Exploring Textures for gardening - Lesson plan for metro ( Final)

Lesson Plan: Exploring Soil Textures and Characteristics for 3rd-5th Grade

     Objective: 

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to identify and describe the textures and characteristics of different types of soil and use that knowledge to choose the best soil for plant growth. They will also create and decorate clay pots to plant bird seeds to grow if they want to.

**Materials Needed:**

- Assorted soil samples (sandy, loamy, clayey)

- Magnifying glasses

- Small 2-inch clay pots (1 per student)

- Birdseed (1 small bag per student)

- Soil of the student's choice

- Paints, brushes, markers, and other decorating materials

- Watering cans or spray bottles

- Plastic bags for students to take their pots home

- Art supplies (for decorating pots)

**TEKS and Standards:**

- **Tech Apps TEKS:**

  - 3-5.1.A: Create original products using a variety of resources.

- **Gardening Topic:**

  - Exploring texture in the gardens (properties of soil and the ability to support plant growth).

- **Gardening TEKS Content:**

  - 112.4.b.1.D: Use tools, including hand lenses, to observe, measure, test, and compare.

**Session 1: Exploring Soil Textures and Characteristics **

**Introduction (3 minutes):**

1. Begin with a discussion about the importance of soil for plant growth.

2. Explain that students will explore different soil types.

3. Students will follow the steps on the provided banner and use QR codes to access the story and other steps. 

**Exploration Activity (8 min):**

3. Provide students with observational instructions and safety rules. Students will observe three different soil samples (sandy, loamy, and clayey).

4. Use magnifying glasses to examine and compare the texture and characteristics of each soil.

5. Discuss their findings as a group.

**Choosing Soil based question  (5 minutes):**

6. Students will follow the next step and use the QR code to watch a short MicroVideo about how to download Flip. 

7. Students will use another banner to access a question of their choice to answer 

** Providing a take-home activity ( pots ) 5 minutes):**

8. Provide art supplies for students to decorate their clay pots. Encourage them to be creative in their designs.

9. Once students are done decorating they will receive two bags, one with bird seeds and a bag for their soil.

10. Students will also receive a small instructional sheet on how they can plant bird seeds in their little pots.

**Assessment:**

I can review student participation and understanding by reviewing their made flip videos.

💟Computational Standards💟

5.3.c Plan collaboratively with other educators to create learning activities that cross disciplines to strengthen student understanding of CT and CS concepts and transfer the application of knowledge in new contexts.

Working with other group members on this activity will definitely hit the collaboration goals of this standard; similarly, working with other students for our upcoming STaR hero activity is another way to meet collaboration goals. I've found that text-to-image AI works well when being specific. 

1.d Develop a Growth Mindset -Develop resilience and perseverance when approaching CS and CT learning experiences, build comfort with ambiguity and open-ended problems, and see failure as an opportunity to learn and innovate.

Students will be developing resilience and perseverance when using technology to learn about ideal environments plants need to live in to grow. Students will have to explore soil types and learn to innovate to and record videos using Flip. Students will have a tech home activity so that they can further study the patience and care that's needed to make plants grow.

5.3.a Model and learn with students how to formulate computational solutions to problems and how to give and receive actionable feedback.

Once students learn about soil, I, being the facilitator,  can model my understanding of what makes the soil a primary abiotic factor in plant life and show students how I can use technology to record a video. Students will get to view other students' recorded videos and leave comments. Students can learn new ideas for future uses they may have concerning Flip and will feel more confident using QR codes. Students will also get to know their peers better, furthering the establishment of a community of learners.