The Naturalist Outreach Program is producing many curricular resources to help you teach about biology and to reinforce some of the principles discussed in the presentations.
We have produced Great Short Videos of high quality available on YouTube!
We have also created resource and topic guides to the biology in our presentations, as well as worksheets, activities, and games for the classroom or home schoolers. Search our Resources to Download.
In today’s educational environment, it is important to take into account Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards. We have started to align the resources with the Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for New York. Each set of activities has a section describing the standards it meets in both categories. The activities meet standards for 2nd-6th grades. Each set of activities has a table at the beginning of its lesson plan with the specific standards it meets.
List of Common Core and NGSS Met Through Most of These Materials: Below is the current list of all of the standards met by the lessons and activities. This will expand as we align more of the resources with these standards.
Common Core:
- 3.3 Ask and answer questions about information from a speaker, offering appropriate elaboration and detail. (3-PS2-3)
- 3.7 Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur). (3-LS1-1)
- 3.7 Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic. (3-ESS3-1
Next Generation Science Standards:
- 3-LS2 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
- Construct an argument that some animals form groups that help members survive
- D: Social Interactions and Group Behavior: Being part of a group helps animals obtain food, defend themselves, and cope with changes. Groups may serve different functions and vary dramatically in size (Note: Moved from K–2). (3-LS2-1)