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The Arizona STEM Acceleration Project

Botanic Bandits

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Botanic

Bandits

A 3rd Grade STEM Lesson

Laura George

July 2023

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Notes for Teachers

  • This lesson will take 2 days to allow for the model garden bed to set in order to be tested.
  • The time required will be about 1 ½ hours on Day 1 and 30 minutes on Day 2.
  • The students may work in small groups of 2-3 students.
  • Vocabulary
    • (to) tunnel
    • (to) incorporate
    • barrier
  • Slides to present to students have a yellow banner.
  • *Free Engineering Design Process worksheets
  • Fiction texts (optional) (note: linked youtube read alouds)
  • Nonfiction texts (optional) (note: these texts are available on getepic.com)
    • Urban Gardening by Carol Hand
    • Moles by Karen Latchana Kenney
    • How Do Animals Help Make Soil? by Ellen Lawrence

List of Materials

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  • *Engineering Design Process worksheet
  • pencils
  • popsicle sticks
  • tongue depressors
  • rulers
  • wire cutter or snips (for teacher use only)
  • school glue
  • miniature plastic animal figurines
  • scissors
  • soil
  • sand
  • scraps of various garden materials that can be used as barriers (such as chicken wire, screen, landscape/garden fabrics, mesh, plastic fencing)
  • shallow buckets or boxes (i.e., copy paper box tops)

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Arizona Science and Engineering Standards

Arizona Science Standards - 3rd Grade

3.L1U1.6 Plan and carry out investigations to demonstrate ways plants and animals react to stimuli.

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Science and Engineering Practices

● ask questions and define problems

● develop and use models

● plan and carry out investigations

● analyze and interpret data

● use mathematics and computational thinking

● construct explanations and design solutions

● engage in argument from evidence

● obtain, evaluate, and communicate information

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Arizona Math and ELA Standards

Arizona Mathematics Standards 3rd Grade

3.MD.C.8

Solve real-world and mathematical problems involving perimeters of plane figures and areas of rectangles, including finding the perimeter given the side lengths, finding an unknown side length. Represent rectangles with the same perimeter and different areas or with the same area and different perimeters.

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Arizona’s English Language Arts Standards- 3rd Grade

3L.6

Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic, and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal spatial and temporal relationships (e.g., After dinner that night, we went looking for them).

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Day 1

Students will…

  • experiment with the design and construction of a framed garden bed incorporating barriers to prevent tunneling animals (*native to your geographical area) from damaging a school garden.

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Objectives:

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Day 1

  • explore healthy and damaged plants (15 mins.)
  • inspect pictures of framed garden beds (5-10 mins)
  • discuss parts and sequence of construction (5-10 mins)
  • design and construct a square or rectangular model of a framed garden bed (35-40 mins)
      • Note: base frame must be:
        • 2-3 inches in height
        • 4-12 inches maximum length
        • calculate the area and perimeter of their model in inches to the nearest whole number
        • include animal barrier adaptations on the base frame
  • discuss and close (10-15 mins.)

Agenda (lesson time)

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click on image for read aloud video

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Just like Mr. McGreely, we gardeners want to grow healthy plants!

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This or That?

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This or That?

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melindamyers.com

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This or That?

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thegardeningcook.com

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This or That?

extension.umaine.edu

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When planning a garden, gardeners must consider local animals that like plants too, like this guy in the state of Delaware…

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click on image for Chunk the Groundhog video

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Although Chunk the Groundhog doesn’t live in our state, his tunneling relatives do live right here on our school grounds.

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Driving Question

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How can we incorporate a barrier into our design to prevent tunneling animals from entering our garden?

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Vocabulary

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    • (to) tunnel means to dig a passage or tunnel underground
    • (to) incorporate means to include or make part of
    • barrier means something to prevent or block a passage

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Learning goal:

Day 1

Today, we will design and construct models of framed garden beds incorporating a barrier to stop tunneling animals from making their way into our garden.

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incorporating means including or making a part of

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Framed Garden Beds

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Framed Garden Beds

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Framed Garden Beds

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Framed Garden Beds

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Framed Garden Bed Construction

momtrends.com

boldlygrowing.co

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Framed Garden Bed Construction

https://cookingmagicforkids.wordpress.com/

  • What do you observe about the wood being used? (such as sizes and number of pieces)

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  • How are the garden beds supported? How are the beds able to stand without falling over?

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  • What do you think needs to be built first?

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Brainstorm

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*What are some examples of barriers?

What materials could we use to create a barrier in the garden?

Where might you add the barrier?

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Hands-on Activity Expectations

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  • work together
  • sketch your design
  • list materials

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Hands-on Activity Instructions

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  • As a team…
    • using your Engineering Design Process worksheet, discuss the materials and sequence of construction
    • explore the garden barrier material choices
    • plan your garden bed on sketch paper and record materials and measurements
      • garden bed must be…
        • a square or rectangular model of a raised garden bed that is
        • 2-3 inches in height
        • 4-12 inches maximum length

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        • calculate the area and perimeter of your model in inches to the nearest whole number
        • include animal barrier adaptations on the base frame
        • include the numbers of popsicle sticks and tongue depressors
      • draw your design
    • collect your group’s materials (popsicle sticks, tongue depressors, glue, rulers, and *garden barrier materials)

*Note: you must measure the garden barrier materials so they will fit into your model

    • construct your model garden bed

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perimeter: measurement around the outside of a shape (add all of the sides)

area: measurement of space inside a shape (multiply perpendicular sides)

(square units)

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Discussion Questions

  • What barrier materials did you use?
  • Where did you install the barrier materials? Why?
  • Why do you think we measure the perimeter and area when designing a garden?

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Day 2

Students will…

  • test model framed garden for preventing an animal from tunneling up into the garden

Objectives:

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Day 2

  • Test barriers (15-20 mins)
  • Discuss and close (10-15 mins.)

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Agenda (lesson time):

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Learning goal:

Day 2

We will test our framed garden models for preventing an animal from tunneling up into the garden.

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Driving Questions

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Does your barrier materials prevent tunneling animals from entering your model garden?

If animals were able to tunnel into your garden, what could you do to change your barrier?

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Hands-on Activity Expectations

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  • work together
  • sketch your design
  • list materials

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Hands-on Activity Instructions

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  • As a team…
    • collect materials (garden bed model from Day 1, tray with sand, soil, scissors, plastic animal figurine)
    • place garden bed on top of sand in middle of tray
    • fill garden bed with soil
    • experiment (have plastic animal figurine tunnel through sand to try to get into garden)
    • make any changes to improve your barrier

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Discussion Questions

  • Did your figurine animal tunnel up through the barrier?
  • Did you make any changes?

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If we were to build our own life-size class garden…

  • Could we create a barrier to prevent animals from tunneling into the garden?
  • What barrier materials could we incorporate in our own school garden?
  • How could we build the barrier into our framed garden bed?

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Assessment:

  • Teachers might assess students on…
    • participation
    • following directions
    • making improvements to their designs.

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Differentiation

  • Construct several models for students to observe for ideas.
  • Review whole numbers.
  • Review using a ruler; provide a ruler with only whole numbers.
  • Review area and perimeter; provide calculators.

Remediation

Extension/Enrichment

  • Students could design and construct a barrier to prevent animals from getting into the garden from the top. (Note: this could also be added to the lesson or a following lesson)