The Arizona STEM Acceleration Project

Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?

TO LEARN ABOUT STEM!

Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?

TO LEARN ABOUT STEM!

A 5th grade STEM lesson

Laura MItchell

1/30/24

Notes for teachers

My family has backyard chickens! All the photos in this slideshow (except the chicken on the 2nd slide that is crossing the road - ha!) are our birds.

I let my 5th grade class name one of them (they chose “Eduardo Noodles” - a very unique name!) and I thought it would be interesting for them to learn STEM standards through the study of chickens. Even if you don’t have chickens, though, you can use this lesson with your class.

List of Materials

• recycled materials that kids can use to build a chicken coop/run model
• paper towel rolls
• little boxes
• paper
• other assorted materials
• graph paper or computer program (Excel or Google Sheets)
• a carton of eggs

Standards

Science: 5.L4U3.11 - Obtain, evaluate, and communicate evidence about how natural and human-caused changes to habitats or climate can impact populations.

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5.L3U1.10 - Construct an explanation based on evidence that the changes in an environment can affect the development of the traits in a population of organisms.

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Technology: Use a computational tool to draw conclusions, make predictions, and answer questions utilizing a specified data set.

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Engineering: Use the engineering process to design a chicken coop and run.

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Standards

Math: 5.MD.B.2: Make a line plot to display a data set of measurements in fractions of a unit (1/8, 1/2, 3/4). Use operations on fractions for this grade to solve problems involving information presented in line plots.

4.MD.A.3: Apply the area and perimeter formulas for rectangles in mathematical problems and problems in real-world contexts including problems with unknown side lengths

Objectives:

Today, you will learn about chickens and why they may lay different numbers of eggs at different times.

You will also design a chicken coop and run using the engineering process and math.

Agenda

Activity #1 - 20 minutes

• Create a line graph of number of eggs produced each month.

Activity #2 - 1-3 hours (depending on how detailed they get)

• Build (or draw) a model of a chicken coop and run.

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Intro/Driving Question/Opening

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What do you WONDER about chickens?

Show some pictures of chickens and ask kids what they already know about chickens and chicken eggs.

You could show this video: Chicken video on YouTube

Hands-on Activity #1 Instructions

• Ask the kids to analyze the data (above) of how many eggs my 20 backyard chickens laid each month last year. (This is actual data from our chickens.) Teach kids the word “oviparous”, meaning “producing young by means of eggs that are hatched after they have been laid by the parent” (Google).
• Discuss these questions in small groups:
• What trends and patterns do you notice in their egg production?
• Why do you think backyard chickens in Phoenix lay different amounts of eggs in different months?
• What other factors do you think might affect egg production? (Egg production is affected by the temperature, the amount of sunlight per day, food, stress, sickness, the amount of space each chicken has, their nest, and other factors as well.)
• What do you think chickens need in order to be healthy and lay eggs?
• Why do you think we need to provide crushed up eggshells (yes, chickens LOVE eating eggshells!) or crushed up oyster shells for our chickens to eat? (they need a lot of calcium to produce eggshells!)
• What are some ways we can keep chickens cool during the hot AZ summer? (cold water in trays so they can get their feet cool, swamp coolers, lots of cold drinking water, frozen treats and cold melon, etc.)
• Then, ask them to make a line graph (either on graph paper or on Excel or Google sheets). To make a graph on Google Sheets, select the numbers/data you want to include and then click on “chart” and choose the type of graph you want. They could decorate the border of their chart with egg and chicken pictures. 🐓

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Sample graph:

Hands-on Activity #2 Instructions

• In groups of 3-4 students, design and build a model of a chicken coop (where the chickens will sleep) and a chicken run (where chickens can move around but be protected from predators). The photo to the right on the bottom is our coop and run that we built (it was our Covid shut-down project 😀).
• First, you need to decide how many chickens you’ll have!
• You may draw your coop/run on paper or build a 3D model using these materials (see 3rd slide).
• Each chicken needs 3-5 square feet of space in the coop and 8-10 square feet of space in the run. Please write the dimensions of each part of your coop/run and then calculate the total area (square footage) of your coop and run.
• Also, be creative and think of the most convenient place to put the egg boxes so that it’s easy to get the eggs out.
• Think of features that will make your chickens happy, like things to roost on or hop up on. Where will you put their food and water and in what kind of container?
• Be sure to make your coop and run predator-proof so that your chickens are safe when you’re not home.

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Assessment

Ask each team to present their coop & run to the class and point out any special features in their design.

Check to see that the square footage is correct and ample enough for the chickens.

Differentiation

You could give a graph with most of the points graphed already and the child needs to add any missing data points.

Remediation

Extension/Enrichment

Literature connection: Chickens Aren't the Only Ones (you could teach the kids about other “oviparous” animals that lay eggs)

There are a TON of other things you can do with STEM and chickens. Here are a lot more ideas: https://www.poultryhub.org/education/resources/primary-school-worksheets

There are also a LOT more videos on raising backyard chickens on YouTube and Discovery Ed.

Chicken Jokes! https://www.thedodo.com/dodowell/chicken-jokes