Lesson Plan

1. Title/Topic/Grade level: Bird Beak Adaptation, 4th grade

2. Lesson Essential Questions:
How do different animal adapt to their environment in order to get food?
3. Standards:

4-LS1-1 Construct an argument that plants and animals have internal and external
structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction.

4. A: Learning objectives and assessments:

Model how animals adapt to their environment in order to collect food and survive
B: Assessments:

Objectives

Assessments

SWBAT model how

different variations of
animals collect food to
survive

Students will demonstrate how different types of birds gather

food. Each student will be given a beak with its own
variation and have to collect objects in the classroom that
represent food

5. Materials:
Beaks:
o Spoons
o Forks
Food:
o Toothpicks
o Rubber bands
o Paper clips
o Macaroni
o Gummy bears
Plates
Cups
Bird Beak Activity worksheet
Bird Beak Activity rubric
6. Pre-Lesson Assignments and/or Prior Knowledge:
Students know that animals require food to survive
Students have seen different animals and know that they dont all look the same and that
different animals eat different things.

7. Lesson Beginning:
Distribute science folders
Compare how we eat to different animals. Narrow the comparison to different birds.
Show a picture of different birds to the class. Ask them to make observations. Direct their
attention to the birds beaks. Why might some have bigger/smaller beaks than others?
What might they eat?
Explain how animals need to adapt to their environment in order to survive. They eat
what is accessible to them, based on location and structure. (ex. Can a small beaked bird
eat a squirrel? Why not?)
o Adaptation- Adjusting to your surroundings
Ask the class what would happen if an animal cant adapt to their environment.
Walk around the room and distribute a beak and small cup to each student. Explain that
the utensil they receive is going to be their beak and the cup is going to represent their
stomach. Notice that each student has a different beak.
On their worksheet, have students predict how many pieces of food they think they will
be able to collect during the first round.
8. Instructional Plan:
Place plates around the room and scatter food on each plate.
Explain to the class that they are only allowed to pick up food using their beak. They
must hold their cup in one hand and their beak in their other. Any food in their cup will
represent food that has been eaten.
On the teachers Go students will have 1 minute to search the room and collect as much
food as they can into their cups.
When the teacher says Stop students must return to their desks and count the number of
items that are in their cups.
Have students record how many of each item they were able to collect.
Repeat the activity one more time. Once again have students record how many of each
item they were able to collect.
Look back at the predictions made before beginning the activity. Have students discuss in
small groups how many pieces of food they predicted to get and how many pieces of food
they actually got.
Go through each type of food. Ask students who got a lot of each type. Look at the type
of beak they had. Why do you think you were able to pick up so many _____? Why
might you have struggled with ______?
Direct the students attention to their worksheets again. Answer the questions on the back
of their worksheets.
Differentiation: The teachers will be distributing the beaks to the students. Give students
who you feel may struggle with this activity something simple, such as a fork or spoon
with no variations. Give the students who seem to be understanding this science unit a
more challenging beak to work with, such as a fork with only one prong.

Class Management: The teachers will distribute the materials (beaks and cups) to the
students. Directions will be given that students are not allowed to change their beak once

they receive it. Students will remain in their seats until instructed by the teacher to search
the room for food. Should students be too loud during Trial 1 they will be asked to sit and
remain in their seats until the teachers feel the students can handle Trial 2. The teachers
will monitor and walk around the classroom as students fill out the worksheet.

Transitions: Begin with making a broad comparison and narrowing it down to tie into the
topic of the lesson. Move to the activity by handing out material to the students. Use the
teachers cues (go, stop) to begin and end the activity. Direct students attention to the
worksheet once completing the activity.

9. Closure: Practice The Atoms Family song one final time before we sing it for the parents.

Name: ____________________

Date: _____________

Beautiful Bird Beaks

Draw a picture of your beak

Toothpicks

Trial 1
Trial 2
Average

How many pieces of food you think will

be in your cup: ____
How many pieces of food were actually in
your cup: _____

Rubber
bands

Paper
clips

Macaroni

Gummy
bears

1. What do you think this lesson was about?

________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________

2. What did you learn from this lesson?

________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________

3. Why is it important for different birds to have different beaks?

________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________

4. If you could trade your beak with someone else would you? Why or why not?
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________

Activity: Beautiful Bird Beaks

4

Participation

Used time well

and focused
attention on
the activity.

Used time
well. Stayed
focused on the
activity most
of the time.

Did not use

time well.
Completed
the activity,
but did not
show much
interest.

Participation
was minimal
during the
activity.

Table

Table is filled
in complete
and shows and
illustrates an
understanding
of the activity.

Table is
mostly filled
in. A few
boxes are
empty. It
illustrates an
understanding
of the activity.

Table is
missing
much
information.
Most boxes
are empty.

Table is not
filled in.

Questions

All questions
have been
answered and
in complete
sentences.

Most
questions have
been answered
and in
complete
sentences.

Some
questions
have been
answered.
Responses
are not in
complete
sentences.

No questions
have been
answered or
only one
word
answers
have been
given.

Total: _____ / 12