Learning objectives

Knowledge

  • To describe a rock pool as an example of a habitat.

Working scientifically

  • To record information about model rock pools.

Success criteria

Knowledge

  • I can recall some of the living things found within a rock pool.
  • I can describe how some living things in a rock pool have their needs met.
  • I can describe how rock pool conditions change.

Working scientifically

  • I can correctly complete a tally chart to record the living things in rock pools.
  • I can correctly summarise my observations of rock pools.

National curriculum

Science

Plants

Pupils should be taught to:

  • Identify and name a variety of common wild and garden plants, including deciduous and evergreen trees.
  • Find out and describe how plants need water, light and a suitable temperature to grow and stay healthy.

Seasonal changes

Pupils should be taught to:

  • Observe changes across the four seasons.
  • Observe and describe weather associated with the seasons and how day length varies.

Living things and their habitats

Pupils should be taught to:

  • Identify that most living things live in habitats to which they are suited and describe how different habitats provide for the basic needs of different kinds of animals and plants, and how they depend on each other.
  • Identify and name a variety of plants and animals in their habitats, including microhabitats.
  • Describe how animals obtain their food from plants and other animals, using the idea of a simple food chain, and identify and name different sources of food.

Animals, including humans

Pupils should be taught to:

  • Find out about and describe the basic needs of animals, including humans, for survival (water, food and air).

Working scientifically

Pupils should be taught to use the following practical scientific methods, processes and skills:

  • Using their observations and ideas to suggest answers to questions.
  • Gathering and recording data to help in answering questions.

See National curriculum – Science - Key stages 1 and 2.

Before the lesson

Watch
Watch
Watch
Watch
Activity: Recording rock pools (one each).
Resource: Rock pool living things (support - see Adaptive teaching).
Resource: Unit vocabulary (optional – one class set for display).

Lesson plan

1: Recap and recall

Ask the class to recall what a habitat is (where something lives). Display the Presentation: Ocean habitat.

Presentation: Ocean habitat

Ask the children to discuss in pairs before sharing with the class:

  • What living things in the picture can you name? (Shark, jellyfish, turtle, stingray, seahorse, starfish, clownfish, crab, seaweed and anemone.)
  • In what ways do living things get their needs met? (Click on the boxes to reveal some examples.)
  • What words describe the habitat? (The children may suggest wet, cold or dark.)

2: Attention grabber

Play the Pupil video: Rock pools. Ask the children to repeat the same challenge as the Recap and recall: look for living things in the rock pools, find out how they get their needs met and words to describe the habitat.

Pupil video: Rock pools

Take feedback. Answers may include:

  1. Living things in rock pools include seaweed, anemone, limpets, prawns, starfish, crabs, snails, fish and seagulls.
  2. Plants get their needs met by having access to sunlight and water. Animals get their needs met by finding shelter around the rocks and finding food within the rock pool.
  3. Words to describe a rock pool include wet, sandy and bumpy.

Ask the class:

  • Why might some people describe a rock pool habitat as ‘changing’?

Encourage the children to reflect on what they have learnt about changes throughout the day and in different seasons from the unit Science, Y1/2 (A) Forces and space: Seasonal changes.

Questions

  • How will the rock pool change throughout the day? (Changing amounts of daylight; some temperature changes.)
  • How will the rock pool change between different seasons? (Big temperature changes; different weather from very hot and dry to freezing and snowy.)
  • How will these changes affect the living things in the rock pool? (Plants need daylight to make their own food so this will change throughout the day and the year; some plants and animals may struggle to survive if it gets too hot or cold; if the water in the rock pool freezes, animals may not be able to move to get food.)

Display slide 1 of the Presentation: Rock pool habitat. Click the pink buttons to show how the living things have their needs met.

Presentation: Rock pool habitat

Click on the ‘day and night’ button and ask the children to recall the changes that occur between day and night. Click the pink buttons to reveal how this may affect their needs being met.

Click the buttons ‘summer’ and ‘winter’ and repeat the previous discussion, clicking the pink buttons in each section to reveal more information.

3: Main event

Arrange the children into groups of four. Display the Presentation: Living things in rock pools to show the simple outlines of living things found in rock pools.

Presentation: Living things in rock pools.

Inform the children that each group member will draw one of the living things displayed on the slide. Explain that they can choose what to draw but they need to ensure that at least one person in their group picks a plant (algae or seaweed).

Hand out plain paper to each child and allow time for them to draw their rock pool living things. Display the Presentation: Living things in rock pools for them to refer to as they work. Provide colouring pencils and felt tip pens if desired.

Ask the children to add a label with the information they know about their selected living thing, such as whether it is a predator or prey or how it will have its needs met within the rock pool habitat. Point out the words on the slide and explain that they can use these to support them. Hand out scissors and ask them to cut out their pictures, ready to take them outside.

Take the children to an outside space and provide them with the equipment to model rock pools (see Have ready). Explain that they will create a model of a rock pool and place their living things inside.

Hand out the Activity: Recording rock pools (one each) and a clipboard, if available. Remind the children how to record the number of living things using a tally chart. Let them circulate the different rock pools and record the number of living things in the results table.

Optional: use a device to photograph or record the children’s model rock pools and the tally chart activity.

Questions

  • What did you find out when observing rock pools?
  • What was there the most of?
  • What was there the least of?

4: Wrapping up

Ask the children to return to their original rock pool and discuss in their groups:

  • What living things are in your group’s rock pool? (The children will recall four living things from the original list of ten.)
  • How do they have their needs met? (Answers will be based on the living things selected, such as seaweed, which depends on light to make its own food, anemones, which depend on the rocks for shelter, snails and limpets, which are herbivores and eat the plants for nutrition, or crabs, which are omnivores and can eat the plants or other animals for nutrition.)

Take feedback and share examples as a class.

Adaptive teaching

Pupils needing extra support

Could verbally discuss their chosen rock pool living thing rather than adding a written label; could use the Resource: Rock pool living things (support) to cut out an example and add a label to avoid drawing.

Pupils working at greater depth

Should describe how the population of one organism would be affected if a species was removed from the rock pool (for example, how would the numbers of crabs be affected if all the fish were removed from the rock pools?); could add labels reflecting knowledge of body parts if they have covered the unit Science, Year 1/2 (B), Animals, including humans: Comparing animals.

Assessing progress and understanding

Pupils with secure understanding indicated by: recalling some of the living things within rock pools; describing how living things get their needs met; describing how rock pool conditions change throughout the day and year; recording their observations in a tally chart; summarising their observations.

Pupils working at greater depth indicated by: explaining how the removal of one living thing affects another that depends on it.

Vocabulary definitions

  • depend

    To need the help of something else to survive.

  • habitat

    Where something lives.

  • nutrition

    Food needed for growth and health.

  • observe

    To watch carefully.

  • rock pool

    A small habitat (microhabitat) found by the sea that is wet and rocky.

  • season

    One of four parts of a year, marked by the weather conditions.

  • shelter

    Where animals find cover and protection.

  • table

    Where results (data or observations) are written down.

  • tally

    A mark written down to show how many have been counted.

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