Key concepts-accurate measuring and proportions beach for the
This lesson incorporates live animals and math. First ask field trip. Factors
students if they think they can jump farther than a beach hopper.
include location,
Divide the students into two groups. Each group measures both
ability to eas-
how far they and a beach hopper can jump. Measure the heights of
ily locate beach
students in group one. Lay a tape measure on the ground and record
hoppers, safety of
how far each student can jump. In group two, students put a beach
the beach, human
hopper in their hand and measure its length with a ruler. To deter-
activity, and how
mine how far a beach hopper can jump, place a target with circles
much beach is ex-
indicating 3, 6, 9 and 12 inches from the center on the ground. Each
posed during low
student puts their beach hopper in the middle and observes how far
tide. Although
it jumps. Switch roles for groups and repeat. Introduce the concept
an extreme low
of relative body size proportion, explaining how a beach hopper can
tide is usually
jump much farther than a human. Determine how much farther
not required, the
a beach hopper jumps, compared to its body length, than humans
tide must be
can. (A worksheet can be found on the OIMB GK12 webpage, under
low enough to
Beach Hopper Unit Summary, see Resources section.)
expose the area
of digging for the
Lesson 3-Wrap up and review, field trip preparation
duration of the
Goal-prepare the students for the field trip and plan and dis-
field trip.
cuss the field trip experiments
Key concepts-appropriate field trip behavior, how to ask a
Supplies
good question and conduct experiments
Shovels,
Lead the students in a discussion to decide and list good field
buckets, sieves (a
kitchen colander
A second grader finds a worm. (Trish Mace)
trip rules and what the class needs to bring to the beach. Revisit the
KWHL chart and have the students reflect on what they have learned
with small holes
about beach hoppers, what more they want to know and how, when
will work), clip-
they go to the beach, they could discover some answers. Lead a
boards, Rite in the Rain paper, pencils (Field trip data sheets can be
discussion on what the students will do on the field trip based on
found on the OIMB GK12 webpage, see Resources section.)
their responses. Guide them towards the three experiments planned
Divide the students into groups of no more then 10 students
for the field. The first determines where (high, mid and low) in the
with at least one group leader and 2 helpers. Each group should
tidal zones beach hoppers live. The second examines what substrate
have 3 shovels, 3 buckets, 1 sieve and 1 clipboard. Designate one
beach hoppers prefer to live near. The final experiment looks at if
student to be the recorder for each experiment and switch recorders
beach hoppers hop in a specific direction when released.
for each experiment. Allow 30-40 minutes for each experiment.
Once the students arrive at the beach, hold a review session with
Field Trip
the entire group to remind them of their 3 experiments and review
Reconnaissance work will be needed to determine the best
beach etiquette (treat animals with respect, refill any holes dug, etc).
Experiment 1-Where do beach hoppers live?
The expected answer-they live at the mid tide line where it is
not too dry and not too wet. Beach hoppers are poor swimmers and
cannot live low on the shore where there is too much water, but
will dry out if they are too high on the shore due to the sun. (Give
students a hint that they should dig near holes). (See field journal
sheet 1 on OIMB GK12 webpage in Resources section)
Have students predict where and why they think they will
find the most beach hoppers. Start digging at the high tide line and
have students count how many they find and record their data. Af-
ter 10 minutes, have the students move to the mid tide line and re-
peat their search. After 10 minutes, repeat at the low tide line. Have
them make observations about the size and color of the organisms.
Experiment 2-What do beach hoppers like to live near?
The expected answer-they prefer seaweed as that is what they
eat. It also provides refuge from the sun and predators. (See field
journal sheet 2 on OIMB GK12 webpage see Resources section)
Keep the students in the same groups and work in the mid in-
tertidal where there are the most beach hoppers. Ask the students
to list possible habitats-seaweed, rock, driftwood, and just sand.
Start digging and have the students keep tally of how many beach
hoppers they find near each spot. Have the students capture and
Hillcrest Elementary second graders sieving sand in search of beach hoppers.
place beach hoppers in a bucket containing some damp seaweed
(Trish Mace)
(continued on next page)
Clearing - 2009 Compendium Edition http://www.clearingmagazine.org Page 21
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