Lesson Plan - On the Hunt to Save a Species

About the Article

Learning Objective

Students will read, discuss, and write about problems snow leopards face and how people are trying to solve them.

Curriculum Connections

• Russia and Central Asia

• Conservation and the Environment

• Poaching and At-Risk Species

• Economic Challenges

Key Skills

Social Studies:

• Understand the relationship between human populations and the physical world

• Consider how culture, groups, and lived experiences shape personal identity

• Study relationships among science, technology, and society

English Language Arts:

• Identify problems and solutions

• Learn and use domain-specific vocabulary

• Write an informative essay

Key CCSS Standards

RH.6-8.1, RH.6-8.2, RH.6-8.3, RH.6-8.4, RH.6-8.7, WHST.6-8.2, WHST.6-8.4, WHST.6-8.9,  RI.6-8.1, RI.6-8.2, RI.6-8.3, RI.6-8.4, RI.6-8.7, W.6-8.2, W.6-8.4, W.6-8.9, SL.6-8.1

1. Preparing to Read

Build Background Knowledge

Have students research Russia with our interactive atlas by going to junior.scholastic.com/atlas, zooming in on the country, and clicking it to display facts. Ask students to write three sentences about Russia. Discuss responses.

Preview Vocabulary

Use the online Skill Builder Words to Know to preteach the domain-specific terms black market, corruption, elusive, Indigenous, pelt, poacher, remote, Soviet Union, and sustainable. Have students refer to the Skill Builder as they read.

2. Reading and Discussing

Read the Article

Read the article aloud or have students read it independently or in pairs. As students read, direct them to mark problems snow leopards face with a P and ways people are working to solve them with an S. (Or have students highlight information using different colors.)

Answer Close-Reading Questions

Have students write their responses, or use the Close-Reading Questions to guide a discussion.

• How does the author set the scene and create a surprise in the first three paragraphs of the article? (Author’s Craft)
The author uses descriptive details like “freezing temperatures,” “paw prints in the snow,” and “rugged mountains” to help readers picture Mergen Markov hunting for snow leopards in Russia. She surprises readers in the third paragraph by revealing that he was actually tracking the animals to take their picture rather than to kill them.

• How does the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) use photos of snow leopards? Why is capturing images difficult? (Key Details)
The WWF uses photos of snow leopards to monitor the animals’ location, which helps the experts protect the big cats from poachers and other threats. The photos help scientists understand how the animals behave, and they also help local residents appreciate snow leopards and see them as worth saving. The images can be difficult to capture because snow leopards tend to avoid humans, are hard to see in snowy environments, and are most active when it’s dark outside.

• Summarize the section “Animals at Risk.” (Summarizing)
As few as 4,000 snow leopards are left in the wild. The animals live in the rocky mountains of 12 Central Asian countries. They are attractive targets for poachers because a single snow leopard pelt can earn more than $600 on the black market. That’s enough money for a poacher to live on for about two months.

• What caused Mergen Markov to become a poacher? (Cause and Effect)
After the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, many people had trouble finding work, and food became more expensive. Markov returned to his village of Argut after serving in the Russian army. His father had taught him how to track and kill snow leopards, and he knew he could make good money selling their pelts.

• How does the map “Where Snow Leopards Roam” support the article? (Text Features)
The map supports the article by showing snow leopards’ current range within 12 countries across Central Asia. The map also shows where the Altai Republic is located in Russia, which helps readers understand where Markov lives.

• What evidence supports the idea that the WWF program is helping snow leopards make a comeback? (Text Evidence)
In 2021, eight snow leopard guards have taken hundred of pictures with about 30 camera traps set up in Sailugemsky National Park. Poaching has decreased, while the number of snow leopards there has increased, from as few as 2 to 15. The snow leopard population is also increasing across the Altai Republic as a whole. Additionally, the program is helping people like Markov’s neighbors and daughter appreciate the animals.

• Choose one of the images in the article to analyze. What do you notice about it? What do you wonder? (Visual Literacy)
Sample response: The image of snow leopard pelts helps me understand how they are sold. I notice that the pelts are different sizes and shapes and some of them have been turned into hats. I wonder what the people selling them think about the animals and if they’re worried about the animals becoming extinct.

3. Skill Building

Watch a Video

Provide these questions for students to think about as they watch “The Ex-Poachers Saving Snow Leopards”: How does the video help you understand the article? What images stand out to you? Why? What do you notice about them? Then have students discuss their responses in pairs or as a class.

Read a Map

Have students complete the map activity on page 9 independently or in pairs. Review answers as a class. You can also assign the Skill Builder Map Reading: Where Snow Leopards Roam to have students answer 10 other map-reading questions.

Assess Comprehension

Assign the 10-question Know the News quiz, available in PDF and interactive forms. You can also use Quiz Wizard to assess comprehension of this article and three others from the issue.

Printable Lesson Plan

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Lesson: On the Hunt to Save a Species

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Slide Deck - On the Hunt to Save a Species

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