Create a Creature THIS PROJECT IS DUE Your assignment is to create an imaginary creature that lives in your home, NOT in your garage or yard. The creature model is to be made from materials found around the house and is not to be made using food products, clay, toys, putty, googly eyes, or toy parts. NOTHING IS TO BE PURCHASED FOR THE MAKING OF YOUR CREATURE. It must be able to fit into a box that measures 7 x 7 x 5 ½. The creature must display at least 2 of the following adaptations: Mimicry, warning colors, camouflage, protective covering, or false coloring. You must write a report about your creature. Include the following details in your report: Describe the life style of this creature and include the habitat it lives in (i.e. kitchen, bedroom, living room). Explain if the creature is predatory, a parasite, a producer, etc. Discuss what the creature eats. Describe how it uses its specific adaptive structures and strategies to survive. Explain how it fills a niche in the ecosystem of your home. A lab quality drawing with labels must be created of your creature on a sheet of white paper. (The format for the drawing is on Mr Mansbach s website and in your notes.) You must use at least 20 words from the wordlist below in describing your creature and its life style as they apply).these words are to be underlined in the report. organism habitat biotic factor species ecology abiotic factor ecosystem community photosynthesis population emigration immigration limiting factor carryingcapacity adaptations niche competition predation predator prey parasitism parasite host commensalism symbiosis mimicry warning colors protective covering false coloring camouflage herding schooling succession pioneer species producer consumer herbivore omnivore carnivore scavenger decomposer food chain foodweb exotic species defense strategy
Correct format for writing the report: The name of your creature should be centered on the cover page. Your first and last name with the class period should be centered underneath your creature's name. (Make the creature s name large and easy to read!) The report is to be no less than 150 words or more than 250 words. You must word-process your report, it must be in black ink. Format: 12 point, Times New Roman font. Reports that are folded, written in pencil, or have jagged edges will NOT be accepted. Do not use plastic report covers. Staple your pages together in the top left corner. Lab quality drawing follows report. Neatness and attention to grammar, and spelling counts! Vulgar or inappropriate statements will result in a zero grade for this project. Reports written in pencil will not be graded. Oral Presentation: You will give a brief oral presentation of no less than 1 minute or more that 2 minutes describing your creature, its adaptations, and its life style using the appropriate terms. The oral presentation is NOT to be read directly from your paper. You may use note cards. Helpful examples of using vocabulary in your report: Good example of vocabulary usage: My creature uses camouflage to protect itself from predators by looking like a dust pan leaned up against a wall. (Term used and explained by words in italics.) Bad example of vocabulary usage: My creature uses camouflage to protect itself from predators. (Term used, but not explained.) Good example of vocabulary usage: My creature is an omnivore because it feeds on small insects in my house and also nibbles the edges of leave of plants we keep in our sun room.(term used and explained by words in italics.) Bad example of vocabulary usage: Because my creature is both a carnivore and an herbivore, it is an omnivore. (Predators only eat meat, and herbivores only eat plants. If it is an omnivore it does both.) Bad example of vocabulary usage: My creature is a predator because it eats prey. Good example of vocabulary usage: My creature is a predator, an animal that kills other animals to eat, and preys on, eats, mice, rats and other rodents. Bad example of vocabulary usage: My creature uses camouflage and warning colors to protect itself. (Terms camouflage and warning colors contradict each other.)
CHECKLIST OF GUIDELINES Creature model /30 Points. Meets size criteria (Fits inside box) /10 Points. Made from materials found in home. /60 Points. Displays at least 2 adaptation strategies described on page 29 (30 points per strategy) /10 POINT BONUS for an additional adaptation. /100 points total Report / 30 Points format (Neatness, attention to spelling and grammar, and in ink; black or blue only, no writing on back of papers. Order of report: Cover sheet, report, lab drawing) /10 Points coversheet / 10 Points report length / 40 Points use of 20 underlined Key Terms (1 point per underlined word, 1 point for proper usage in the sentence) / 100 Points: Life style, habitat, niche, adaptations and survival strategies, diet /10 POINT BONUS for word-processing in black type, double spacing, using Times New Roman font, 12 point font / 190 Points total Lab Quality Drawing,(see website for complete instructions) / 10 points: Done on sheet of clean white paper. / 50 points: Justification lines between ¼ inch from right margin and 3 ½ inches from right margin/neat, erased justification lines/ Pointer lines end at ¼ inch from right margin, labels begin 3 inches from right margin/drawing is centered on page/ Parts are labeled/pointer lines are ruled and do not cross / 40 points Drawing is accurate. Oral Presentation /10 points Time (at least 1 minute, no more than 2 minutes.) / 30 Oral presentation organized. (No repeating or extended silences or read from the report) /60 Points Description and use of terms / 100 Points total PROJECTS BROUGHT TO SCHOOL BY PARENTS AND LEFT IN THE OFFICE WILL RECEIVE A 40 POINT DEDUCTION IN GRADE! STUDENT PROJECTS SHOULD BE PORTABLE AND DURABLE ENOUGH TO BRING ON THE BUS.
Create a Creature Think Page. This checklist may help you organize and write your report and prepare your oral presentation. Introduce your creature: What is the name of your creature? Where in the house does your creature live? Where did your creature come from? Is your creature a rare creature or found in most houses? Possible usable words for this part of your report: Habitat/ emigrate/ immigrate/ species/ organism/ population Describe your creature: What does it look like? Does it live alone or with other creatures in its species? What are its adaptations? How long does it live? Possible usable words for this part of your report: mimicry/ camouflage/ warning colors/ false coloring/ protective covering/ adaptation Describe your creature s niche (job) in the ecosystem of your house: Is it a predator, scavenger, parasite, host, decomposer? Is it a carnivore, herbivore, omnivore, decomposer, scavenger? How does it obtain food? How does its special adaptations help it to live? What are the limiting factors that control its population? Terms you might use in this part of your report: predator/ prey/ symbiosis/ commensalism/ mutualism/ parasite, parasitism/ limiting factor/ biotic factor/ abiotic factor/ ecosystem/ competition/niche/ food chain/ food web/ pioneer species/ producer/ consumer, consume Finish your report with a description or summary of your creature s value to the ecosystem of your house or the room or rooms it lives in. PRACTICE YOUR ORAL PRESENTATION AT HOME IN FRONT OF YOUR PARENTS. REMEMBER: When you use terms you must explain how they apply to your creature. Don t use terms that are opposites with one another: Examples: Because my creature is both a carnivore and an herbivore, it is an omnivore. (Predators only eat meat, and herbivores only eat plants.) My creature is a predator to plants because it attacks and kills them. ( Plants aren t considered prey) My creature has camouflage because it blends in with our sofa and warning Colors to scare away predators. ( Camouflage hides the creature by blending it into the environment and warning colors make it stand out to warn away predators. (The two term conflict) My creature is an herbivore. (No explanation of the term)
NAME CLASS PERIOD Creature model /30 Points Meets size criteria (Fits inside box) /10 Points Made from materials found in home. /60 Points Displays at least 2 adaptation strategies described on page 29 (25 points per strategy and 10 points for describing them in oral presentation) /10 POINT BONUS for an additional adaptation. /100 Points total Report / 30 Points format (Neatness, attention to spelling and grammar, and in ink; black or blue only, lines skipped, no writing on back of papers,order of report: coversheet first, report follows, drawing is last page) /10 Points coversheet / 10 Points report length / 40 Points use of 20 underlined Key Terms (1 point per underlined word, 1 point for proper usage in the sentence) / 100 Points: Life style, habitat, niche, adaptations and survival strategies, diet / 190 Points total Lab Quality Drawing / 10 points.done on sheet of clean white paper. / 50 points.justification lines between ¼ inch from right margin and 3 inches from rightmargin/neat, erased justification lines/ Pointer lines end at ¼ inch from right margin, labels begin 3 inches from right margin/drawing is centered on page/ Parts are labeled/pointer lines are ruled and do not cross / 40 points. Drawing is accurate. Oral Presentation /10 points Time (at least 1 minute, no more than 2 minutes.) /30 Oral presentation organized. (No repeating, extended silences or read from the report) /60 Points Description and use of terms /490 Points GRADE ON PROJECT A= 480-432 B=431-384 C= 383-336 D=335-288 F=287-0