TINTERNVALE PRIMARY SCHOOL

UNIT PLANNER

At home in my biome
TOPIC: Home sweet biome
My home is a biome
LEVEL: 3 TERM: 2 DURATION: 11 weeks
STAFF MEMBERS: Richard Lambert, Melissa den Elzen, Lynley Forrester, Meagan Millard, Rebecca
Yarwood and Karin Ireland

Page 1.
THROUGHLINES
Physical World
• The world is constantly changing and we can have an impact on it in both positive and negative ways.

• Our planet is part of the universe, it sustains life and it is crucial that we take responsibility for its future.

• We explore and make decisions about our environment using sciences and technologies
MAJOR TOPIC UNDERSTANDINGS
• Living creatures have specific needs for their survival such as food, habitat and climate.
• Environments can be classified as a specific type of biome.
• Humans can have a positive or negative effect on biomes.
• There are biotic (living) and abiotic (non-living) components in every biome.
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
• What do living creatures need to survive?
• What is a biome? How are they classified?
• What are the biotic and abiotic components of a biome?
• How do humans impact on biomes and their features?
• What are the long term consequences for a biome that has been affected either naturally or by man?
SKILLS
Analysing Checking Classifying Co-operating
Designing Elaborating Explaining Hypothesising
Inferring Restating Seeing patterns Selecting information
Self-assessing Sharing ideas Summarising Visually representing
Working independently Persuading Predicting Questioning
Reading Reporting Locating information
RESOURCES
http://www.mbgnet.net/index.html
http://www.kidcyber.com.au/topics/biomes.htm

Page 2.
LEARNING EXPERIENCES
PRE-TESTING
Focus question: What do living things need to survive? Focus on self. What do you need to survive? Brainstorm.
Draw and label a diagram of an animal (familiar animal) and their needs.
Venn diagram between chosen animal and child.

ESTABLISHING THE TOPIC / TUNING IN

Challenge:
At the end of the term, students will present on a chosen animal (Teachers will provide a selection of animals
to choose from, a range from different biomes and all animals that can be seen at Melbourne Zoo). Students
will work to a rubric. Their presentation will include:
(Desert meerkat or lizards, ice (tundra and Antarctic) penguins (polar bears?), forests bears, rainforests
gorillas or tiger, grasslands lions or giraffes, marine seals)
• Indentification/description/features of the biome that the animal lives in
• Other animals that exist in the same biome and how they interact (food web etc)
• Survival features
• Human impact – positive negative
• Natural threats – drought, flooding, other animals, disease etc
• Future action – what can we do to have more positive impacts

-Link to writing (invitations to events, persuasive writing, planning the event day etc)

FINDING OUT SORTING OUT

Focus / objective Activities

The difference between, and examples of, the biotic and Silent jigsaw
abiotic features of biomes/environments (http://www.elib.scot.nhs.uk/upload/wihteamgaes.pdf )

Define a biome and understand the concept that it is
everything that exists in a specific environment.
Know where each biome is located and identify the
patterns in location and climate.
Picture sort. Using a variety of pictures from the chosen
biomes, students sort them into groups.
Use a world map to locate and record location of biomes.
Talk about how the climates create biome patterns using
geographical features such as the equator and tropics.

Page 3.
Understand and know the main biomes (the biomes
listed above that are the focus for this unit), and their
features.
Use graphic organisers, photo sorts, books, videos.
In student work books, develop the ‘whole picture’ of each
biome. Continuously add to this with new information.
Visit to the zoo (Friday 21st of May Week 6) – each teacher
takes a biome tour with the children who are investigating an
animal that lives in that biome.
Meagan will contact Sjouke Vaartjes
-what zoos do to have a positive impact
-the process the zoo goes through in creating a biome.
-meeting zoo keepers/feeders at the zoo

Planet Earth DVD (David Attenborough) Find out about the survival mechanisms of their own animal
and how they interact with their biome.
Features of animals that help them survive (possibly
Australian?)
Food chains
Natural threats
Shelter
Explore what impact humans can have on a biome- both Follow up from zoo
positive and negative

Understand, hypothesise and predict the cause and Flow chart of a sustained vs modified biome
effect relationship between external factors and a biome
and its features. Look at a current issue – eg Lake Eyre, Great Barrier Reef
(bleaching coral, rising sea levels) etc.

Learn about extinct animals and what happened in Explore how their own animal has made adaptations and how
those situations. it has responded to changes in its environment.
Choose a particular animal and look at what caused its
extinction. If it couldn’t adapt to changes, then it
becomes extinct.

INVESTIGATING (GOING FURTHER)

Preparing for presentations.

SHARING & MAKING CONNECTIONS

Sharing presentations.

REFLECTION & ACTION

Student presentations.
Possible action to support a local cause (planting in school grounds, Wombalano park, advertising, collecting corks)

Possible causes: Possible presentation ideas:

• Orang-utans and Palm oil • Posters

• Whaling
• Persuasive letters
• White/Black rhino • Advertisements
Page 4.
• Giant panda • Song
• Speech presentation
• Elephants
• Wiki page
• Marine turtles
• Diorama (before and/or after modification)
• Polar bears
• Cause and effect flowchart for cause
• Dolphins
• Movie
• Tigers • Letter on behalf of an animal
• Tree Kangaroos
• The Great Barrier Reef
• Tasmanian devils
• Owl in local park

Page 5.
 Throughlines
Learning
- Learning is a lifelong experience and we
can learn from and with each other or
independently.
- Thinking about learning and reflecting on
learning ensures that we will continue to
learn.
- Learning through inquiry allows individuals
to interact with the world through an ever
changing range of resources.
- We all bring different experiences,
perceptions and expectations to learning
situations, and as such we all learn in
different ways.
Self
- The choices we make impact on others and
ourselves in both positive and negative
ways.
- People experience challenges at times and
we have the ability to develop strategies
to work through difficult situations.
- Our identity is constantly changing due to
many different factors such as culture,
gender, religion and experiences.
- Everyone has limitless potential.
- There are many facets to maintaining
personal well being including social, physical,
emotional, intellectual and spiritual.
Physical World
- The world is constantly changing and we can
have an impact on it in both positive and
negative ways.
- We explore and make decisions about our
environment using sciences and technologies.
- Our planet is part of the universe, it sustains
life and it is crucial that we take
responsibility for its future.
- There are similarities and differences
throughout the world that influence the way
we live.
Social World
- As members of communities we have both the
right and the responsibility to maintain a safe
and prosperous environment.
- Our social world is rapidly changing along with
the modes of communication.
- Significant people and events shape the way
communities around the world live.
- Our values help us to work together in groups.
- Our society is made up of many multicultural
groups who have diverse beliefs and they
influence the way we live.
- We need to respect each other’s similarities
and differences.
Page 6.
UNIT EVALUATION
P M I

Page 7.
 VELS AUDIT
Highlight host/content areas and process areas
STRAND DOMAIN DIMENSION
Physical, Personal Health and Physical Movement and physical activity
and Social Learning Education Health knowledge and promotion
Interpersonal Development Building social relationships
Working in teams
Personal Learning The individual learner
Managing personal learning
Civics and Citizenship Civic knowledge and understanding
Community engagement
Discipline-based The Arts Creating and Making
Learning Exploring and responding
English Reading
Writing
Speaking and Listening
Languages Other Than Communicating in a language other
English than English
Intercultural knowledge and language
awareness
History Economic knowledge and
HUMANITIES

understanding
Economic reasoning and interpretation
Economics Geographical knowledge and
understanding
Geospatial skills
Historical knowledge and
Geography understanding
Historical reasoning and interpretation
Mathematics Number
Space
Measurement, chance and data
Structure
Working mathematically
Science Science knowledge and understanding
Science at work
Interdisciplinary Communication Listening, viewing and responding
Learning Presenting
Design, Creativity and Investigating and designing
Technology Producing
Analysing and evaluating
Information and ICT for visual thinking
Communications ICT for creating
Technology (ICT) ICT for communicating
Thinking Reasoning, processing and inquiry
Creativity
Reflection, evaluation and
metacognition

Page 8.
APPENDIX

WAYS TO PRESENT OUR LEARNING

Poster Interview Application form Photography

Diorama Newspaper Brainstorm Comparisons

Board game Debate Idea Booklet Oral presentation

Collage Crossword Notice Make signs

Email Wordsearch Internet Site Coloring book

Mobile Video Multimedia project Construction

Story Play Experiment Puzzle

Flow Chart Musical Graph Factual booklet

Model Survey List criteria Poems

Rap Mimes Radio report Design new ideas

Tape songs Organise a group to act on Advertisement

something

SKILLS – RECORD ONLY

THOSE ASSESSED
Responding to other’s work Persuading
Analysing
Restating Planning
Checking
Revising Predicting
Classifying
Seeing patterns Presenting in a range of ways
Co-operating
Selecting information Providing feedback
Considering Options
Self-assessing Questioning
Designing
Sharing ideas Reading
Elaborating
Summarising Recognising bias
Estimating
Synthesising Reflecting
Explaining
Testing Reporting
Generalising
Viewing Justifying
Hypothesising
Visually representing Listening
Inferring
Working independently Locating Information
Making choices
Working to a timeline Organising
Note-taking
Ordering events Performing
Observing

Page 9.
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