Title: How does nature change in spring and summer?

Lesson plan elaborated by: Zyta Sendecka

Target Group

Pupils of the fourth grade of primary school

Core Curriculum

Grade 4

VI. The natural environment of the local area. Pupil

6) lists and describe the factors for life on land and how organisms adapt to it;

The general aim of education

Pupils discuss the adaptation of plants and animals to spring and summer.

Criteria for success

• explain how the temperature and length of day affects the occurrence of specific plant species;

• describe what changes are taking place in nature when it is revived in spring and summer;

• discuss threats from active organisms in the spring and summer, and ways to avoid them.

Key Competences

• Communication in the mother tongue;

• Communication in foreign languages;

• Mathematical competence and basic competences in science and technology;

• Digital competence;

• Learning to learn;

• Social and civic competences.

Methods / forms of work

Talk, work with text, brainstorming, round of summative sentences.

Individual work and frontal work.

Teaching aids

• abstract;

• interactive or traditional board;

• tablets / computers;

Lesson phases

Introduction

1. The teacher, referring to previous lessons, asks volunteers or selected students to answer the following questions:

• What happens to the air temperature and the length of the day in spring?

• What conditions prevail in summer in Poland?

2. The teacher gives the subject and the purpose of the lesson in a language that the student understands and the criteria for success.

Realization

1. The teacher instructs students to read the section titled „The arrival of spring” and note the names of two plants that bloom at the beginning of spring and the names of three birds that arrive in Poland.

2. The teacher asks the pupils why the bird species they noted leave the countries in which they wintered. They wrote the answers on the board. Then they ask students to compare their assumptions with the section titled „Fullness of life – nature in summer” and indicated the real reasons for the arrival of birds to Poland.

3.Students read the section titled „Be careful in the summer.” They search for information about animals that may be dangerous during the summer and how to protect themselves from them.

4.The teacher presents pictures of selected species of insects (interactive illustration „Insects”). Students define the characteristics of each of them and discuss the rules of behavior in contact with them.

5. Independently students perform an interactive exercise.

Summary

The teacher asks students to finish at least one of the sentences:

• In today's lesson, I learned that …

• After today's lesson, I can …

• After today's lesson I know why ...

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

How nature changes in spring and summer?

The common hazel catkins blooming in the second half of February are one of the first signs of the coming spring. Their appearance is the conventional beginning of early spring. Despite the low temperature, between the melting snow, flowers grow: snowdrops and anemones. There are also the first birds returning from warm countries: skylarks and lapwings, which can tolerate low temperatures relatively well.

Calendar spring starts on March 21. Then the whole nature comes to life. The days become longer, it gets warmer. There are frosts only at night. Melting snow is falling here and there, the humidity of the earth and air increases. The prolonged day and higher temperatures cause major changes in the plant world. In March, the first (after the hazel) trees and bushes come to life. Seeds of annual plants sprout also. However most plants bloom in late spring.

Insects, being food for a growing number of birds returning from warmer countries, wake up from winter sleep. Amphibians such as frogs and toads begin to croak and spawn, from which new individuals will develop. Birds build nests and lay eggs. Spring is ideal for animals for breeding, because they have a large amount of food.

Calendar summer starts on June 22. This is the hottest period of the year. The days are long, often hot, and the nights are warm. So it is the time most favorable for the development of plants. Many of them bloom then, others are beginning to bear fruit.

The lush development of vegetation favors herbivorous animals, including insects. Birds that flew in the spring now have the best conditions to bring up their offspring. Many other animals also enjoy the richness of food and good weather. They are eating up to store in their bodies fat for the winter. In mammals, the young are growing fast and learning the survival skills of their parents.

Summer is the time of harvest and field work. Animals that have learned to use human activity can count on an abundance of food. During harvests, it is also easier for predators to get food, because the burrows of small animals are uncovered and you can hunt for something faster.

At the end of summer, when the chicks are brought up, feathered and can fly, the birds gather in large groups and prepare for departure. It is during this period that you can observe ‘clouds’ of starlings and swallows hanging on trees and electric wires.

Hot days and abundance of food are also good for animals that may be dangerous to us. When going on a trip, it is worth taking with you mosquito and tick repellent. After returning from the forest, you should carefully examine your body, especially those parts that were exposed. If you find a tick, you have to go to the doctor and ask him to remove it as soon as possible. Ticks can carry dangerous diseases.

You should also not eat unwashed fruit. They may contain different larvae of parasites. Be careful of bees and wasps. It is better to avoid these insects – you can accidentally hit them and irritate them.

• Longer days and higher temperatures in spring favor the release of leaves by plants and germination of seeds.

• Higher temperature and vegetation development improve the living conditions of herbivorous animals, and thus predators that feed on them.

• Summer is the period of the highest air temperature. This is the time when animals have no problems finding food.