Endangered Species
Project | English
Suggested Levels: Grades 4-8
This project brings the language classroom together with the science classroom. Students get to explore issues related to the beluga whale and why it has been classified as endangered. They will discover information through listening to a podcast, reading newsletters and examining an infographic. Then, they will create their own production about one of the species appearing in either the ‘Special Concern’, ‘At Risk’, ‘Endangered’ or the ‘Extirpated’ categories. To do this, they will first look at various media forms and then choose one or more to use while producing their own work.
In the first stage of this project, students will learn about echolocation and how it is used by beluga whales. They will demonstrate their listening comprehension skills by identifying the key information presented in a podcast on echolocation.
Students will then read two short volumes of the newsletter, ’Underwater Universe’, to further their understanding about beluga whales and the dangers these animals face in their habitat.
Questions are included that prompt students to reveal their understanding at various levels of comprehension and to prepare them for their final task.
The final task will be to select one of the species categorized on the SARA infographic and then to prepare a presentation about their chosen species, the threats it faces and the steps humans need to take to save it. Students will select a media format for their own presentation.
Media included in this project:
- 1 Enhanced Podcast: 'The Things that Live in Water'
- 2 Newsletters:'Underwater Universe' Volume 1 and 2
- 5 Infographics: Species at Risk Act
Media included in this project:
- 1 Enhanced Podcast: 'The Things that Live in Water'
- 2 Newsletters:'Underwater Universe' Volume 1 and 2
- 5 Infographics: Species at Risk Act