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Endangered species, animals, graphs Materials Needed
Most students will eagerly agree that endangered species need help and attention, but they often do not have a true understanding of the depth of the problem. In this activity, children use their math skills to interpret data from reputable sources and size up the current status of the endangered species of our nation and the world. Start this lesson with a brief discussion of endangered species. If you choose, visit The Wild Ones, a Web site with information about endangered species, the environment, and those who protect it. Ask your students to share what they know about the number of endangered species in our nation and the world. Explain that they are about to examine some current data to find out just how many endangered species have been identified. Remind them that these are the animals and plants that are known to be in trouble. Many others probably exist. Distribute copies of the Tracking the Wild Ones work sheet. Instruct students to use charts and graphs found in the following locations to answer the questions; if Internet access is unavailable, students might use printed copies of the charts. The pages above are accessible from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service page Species Information. (The second chart is up-to-date, so minor changes may occur in the answer key below.) When students have completed the handout, correct the answers as a group and talk about the large numbers of endangered species found in the United States. Were the students surprised to find that there are more listed species in this country than in the foreign countries? How might that be explained? Assessment
The following answers reflect the endangered species data posted on the charts and graphs cited in this lesson as of April 4, 2003. Lesson Plan SourceEducation World Submitted ByCara Bafile National Standards MATHEMATICS: Number and Operations MATHEMATICS: Data Analysis and Probability MATHEMATICS: Connections SCIENCE Find more great lessons for teaching about Earth Day issues
on Education World's Earth
Day resources page.
Originally published 04/25/2003
Last updated 03/17/2009 |