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The Fishes
Science:
Lesson #2 (Gr. 6)
 

From the Grade 6 Science IRP's:

Classify plants and animals according to their internal and external features. Develop common classification systems for organisms

Note: This lesson will take several periods

Objectives:

  1. The student will be able to name the various external parts of a fish and tell what the purpose of each is.
  2. The student will be able to compare and contrast the external features of 10 fish.
  3. The student will be able to sort the 10 fish into 3-4 groups and explain the logic behind the decisions .

NB: This lesson is meant to supplement a larger unit on classification. to see what the students are expected to learn regarding the 7 major categories of classification, the 5 kingdoms, 5 main classes of vertabtates, and the study of invertabrates, please see the Grade 6 Life Sciences section of the BC School's IRPs. To satisfy the study of the invertabrates area, please see Science Lesson #1 presented in the "Aquatic Fish Foods" teacher materials section.

Materials Needed:

Activities:

Hand out the "Fishes Worksheet #S-2a (Fish Anatomy)"

Display a large image of a fish at the front of the class (drawing on board or on poster paper). Go over the various parts of the fish and discuss the purposes of each.

The next step can be done in one of three ways:

  1. Have the students fill in their worksheet as the discussion takes place or...
  2. Hand out a photocopy of the "General Fish Anatomy' page that was printed off the computer. Have the students use the information from this page to complete the worksheet or...
  3. Have the students refer to the "General Fish Anatomy" page directly off the computer. The students can be paired and go on shifts on the computer or do it for homework if they have internet access at home.

To access the "General Fish Anatomy" page, first connect to the internet and go to www.kidfish.bc.ca . Click on the "Fishes" icon. After this click on the "General fish Anatomy" icon.

For these Activities students will need to have access to all the information presented in the fishes section of www.kidfish.bc.ca . These pages can be printed out, photocopied, and put into booklets, or students can work directly off any school or home computers that have internet access.

Hand out the "Fishes Worksheet #S-2b (Fish Comparison Charts)"

Put students into groups. Hand out pictures of Trout and Grayling that have been printed off www.kidfish.bc.ca to each group. Have the students examine these pictures and be prepared to report their observations on similarities and differences. Discuss these observations as a class. Students can make notes on their worksheets as the discussion progresses. After this, the students can finish their worksheets - scale information found on Fish picture detail pages.

Hand out the "Fishes Worksheet #S-2c (Grouping Fish)"

Put students into groups. Have the students examine the the notes they made on Worksheet #S-2b. They can also refer to personal knowledge and pictures that can be printed off the internet. Have the students try to group the 10 fish noted worksheet #S-2b into 3-4 categories. Have them note why they made the decisions they did. Discuss class wide.

Other Activities:

Have students make up games where they need to match the term with the fish part. Points can be given for a) placing a label properly and b) giving important information about that part .

Students can make up sets of cards. On one set they can draw the fish and put down its name. On another set they can write out the features. They can then, in pairs, play a "memory" type of game where the cards are placed face down. A student turns a card over. Then another card is turned over. If the card matches, that student gets another turn. If it doesn't match, it gets turned face down again and the next person goes. The next person repeats this procedure. Each time a matching pair has been turned over, the student responsible claims those cards. At the end, the student with the most cards wins.

       
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