Oaxaca Flora & Fauna Lesson

Oaxaca Culture
Day of the Dead Celebration

Flora and Fauna

Turtles

Create a Travel Brochure

Oaxaca Flora and Fauna

Objectives:

To understand how the varied terrain in Oaxaca affects the plants and animals that live there.
To learn about the different types of animals that may be found.
To learn what steps the Mexican government is taking to protect this extremely diverse area.

suggested Resources/Materials:

Paper and pencil
Detailed map of Oaxaca state showing its physical characteristics.
Watercolors or tempera paints
Colored markers
Chart or heavy duty paper
Web sites (See Links below)

The lesson:

Before beginning the study of the Flora and Fauna of Oaxaca have the students complete a KWHL Chart. (K= What Do We Know?; W= What Do We Want To Know?; H= How Do We Find Out?; L= What Have We Learned?). This activity can be done as an entire class or in small groups. If done in small groups, each group will share its chart with the entire class and then the class can do a composite of all the groups.

questions:

What are the different types of terrain you would find in the state of Oaxaca? What types of plants grow in each?
What types of animals might you see in the different areas? Do you think you would see the same types of animals in the different areas? Why or why not?
Name the two fresh water lagoons and describe the types of animals you might find there.
What types of birds like mountains? The ocean? The desert?
What kinds of animals do you find in the ocean off Oaxaca? Do you have those kinds of animals in the ocean nearest you?

suggested activities:

Break into groups and each group create a poster showing a different type of terrain and the animals that live there.
Create a mobile using the different types of birds you might find in Oaxaca.

assessment:

In addition to paper and pencil tests, teachers could use individual or small group projects, oral reports, mental maps or structured overviews for assessment.

Vocabulary Search (search box)

Oaxaca web site links