The Arizona STEM Acceleration Project

STEM in the Garden- Wild Bee Hotel

STEM in the Garden-

Wild Bee Hotel

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A 3rd Grade STEM Lesson

Lisa Moberg

July 2023

Notes for Teachers

• Context: This lesson takes place in a classroom for 4 (1-hour) class sessions.

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• Click here for background information about mason bee.

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• Students will take home a Wild Bee Hotel, hopefully inspiring them to continue protecting pollinators in their backyards as a family/ community.

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• This lesson creates an understanding of the significance of pollination to continue plant growth.

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List of Materials:

• “Give Bees a Chance” by Bethany Barton (book or video read-aloud)
• recycled cardboard tubes
• recycled aluminum cans
• drawing paper
• construction paper
• straws/sticks/yarn/string
• pencils
• rulers
• scissors
• glue
• Mason Bee article (electronic version or paper copy)
• Mason Bee main idea- anchor chart

3rd Grade Standards

Life Science:

• 3.L1U1.5 internal/external structures
• 3.L1U1.6 plants react to stimuli
• 3.L2U1.8 interdependence of plants

Technology:

• 3-5.1.a select technology tools
• 3-5.1.b network with others
• 3-5.1.c share learning
• 3-5.1.d transfer learning to different tools
• 3-5.4.a explore & practice design process
• 3-5.4.b use digital/ non-digital tools
• 3-5.4.c engage in cyclical design process
• 3-5.4.d perseverance

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Engineering Practices:

● ask questions and define problems

● develop and use models

● plan and carry out investigations

● use mathematics and computational thinking

● construct explanations and design solutions

● engage in argument from evidence

● obtain, evaluate, and communicate information

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Math:

• 3.MD.A solve problems involving measurement
• 3.MD.B represent and interpret data
• 3.MD.C geometric measurement: perimeter/area
• 3.G.A. reason with shapes and their attributes

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English Language Arts:

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• 3.RL.1 ask/answer questions about details
• 3.RL.2 paraphrase stories- central message
• 3.RL.3 describe characters in story
• 3.W.4 writing appropriate to task/purpose
• 3.SL.1 collaborative discussions
• 3.SL.2 main ideas/details of read aloud
• 3.SL.4 report on a topic
• 3.SL.5 create audio recording
• 3.SL.6 speak in complete sentences

National Standards

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

• 3-LS4-3: Construct an argument with evidence that in a particular habitat some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.
• Connection: Students explore the needs of Mason Bees and create a habitat (Bee Hotel) to help them survive and thrive in a garden environment.
• 3-LS4-4: Make a claim about the merit of a solution to a problem caused when the environment changes and the types of plants and animals that live there may change.
• Connection: By building Wild Bee Hotels, students implement a solution to support pollinator populations, addressing the problem of habitat loss or lack of nesting sites. * 3-5-ETS1-1: Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost.
• Connection: Students use the Engineering Design Process to design a bee hotel using specific recycled materials (cans, tubes, straws) to meet the needs of the bees.

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Common Core English Language Arts (CCSS.ELA)

• RI.3.2: Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
• Connection: Students read a "Mason Bee article" and create an anchor chart identifying the main idea and details.
• RI.3.4: Determine the meaning of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases in a text relevant to a grade 3 topic or subject area.
• Connection: Teachers are instructed to pause during the read-aloud to ask clarifying questions about new vocabulary words and check if students can apply context clues.
• SL.3.4: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace.
• Connection: Students present their Wild Bee Hotels to the class, demonstrating their speaking and listening skills.

Common Core Mathematics (CCSS.MATH)

• 3.MD.B.4: Generate measurement data by measuring lengths using rulers to halves and fourths of an inch.
• Connection: Students use rulers to measure materials (straws, tubes) during the construction of their bee hotels to ensure they fit the design constraints.

Objective(s):

The student will participate in a Think-Pair-Share activity to discuss how bees protect the planet.

The student will actively listen to a read aloud, “Give Bees a Chance,” to participate in a collaborative conversation about the significance/impact of bees as pollinators.

The student will research the Mason Bee by reading an informational article and identifying the main idea/details of specific paragraphs.

The student will engineer a Wild Bee hotel for the mason bee, using provided materials and knowledge from their research and class discussion, “What is essential to creating a Mason Bee Nest?”

The student will present their Wild Bee hotel as a small group by applying speaking skills in front of a small group.

Agenda [4 class sessions]

Day 1

• Think-Pair-Share “How do bees protect the planet?”
• Read aloud: “Give Bees a Chance”
• Class discussion about the significance of bees to our planet

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Day 2

• Read aloud: “Backyard Gardener: Orchard Mason Bees” informational website article by Jeff Schalau (stop to discuss new vocabulary words)
• Identify main idea/details of paragraphs 2-8 on an anchor chart
• Deep dive into Paragraph 4: “What is essential to creating a Mason Bee Nest?”
• Students break into small groups of 3-4 to design a Wild Bee Hotel on a piece of paper, based on the key components listed in paragraph 4

Agenda [4 class sessions]

Day 3

• Create the Wild Bee Hotel with a small group (either one for each student, or one for each group).

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Day 4

• Present the Wild Bee Hotel to an audience, either electronically or in-person.
• Describe the significance of the design to the bee habitat.
• Use pertinent vocabulary (bee anatomy, pollination, ecosystem, habitat).

How do bees protect the planet?

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Read Aloud or

Video

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Instructions

Day 1

• Think-Pair-Share “How do bees protect the planet?”
• Read aloud: “Give Bees a Chance”
• Class discussion about the significance of bees to our planet

Day 2

• Read aloud: “Backyard Gardener: Orchard Mason Bees” informational website article by Jeff Schalau (stop to discuss new vocabulary words)
• Identify main idea/details of paragraphs 2-8 on an anchor chart
• Deep dive into Paragraph 4: “What is essential to creating a Mason Bee Nest?”
• Students break into small groups of 3-4 to design a Wild Bee Hotel on a piece of paper, based on the key components listed in paragraph 4.

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Instructions

Day 3

• Create the Wild Bee Hotel with a small group:
• use the engineering design created the day before
• attempt to use all the materials provided: alum. can, construction paper, straws, sticks, yarn
• use creativity and BEE original!!

Day 4

• Present the Wild Bee Hotel to an audience, either electronically or in-person.
• Describe the significance of the design to the bee habitat
• Use pertinent vocabulary (bee anatomy, pollination, ecosystem, habitat)

Assessment

Throughout the picture book read aloud, pause to ask clarifying questions about the text for students to discuss as Think-Pair-Share.

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Throughout the informational article read aloud, pause to ask clarifying questions about new vocabulary words. Write anecdotal notes about which students can/can’t:

• apply context clues to define new vocabulary words
• identify main idea/details of paragraphs

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Observe/record the students’ application of the Engineering Design Process. If it’s a new process, take the time to teach the steps before this activity/lesson.

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Assess the students’ presentation skills: speaking, listening, viewing, reading, and writing.

You can use a rubric to assess the engineering design process and/or the presentation. Here is an example you can modify: EDP Rubric Example

Differentiation

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• Students can work as partners while discussing bees to stimulate academic conversations.
• Students should purposefully organized in heterogeneous groups when engineering the Wild Bee Hotels; more advanced students can support struggling students with the design, creation, and presentation of the project.
• Provide additional resources to explain the Engineering Design Process.
• Have a word wall with images.

Remediation

Extension/Enrichment

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• Students can present their Wild Bee Hotels on Flip presentations, adding to their original presentation. They are required to apply scientific vocabulary.

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• Students could meet a beekeeper and/or Master Gardener to discuss their experience with bees as pollinators.