Lesson Plan #: AELP-ANM0207

Animal Adaptations (Komodo Dragon)

An Educator's Reference Desk Lesson Plan

Submitted by: David Monnig and Landon Lundy
Email: monnigde@mso.umt.edu
School/University/Affiliation: The University of Montana, Missoula, MT

Date: December 18, 2001

Grade Level: 2, 3, 4

Subject(s):

Duration: 50 minutes

Description: Students learn about the importance of adaptations in helping an animal to survive. The Komodo dragon will be studied as an example.

Goals:

  1. To give students an awareness of different types of animal adaptations.
  2. To teach students how to make scientific explanations for specific adaptations.

Objectives:

  1. Students will be able to define the term, adaptation .
  2. Students will be able to provide examples of adaptations that help animals to survive (specifically the Komodo dragon).
  3. Students will learn how to ask questions about animals (based on the way they look) to determine such things as where the animals live, what they eat, how they behave, and who their predators are.
Materials: Procedure:
Scientific Explanation:
What is an adaptation? An adaptation is a trait that helps an animal fit in and survive in its environment. Komodo dragons are adapted to be powerful predators. These lizards can reach lengths of 10 feet and weigh up to 300 pounds. They are only found living wild in Indonesia. They are very aggressive meat eaters and are known to take down animals as big as deer. Their jaws work so hard that the Komodo dragon grows four new sets of teeth per year. The Komodo dragon has very deadly bacteria present in its saliva at all times. This bacteria is not harmful to the dragon, but if the dragon bites another animal, that animal will die of disease within a week. The dragon will often bite its prey and then lurk in the shadows until it dies. The Komodo dragon will then use its giant claws and powerful jaws to rip apart the prey, swallowing chunks of meat whole. One Komodo was recorded consuming 85% of its body weight in one sitting. There are only 5,000 Komodo dragons living in the wild.

Focus Phase:
Ask the class to come up with animal characteristics that help an animal to survive in its environment. Lead students to defining the term, adaptation . Using an overhead or a chalkboard make three columns, the first labeled animal, the second labeled adaptation, and the third labeled reason for that adaptation. Beneath the animal title list the following animals: giraffes, polar bears, chameleons, and cheetahs. Have the class brainstorm adaptations that make each animal unique, and ask students to provide reasons for each adaptation. (Example: Giraffes have long necks so that they can reach leaves at the tops of trees.) Provide pictures of each animal.

Challenge Phase:
Divide the class into groups using the "one, two" counting method, and provide each group with multiple pictures of the Komodo dragon. Then ask students to pretend that they are wildlife biologists using their observation skills to come up with adaptations that make the Komodo dragon unique. Students should record their ideas on a piece of paper and include possible reasons for the adaptations that they come up with. Ask open-ended questions such as, "By looking at the pictures what do you think the Komodo dragon eats?" or "What type of climate does the dragon live in?" Other inquiry questions could include, "How long do you think the dragon gets?" "How much do you think they can weigh?" "Do you think that the dragon is cold-blooded?" "What are the dragon's teeth and claws used for?" "Do you think the dragon can swim? Or run fast?"

Concept Introduction Phase:
Students will then return to the circle and listen to facts about the Komodo dragon provided by the teacher. The validity of the student created list of Komodo adaptations should be compared to the list presented by the teacher. The students should then be asked which of their observations were accurate and which were not. Use the children’s investigations to help explain how special adaptations help the Komodo dragon to survive.

Concept Application:
Have the students return to their desks, and provide each child with paper, pencils, and crayons. Explain to them that they are going to spend 15-20 minutes creating and drawing their own made-up animal with special adaptations that help it to survive. (Teachers may want to provide a few examples of made-up animals.) Before students begin drawing, ask them to provide some examples of their own to assure that they understand the assignment. Students will then go to work creating their own animal, providing a name and brief explanation of its special trait. Once the students have completed their drawings, they will share them in the group circle.

Assessment: Students will be assessed through the pictures they drew and the list of Komodo dragon adaptations that they developed during group work. Students will then share their work one at a time in a group circle. Along with describing their animal, they will be asked to explain the specific adaptation that makes the animal unique and how that adaptation helps it to survive in the wild. Look for usefulness of student created adaptations to assure concept understanding.

Useful Internet Resources:
* Scientific American - The Komodo Dragon
http://www.sciam.com/1999/0399issue/0399ciofi.html

* Komodo Dragon
http://www.wildherps.com/species/V.komodoensis.html

* Yahooligans! - Animal Galleries
http://www.yahooligans.com/Science_and_Nature/Living_Things/Animals/
Wildlife/Animal_Galleries/

Other Useful References:

  1. Komodo Dragon: On Location , by Kathy and Tara Darling, 1997.
  2. Komodo Dragons (Predators in the Wild) , by Anne Welsbacher, 2002.
  3. Komodo Dragons: Giant Lizards of Indonesia , by James Martin, 1995.
  4. The Land of the Komodo Dragon , by Claire Ellis, 1998.
  5. Komodo: The Living Dragon , by Dick Lutz and J. Marie Lutz, 1997.