ENDANGERED SPECIES

A WebQuery for 4th Grade

Designed by

Katie Kirkland
kirklandk@cwu.edu

wolf

Introduction | Task | Process | Resources | Evaluation | Conclusion

Introduction

There are more than 1,000 animal species endangered worldwide. In the United States,  496 species of animals are listed as threatened or endangered. In Washington state alone there are 31 animals that are considered to be endangerd as of today. What sorts of animals do you know of that are considered to be endangered species? Today, you are going to become an investigator of an endangered animal that is interesting to you. You will have the opportunity to find out where the animal lives, what the animal's natural habbitat is, how many animals are left in the world, what caused the animal to become endangered, and what is being done to help the endangered animal. All of the interesting facts you find through your investigation of the endangered animal of your choice will be proudly displayed on a poster that will be hung in our hall to help educate all who walk by.

Task

You are going to decide which endangerd animal interests you the most and which animal you would like to know more about. Upon making your decission, you are going to have the opportunity to research the endangered animal of your choice. You will investigate where the animal lives and what the animal's natural habitat is. It would be interesting to know how many of a specific endagered species are left in the world, what caused the animal to become endangered, and what is being done now to protect the particular species. You are going to then create a poster that will display all of the interesting information you found. It would be great if while conducting your investigation, you were able to find a picture of your particular species that could be displayed as well. A notebook for your facts and the poster board will be provided for you.

The Process

Here are some questions you can ask yourself as you learn about an endangered specieds, conduct your investigation, and create your poster.
*** Remember, this is your investigation. You get to decide what endangered species you get to investigate. Please don't limit yourself to the questions above. It is OKAY to be CREATIVE. If you come across something interesting that you would like to share with others, please do. More poster board will be available if needed. 

Resources

Here are some interesting links and websites that could help you as you investigate your endangerd species. You will not be required to use all of the links below. These are just links that can help you get started. I would however appreciate the use of information from more than two different websites.

Evaluation

Your poster board will display all of the interesting information you discovered through your investigation and will be evaluated with the following rubric:

CATEGORY 3 2 1 0
Title The title can be read from 3 or more feet away. The title can be read from 2 to 2 feet 11 inches  away. The title can be read from at  1 foot to 1 foot 11 inches away. The title can only be read up close, less than 1 foot away. 
Content- Accuracy At least 7 accurate facts are displayed on the poster. 5-6 accurate factes are displayed on the poster. 3-4 accurate facts are displayed on the poster.  Less than 3 accurate facts are displayed on the poster.
Quality of Information Information clearly relates to the main topic and includes 3 or more supporting details and facts. Information clearly relates to the main top and provides 2 supporting details and facts. Information clearly relates to the main topic and provides 1 supporting detail and fact. Information has little or nothing to do with the main topic and has no supporting details or facts provided.
Mechanics There are no capitalization, spelling, or punctuation errors throughout the poster.  There are 1-2 capitalization, spelling, or punctuation errors throughout the poster. There are 3-4 capitalization, spelling, or punctuation errors throughout the poster. There are 5 or more capitalization, spelling, or punctuation errors throughout the poster.
Grammar There are no grammatical errors throughout the poster.  There is 1 grammatical mistake on the poster. There are 2 grammatical mistakes on the poster.  There are 3 or more grammatical mistakes on the poster.
Graphics Used more that 2 diagrams, illustrations, or graphics related to the topic to add to the viewer's understanding.  Used 2 diagrams, illustrations, or graphics related to the topic to add to the viewer's understanding.  Used 1diagram, illustration, or graphic related to the topic to add to the viewer's understanding.  Didn't use any diagrams, illustrations, or graphics related to the topic to add to the viewer's understanding. 
Use of Class Time Student used all of the  class time to focus on getting the project done. Student used 3/4 of the class time to focus on getting the project done. Student used 1/2 of the class time to focus on getting the project done. Student used 1/4 or less of the class time to focus on getting the project done.

Conclusion

In having investigated an endangered species of you choice, you should have some fabulous knowledge about creatures that might not be within our world forever. Besides knowing some very interesting facts about some extremely fabulous creatures, you have also learned about some reasons that explain why and how various creatures become threatened and endangered. In having this knowledge, I encourage you to converse with your classmates and expand your knowledge on the creatures of their choice to obtain an even larger understanding of various endangered species and what can be done to help them.
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