Drexel Lesson Plan 

Teacher: Mrs. McCafferty

Grade: Second grade 
Content Area: Science & Social Studies – Emperor Penguin 
 
1.     Content and Standards: 

Standard - 4.1.2.D: Identify differences in living things (color, shape, size, etc.) and
describe how adaptations are important for survival.

Standard - 4.1.2.E
Identify how living things survive changes in their environment.

Standard - 3.1.2.C2
Explain that living things can only survive if their needs are being met.

Standard - CC.1.4.2.A
Write informative/ explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information
clearly.

Standard - CC.1.4.2.P
Organize a short sequence of events, using temporal words to signal event order; provide
a sense of closure.

Standard - CC.1.5.2.A
Participate in collaborative conversations with peers and adults in small and larger
groups.

Standard - CC.1.5.2.B
Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read aloud or information presented
orally or through other media.

Standard - CC.1.5.2.C
Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to clarify comprehension,
gather additional information, or deepen understanding of a topic or issue.

2.     Prerequisites: Students should know how to write a complete sentence with proper
punctuation. Students should know how to pull information from a reading and apply it to
their answers to questions and writing.
 
3.     Essential Questions:

 How does a father penguin take care of an egg?

 How does the chick get food?
  What happens to the penguin when it molts?
 What is one thing the penguin can do as an adult that it could not do when it was a
chick?

4.     Materials and Equipment:

 Chromebook/computer- students will use their computers to access the class and
utilize teaching platforms presented by the teacher.
 Paper- to write their sentences on.
 Pencil- to use to write with.
 
5.     Instructional Objective: 

Following a read aloud on a penguin’s life cycle, students will sequence the penguin life
cycle and articulate what happens at each stage on their submissible writing slides.

6.     Instructional Procedures:

Before:
1. Teacher will introduce the emperor penguin to the class and say, “Today we are
going to learn the life cycle of the emperor penguin and what happens at each stage
of its life.”
a. Teacher says, “Penguins grow up in an icy, freezing-cold environment. How
do you think they do it?”
i. Teacher will call upon a few students to provide their answers.
2. Teacher will say, “Let’s take a look at this article to see exactly what happens and
how these little animals are able to survive these harsh environments. While I am
reading, please listen carefully to hear how the penguin chick changes as it grows.”
a. Teacher will read the article aloud to the class.
i. Teacher will pause to briefly explain, or define, highlighted vocabulary
word within the article.
ii. Teacher will pause after each section to ask an essential question.
1. Teacher will read the section, “It Starts With an Egg”.
a. Teacher will ask the class, “How does a father penguin
take care of an egg?”.
i. Students will be called upon individually to
provide their response.
2. Teacher will read the section, “Hungry Little Chick”.
a. Teacher will ask the class, “How does the chick get
food?”.
i. Students will be called upon individually to
provide their response.
3. Teacher will read the section, “Time to Molt”.
a. Teacher will ask the class, “What happens to the
penguin when it molts?”.
i. Students will be called upon individually to
provide their response.
4. Teacher will read the section, “Adult at Last”.
 a. Teacher will ask the class, “What is one thing the
penguin can do as an adult that it could not do when it
was a chick?”.
i. Students will be called upon individually to
provide their response.
During:

3. Teacher will introduce assignment.

a. Teacher will guide students to their Schoology slides and provide direction to
the assignment.
i. Students will be directed to sequence the four stages of the penguin’s
life cycle.
1. Students will put the pictures provided on the slides in correct
sequence order from penguin chick to adult penguin by placing
numbers 1, 2, 3, or 4 underneath each of the pictures.

4. Teacher will direct students to the second part of the assignment. Independent
practice:
a. After students have placed their pictures in sequencing order, they will
complete the sentence to articulate the details of what happens in each of
those stages.
i. Students can write their sentence on the slides in Schoology to be
submitted for grading or write them on a piece of paper to be emailed
to the teacher for submission.

After:

5. Teacher will call students to reconvene as a whole group.

a. When students have finished sequencing, the teacher will call upon individual
students to share with the class what they have written in one of the four
stages.
b. Students will submit their work through Schoology or email.

7. Assessment:

To assess the student’s understanding and meeting of the instructional objective, I will
have the students submit their sequencing order of the images and their written
sentences. By using the Schoology teaching platform, I will be able to have all students
submit their work virtually. The students also have the option to write the sentences on a
piece of paper as well. If students are at home, they may write them on paper, take a
picture of their paper, and email the image to the teacher. I will use a rubric to assess
the students work. See attached rubric.

 
8. Differentiated Instruction:

For students who are striving in reading and comprehension I will use the discussion of
relatable situations. We will talk about their own life cycles and how they are similar to
the penguin’s life cycle. For those students that are advanced and need challenged in
reading and comprehension, I will ask them to draw their own flowchart of stages to
show how they have grown. They can draw the pictures, then label them for each stage
of that life cycle. To go a step further then can write one or two sentences to describe
what happened during that stage of their life. For students who are unable to write, they
will be able to utilize the computer and teaching platform to submit their work in other
ways. For example, they can speak into the computer to type for them, record their
voice, or to type. They can also vocally respond to the sequencing and description
sentences through zoom on the computer.