In this Activity, students will explore the characteristics of a desert; two types of deserts; which Western states have desert regions; how to identify (by name) the four major desert regions in the USA; Herd Management Area (HMAs), i.e., where wild horses and burros live; the overlap of HMAs with desert regions; and how plants and animals adapt to desert regions.  Students will construct their own desert books choosing a plant and/or animal of interest to them.  Lastly, students will share their books (writing and illustrations) with their teacher, parent, and peers.  
 
Contents in order of use: 
1. Activity 2 Pre-assessment
2. Activity 2 What makes a desert a desert
3. Activity 2 Deserts Template Book
4. Activity 2 Information Resources
5. Activity 2 Teacher Parent Information to Help Facilitate Accurate Knowledge Building 
6. Activity 2 My Desert Plant Book
7. Activity 2 My Desert Animal Book
8. Activity 2 Post-assessment
9. Activity 2 Rating 
 
Subject domains: 
English Language Arts (reading informational text); integrate information from two texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subjects knowledgeably. 
Speaking and Listening (engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions), i.e., one-on-one, in groups, and teacher led with diverse partners on grades 3rd-5th topics and texts; build on others' ideas; and express their own clearly.  
Math: (Numbers and Operations-Fractions).  Develop understanding of fractions as numbers; extend understanding of fraction equivalence and ordering; understand decimal notation for fractions, and compare decimal fractions.  
Science: (Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems).  Adaptation (for any particular environment, some kinds of organisms survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all).  Structure and Function (plants and animals have both internal and external structures that serve various functions in growth, survival, behavior, and reproduction).  
 
 
Skills: 
Reading information texts from various sources and extrapolating facts in order to synthesize them into written form (template books).  
Writing complex sentences which include facts from multiple sources.  
Illustrating and/or copying images from a variety of sources for their template books.  
Learning about the characteristics of desert regions. 
Researching the characteristics of a particular desert plant and/or animal.  
Researching the adaptations of a particular desert plant and/or animal.  
Writing and illustrating the characteristics and adaptations of a particular desert plant and/or animal.  
Presenting their template books to their teacher, parent, and peers.