I am often asked how I put my unit studies together, or what they look like. In an effort both to share that information and to keep better personal records on resources we've used, I've put together a fairly comprehensive list of the books, videos, and websites we used in our latest Ecology unit study. There is a good chance I have missed a book or site or two, but I've kept track of probably 95%.
These first three books we learned from together as I read them aloud. It's a good idea for every unit study to have at least one read aloud. The Last Egret is a true story from the journals of Charlie Pierce, written in an adventurous chapter book.
As you'll see later, chapter books/read alouds are accompanied by stacks of nonfiction. This particular unit was geared toward kids between the ages of 12 and 17. Some things were a bit over the 12-year-old and I adapted them. I did use some picture books; I value them and they work. Assignments and discussions then are tailored to ages and capabilities, obviously going deeper and expecting more from older kids.
We are so blessed in this era to have easy and free access to fabulous video content. YouTube has enhanced unit studies tenfold! Though not everything of value is there (like Planet Earth, which I highly recommend) there is a wealth of goodness to be found there, such as the video below.
Colleges and universities have put a wealth of information and educational resources on the Internet, along with high school teachers, museums, foundations, etc. They often have pages for children with games, video, worksheets, experiments, slide shows, and more. I definitely like using those. I was super excited to find ProCon.org, too, and will probably use it for critical thinking, debate and discussion on other topics. For this unit, we discussed at length the arguments ProCon had on Climate Change.
Without further ado, here is the full list of Ecology resources we used.
Books
Ecology from DK Eyewitness Science
Ecology and Plant Life, A Prentice Hall Illustrated Dictionary
Water, a Natural History by Alice Outwater
Wetlands (Learning About the Earth) by Holly Endres
Biomes - Wetlands by Duncan Brewer
Welcome to Everglades National Park by Nadia Higgins
Let's Take a Trip--The Everglades by Cheryl Koenig Morgan
Everglades by Jean Craighead George
Deadly Waters: A Mystery in Everglades National Park by Gloria Skyrzynski **
Last Egret: The Adventures of Charlie Pierce by Harvey E. Oyer III **
The Great Salt Lake by William Lee Stokes
Seductive Beauty of Great Salt Lake by Ella Sorensen
Forest (FL Inside Guide) by David Burnie
There's an Owl in the Shower by Jean Craighead George **
The Book of North American Owls by Helen Roney Sattler
Biomes Atlases Tropical Forests by Tom Jackson
Animal Homes by Tammy Everts and Bobbie Kalman
DK Animal Homes by Barbara Taylor
Who Really Killed Cock Robin? An Eco Mystery by Jean Craighead George **
The Amazing Honey Bee from Reading Discovery Nature Series
The Honey Makers by Gail Gibbons
Several various pamphlets on pollination and properties of honey from local honey specialty store
The Water Hole by Graeme Base
A River Ran Wild by Lynne Cherry
National Parks Coloring Book by Peter Copeland
Rangers Activity and Sticker Book from the National Park Service
The Story of Smokey Bear by Robin Bromley
**Fiction/Chapter Book based on ecological principles
Video
Planet Earth from BBC
Eden at the End of the World - National Geographic
Odzala: Islands in the Forest - National Geographic
Websites and Online Articles
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