Activity Plan Preparation
Learning about natural phenomena and the way in which they are related to each other is central to building awareness and readiness for all-encompassing education in children. Therefore, an early focus on phenology, which Ashbrook (2018) suggests as the basis for building early awareness in children is central for successful education afterward. According to Ashbrook (2018), outdoors observations allow children to develop a profound and thorough understanding of how different natural phenomena are interconnected. The specified strategy is expected to support children in their further learning of natural sciences (Ashbrook, 2018). The article suggests several strategies for encouraging outdoor exploration, such as creating a class- or neighborhood-specific project, reading relevant books, and drawing pictures that will be used afterward for promoting citizen science while being outside.
The article can be used to deepen the process of child learning to a significant extent. For example, when helping a child to understand the changes occurring in plants throughout the cycle of their development in the fall, one could use different types of leaves, including withered and green ones, to illustrate the point. Likewise, other types of materials and resources, including plants and flowers, as well as the related elements of the environment, can be used to support a specific lesson. The learning standards that will guide the activity to be selected for this project will include understanding the nature of science, as well as using observations to become independent in learning science. By using the described standards as guidelines, an educator will be able to encourage children to develop curiosity toward nature and science.
Activity Plan
For the target activity, which will involve locating and describing different types of plants that have bloomed recently. The topic of the activity will be “Blooming patterns in common plants in the target area.” Students will be encouraged to observe, describe, and write down the key characteristics of the plants that have already blossomed, try determining the type and species of each plant, and explain why there is a difference in the blooming process and speed in different plants and trees.
To evaluate the activity and its outcomes, as well as the students’ performance on it, the early learning standards such as the basic understanding of principal science concepts and the skills needed to become an independent learner at an early stage of academic development will be applied (“Chapter 6. Science content standards,” n.d.). Specifically, the latter standard will allow encouraging students to gain scientific curiosity and the willingness to engage in scientific experiments by performing observations and conducting experiments. As for the former standard, the process of developing an intuitive idea of how science works will be promoted in young students.
Therefore, apart from helping students to observe seasonal changes in plants, the key learning goals to be pursued in the process include the development of an understanding of scientific curiosity and encouraging students to produce their conclusions about observed natural phenomena. The vocabulary words to be included in the specified assignment are chlorophyll, oxygen, and photosynthesis. The materials to be included in the pacified activity are notebooks and pencils for writing down the observed phenomena. To support the students’ performance, family members will be encouraged to assist students with the observations, making key conclusions, and locating additional evidence that supports the information about the seasonal changes in leaves’ color.
References
Ashbrook, P. (2018). Introducing children to phenology. Science and Children, 55(8), 18-19.
Chapter 6. Science content standards. (n.d.). Web.