Earth: Apple of Our Eye

Grades3, 4, 5Science, Mathematics

What it is

This lesson plan on food production and agriculture centers around a demonstration that uses an apple to show students the small fraction of Earth's land that can be used for farming, followed by discussion questions and a follow-up activity.

Positives

Teachers can use the apple demonstration for students in a range of grade levels and then modify the remainder of the lesson to fit the age and ability levels of their students.
This lesson is engaging and thought-provoking, especially for visual learners.

Additional Prerequisites

Teachers who have not used the Population Education website before need to enter an email address to download the lesson plan.
Students should have a basic understanding of fractions.
Teachers will need an apple, a knife, and paper towels or a plate for the demonstration.

Differentiation

This resource would be a great lesson for elementary math classes that are working on fractions, where students could also use modeling clay to divide up the segments.
This could be used in a geography or social studies class for lessons about where people live and where we grow food.
Before cutting the apple, teachers could have students predict what fraction of the Earth is used for farming and then compare the students' predictions to the actual fraction.
After going through the discussion questions, students could discuss with a partner or write down what was surprising and interesting about the lesson.
Other related resources include this video about creating a perfect farm, this article on food waste, and this activity about the space needed to grow food.

The resource models land availability and explains the impact it has on the agricultural system. This is recommended for the classroom.

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Standards alignment · 3.NF.A.1: + 2 more

Mathematics

3.NF.A.1:Understand a unit fraction 1/b as the quantity formed by 1 part when a whole is partitioned into b equal parts; understand a fraction a/b as the quantity formed by a parts of size 1/b.
3.NF.A.3Explain equivalence of fractions in special cases, and compare fractions by reasoning about their size.

Social Studies

Geography1: Students understand the geography of the community, Maine, the United States, and various regions of the world by communicating their findings by creating visual representations of the world, showing a basic understanding of the geographic grid, including the equator and prime meridian.