Crayfish

thingiverse

There are many parts to crayfish that allow them to move and live in their environment. This lesson will help learners identify parts of a crayfish and determine their functions. Print Settings Printer Brand: MakerBot Printer: MakerBot Replicator (5th Generation) Rafts: Doesn't Matter Supports: No Custom Section “Project: Crazy Crayfish” o ○ Objectives: There are many parts to crayfish that allow them to move and live in their environment. This lesson will help learners identify parts of a crayfish and determine their functions. o ○ Audiences: I would recommend 3rd grade, as it would be a great lesson to tie to the Next Gen Science standards. Subjects: STEM, Science Skills Learned (Standards): Grade 3: Science: 3-LS1-1. Develop models to describe that organisms have unique and diverse life cycles but all have in common birth, growth, reproduction, and death. 3-LS3-2. Use evidence to support the explanation that traits can be influenced by the environment. 3-LS4-3. Construct an argument with evidence that in a particular habitat some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all. 3-LS3-1. Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence that plants and animals have traits inherited from parents and that variation of these traits exists in a group of similar organisms. ○ Lesson/Activity: Part one: The students will be asked to examine a model of a crayfish and see if they recognize any parts. They will also be asked to sketch the crayfish and label the parts on their sketch. Students will also be asked to predict what these parts are used for. Part 2: Show the students the model again. Label the parts with the students and discuss what the parts are used for using the diagram. There is also a chart that you can fill out together about the parts and their uses. (We use this same thing at the end of the unit for a quiz.) Also, this model can move, so show the students the movement of the crayfish and discuss why their method of movement works or could it be modified to make better? Here is the link to the worksheet https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z3eTX1iGS8_gKSvKR3fj4IyvfzWKHYuvWCIS1sUl7D8/edit?usp=sharing Part 3: Have students look at the real crayfish and help set up its habitat. Discuss the difference in what crayfish in captivity eat (frozen peas and corn) v. what they would eat in the wild. Daily, have students observe the crayfish, how they move and interact. Discussion questions: Is there a location that the crayfish prefer? How does a crayfish protect himself? How do you know? What happens when you feed the crayfish? How does a crayfish breathe? How do you know? What do you notice about the clarity of the water? Part 4: Have students complete the crayfish journal. This can be done in notebooks or in smaller stapled books. There is a rubric/word bank located here.https://docs.google.com/document/d/14bzm-LwltgZa9gMS7JrmSk1JCTqOur_jq8dPeG26CL0/edit?usp=sharing ○ Duration: Part one and two each are a day lesson. Part 3 is best when the students can observe the crayfish over time. Part 4 can be done at the same time as part 3 or students can be given a week to write this project as an end of unit assessment. Possible Extensions: Experiment with the crayfish habitat. Knowing what you do about how they reacted to their “natural” surroundings, can you build an environment for them using only man-made objects? Predict where the crayfish will want to spend most of their time. Then, pick a time over the course of the school day and graph which location they are in. ○ Preparation: Print 2-3 models of the crayfish so that students can see it better. Students will need their science journal and a copy of the crayfish worksheet (front being the diagram and back being the function sheet.) For parts 3 and 4, you will need live crayfish. We order ours from Carolina Biological. They live in our classrooms in kiddie pools. The pool has one air pump and it is separated into 4 quadrants - small rocks(fish tank pebbles), large rocks, white rocks and nothing. Make sure to wash the rocks really well before you put them in the pool for the crayfish. Its great for the kids to help set up the habitat so that they can hypothesize while they are setting it up. See pictures