Topic: The extinction of animals

Target group

High school / technical school student

Core curriculum

General requirements
V. Reasoning and applying the acquired knowledge to solving biological problems. Pupil:
1 ) interpret information and explain causal relationships between processes and phenomena, formulate conclusions. Specific requirements
XI. Biodiversity, its threats and protection. Pupil:
3 ) shows the influence of human activity (intensification of agriculture, urbanization, industrialization, development of communication and tourism) on biodiversity.

General aim of education

Students explain the main causes of extinction of animal species in modern times.

Key competences

• communication in foreign languages;

• digital competence;

• learning to learn.

Criteria for success
The student will learn:

• exchange and describe the main causes of animal extinctions;

• give examples of extinct and endangered animals in Poland.

Methods/techniques

• expository

  • talk.

• activating

  • discussion.

• programmed

  • with computer;

  • with e‑textbook.

• practical

  • exercices concerned.

Forms of work

• individual activity;

• activity in pairs;

• activity in groups;

• collective activity.

Teaching aids

• e‑textbook;

• notebook and crayons/felt‑tip pens;

• interactive whiteboard, tablets/computers;

• multimedia atlases of plants and animals.

Lesson plan overview

Before classes

• Volunteers prepare papers dedicated to issues included in the abstract.

Introduction

• The teacher gives the topic, the goals of the lesson in a language understandable for the student, and the criteria of success.

• Volunteers present their papers. If necessary, the teacher completes the student's statements.

Realization

• The teacher presents and discusses the interactive illustration. He then divides the students into groups and recommends that each of them carry out an in‑depth analysis of one of the points presented in the diagram, based on available sources of information (e.g. internet, atlas or encyclopedia). Students present the results of work in groups. Each team ends their presentation with the wording of the conclusions.

• The leader initiates an open discussion about critically endangered species in Poland and the possibilities of their protection. Using the brainstorming method, students give suggestions on the actions to be taken to protect these species from further depletion of their population.

• Students perform exercises and commands. The teacher checks and supplements the answers, providing students with the necessary information. Provides feedback..

Summary

• The teacher briefly presents the most important issues discussed in class. He answers the additional questions of the proteges and explains all their doubts. Students complete notes.

• The teacher asks the students questions prompting them to assess their own work during the lesson. They can use the interactive board.

Homework

• Listen to the abstract recording at home. Pay attention to pronunciation, accent and intonation. Learn to pronounce the words learned during the lesson.

• Describe the cases of animal going extinct according to the following categories: excessive exploitation of resources, disappearance of natural habitats, change of ecological relations.

• Superstitions and fear are some reasons for killing animals. Give few examples of species wiped off for those reasons.

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

The extinction of animals

Right now, on a global scale there are more than 16 thousand animal species that are on the verge of extinction. Those are around 1% of all described species. Among the endangered species, 12% of them are the vertebrates. The reasons for their extinction are, like in the case of plants – mainly anthropogenic. Those are: disappearance or change to their natural habitat, pollution to the environment, excessive exploitation of resources (killing of animals for their meat and fur and other precious products, overfishing of fish and seafood, hunting wild animals for collectors), intentional elimination of species considered pests, changes of interspecies relations in ecosystems, and farming.

In the last 100 years in Poland, 36 species went extinct, even though they are still present in neighbouring countries. Among them there are 14 species of vertebrates, e.g.: souslik, European Mink, griffon vulture, great bustard, lesser kestrel, Atlantic sturgeon, and 22 species of invertebrates, among which there is freshwater pearl mussel. In our fauna there are 2 species missing that went completely extinct - aurochs and Eurasian wild horse.

There are rather few species that are on the verge of extinction in Poland. There are only 329 of them, which is around 1% of 33 thousand species that live in our country. Among them there are as many as 93 species of vertebrates, which is almost every 4th one.

Species that are critically endangered and whose numbers are small, which means they can go extinct at any time is 91: 24 of them are vertebrate species, e.g.: grouse, chamois, European roller, porpoise, greater spotted eagle, sandwich tern, peregrine falcon, and Aesculapian snake. There are also 67 species of invertebrates, e.g. small lappet moth, goldstreifiger, apollo butterfly, Ripart's anomalous blue, and Chilostoma cingulella.