Exploring Animal Characteristics and Habitats

Texas Science TEKS:

(1) Scientific processes. The student conducts field and laboratory investigations following home and school safety procedures and environmentally appropriate and ethical practices. The student is expected to:
(B) make wise choices in the use and conservation of resources and the disposal or recycling of materials.

(2) Scientific processes. The student uses scientific inquiry methods during field and laboratory investigations. The student is expected to:
(A) plan and implement descriptive investigations including asking well-defined questions, formulating testable hypotheses, and selecting and using equipment and technology;
(B) collect information by observing and measuring;
(C) analyze and interpret information to construct reasonable explanations from direct and indirect evidence;
(D) communicate valid conclusions; and
(E) construct simple graphs, tables, maps, and charts to organize, examine and evaluate information.

(3) Scientific processes. The student knows that information, critical thinking, and scientific problem solving are used in making decisions. The student is expected to:
(C) represent the natural world using models and identify their limitations;

(8) Science concepts. The student knows that living organisms need food, water, light, air, a way to dispose of waste, and an environment in which to live. The student is expected to:
A) observe and describe the habitats of organisms within an ecosystem;
(B) observe and identify organisms with similar needs that compete with one another for resources such as oxygen, water, food, or space;
(C) describe environmental changes in which some organisms would thrive, become ill, or perish; and
(D) describe how living organisms modify their physical environment to meet their needs such as beavers building a dam or humans building a home.

(9) Science concepts. The student knows that species have different adaptations that help them survive and reproduce in their environment. The student is expected to:
(A) observe and identify characteristics among species that allow each to survive and reproduce; and
 (B) analyze how adaptive characteristics help individuals within a species to survive and reproduce. 

Texas �110.14. English Language Arts and Reading TEKS
 
 (1) Reading/Beginning Reading Skills/Phonics. Students use the relationships between letters and sounds, spelling patterns, and morphological analysis to decode written English. Students are expected to:
(A) decode multisyllabic words in context and independent of context by applying common spelling patterns including:                            (2) Reading/Beginning Reading/Strategies. Students comprehend a variety of texts drawing on useful strategies as needed. Students are expected to:
(A) use ideas (e.g., illustrations, titles, topic sentences, key words, and foreshadowing clues) to make and confirm predictions;
(B) ask relevant questions, seek clarification, and locate facts and details about stories and other texts and support answers with evidence from text; and
(C) establish purpose for reading selected texts and monitor comprehension, making corrections and adjustments when that understanding breaks down (e.g., identifying clues, using background knowledge, generating questions, re-reading a portion aloud).
(3) Reading/Fluency. Students read grade-level text with fluency and comprehension. Students are expected to read aloud grade-level appropriate text with fluency (rate, accuracy, expression, appropriate phrasing) and comprehension.
(4) Reading/Vocabulary Development. Students understand new vocabulary and use it when reading and writing. Students are expected to:
 (E) alphabetize a series of words to the third letter and use a dictionary or a glossary to determine the meanings, syllabication, and pronunciation of unknown words. 
  (9) Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Literary Nonfiction. Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the varied structural patterns and features of literary nonfiction and respond by providing evidence from text to support their understanding.  (11) Reading/Comprehension of Text/Independent Reading. Students read independently for sustained periods of time and produce evidence of their reading. Students are expected to read independently for a sustained period of time and paraphrase what the reading was about, maintaining meaning and logical order (e.g., generate a reading log or journal; participate in book talks).
 (13) Reading/Comprehension of Informational Text/Expository Text. Students analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about expository text and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. Students are expected to:
(A) identify the details or facts that support the main idea;
(B) draw conclusions from the facts presented in text and support those assertions with textual evidence;
(C) identify explicit cause and effect relationships among ideas in texts; and
(D) use text features (e.g., bold print, captions, key words, italics) to locate information and make and verify predictions about contents of text.
 (15) Reading/Comprehension of Informational Text/Procedural Texts. Students understand how to glean and use information in procedural texts and documents. Students are expected to:
(A) follow and explain a set of written multi-step directions; and
(B) locate and use specific information in graphic features of text.
(16) Reading/Media Literacy. Students use comprehension skills to analyze how words, images, graphics, and sounds work together in various forms to impact meaning. Students will continue to apply earlier standards with greater depth in increasingly more complex texts. Students are expected to:
 (C) compare various written conventions used for digital media (e.g., language in an informal e-mail vs. language in a web-based news article).
(17) Writing/Writing Process. Students use elements of the writing process (planning, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing) to compose text. Students are expected to:
(A) plan a first draft by selecting a genre appropriate for conveying the intended meaning to an audience and generating ideas through a range of strategies (e.g., brainstorming, graphic organizers, logs, journals);
(B) develop drafts by categorizing ideas and organizing them into paragraphs;
(C) revise drafts for coherence, organization, use of simple and compound sentences, and audience;
(D) edit drafts for grammar, mechanics, and spelling using a teacher-developed rubric; and
(E) publish written work for a specific audience.  
 (20) Writing/Expository and Procedural Texts. Students write expository and procedural or work-related texts to communicate ideas and information to specific audiences for specific purposes. Students are expected to:
(A) create brief compositions that:
(i) establish a central idea in a topic sentence;
(ii) include supporting sentences with simple facts, details, and explanations; and
(iii) contain a concluding statement;
(C) write responses to literary or expository texts that demonstrate an understanding of the text.
 (22) Oral and Written Conventions/Conventions. Students understand the function of and use the conventions of academic language when speaking and writing. Students continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to:
(A) use and understand the function of the following parts of speech in the context of reading, writing, and speaking:
(i) verbs (past, present, and future);
(ii) nouns (singular/plural, common/proper);
(iii) adjectives (e.g., descriptive: wooden, rectangular; limiting: this, that; articles: a, an, the);
(iv) adverbs (e.g., time: before, next; manner: carefully, beautifully);
(v) prepositions and prepositional phrases;
(vi) possessive pronouns (e.g., his, hers, theirs);
(vii) coordinating conjunctions (e.g., and, or, but); and
(viii) time-order transition words and transitions that indicate a conclusion;
(B) use the complete subject and the complete predicate in a sentence; and
(C) use complete simple and compound sentences with correct subject-verb agreement.
(23) Oral and Written Conventions/Handwriting, Capitalization, and Punctuation. Students write legibly and use appropriate capitalization and punctuation conventions in their compositions. Students are expected to:
(B) use capitalization for:
(i) geographical names and places;
 (iii) official titles of people;
(C) recognize and use punctuation marks including:
(i) apostrophes in contractions and possessives; and
(ii) commas in series and dates; and
(D) use correct mechanics including paragraph indentations.
(24) Oral and Written Conventions/Spelling. Students spell correctly. Students are expected to:
(A) use knowledge of letter sounds, word parts, word segmentation, and syllabication to spell;
(B) spell words with more advanced orthographic patterns and rules:
 (C) spell high-frequency and compound words from a commonly used list;
(D) spell words with common syllable constructions (e.g., closed, open, final stable syllable);
(E) spell single syllable homophones (e.g., bear/bare; week/weak; road/rode);
(F) spell complex contractions (e.g., should've, won't); and
(G) use print and electronic resources to find and check correct spellings.
(25) Research/Research Plan. Students ask open-ended research questions and develop a plan for answering them. Students are expected to:
 (B) generate a research plan for gathering relevant information (e.g., surveys, interviews, encyclopedias) about the major research question.
(26) Research/Gathering Sources. Students determine, locate, and explore the full range of relevant sources addressing a research question and systematically record the information they gather. Students are expected to:
(A) follow the research plan to collect information from multiple sources of information, both oral and written, including:
(i) student-initiated surveys, on-site inspections, and interviews;
(ii) data from experts, reference texts, and online searches; and
(iii) visual sources of information (e.g., maps, timelines, graphs) where appropriate;
(B) use skimming and scanning techniques to identify data by looking at text features (e.g., bold print, captions, key words, italics);

Texas Technology TEKS
126.3. Technology Applications, Grades 3-5.S
 �(6) Information acquisition. The student evaluates the acquired electronic information. The student is expected to:
(A) apply critical analysis to resolve information conflicts and validate information;
(C) determine the usefulness and appropriateness of digital information.
C) take simple notes and sort evidence into provided categories or an organizer;
 (27) Research/Synthesizing Information. Students clarify research questions and evaluate and synthesize collected information. Students are expected to improve the focus of research as a result of consulting expert sources (e.g., reference librarians and local experts on the topic).

 National Literacy Standards
Standard 1: The student who is information literate accesses information efficiently and effectively.
Standard 2: The student who is information literate evaluates information critically and competently.
Standard 3: The student who is information literate uses information accurately and creatively.
Standard 4: The student who is an independent learner is information literate and pursues information related to personal interests.
Standard 5: The student who is an independent learner is information literate and appreciates literature and other creative expressions of information.
Standard 6: The student who is an independent learner is information literate and strives for excellence in information seeking and knowledge generation.
Standard 8: The student who contributes positively to the learning community and to society is information literate and practices ethical behavior in regard to information and information technology.

Texas Library Standards
Standard    I. Learner-Centered Teaching and Learning: Goal: To promote the integration of curriculum, resources, and teaching strategies to ensure the success of all students as the effective creators and users of ideas and information, enabling them to become lifelong learners.

Standard III. Learner-Centered Technology and Information Access: Goal: To promote the success of all students and staff by facilitating the access, use, and integration of technology, telecommunications, and information systems to enrich the curriculum and enhance learning.

Standard IV. Learner-Centered Library Environment: Goal:  To provide design guidelines for facilities to allow for manipulation, production, and communication of information by all members of the learning community.

Standard V. Learner-Centered Connections to the Community: Goal: To provide information equity by working for universal literacy; defending intellectual freedom; preserving and making accessible the human record; ensuring access to print and electronic resources; connecting school faculty, staff, and students to community resources and services as needed; and by connecting community members to school resources and services as appropriate.