphic organizers; some like outlines; some like lists. The important thing is to plan.
Draft your paper.
Get your facts and ideas into written form. Be sure to indicate the source of facts, ideas, and phrases you found during your research, so that you avoid plagiarism.
Think some more and revise your paper.
There is more to revising than checking spelling and punctuation, although those are also important. You might want to reorganize, or you might see that you need one or two more facts.
Publish your work.
Ask your teacher about the form of your final draft.
Celebrate a challenging job well done!
Hey, writing is hard work!

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson were always able to solve the crime. No situation remained a mystery to them for very long. But they are characters in fiction.

You, in contrast, have investigated a real mystery. You have seen that not all sources of information are equally reliable. You have seen that some explanations are based more on opinion than on fact. You have seen that nothing replaces your own informed judgement.

You have learned how to find the most accurate information available, how to give credit where credit is due, and how to present your findings to others.

Congratulations! Even Holmes and Watson would be proud.

Teachers:

This WebQuest is designed for 5th graders.

Prepare a bibliography of reference materials for a report using a variety of consumer, workplace, and public documents.
Generate relevant questions about readings on issues that can be researched.
Synthesize the content from several sources or works by a single author dealing with a single issue; paraphrase the ideas and connect them to other sources and related topics to demonstrate comprehension.
Evaluate an author's argument or defense of a claim by examining the relationship between generalizations and evidence, the comprehensiveness of evidence, and the way in which the author's intent affects the structure and tone of the text.
Writing Process
Students discuss writing with other writers. They write coherent and focused essays that show a well-defined point of view and tightly reasoned argument. Students progress through the stages of the writing process (prewriting, writing, editing, and revising).
Write expository compositions, including analytical essays and research reports that:
- gather evidence in support of a thesis (position on the topic), including information on all relevant perspectives.
- communicate information and ideas from primary and secondary sources accurately and coherently.
- make distinctions between the relative value and significance of specific data, facts, and ideas.
- use a variety of reference sources, including word, pictorial, audio, and Internet sources, to locate information in support of topic.
- include visual aids by using technology to organize and record information on charts, data tables, maps, and graphs.
- anticipate and address readers' potential misunderstandings, biases, and expectations.
- use technical terms and notations accurately.
Use varied and expanded vocabulary, appropriate for specific forms and topics.
Write for different purposes and audiences, adjusting tone, style, and voice as appropriate.
Produce legible work that shows accurate spelling and correct use of the conventions of punctuation and capitalization.
Apply appropriate manuscript conventions, including title page presentation, pagination, spacing and margins, and integration of source and support material, by citing sources within the text, using direct quotations, and paraphrasing.

lunes, 14 de noviembre de 2011

6th Grade people eating.....Who eats who??

Introduction:

On planet earth, all living things depend on one another to survive. As humans, the dependency of plants and animals make for survival. In fact, the sun is the most important energy producer, because without the sun, little would survive. Habitats, groups of plants and animals that live together, rely heavily on the sun. Through studies of the sun, scientists have studied how animals and plants are linked together in life. The process goes around, like a circle. You know this process as the 'food chain.' The food chain is present in many habitats. Do you think food chains would differ because of where they exist? You will be the judge.

Task:

To determine the answer to the question, does the food chain differ because of what is available to plants and animals, you will help scientists. The scientists of San Antonio have just identified a deserted island in the South of Texas. There are three habitats on this deserted island to study.

You will become a Young Skipper and research one habitat and decide what animals and plants fit in the food chain. At the end of the WebQuest, you will be able to create a food chain book with the plants and animals native to the chosen habitat studied.

Before you choose a habitat to study, review the vocabulary needed. Use the bag of words for the Vocab Guide. Then to read about the different definitions featuring plants and animals. Write out the definitions of the words that are in red on the information that you will be reading.

The Food Chain:

An ecosystem is a living community which depends on each member and its surrounding environment. The living part of an ecosystem is sometimes called a food chain.
See Graphic Food Chain Chart / Do Food Chain Craft


*GreenBean Says "High and low on the chain I go!"*

Every participant in an ecosystem has an important part to play and if one becomes more dominant than the others, the ecosystem can develop problems.
We'll start with the producers. These are living things which take the non living matter from the environment, such as minerals and gases and uses them to support life.

Green plants are considered producers and the are at the beginning of the food chain.
Next are the consumers. These living things foodchain

need the producers to be their food.

Animals who eat plants are called herbivores. They are considered consumers and are next in the food chain.
Animals who eat other animals are calledcarnivores. They also considered consumers and are a link farther along on the food chain since they need the herbivores for their food.
Animals and people who eat both animals and plants are called omnivores, and they are also part of the consumer piece of the ecosystem.
Finally, the last part of the ecosystem is thedecomposers. These are the living things which feed off dead plants and animals and reduce their remains to minerals and gases again. Examples are fungi, like mushrooms, and bacteria.

Have Kids Create a Food Chain From Construction Paper:
Use paper to make a food chain and learn how Earth's creatures and plants are linked to each other and to the sun.

Cut half-inch strips of colored construction paper, one color for each category: plants, insects, plant-eaters, and meat-eaters (do not use yellow). Draw or paste cutout pictures on the strips of plants, animals, birds, insects.
Link the strips together into food chains. some examples might be: grass>a rabbit> a fox; corn>a chicken> man; seeds>a quail>a bobcat; algae> a minnow> a bass> man; grass> a grasshopper> a mouse> an owl; leaves>caterpillar> a bird> a snake> a hawk.
Make a larger Sun from yellow construction paper.
Link everything.

If you are doing this in a classroom--You can make one big large sun or yellow ring and link all students chains to one.

Process:

Step 1:

With the background you have attained in plants and animals, apply your skills to this step.

Energy from the sun is transferred into living things. Did you know that living things participate in two types of transfer of energy? These energy transfers are known as the food chain and the food web. What is the difference between the two transfers of energy? You will read What's the difference... and The food chain and the food web. After you read the web links, record your responses on your Hungry Hungry guide. As you determine the differences, keep in mind the question, do food chains differ because of where plants and animals exist on the island?

Hungry Hungry Guide
Read each statement or question. Fill in the blanks with as much information as possible.

1. How do most food chain processes begin?

2. Describe the difference between a food chain and a food web:

3. Predict if your habitat participates in a food chain or food web. Then explain why you think this:

Step 2:

Now that you have read the difference between a food chain and a food web, let's investigate how food chains work. Think about the sun in the sky. The sun emits energy onto every living thing. If that is true, does everything on the island receive equal amounts of sun? Are all plants and animals roles on the island equal? These questions affect the roles both plants and animals have in food chains. As you read the web link, Chain Reaction, keep the question in mind: Do food chains differ because of where plants and animals exist on the island?

As you interact with the Chain Reaction web link, observe the roles plants and animals have in the food chain process. Record what you think on the Hungry but not starving guide.

Hungry but not starving guide

Read each statement or question. Fill in the blanks with as much information as possible.

1. After reading the slides in the web link Chain Reaction, what would happen to the producers if they did not receive sun?

2. Pretend you were a polar bear stuck on the island. Do you think you could survive on the island with the food available from the island?

Step 3:

Like the previous information you have read, you must become more familiar with what is living in the habitat you are researching. You will read about different plants and animals that reside in the habitat on the island. As you choose the living things for the food chain, think about if food chains differ because of where plants and animals exist on the island.

Click on the habitats below. The guide you need is within your habitat.

Rain Forest habitat	Pond System habitat	Ocean habitat

Images/ information provided by enchantedlearning.com

Step 4:

In this step, you will be able to state what you have concluded about the habitat studied and the food chain created. Use the template to answer the questions if the food chain would differ because of where plants and animals exist on the island. Use complete sentences and apply the research you have completed for this step.

A food chain in the habitat of a deserted island- Template

Using the information you have researched, you will be able to answer the question, do you think food chains would differ because of where they exist on the island?

Step 5:

Now you will take all of your information and create your book. Place pages in the order below. Follow the guidelines below to complete this task:

Cover page- illustrated by habitat
Title page with page numbers
Vocabulary Page
Habitat page- Illustrated food chain
Habitat page- questions 2 and 3
Hungry Hungry Guide
Template answering if the food chain will differ because of where plants and animals exist.

Evaluation:

You, as a student scientist investigating this deserted island, have:

Knowledge of related food chain information
Researched habitats and food chains.
Explored the native animal and plant life of this island
Formulated opinions based on your research.
Designed at least two food chains.

Scoring Rubric

	1	2	3	4
Works cooperatively with others in a group.	Rarely provides useful ideas when participating in the group. May refuse to participate. Provides work that usually needs to be checked/redone by others to ensure quality. Does not try to solve problems or help others solve problems. Lets others do the work. Rarely focuses on the task and what needs to be done. Rarely listens to, shares with, and supports the efforts of others. Often is not a good team player.	Sometimes provides useful ideas when participating in the group. Provides work that occasionally needs to be checked/redone by other group members to ensure quality. A satisfactory group member who does what is required. Does not suggest or refine solutions, but is willing to try out solutions suggested by others. Focuses on the task and what needs to be done some of the time. Other group members must sometimes remind to keep this person on-task. Often listens to, shares with, and supports the efforts of others, but sometimes is not a good team member.	Usually provides useful ideas and high quality work when participating in group projects. A strong group member who tries hard! Refines solutions suggested by others. Focuses on the task and what needs to be done most of the time. Usually listens to, shares with, and supports others in the group.	Routinely provides useful ideas and work of highest quality when participating in group projects. A definite leader who contributes a lot of effort. Actively suggests solutions to problems. Consistently stays focused on the task and what needs to be done. Listens to, shares with, and supports others in the group.
Uses Internet web sites to locate information about food chains and habitats.	Needs assistance or supervision to use suggested Internet links and/or to navigate within these sites.	Occasionally able to use suggested Internet links to find information and navigates within these sites easily without assistance.	Usually able to use suggested Internet links to find information and navigates within these sites easily without assistance.	Successfully uses suggested Internet links to find information and navigates within these sites easily without assistance.
Plans a possible food chain for your chosen habitat.	Includes a description of the habitat, the native animals and plants. Cannot make a simple food chain.	Includes a description of the habitat, native plants and animals, a simple description of a food chain based on limited research.	Includes a detailed description of the habitat, many animals and plant life that can be found, creates a good food chain from more extensive research.	Includes a more advanced and detailed description of the habitat, gives an annotated description of the food chain as well as pictures, all based on extensive research.
Uses a word processing application to write, edit and revise work to standard setting.	Makes limited use of paragraphs. Uses a spell check and thesaurus appropriately. Edits work to a limited degree.	Enters text in paragraph form. Uses a spell check and thesaurus appropriately. Edits and revises work.	Enters text in paragraph form. Uses a spell check and thesaurus appropriately. Moves blocks of text so that the report is in the best sequential order. Edits and revises work into a standard setting document.	Enters text in paragraph form. Edits text. Uses a spell check and thesaurus appropriately. Moves blocks of text so that the report is in the best sequential order. Edits and revises work into a standard setting document.
Uses a drawing and painting application to design a food chain.	Draws and paints a very simple food chain, does not annotate it, shows beginner skills in drawing programs.	Draws and paints a food chain, annotates part of it, shows more skill in the use of a drawing program.	Draws and paints a detailed food chain, annotates all of it, shows considerable skill in the use of drawing program.	Draws and paints a detailed food chain, annotates it with good describing words, shows expert skill in the use of drawing programs by creating a slide show or animation.
Shares information as an oral presentation.	Avoids looking at the audience. Speaks in an audible voice some of the time. Speaks in a clear voice some of the time. Speaks with little enthusiasm. Can answer one or two questions posed by the audience.	Establishes little eye contact with the audience. Speaks in a clear voice some of the time. Voice, facial expressions and body language generate an interest about the topic. Can answer some of the questions posed by the audience.	Establishes eye contact with some of the audience. Speaks in a clear voice most of the time. Voice, facial expressions and body language generate an interest and enthusiasm about the topic. Can answer a majority of the questions posed by the audience.	Establishes eye contact with the audience at all times. Speaks in a clear voice all of the time. Voice, facial expressions and body language generate an interest and enthusiasm about the topic. Can answer all of the questions posed by the audience.
Creates a book as a final project.	Had little input into the design of the book, did little of the research and illustrations, didn't present to the class orally. Answered no questions from the class.	Was involved in the design of the book, did quite a bit of research, some illustrations, and presented a few facts orally. Answered little or no questions.	Was actively involved in the design of the book, did much of the research, many of the illustrations, and presented much of the book orally. Answered a few questions.	Book's design was directed and conceived, directed where to research for facts, created an animated illustration or slide show, and presented orally to the class, as well as answered most of the questions.

Conclusion:

Good job. You have finished researching and creating your habitat book. You will be able to show your book to your classmates. You will discuss the food chain you created. Then you will explain if you think the food chain would differ because of where plants and animals exist. After the presentation, then you will be able to send your books to the scientists of San Antonio. Until they read it, the scientists want you to think about this last task. The cat down below has been seen wondering around the island. Will this animal survive on the island for at least a year?

Resources:

Task:
Food chain review click here
Vocab Guide Bag of word

Step 1:
Hungry Hungry guide
What's the difference... (link)
Food chain and food web (link)

Step 2:
Hungry but not starving guide.
Chain Reaction link

Step 3:
Rain Forest habitat guide
Rain Forest Link to read

Pond System habitat guide
Pond Link to read

Ocean habitat guide
Ocean Link to read

Step 4:
Food Chain Template

Evaluation:
Rubric

Learner:

This WebQuest was constructed for 6th grade students as they cover the topic of the habitats and the food chain and the food web. Before setting off on their quest students need to be comfortable with:
1. Using a computer
2. Navigating the internet
3. Working with Internet resources
4. Taking notes from electronic sources and collecting data
5. Setting a purpose for reading
6. Synthesizing information across resources
7. Collaborating with their peers on a project

Process:
In order to stay alive, all living things on Earth depend on other living things. The sun is the most important energy producer, because without the sun, little would survive. Habitats, groups of plants and animals that live together, rely heavily on the sun. Through studies of the sun, scientists have studied how animals and plants are linked together in life. The process goes around, like a circle. You know this process as the 'food chain.' The food chain exists through many habitats. Does the food chain differ because of what is available to plants and animals to eat?

To determine the answer to the question, does the food chain differ because of what is available to plants and animals, you will help scientists.

You will become a Young Skipper and research one habitat and decide what animals and plants fit in the food chain. At the end of the WebQuest, you will be able to create a food chain book with the plants and animals native to the chosen habitat studied.

Before you choose a habitat to study, review the vocabulary needed. Need the bag of words for the Vocab Guide. Then click here to read about the different definitions featuring plants and animals. Write out the definitions of the words that are in red on the web page that you will be reading.

Playing with sharks.....fourth grade

Fourth grade playing with sharks !

Introduction
Sharks!
They shock, terrify, and startle us, yet no other creatures have the power to capture our imaginations in such a dramatic way.

The Task

You and your partner have been hired by Sea World to study sharks and write/produce a shark commercial or adventure story.
First, surf the Internet to learn all about sharks. Record this information on the Shark Cluster Map. Next, choose two sharks to compare and contrast. Record this information on the Shark Venn Diagram. Finally, you and your partner will be prepared to write your shark commercial or adventure story.

Resources
Be careful, you are in shark infested waters!

Shark facts.

All About Sharks

Sharks are a type of fish.

Sharks are amazing fish that have been around since long before the dinosaurs existed. They live in waters all over the world, in every ocean, and even in some rivers and lakes.

Unlike bony fish, sharks have no bones; their skeleton is made of cartilage, which is a tough, fibrous substance, not nearly as hard as bone. Sharks also have no swim bladder (unlike bony fish).

MAJOR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SHARKS AND BONY FISH

ATTRIBUTE	SHARKS	BONY FISH
Skeleton	Cartilage only	Bones and cartilage
Swimming	Can only swim forward.	Can swim forwards and backwards
Buoyancy (floating)	Large oily liver	Gas-filled swim bladder
Gills	Gill slits but no gill cover	Covered gill slits
Reproduction	Eggs fertilized in female's body.	Eggs usually fertilized in the water.
Skin	Rough, sandpaper-like placoid scales	Slippery, overlapping scales

SIZE

A scuba diver above a Whale shark. The Whale shark is the largest fish in the world; the basking shark is the second largest fish.

There are many different species of sharks that range in size from the size of a person's hand to bigger than a bus. Fully-grown sharks range in size from 7 inches (18 cm) long (theSpined Pygmy shark), up to 50 feet (15 m) long (the Whale shark). Most sharks are intermediate in size, and are about the same size as people, 5-7 feet (1.5-2.1 m) long. Half of the 368 shark species are under 39 inches (1 m) long.

BODY SHAPES

Sharks have a variety of body shapes. Most sharks have streamlined, torpedo-shaped bodies that glide easily through the water. Some bottom-dwelling sharks (e.g. the angelshark) have flattened bodies that allow them to hide in the sand of the ocean bed. Some sharks have an elongated body shape (e.g., cookiecutter sharks and wobbegongs). Sawsharks have elongated snouts,thresher sharks have a tremendously elongated upper tail fin which they use to stun prey, and hammerheadshave extraordinarily wide heads. The goblin shark has a large, pointed protuberance on its head; its purpose is unknown.

VARIETIES OF SHARKS

There are about 368 different species of sharks, which are divided into 30 families. These different families of sharks are very different in the way they look, live, and eat. They have different shapes, sizes, color, fins, teeth, habitat, diet, personality, method of reproduction, and other attributes. Some types of shark are very rare (like the great white shark and the megamouth) and some are quite common (like the dogfish shark and bull shark). Sharks belong to the group of cartilagenous fish, the Elasmobranchii, that includes the sharks, rays, and skates.

There are over 350 different species of sharks. The spiny dogfish shark is the most common shark.

SKELETON

Sharks (like the Goblin Shark pictured above) have no bones; their skeleton is made of cartilage.

Sharks are a type of fish that have no bones, only cartilage. Some parts of their skeleton, like their vertebrae, are calcified. Cartilage, a strong fibrous substance, is softer than bone; our nose and ears are made of cartilage.

Sharks belong to the group of fishes called Elasmobranchii, which also includes the rays, skates, and ratfish. The Elasmobranchii are all fish that have no bones, only cartilage.

TEETH

Sharks may have up to 3,000 teeth at one time. Most sharks do not chew their food, but gulp it down whole it in large pieces. The teeth are arranged in rows; when one tooth is damaged or lost, it is replaced by another. Most sharks have about 5 rows of teeth at any time. The front set is the largest and does most of the work.

DIET
Sharks vary greatly in their diets, but they are all carnivores.

Some (like the great white, mako, tiger, and hammerhead) are swift predators that eat fish, squid, other sharks, and marine mammals.
Some (like the zebra horn shark, angelshark, and wobbegong) are slow-swimming predators that crush and eat shellfish (crabs and clams) from the ocean floor.
Others (like the whale shark, the basking shark, and the megamouth) are filter feeders that sieve tiny bits of plankton and small animals from the water as they swim with open mouths. They eat huge amounts of these tiny animals and plants.

DO SHARKS SLEEP?
Fish don't sleep in the same way that we do, but they have active and inactive periods. Some sharks (like the nurse shark) have been observed resting motionless on the sea floor. Others have to keep moving in order to breathe.

SHARK ATTACKS
When some sharks (like the Great White or the Gray Reef shark) turn aggressive prior to an attack, they arch their back and throw back their head. This places their mouth in a better position for taking a big bite. They also move their tail more acutely (probably in preparation for a chase).

Sharks do not normally attack people, and only about 25 species of sharks are known to attack people. Sharks attack fewer than 100 people each year. Many more people are killed by bees or lightning.

The sharks that are the most dangerous to people are the great white shark, the tiger shark, the bull shark, and the oceanic whitetip shark. The bull shark

is the most frequent attacker of people as it swims in very shallow waters where people swim and is a very plentiful shark. Some of the other sharks that are known to have attacked people include the gray shark, blue shark, hammerhead shark,mako shark, nurse shark, lemon shark, blacktip reef shark, wobbegongs, sandtiger, spitting sharks, and the porbeagle. Some people believe that sharks mistake people (especially people swimming on surf boards) for seals and sea lions, some of their favorite foods.

FEEDING FRENZY
Occasionally, a group of sharks will attack a food source (for example, a school of fish) in a maniacal fashion. They will wildly attack the food and anything in the area, even each other, sometimes wounding or eating fellow sharks.

INTELLIGENCE
Scientists have shown that sharks are relatively intelligent and can learn at a rate similar to that of rats and birds.

HABITAT

Sharks live in oceans and seas all over the world, and even in some rivers and lakes, especially in warmer waters. Some sharks live near the surface, some live deep in the water, and others live on or near the ocean floor. Pelagic sharks (living in the open ocean) include the great white shark, thebasking shark, etc. Benthic sharks (living at the ocean floor) include the zebra horn shark, the wobbegongs, and the angelshark, which usually have flattened, camouflaged bodies that let them hide in the sea bed. Some sharks even venture many miles up into the fresh water of rivers like the Mississippi in the USA and the Amazon in Brazil. The bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas) sometimes ventures into fresh water.

Some sharks live in relatively warm waters (hammerheads, bull sharks, and tiger sharks). Other sharks, such as the thresher, mako, basking and blue shark, live in temperate water (which is neither hot nor cold). Others, including the dogfish, Greenland, and goblin, live in cool waters. Some sharks stay in the same region their entire lives while others travel across oceans.

MIGRATION OF SHARKS
There are three different types of sharks when it come to migratory patterns:

Local sharks - these sharks do not migrate, and range only about a hundred miles from their habitat. Examples include the bonnethead shark, and the nurse shark.
Coastal pelagic sharks - these sharks can migrate over 1,000 miles (1,600 km). Examples include the dusky shark, the blacktip sharks, the tiger shark, and the sandbar shark.
Highly pelagic sharks - these sharks migrate across oceans. Examples include the blue shark and the mako.

EVOLUTION OF SHARKS
Sharks have existed for over 350 million years. They evolved over 100 million years before the dinosaurs did. This was long before people evolved. Most fossil evidence of early sharks is from fossilized teeth and a few skin impressions. Cladodonts, primitive sharks, had double-pointed teeth, were up to 6 feet (2 m) long lived about 360 million years ago (mya); they ate fish and crustaceans.

EXTINCT SHARKS

Megalodon (Carcharodon megalodon) was an ancient, meat-eating shark, living between 25-1.6 million years ago; it is extinct. It was over 40 feet (12 m) long, but this is only an estimate from fossil teeth that have been found. Its teeth resemble those of the great white shark but are almost 3 times larger; these teeth are each the size of a person's hand!

Shark fossils are rare because sharks have no bones, only cartilage, which does not fossilize well. Fossilized shark teeth are very hard and fossilize well.

ENDANGERED AND PROTECTED SPECIES

The Basking shark, a species in decline.

The largest sharks are decreasing in numbers around the world because of being hunted by people. The Great white shark, theBasking shark, and the Whale shark are all waning. The Great white is protected along the coast of California and South Africa.

National Geographic Shark Surfari!

Sharks - Fact and Fantasy

Shark Gallery

Monterey Bay Aquarium-Sharks

The Process

With your partner, surf the Internet for information on sharks.

This Shark Cluster Map to record general shark information. copy of the map and record the information on your paper o keynote.)

Then choose two sharks which you would like to compare and contrast. Copy the Shark Venn Diagram to fill in the likenesses and diferentes or use keynotes.

Use this information (a minimum of 5 facts) to help you write a shark commercial/adventure story with i movie or garage band.
Plan your commerical/adventure story before you begin to write.
Characters (how many? Realistic or fantasy?)The story line (beginning, middle, end)?

Write your commerical script/story, use toonstastic or comiclife.

Proofread for mistakes and type a final copy on the computer.
Share your commercial/story with your class. You will also have an opportunity to showcase your work for other classes.

Evaluation
You will be evaluated on the following:

Your level of cooperation and participation.The quality of information gathered from your research, using a minimum of 5 facts.
The neatness, completeness, and quality of your project.

Your teacher will use a rubric to grade your project.

Conclusion

We hope you enjoyed your detailed study of sharks and have come to appreciate these fascinating creatures.

Experience by Pat Dobson and Laura Carlson, webquest for Sofia Chiquetts

SOBRE ESTE BLOG

Pretendo que a través de la “Unidad didáctica IDA”, investigación, descubrimiento y análisis los alumnos participen en un proyecto interdisciplinario que se realiza en torno a un tema central, por medio del cual el alumnado investigue, proponga, imagine, crea, se exprese y muestre a la comunidad sus productos de trabajo a través de una puesta en escena, una exposición museográfica y presentaciones interactivas.

Para cada uno de estos temas centrales las diversas asignaturas aportan elementos que enriquecen el producto final y permiten al alumno contextualizar el conocimiento, expresarse a través de la plástica y las letras, ser creativos y críticos, a la vez que aprenden a trabajar colaborativamente.

Literature and letters