Natural Resources and Our NeedsActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active learning works because first graders build understanding through touch, movement, and real objects. When students sort, role-play, and hunt, they connect abstract ideas like 'natural resource' to concrete examples they can see and feel. These hands-on experiences create lasting mental links between materials and their origins.
Learning Objectives
- 1Identify natural resources used to create common objects.
- 2Compare objects made from natural resources with objects made from human-made materials.
- 3Explain the origin of materials for a specific object, such as a wooden chair.
- 4Predict the consequences of depleting a specific natural resource.
Want a complete lesson plan with these objectives? Generate a Mission →
Sorting Centre: Natural vs. Human-Made
Gather 20 everyday objects like wooden blocks, plastic toys, cotton balls, and metal spoons. Students sort them into two piles, then label with pictures of sources like trees or factories. Discuss why natural items renew slowly.
Prepare & details
Explain where the materials for a wooden chair come from.
Facilitation Tip: During Sorting Centre, place real objects in clear bins so students can see textures and details that help them decide between natural and human-made categories.
Setup: Charts posted on walls with space for groups to stand
Materials: Large chart paper (one per prompt), Markers (different color per group), Timer
Concept Mapping: From Resource to Object
Provide objects like a chair or shirt. In pairs, students draw lines from the object back to its natural resource, adding words like 'tree' or 'plant.' Share maps with the class to spot patterns.
Prepare & details
Compare objects made from natural resources to objects made from human-made materials.
Facilitation Tip: For Concept Map, provide large paper and colored markers so small groups can draw arrows and write labels together, making connections visible.
Setup: Tables with large paper, or wall space
Materials: Concept cards or sticky notes, Large paper, Markers, Example concept map
Prediction Role-Play: Resource Run-Out
Choose a resource like wood. Groups act out daily life, then pretend it is gone and improvise solutions. Record predictions on chart paper for whole-class vote on best ideas.
Prepare & details
Predict what would happen if we used up all of a certain natural resource.
Facilitation Tip: In Prediction Role-Play, assign clear roles like 'tree,' 'water,' or 'factory worker' to make shortages feel real and urgent for students.
Setup: Charts posted on walls with space for groups to stand
Materials: Large chart paper (one per prompt), Markers (different color per group), Timer
Resource Hunt Walk
Take students outside or around school to find natural resources like leaves or rocks. Photograph or sketch them, then match to classroom objects back inside.
Prepare & details
Explain where the materials for a wooden chair come from.
Facilitation Tip: On Resource Hunt Walk, give each pair a simple checklist with pictures to focus attention on specific items like leaves, rocks, or water.
Setup: Charts posted on walls with space for groups to stand
Materials: Large chart paper (one per prompt), Markers (different color per group), Timer
Teaching This Topic
Teachers should let students lead the sorting and discussion with open-ended questions, stepping in only to clarify or redirect gently. Avoid giving answers; instead, encourage students to explain their thinking to peers. Research shows young learners grasp conservation better when they physically act out shortages rather than just hear descriptions. Keep materials authentic—no pictures—so tactile input reinforces learning.
What to Expect
Successful learning shows when students can name natural resources in common objects and explain why human-made materials differ. They should trace products back to nature during discussion and compare properties with confidence. Evidence appears in their sorting accuracy, predictions, and clear explanations during activities.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring Sorting Centre, watch for students who place all objects in one category because they believe factories produce everything directly.
What to Teach Instead
Use the Sorting Centre to redirect students by asking them to look closely at textures: 'Does this feel like bark or plastic? What does that tell us about where it comes from?' Encourage peer sharing so students notice differences together.
Common MisconceptionDuring Prediction Role-Play, watch for students who assume resources like trees or water will never run out because they see them every day.
What to Teach Instead
During the Role-Play, have groups act out shortages step-by-step, such as cutting down all trees in a minute. Pause to ask, 'What happens when we use too many? How do we see this in real life?'
Common MisconceptionDuring Sorting Centre, watch for students who say human-made materials are always better because they last longer.
What to Teach Instead
Set up a station with a wooden spoon and a plastic spoon. Ask students to hold both and describe how each feels. Prompt, 'Which is warmer? Which would break first?' Guide them to notice that 'better' depends on what we need.
Assessment Ideas
After Sorting Centre, show pictures of objects like a cotton shirt, plastic bottle, and wooden block. Ask students to hold up green cards for natural resources and red cards for human-made materials. Circulate to note who changes their mind after discussion.
During Prediction Role-Play, listen for students to name three specific items that would disappear if trees ran out, like paper, chairs, or pencils. Record their answers and ask, 'What would we use instead? How would that change our lives?'
After Resource Hunt Walk, give each student a sticky note to draw one object they found and write the natural resource it comes from. Collect to check if they can trace items back to nature accurately.
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge students to find an object in the classroom that uses two natural resources, like a wooden pencil with a rubber eraser, and present their findings to the class.
- For students who struggle, provide picture cards with arrows pointing from resource to object to scaffold their tracing during Concept Map.
- Deeper exploration: Invite a local park ranger or farmer to visit and show how natural resources are collected, then have students write or draw one thing they learned.
Key Vocabulary
| Natural Resource | Materials that come from the Earth and are used by people, such as trees, water, and minerals. |
| Human-made Material | Materials that are created or changed by people, often using natural resources, like plastic or paper. |
| Origin | The place or source where something begins or comes from. |
| Depletion | The process of using up a natural resource so that there is less or none left. |
Suggested Methodologies
Planning templates for Science
5E Model
The 5E Model structures lessons through five phases (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate), guiding students from curiosity to deep understanding through inquiry-based learning.
Unit PlannerThematic Unit
Organize a multi-week unit around a central theme or essential question that cuts across topics, texts, and disciplines, helping students see connections and build deeper understanding.
RubricSingle-Point Rubric
Build a single-point rubric that defines only the "meets standard" level, leaving space for teachers to document what exceeded and what fell short. Simple to create, easy for students to understand.
More in Materials, Objects, and Structures
Observing Material Properties
Students will use their senses to describe and classify various materials based on observable properties like color, texture, and flexibility through hands-on stations.
3 methodologies
Testing Material Strength
Students will conduct simple tests to determine which materials are strong, weak, bendable, or rigid using various objects and tools.
3 methodologies
Materials and Their Uses
Students will connect the properties of materials to their appropriate uses in everyday objects through gallery walks and concept mapping.
3 methodologies
Building Strong Foundations
Students will explore how the base of a structure affects its stability and ability to support weight through hands-on building challenges.
3 methodologies
Shapes in Structures
Students will identify common geometric shapes used in structures and understand how they contribute to stability through building activities and observation.
3 methodologies
Ready to teach Natural Resources and Our Needs?
Generate a full mission with everything you need
Generate a Mission