Grade3Plants-Activities-AlikeorDifferent

=Similarities and Differences in Plants - Student Created Game Cards=

This is an activity for students to use the vocabulary and observations they have been making during their plant unit.

Description
The class will create a card game to test their knowledge about "Growth and Changes in Plants". Each student will make a game card (using either Comic Life or PowerPoint) that involves showing three plant images. The idea of each card is to show two plant concepts that are similar and one that is different. The point of the game will be to identify which image is different on each card and why. The students will invite another class in the school (or on the internet) to play their game once it is complete. The learning in this activity is not so much in the end product of completing the cards and playing the game but rather in the connections, conversations, habits of mind and group processes involved in designing the cards. By the end of the activity, the students will have had their knowledge of plants reinforced several times over. Playing the game will allow the students to have fun while demonstrating their new knowledge about plants.

Preparation
The students will review the new vocabulary words they learned during the unit. Here are some of the words the students might highlight: fibrous-root tap-root || pistil flower || stamen dormant || root || bark || leaf veins || The students will also share the many images and visuals they remembered from the many activities in which they were involved. The teacher will then explain that the class is going to make a game to share with another grade 3 class doing a similar Plant unit (or other grade, whatever is appropriate). Using the following Storyboard, the students will work in pairs or individually and first identify the area they want their "Similar/Different" card to focus on. Next they will share their idea with another student or pair to get peer feedback.
 * seeds

Once the teacher is aware of the various images required for the students' cards, the class will have a discussion about how to get these images. Some of the solutions presented might be: -go and take the photos themselves -search on the internet for the photos -connect with other students and classes to see if they could help get the images needed. Once the photo collection problems has been addressed by the class, the teacher has a few choices, s/he can involve the students in the image gathering or not - it depends upon time, internet access, technological skill of students, etc. Once the images have been collected, add them to a folder which all the students can access. Book the computer lab and have the students complete their game cards by applying their storyboard ideas to the following provided template (can be done in Comic Life or PowerPoint):

The students will need to learn how to import an image and crop it, as well as how and where to save their final image. All students should print out their game card. Which can either be cut or just folded so that the answer key is not visible when the game card is shown. Play, share the game! HAve fun!

Differentiated Learning Ideas

 * some students might be more successful if images are supplied which reflect the many things they have learned throughout the Plant Unit and then identify their "Two Similar" and "One Different" images from the provided pool of pictures.
 * Rather than working individually, the students can work together in teacher-selected groupings to ensure proper support is available for all group members.
 * Pictures of the students acting out (with props) many of the concepts can be used rather than real plant images.