Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Zachery Murray
Standards:
StandardB3:InterdependenceofLivingSystemsandtheEnvironment
Studentsdescribetheprocessesofphotosynthesisandcellularrespiration
andhowenergyistransferredthroughfoodwebs.Theyrecognizeand
analyzetheconsequencesofthedependenceoforganismsonenvironmental
resourcesandtheinterdependenceoforganismsinecosystems.
B3.2Ecosystems
Thechemicalelementsthatmakeupthemoleculesoflivingthingspassthroughfoodwebsand
arecombinedandrecombinedindifferentways.Ateachlinkinanecosystem,someenergyis
storedinnewlymadestructures,butmuchisdissipatedintotheenvironmentasheat.Continual
inputofenergyfromsunlightkeepstheprocessgoing.
EssentialQuestion:WheredoesenergygoinanEcosystem?
B3.2AIdentifyhowenergyisstoredinanecosystem.
B3.2BDescribeenergytransferthroughanecosystem,accountingforenergylosttothe
environmentasheat.
B3.2CDrawtheflowofenergythroughanecosystem.Predictchangesinthefoodwebwhenone
ormoreorganismsareremoved.
B3.3ElementRecombination
Asmattercyclesandenergyflowsthroughdifferentlevelsoforganizationoflivingsystems
cells,organs,organisms,andcommunitiesandbetweenlivingsystemsandthephysical
environment,chemicalelementsarerecombinedindifferentways.Eachrecombinationresultsin
storageanddissipationofenergyintotheenvironmentasheat.Matterandenergyareconservedin
eachchange.
EssentialQuestion:Whatarethedifferentlevelsoforganismswithinanecosystem,and
howisenergytransferredthroughout?
B3.3AUseafoodwebtoidentifyanddistinguishproducers,consumers,anddecomposersand
explainthetransferofenergythroughtrophiclevels.
B3.4ChangesinEcosystems
Althoughtheinterrelationshipsandinterdependenceoforganismsmaygeneratebiological
communitiesinecosystemsthatarestableforhundredsorthousandsofyears,ecosystemsalways
changewhenclimatechangesorwhenoneormorenewspeciesappearasaresultofmigrationor
localevolution.Theimpactofthehumanspecieshasmajorconsequencesforotherspecies.
EssentialQuestion:Howisanecosystemaffectedbynaturaloccurrences,human
interaction,oradditionofnewspecies?
B3.4ADescribeecosystemstability.Understandthatifadisastersuchasfloodorfireoccurs,the
damagedecosystemislikelytorecoverinstagesofsuccessionthateventuallyresultinasystem
similartotheoriginalone.
B3.4BRecognizeanddescribethatagreatdiversityofspeciesincreasesthechancethatatleast
somelivingorganismswillsurviveinthefaceofcataclysmicchangesintheenvironment.
B3.4CExaminethenegativeimpactofhumanactivities.
B3.5Populations
Populationsoflivingthingsincreaseanddecreaseinsizeastheyinteractwithotherpopulations
andwiththeenvironment.Therateofchangeisdependentuponrelativebirthanddeathrates.
EssentialQuestion:Inwhatwaysarepopulationsaffectedwhentheyinteractwithother
populationsortheenvironment?
B3.5AGraphchangesinpopulationgrowth,givenadatatable.
B3.5BExplaintheinfluencesthataffectpopulationgrowth.
B3.5CPredicttheconsequencesofaninvadingorganismonthesurvivalofotherorganisms.
Class Discussion
Lecture
Drama/role playing
Students draw pictures
PowerPoint
Interpreting Graphs
Virtual Labs
Collaboration
anticipatory set picture. In addition to this, during the lesson, special needs
students can communicate with the educator for the homework portion of
the lesson to obtain a better understanding of information.
B3.3ElementRecombination
Asmattercyclesandenergyflowsthroughdifferentlevelsoforganizationoflivingsystems
cells,organs,organisms,andcommunitiesandbetweenlivingsystemsandthephysical
environment,chemicalelementsarerecombinedindifferentways.Eachrecombinationresultsin
storageanddissipationofenergyintotheenvironmentasheat.Matterandenergyareconservedin
eachchange.
EssentialQuestion:Whatarethedifferentlevelsoforganismswithinanecosystem,and
howisenergytransferredthroughout?
B3.3AUseafoodwebtoidentifyanddistinguishproducers,consumers,anddecomposersand
explainthetransferofenergythroughtrophiclevels.
Objectives:
Students will understand how energy is stored in an ecosystem
Students will evaluate how energy is transferred through an
ecosystem.
Anticipatory Set:
Ask students where they think energy comes from in an ecosystem. Fish
tank Method.
Content Outline:
A. Anticipatory Set (10 Minutes)
a. Fish Tank Method, make sure student is not afraid of answer
questions in front of their peers.
b. Ask student where they think energy comes from in an
ecosystem, then direct flow of energy through the conversation.
B. Transition to video of Energy flow in an Ecosystem: (10 minutes)
a. Watch video.
i. http://study.com/academy/lesson/food-chains-trophiclevels-and-energy-flow-in-an-ecosystem.html
b. Discuss video with students afterwards.
C. Transition into Energy Flow PowerPoint (30 Minutes)
a. Go through PowerPoint (See Attached)
b. Use Check Points during presentation.
D. Give a heads-up on following lessons. (10 Minutes)
E. Homework: brainstorm what types of producers and consumers are in
ecosystems in the area in which the students live.
Formative/Summative Assessment:
Formative Assessment:
After video discuss what students learned. During PowerPoint use check
points to make sure students understand concepts.
Summative Assessment:
On exam, ask students in what ways energy is stored in an ecosystem. Then
ask how that energy is transferred through an ecosystem.
Materials:
PowerPoint and Video (check link before using)
Closure:
Students will brainstorm about producers and consumers and how energy is
transferred through ecosystems in the area in which they live.
Effectiveness:
Age Appropriate/Intriguing: Uses the area in which students live to further
understanding of the ecosystem.
Literacy Enrichment:
Have students complete KWL box at the start of class. After students
complete first two sections of this strategy box, introduce the new unit
vocabulary. For assessment and checking for understanding of the new
vocabulary words, ask students to turn in KWL boxes at the end of
class. Students may use pictures to describe words if they would like.
Objectives:
Students will examine the flow of energy in an ecosystem.
Students will distinguish the differences between producers,
consumers and decomposers.
Anticipatory Set:
Ask the students what they ate for breakfast/lunch, and then guide the
students to understand if what they ate was a producer, consumer or
decomposer in an ecosystem.
Content Outline:
A. Anticipatory Set (About 10 Minutes)
a. Ask students about breakfast/lunch
b. Guide the students to a conclusion on what trophic level their
food was from.
B. Transition to Scrambled Food Chain Worksheet (15 Minutes)
a. Students work independently on worksheet (See Attached)
C. Go over worksheet with students after completion. (10 Minutes)
a. (Key is attached)
D. Divide students into their groups (30 Minutes)
a. About 4 students per group.
b. Hand out Classifying Cards Worksheet (See Attached)
i. Have students in their groups arrange the cards into a food
web.
ii. Students will use arrows to draw the flow of energy through
each trophic level.
iii. Ask students as they work on project, why certain
organisms are in certain areas.
c. Once students complete activity, ask the class what would
happen if you removed an organism from the food web.
i. Students post answer to this on the blog for Homework.
E. Have students look at the following graph:
a. Hypothesize what occurred to cause the change in populations.
b. Graphic:
Formative/Summative Assessment:
Formative Assessment:
As students work on classifying cards worksheet, asking groups questions
will show understanding of concepts.
Summative Assessment:
On test, ask students to draw a food web given a few organisms from each
category. Then ask what would happen if you removed one of the organisms.
Materials:
Scramble Food Chain Worksheet, Classifying Cards Worksheet
Closure:
Students will understand the different trophic levels within a food web.
Students will understand how energy is transferred through each level of
organisms. Students will understand what happens if an organism is
removed from their food web. They will demonstrate this through posting
their response on the blog.
Effectiveness:
Age Appropriate/Intriguing: Through anticipatory set, students will
connect with the lesson immediately. All of the organisms in worksheets are
easily recognized.
Literacy Enrichment:
Pass out the supplemental reading for material for the unit. Have students
record any terms or words they do not understand in the text for the
assessment of the literacy enrichment.
Objectives:
Set up for Article Project activity.
Describe Ecosystem Stability:
o Understand the meaning of Ecosystem Stability in their own
words.
o Evaluate the consequences of a disaster upon an ecosystem
Recognize and describe a great diversity of species increase
chance of survival:
o Evaluate the diversity of species in an ecosystem and the
positive effects it has.
Anticipatory Set:
Ask students their defection of Ecosystem Stability. In groups discuss
how a flood or fire can damage an ecosystem. Then bring discussion to
a big picture.
Content Outline:
A. Begin with anticipatory set: (10 Minutes)
a. Divide students into groups
b. Ask students to discuss the initial question.
c. Bring class together to explain big picture.
B. Explain to students the article project for next lesson.
C. Transition to PowerPoint lecture. (15-20 Minutes)
a. PowerPoint (See Attached)
D. Have students discuss with groups the impact of a flood in the
community, how it would affect humans. (10 Minutes)
a. Then transition how it would affect organisms in the ecosystems.
E. Homework: (10 Minutes)
a. Start brainstorming natural disasters that have occurred in past,
and how they affected an ecosystem.
b. Jot down ideas about brainstorm ideas to turn in next class
period.
Formative/Summative Assessment:
Formative: The discussions after the lecture should bring more
direction in comparison to the first discussion question.
Summative: Article Project (Next Lesson)
Materials:
PowerPoint (See Attached)
Closure: Students should have a better understanding of an ecosystems
stability. Understand that natural disasters occur, and the ecosystem will
eventually recover over a period of time. The students should be able to
interpret the graph at the end of the PowerPoint lecture, and apply their
learning from earlier slides.
Effectiveness:
Age Appropriate: at students learning level, applying science concepts
such as reading graphs, applicable to students lives depending on
time of year (I.E. forest fires).
Literacy Enrichment:
Allow students to use a resource of their choosing, and bring it to class.
Have the students perform a three minute presentation on the information
they researched and teach the class any additional information (not talked
about in class) about any subject in the unit that was already taught. This
allows students to understand the material in addition it give them the
opportunity to demonstrate their understanding of the material while
teaching it. The assessment for this assignment will be the presentation and
the knowledge the individual obtained from performing the task.
Objectives:
Students will analyze an article, and then collaborate as a group their
thoughts on the article.
Students will apply their knowledge from the article to previous lesson.
Students will collaborate with each other to further understand main
concepts from state objectives/previous lesson.
Anticipatory Set (10 Minutes)
Review previous lesson, bring up homework. Have conversation about
natural disasters that have occurred in past. Explain the lesson:
Students get an article (3 different articles are available). Students get
into reading groups with peers that have similar article.
Content Outline:
A. Anticipatory Set (5 Minutes)
B. Students receive one of the following articles (Print Outs Included) (5
Minutes)
a. https://www.insidescience.org/content/threats-sharks-threatenentire-ecosystems/1351
b. http://news.ubc.ca/1998/08/13/archive-ubcreports-199898aug13-feller/
c. http://www.ducks.org/conservation/wetlands/the-positive-effectsof-drought/page3
C. Students then read article in their reading groups. (20 Minutes)
a. Reading groups: groups in which the students can read the same
article together in whatever way they choose.
D. Once students are done reading article, they discuss in their groups
their thoughts. (15 Minutes)
a. Students write down a short summary of the article, tying in
concepts from previous lesson.
b. Students will realize environmental disasters are not always a
negative for an ecosystem.
c. Bring this discussion to the big picture. Discuss as a classroom.
E. Large-scale discussion as a classroom about all three articles. (5
minutes)
F. Homework:
Formative/Summative Assessment:
Summative: On exam, students give an example of a natural disaster, and
how it affected an ecosystem. Explain how an ecosystem regrows after a
natural disaster.
Formative: Group discussion as a class, along with checking in on groups
during small discussion.
Materials:
3 different articles. (See Attached)
Closure: Students should have a better understanding of an ecosystems
stability. Understand that natural disasters occur, and the ecosystem will
eventually recover over a period of time. Lastly, students will recognize that
there are many different types of disasters, natural and human caused.
Effectiveness:
Student level, applies to current events, gives students a chance to further
understand natural disasters and their affects on an ecosystem.
Literacy Enrichment:
Students will receive these articles early in the unit. They will then read the
article in a reading group with diverse reading levels. This will give lower
level readers an opportunity to communicate with their peers if they do not
understand a particular word or phrase.
Objectives:
Examine the negative impact of human activities.
o Analyze how humans affected ecosystems?
o Evaluate how we can reduce our impact on ecosystems
o Create a plan for your lifestyle to have less of an impact on
ecosystems.
Anticipatory Set:
Show an image of trash on beach, ask students what kind of objects
they see in image. Then ask how these objects would affect the
ecosystem on the beach. Perhaps create groups in the class to discuss
with each other the question above, and then share their ideas with
the class. At end explain how human actions affect many ecosystems,
when it can be prevented.
Content Outline:
A. Begin with anticipatory set question (10 minutes)
a. Divide class into groups; ask them to analyze the picture.
b. Students share ideas with class.
c. Explain how human actions impact the ecosystems, even though
it can be prevented.
B. Transition to PowerPoint describing human activity on ecosystems. (1520 minutes)
a. Lead into a discussion about how each student can reduce their
impact on an ecosystem.
C. Students get back into groups; develop a plan to reduce their impact
on the ecosystem in their area. (20 minutes)
a. Write/draw/act out their choices they could make in their lives.
i. Examples:
1. Write: Less dumping of waste in landfills, use less
pesticides/herbicides, properly recycle/reuse
materials.
2. Draw: above statements.
3. Act out above statements.
b. If groups want to act out, they present their skit after 20
minutes. (10 minutes)
D. Homework:
a. Describe a plan of action they can make at their homes to lower
their impact on ecosystem
b. Write the plan on a half sheet of paper, and then turn in next
class period.
i. Examples:
1. Recycling of materials.
2. Reusing of materials.
Formative/Summative Assessment:
Formative: Group answers from Part C.
Summative: Ask a few questions involving how humans impacted
ecosystems from PowerPoint (general questions).
Give an example of how you can leave less of an impact on the
ecosystem in your area.
Materials:
PowerPoint (file in folder, copy of slides attached), example of answers
for Part C, and Homework are included above.
Closure:
Humans have affected ecosystems by dumping or creating buildings
where previous ecosystems have been established. In addition to this,
fields are created for farming and using herbicides and pesticides while
farming. Humans can prevent their impact on ecosystems by reducing
the amount they affect an ecosystem. This can be done by:
building/using areas of land properly, recycling/reusing materials,
properly disposing of waste/reducing waste, etc.
Effectiveness:
Age appropriate: understandable content for students, incorporates
their daily lives, discussions, and different forms of demonstrating
comprehension.
B3.5Populations
B3.5Populations
Populationsoflivingthingsincreaseanddecreaseinsizeastheyinteractwithotherpopulations
andwiththeenvironment.Therateofchangeisdependentuponrelativebirthanddeathrates.
EssentialQuestion:Inwhatwaysarepopulationsaffectedwhentheyinteractwithother
populationsortheenvironment?
B3.5AGraphchangesinpopulationgrowth,givenadatatable.
B3.5BExplaintheinfluencesthataffectpopulationgrowth.
B3.5CPredicttheconsequencesofaninvadingorganismonthesurvivalofotherorganisms.
Objectives:
Students will analyze the effects of two species growing alone and
together.
Students will evaluate how the availability of resources, such as food,
can limit population growth.
Students will create a graph of population growth using the table they
created in the Virtual Lab.
Anticipatory Set:
What happens when an animal of the same genome is inserted into an
ecosystem? Can you think of any invasive species that have harmed an
ecosystem? How has this affected the population growth of the ecosystem?
Content Outline:
A. Begin with Anticipatory Set (About 10 minutes)
a. Students may collaborate with each other to develop an answer
to the questions.
B. Students will assemble into predetermined groups of two. (5 minutes)
a. Each group will receive one worksheet (attached) and sit at one
computer or tablet. (Unless there are enough computers or
tablets for each student. Then there will be no partners.)
C. Students will access the Virtual Lab (http://glencoe.mcgrawhill.com/sites/dl/free/0078757134/383928/BL_04.html) on their device
(computer/tablet) and work through the procedure given on the
website and fill in their findings on the worksheet. (30 Minutes)
a. If students do not finish Virtual Lab, they can complete the lesson
at home.
D. Closure: (15 minutes)
a. Review as a class their findings, if they completed the Virtual
Lab.
i. Discuss what happened when the species are grown
separately and together in the same media.
1. Explain what factors go into population growth.
(resources=food, water, space, energy, etc.)
ii. Discuss what the population growth graph looked like and
why it appears the way it does. (Separate species should
exponentially increase then reach a maximum. Species
grown together will compete for space/resources, very slow
growth, and reach maximum sooner than separated
species.)
iii. Wrap this into how an invasive organism can affect other
organisms when a competition of resources occurs.
(Correlate answer to 1 above.)
Formative/Summative Assessment:
Formative Assessment: as students conduct Virtual Lab, asking
questions as I walk around about their hypothesis is true or false.
Summative Assessment: Quiz/Exam questions:
Create a graph based on the data table of population vs. time.
Explain what limits a population, with examples of the limitations.
Explain in what ways an invasive species affects a niche/population.
Homework:
If student does not finish Virtual Lab/Worksheet, they can complete it at a
Library or on their home computer/tablet.
Effectiveness:
Age appropriate. Students can visualize and make changes in the Virtual Lab
to notice a difference. Students will create a hypothesis, and evaluate their
hypothesis throughout lab.