Play-Doh Pets

Student Resources Dog and Cat
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open

  • Invitation to inquiry
  • Open minds
  • Stimulate curiosity


Immerse

  • Build background knowledge
  • Connect to content
  • Discover interesting ideas
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Background Knowledge

comprehension

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Research Scenario

Have you ever asked someone to buy a new toy for you? Did you need the toy or did you really, really want it? A toy is fun, but it is not a need.

All living things have four basic needs that are important for us to know. For example, children need to eat dinner in order to stay healthy and grow.

Children are living. Plants and animals are too. A pet is an animal, so it has needs. You are going to pretend that you are getting a new pet. It will be your responsibility to take care of it.

rabbit

Essential Question:

What do living things, such as pets, need to survive?


Tree

First, we will need to take a look at some background information about living things. Let's take a look at the World Book Kids article "Life" in order to learn about the characteristics of living things.

After reading the World Book article, look at the Living Things Booklet. You will determine what things are living or not.

 

 

Explore

  • Explore interesting ideas
  • Look around
  • Dip in
Icon from Kuhlthau, C.C., Maniotes, L.K.,  & Caspari, A.K. (2012).  Guided inquiry design: A framework for inquiry in your school. Santa Barbara, CA:  Libraries Unlimited.

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Task and Product

 

You will use what you know about living things in order to create a model or a poster about the pet you have chosen. Your model or poster should include the pets wants and needs.

Children and mushroom

 

Children writing

Explore

Let's build upon our prior knowledge by completing a Living and Non-Living Things Sort . (This is a flipchart and requires ActiveInspire software to view The link leads to Safari Montage.)

Using the flipchart, determine which items are living and which are non-living.

We will also venture around the library and in the schoolyard for living and non-living things, keeping track of them on our Living and Non-Living Things Scavenger Hunt Chart. We will analyze our data on the Scavenger Hunt Pictograph.

evaluate

  • Evaluate the achievement of learning goals
  • Reflect on content
  • Reflect on process
Icon from Kuhlthau, C.C., Maniotes, L.K.,  & Caspari, A.K. (2012).  Guided inquiry design: A framework for inquiry in your school. Santa Barbara, CA:  Libraries Unlimited.


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Assessments

The following scoring tools may be used or adapted by you and your teacher to evaluate your research process and your final product and presentation. You can use these assessments throughout your inquiry process to plan, make decisions, monitor your progress, and self-assess your achievement of your inquiry-based learning goals.

Research Process Assessments:
 Final Product & Presentation Assessments:

Dogs

Identify

  • Pause and ponder
  • Decide direction
  • Identify inquiry question
Icon from Kuhlthau, C.C., Maniotes, L.K.,  & Caspari, A.K. (2012).  Guided inquiry design: A framework for inquiry in your school. Santa Barbara, CA:  Libraries Unlimited.

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Questions

Essential Question:

What do living things, such as pets, need to survive?

 

Subsidiary Questions:

  • What is something that you WANT?
  • What is something that you NEED?
  • Can you describe a living thing?
  • Can you describe a non-living thing?
  • How are living and non-living things the same?
  • How are living and non-living things different?

 

 

gather

  • Gather important information
  • Go broad (search)
  • Go deep (read)
Icon from Kuhlthau, C.C., Maniotes, L.K.,  & Caspari, A.K. (2012).  Guided inquiry design: A framework for inquiry in your school. Santa Barbara, CA:  Libraries Unlimited.


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Gather & Sort

We will look at the BrainPOP Jr. video "Needs and Wants" in order to gather information about the needs and wants that living things have.

Let's read "A Chair for my Mother", by Vera B. Williams. As we listen to the story, we will think about the various needs and wants of the family, holding up the Needs or Wants Pinch Cards to identify either the needs or wants of the family.

We will also take a look at the BrainPOP Jr. video "Caring for Pets" in order to determine what a pet needs to survive

In addition , use a variety of sources from the Student Resource Page to find information about living things as well as needs and wants.

 Mom, boy, dog

Create

  • Reflect on learning
  • Go beyond facts to make meaning
  • Create to communicate
Icon from Kuhlthau, C.C., Maniotes, L.K.,  & Caspari, A.K. (2012).  Guided inquiry design: A framework for inquiry in your school. Santa Barbara, CA:  Libraries Unlimited.



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Create

Analyze: Think about what you have learned about the needs and wants of living things.
  • Brainstorm a list of animals that would make good pets based on their needs and wants.
  • Discuss the reasons why these animals would make good pets.
  • Discuss how you would meet the needs of some of the pets.
  • Discuss how you would meet the wants of some of the pets.
Synthesize: Using the information gathered as well as your brainstorming, think of a pet that you would be able to keep as a pet, providing the pet's needs and wants.
  • Create a model of the pet, either using Play-Doh or a drawing software tool.
  • Use the appropriate directions and rubric to create your Play-Doh Pet or Poster Pet.

Evaluate: Look back at your Play-Doh or Poster Pet and the Essential Question.

Essential Question:
What do living things, such as pets, need to survive?

  • Have you chosen an appropriate pet?
  • Have you included all of the needs and wants of your pet?

 

share

  • Learn from each other
  • Share your learning
  • Tell your story
Icon from Kuhlthau, C.C., Maniotes, L.K.,  & Caspari, A.K. (2012).  Guided inquiry design: A framework for inquiry in your school. Santa Barbara, CA:  Libraries Unlimited.

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Share

Present your research findings to your inquiry community by having a "Pet Fair". You will orally share what pet you chose, what the pet's need are and what the pet's wants are as your peers walk around the "fair".

children_sharing

As your classmates share their pet models or posters, listen carefully for any new information. After the presentations, be prepared to share any new information that you learned from the "Pet Fair", explaining needs and wants of the pets you saw.

evaluate

  • Evaluate the achievement of learning goals
  • Reflect on content
  • Reflect on process
Icon from Kuhlthau, C.C., Maniotes, L.K.,  & Caspari, A.K. (2012).  Guided inquiry design: A framework for inquiry in your school. Santa Barbara, CA:  Libraries Unlimited.

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Evaluate:

Evaluate your product using either the Play-Doh Pet Checklist or Poster Pet Checklist.

Evaluate your understanding of this Research Model using the reflection questions:

  • What are the characteristics of living things?
  • What are the basic needs of living things?
  • Think of something that you need and something that you want. Which is more important? Why?
  • Is taking care of a pet an easy or a difficult job? Why or why not?

Extend your learning:

You can learn more about pets and their needs and wants by:

  • Interviewing a pet owner
  • Read "Best Friends" by Steven Kellog to read about a little girl who befriends a dog during a lonely summer.
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