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Museum Educator-led Programs
Pre & Post Visit Resources
Life in the Dark

Grades 3-5


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Program Description and Frameworks
Program Outline
Key Terms and Concepts
Classroom Activities
Suggested Print and Web Resources
Learn More About the Special Exhibit: In the Dark

Click here for printable version of all resources listed above

Program Description and Frameworks

What would it be like to survive without light? Consider how humans survive using senses other than sight. Then discovery fascinating animals that have evolved over time to sense prey, navigate, and defend themselves, all under cover of darkness.

Location: Last Gallery of In the Dark Exhibit*
Gallery Length: 1 hour
Grades: 3-5


* PLEASE NOTE: Groups should schedule a separate time for self-guiding exploration of the In the Dark exhibit. This program will enhance and deepen student understanding of material presented in the exhibit, but it does not take students into the exhibit.

Massachusetts
Science and Technology/Engineering
Strand 2 Life Science Standards 6, 8

6 Give examples of how inherited characteristics may change over time as adaptations to changes in the environment that enable organisms to survive (e.g., shape of beak or feet, placement of eyes on head, length of neck, shape of teeth, color).

8 Describe how organisms meet some of their needs in an environment by using behaviors (patterns or activities) in response to information (stimuli) received from the environment. Recognize that some animal behaviors are instinctive (e.g. turtles burying their eggs), and others are learned (e.g. humans building fires for warmth, chimpanzees learning how to use tools).

1 Living things are both similar to and different from each other and nonliving things.

Students will

• describe the characteristics of and variations between living and nonliving things.
  
  
• describe the life processes common to all living things

3 Individual organisms and species change over time.

Students will

• describe how the structures of plants and animals complement the environment of the plant or animal.
  
  
• observe that differences within a species may give individuals an advantage in surviving and reproducing.

Standard 4 Science Physical Setting 1
1 The Earth and celestial phenomena can be described by principles of relative motion and perspective.

Students will

• describe patterns of daily, monthly, and seasonal changes in their environment. .

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Program Outline

Introduction
Students are given pictures of two animals, one of whom has adapted to survive in the dark, and one of whom has adaptations for light. The challenge is to figure out which is which.

Amazing Adaptations
Through hands-on, up-close observations of skulls, feathers, sheds, and more, students discover some amazing adaptations for the dark of animals like the star-nosed mole, owls, pit vipers, bats, crickets, blind cave tetras, and others.

Mystery Object Game
An exploration of senses other than vision that help humans and other animals to survive in the dark. Students reach into boxes with hidden, mystery objects inside and use their senses of hearing, smell and touch to identify the mystery object.

Humans in the Dark
An introduction to some of the tools and technologies, some inspired by nature, that help humans to navigate in the dark.

Conclusion
To review, students are given a fun In the Dark trivia question written by a student from another school (during a previous program). These quiz cards can be taken back to school and used for a class trivia game/review. Students will then write a set of questions on new cards to leave at the Museum for the next group of students.

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Concepts Covered

• Many animals are active in the dark (nocturnal), some are active during daylight hours (diurnal),and others are active mostly at dawn and dusk (crepuscular).
  
  
• Some animals live in places like forests and deserts, and are active at night. Others live in places like caves, underground, and the deep sea, that are dark all of the time.
  
  
• Animals have different senses and body features, and they behave in different ways, that help them to survive in the places where they live.
  
  
• Animals have different ways of surviving in the dark. Some have well-developed senses of smell, hearing, or touch. Some have special body parts, and some can do things that our bodies can't do (like bat echolocation).
  
  
• Ocean waters are very, very deep. Sunlight reaches the top layers of water, but not the very deepest.
  
  
• Some animals can see very well in the dark and others cannot.
  
  
• Many animals use sounds or smells to communicate with other animals.
  
  
• Humans have developed many tools to assist them in the dark like Braille. Some of them, like radar, sonar, and motion detectors, were inspired by the unique capabilities of animals like bats and sharks.

Key Terms Used During the Program
You may want to familiarize your students with the following terms before your visit to the Museum.

Adaptation	a feature or behavior that helps a living thing to survive in its habitat.
Bat	a flying mammal with featherless wings that is active at night and uses echolocation.
Braille	a writing system of raised dots to be read by the fingers.
Diorama	a 3-D or sculptural model showing a scene or a group of figures (animals, people, etc.) and their surroundings.
Diurnal	a word used to describe an animal that is active during the day.
Echolocation	the ability of some animals like bats and dolphins to give off high-pitched sounds that bounce off of objects in the area and return to the animal, who can then figure out the size, shape, and location of the objects from this "echo;" bats use echolocation to navigate (find their way) and to find prey (food).
Lateral Line	a unique sense system of pores running along the sides of fish and larval amphibians that allows them to sense water movements and faint electrical currents given off by other fish.
Mole	a small, furry animal who digs tunnels underground and eats insects.
Nocturnal	a word to describe an animal that is active at night. Click here for a list of some nocturnal Berkshire animals.
Predator	an animal that hunts other animals.
Prey	an animal that is hunted by other animals.
Pupil	the dark area in the center of the colored part of the eye, that lets light into the eye.
Radar	a method of detecting the distance or speed of an object by bouncing high frequency signals or waves (microwaves) off of it and measuring the strength and time of their return.
Sonar	using sound waves to locate objects or groups of animals underwater. Like radar, the sound waves are sent into the water and reflect or bounce back when they hit an object.
Stalactite	a cave formation that hangs from the “ceiling” of the cave. Though it looks like an icicle, it is not made of frozen water, but hardened minerals.
Stalagmite	a cave formation that looks like an icicle standing up on the floor of a cave. Though it looks like an icicle, it is not made of frozen water, but hardened minerals.

To remember which is which:  StalaGmites are on the Ground; StalaCtites are on the Ceiling.

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Activities: Before and After Your Visit

In the Dark Scavenger Hunt
This is a great activity to do during your visit to the Museum, but you should print out and copy the worksheets ahead of time and bring them with you on your visit.  During your time self-guiding through In the Dark, students can search through the exhibit to find the animals in this scavenger hunt.  They can circle each animal as they find them.  These animals will be further investigated during the Night Life program.  Can you find any clues to tell you how these animals survive in the dark?  Click here for hunt worksheet.

Introduction to Soil
Before doing this lesson, ask students to bring in a sandwich bag of dirt from their yard at home. Have students work in small groups, and give each group several small plastic cups, an eye dropper, plastic spoons, and samples of sand, potting soil or humus, and clay (any natural art clay will work). Tell students they will be soil scientists and they will be studying these soils by conducting “tests.” Discuss a couple of examples of different types of tests.

Different types of tests might include: What do they smell like? What do they feel like and sound like when rubbed between your fingers? What happens when you place a drop of water on top? What happens when you place a spoonful of soil in water? When you squeeze a clump together in your hand and then let go, what happens? What do they look like under a magnifying glass?

Discuss only a couple of examples together, and encourage students to develop their own tests. Make sure to set ground rules first: keep all soil on the table, and keep the soils separate (do not mix them together). After a few minutes of exploration, ask students to share their testing methods with the whole class, listing them on the board.

Then allow students a few more minutes to conduct tests. Regroup to discuss the properties of each soil observed by students. Take notes on the board, in chart form or (depending on student familiarity) a triple Venn diagram. Explain that most soils are a mixture of these different types.

Ask each group to test their soil samples from home using the same tests they used previously. How does it compare with sand, potting soil/humus, and clay? What do they think their soil is made of? Which type of soil is it most like?

Ant Farm
Having a classroom ant farm is a great way to allow students to observe all of the activity that usually goes on completely out-of-sight underground. Ant farms can serve as great science lesson tools, but can also be incorporated into other core subject areas. Students can keep an ant log or journal with quick daily observations about temperature, weather, and ant activity. Ant observations could be a launching point for students to develop an ant cartoon, or to write a paragraph from the perspective of an ant. By creating a simple grid system on one side of the ant farm, students can keep a map of ant activity and use ordered pairs to describe the location of different activities. Students can also measure tunnel distances.

To introduce the ant farm to students, have them search for ant hills on the school grounds. Have students observe one hill for a few minutes. Then ask them to draw what they think is going on under the soil. Hand these drawings back to students after they have been observing the ant farm for several weeks. How has their understanding changed?

Ant farms are generally available from education science suppliers like Carolina Biological Supply. Also available from the Berkshire Museum Shop.

Animals of the Dark Press Conference
Have students research a dark habitat and one of the animals who lives there, focusing on the animal's features and habits for survival in its habitat. Ask students to imagine what life would be like for that animal.

When students are ready to share their research, tell them that they will hold a "press conference," where each student will take a turn being interviewed by the class. The class will be "reporters" and the presenter will answer questions as if he or she is the animal they researched.

To prepare for the press conference, ask the class what questions they would like to ask the animals. Brainstorm a list of questions that students would like to ask, and then vote on the top 5 or 6 questions that students find most interesting. Presenters should be prepared to answer any of those selected questions about their animal. Then hold a press conference where students take turn being interviewed by the class. Presenters may take one "wildcard" question from reporters, but may choose to "pass" on answering the question, if necessary.

Shoebox Diorama
Have students research a dark habitat and the plants and animals who live there. They should then use their research to create a diorama in a shoebox, using paper, markers, clay, or other materials to show what the habitat looks like and who lives there. They can cover the outside of the box with construction paper and paste on drawings or printouts showing close-ups of specific animal features like special ears, claws, whiskers, etc. that help the animals to survive in this dark place.

Create a Creature
Invent a new creature designed to live in a particular dark place. Students can draw or create a magazine collage of their creature, labeling each part, and writing a paragraph explaining how each feature helps the creature to survive in its environment. Given time and materials, students can also construct their creatures using pipecleaners, buttons, foam, egg cartons, paper, clay, etc.

How Do Our Senses Adjust to the Dark?
In this activity developed by the Cincinnati Museum Center students experience first-hand how human senses can adjust to the dark. Used here with permission. Click here for complete lesson.

Bat Math
This activity introduces students to some bat facts, while combining reading comprehension with math problem solving. Math skills include multiplication and converting milligrams to grams. Click here for worksheet and answer sheet.

What Makes Echoes?
A hands-on exploration of the use of sound waves in echolocation, using water waves as a model. Developed by the Cincinnati Museum Center. Used here with permission. Click here for complete lesson.

Sound Mapping
Complete this sound mapping lesson from the Living Landscapes Curriculum Guide with students during the school day. Click here for lesson. Then have students complete a sound map at home in the evening, which can be completed in their own yard, or on a walk with their parents. As a class, compare the data from the daytime maps and the evening maps. What differences and similarities do you notice? Do students have any new questions that they would like to explore?

Developed by the Berkshire Museum, Living Landscapes: Teaching in Nature is an interdisciplinary curriculum guide designed to help educators teach environmental education to elementary-age students-- fostering greater appreciation for the natural world in the Berkshires. Educators will find ready-to-use, student-centered lesson plans, including activities, assessments, extensions, and suggested print and web materials. To request a copy, email education@berkshiremuseum.org.

Can Crickets Tell the Temperature?
Students conduct an experiment with live crickets to see what effect temperature has on cricket communication. The lesson includes math, language arts, social studies, and science extensions. A bag of live crickets is affordable and easily obtained from a pet store (as reptile food), and crickets can be kept alive in a plastic container with nail holes. Place a piece of damp paper towel inside and feed them shreds of lettuce. Click here for complete lesson.

What’s My Zone
Have students research a deep sea animal, choosing from this list. Ask them to find out which level of the ocean their animal lives in, and to find 3 other interesting facts about the animal, and, if possible, a picture of it.

On a piece of posterboard or a large piece of paper, draw lines to divide the space into three layers to show the main ocean zones (top = daylight layer, middle = twilight layer, bottom = midnight layer). Or, for a more permanent and appealing board for display, make a background out of blue paper, with the top layer being light blue, middle = medium blue, bottom = dark blue. This will also help to illustrate how each species looks in the relative light levels of their ocean zone. To share their work, have students tape their picture to the appropriate zone and share their facts with the class.

Island Discovery Tours, Canada: Nocturnal Animal Sounds Game
A simple online game that students can play on their own. First students listen to a sound made by a mystery nocturnal animal. Then students guess the identity of the animal and check their answers. They'll find pictures and information about each animal. TIP: students may need to hit the "back" button after listening to the sound to get back to the web page for the answer.

Transformers!
Give students a picture of an animal that is active during the day (diurnal) like a butterfly, squirrel, turtle, chipmunk, human, groundhog, robin, etc. Then ask students to imagine that a group of animals of their species becomes trapped in a dark place and manages to survive. Over a long period of time, this population of animals evolves and develops new adaptations that help it to survive in its new habitat. Ask students to fold a piece of paper in half and create a "before and after" view of their animal by pasting their picture on one half, and drawing and coloring a picture of their animal as they imagine it would look in 10,000 years. They should label the different body parts on both images, and write a paragraph explaining how each animal is suited to its habitat. Don’t forget to give your new animal a name!
 

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Suggested Web and Print Resources

All print resources listed are available through the Central/Western Massachusetts Library System.

Use the Berkshire Athenaeum's on-line catalogue to search for these print resources in Western Massachusetts.

Web and Print Materials For Students

American Museum of Natural History: Hall of Ocean Life, Ecosystem Learning Resources
This is a menu page with links to many excellent activities for students to do online. "Holy Smokes" provides information on deep sea vents in a fun and accessible way for upper elementary grades. "Video Gallery: Life at the Deep Sea Vents" is also a useful resource.

Barkan, Joanne. Creatures That Glow. NY: Doubleday, 1991. Beautiful color photographs illustrate this clear and concise text on organisms that glow in the dark.

Bender, Lionel. Animals of the Night. NY: Shooting Star Press, 1996. Explains the physical characteristics, habits and habitats of animals like marsupials, bats, and owls who are active at night.

Bender, Lionel. Cave. NY: F. Watts, 1989. Covers the geologic formation of caves and the ways caves have been used over time.

Bender, Lionel. Creatures of the Deep. NY: Gloucester Press, 1989. Clear text describes amazing species of deep sea life, with large color photos and inserts comparing the size of some creatures to the scale of human beings.

eNature.com: Starnosed Mole
A brief description with basic information about this unusual mammal, including an up-close photo of nose.

Ganeri, Anita. Creatures that Glow. NY: Harry N. Abrams, 1995.
Introduces bioluminescence- light produced by living things such as the flashlight fish, fireflies and fungi. Includes a glow-in-the-dark poster, and features white print on black pages.

Gibbons, Gail. Caves and Caverns. San Diego: Harcourt Brace, 1993. A clear and colorfully illustrated text describing how different types of caves are formed, with a bit of information on cave life and spelunking.

Gunzi, Christiane, Frank Greenaway (Photos. & Illus.). Cave Life. NY: Doring Kindersley, 1993. Part of the Look Closer Series, this book illustrates the species of plants and animals that live in caves, including the cave cricket, maidenhair fern, and peacock butterfly.

Hirschmann, Kris. Creatures That Glow. San Diego: KidHaven Press, 2005. Color photos and text describing how deep sea organisms like jellyfish and anglerfish produce their own light.

Island Discovery Tours, Canada: Nocturnal Animal Sounds Game
A simple online game that students can play on their own. First students listen to a sound made by a mystery nocturnal animal. Then students guess the identity of the animal and check their answers. They'll find pictures and information about each animal. TIP: students may need to hit the "back" button after listening to the sound to get back to the web page for the answer.

Johnson, Sylvia A., Satoshi Kuribayashi (Photos) and Wesley Jacobsen (Trans.). Fireflies. Minneapolis, Lerner Publications, 1986. Text and photographs describe the habitat, physical characteristics, and habits of fireflies.

Oakland Museum, CA: California Underground Online Exhibit
On this page, students can see pictures of different species of bats and listen to their echolocation patterns (modified so that they can be heard by the human ear). By clicking on the Activity link in the menu at the top of the page, students can also play the interactive Bat habitat game.

Pringle, Lawrence and Merlin D. Tuttle (Photos). Batman: Exploring the World of Bats. NY: Scribner’s, 1991. The story of Merlin Tuttle, a noted mammalogist and bat conservationist. Readers learn of Merlin’s childhood fascination with nature, and trace his education and early fieldwork experiences. Readers also learn about the physiology of bats, and the importance of bats as pollinators and seed distributors through up-close photography. Bat misconceptions are also addressed.

Web and Print Materials For Educators

Applehof, Mary.  Worms Eat My Garbage.  MI:  Flower Press, 1997.  A guide to starting and maintaining a worm composting system in your classroom.

BioMEDIA: How Do Animals See in the Dark?
This visually striking page focuses on the vision of animals at night and during the day.  Though the language is far too sophisticated to use directly with young students, teachers will find it a clear and concise source of important background information and good visual aids.

eNature.com: Starnosed Mole
A brief description of basic information about this unusual mammal, including an up-close photo of the nose.

The Firefly Files
In this website sponsored by the University of Ohio and the Museum of Biological Diversity, you’ll find information about where to find fireflies, their behavior, their range, their glow, and how to encourage them to come to your yard.

Howe Caverns
Howe Caverns is a school group/tourist friendly cave system in New York State.  The web site offers an online tour of the cavern system with photos, information and a few quicktime video clips.  Its Cavern Classroom Educational Resources provide background on the basics of cave formation and cave life.

How Stuff Works:  How Bats Work
A very informative article about bats including topics like flight, echolocation, roosting, and their place in the ecosystem.

*  Nightlife: Creatures of the Deep.  New England Aquarium and Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute (Dir.)and Peter Benchley (Nar.).  New England Aquarium and Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute, 2001. This video documents bioluminescent animals of the ocean such as anglerfish, giant tubeworms, and six-gilled sharks through underwater footage. To order this video you may contact New England Aquarium, Conservation Department, Central Wharf Boston, MA 02110-3399, (617) 973-5288, wowfilms@neaq.org.

Ocean Link: The Deep Sea
This section of the Ocean Link site allows you to explore different levels of the ocean.  It provides fantastic images of the organisms that live in each level, and the images are accompanied by succinct and accessible information about each species.

Singapore Zoological Gardens Docent Web Site:  How Do Snakes Hunt?
A good basic source of information about snake senses and adaptations for hunting, including information on pit vipers.

 

The Institute of Museum and Library Services, an independent Federal grant- making agency dedicated to creating and sustaining a nation of learners by helping libraries and museums serve their communities supports the Berkshire Museum.

 

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