What is a good ecosystem?

CHALLENGE: Work together to assess and protect the biodiversity surrounding the school.
THE BIG IDEAS
Science standard(s)

NGSS MS LS2.B - Cycle of

Matter and Energy Transfer in
Ecosystems
NGSS MS LS2.C Ecosystem
dynamics, functioning, and
resilience
NGSS MS LS4.D Biodiversity
and Humans

Science standard(s)

NGSS MS LS2.C Ecosystem

dynamics, functioning, and
resilience

Messing About:
Biospheres

Forest Detectives

We will revisit this

throughout the course of
this lesson.

-Learning about
ecosystems.
-What makes up an
ecosystem?

WEDNESDAY
How can you tell if
nature is healthy?
Owl Pellets!
Learning about bioindicators.

Messing About:
Biosphere

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

How can you tell if

nature is healthy?

How can you tell if

nature is healthy?

Investigating the
Undergrowth.

Traveling to a World
Unseen

Exploring the school

property.

Exploring the school

stream or local stream
for macroinvertebrates.

Birds as bioindicators

Mammals as bioindicators

How can you tell if

nature is healthy?

How can you tell if

nature is healthy?

Traveling to a World
Unseen DAY 2

Traveling to a World
Unseen Day 3

Chance to revisit and

revise Biospheres

Media Decoding
Exercise ANWR
Advertisements

What Can We Do?

Explore!

Explore!

Introduce Challenge
Board:

Project Work Time

Project Work Time

Crafting your design.

Data collection.

Victory Lap!

Victory Lap!

Plants as bio-indicators

Same as above
Plus
o Scientific Method

Science standard(s)
-

TUESDAY

NGSS MS LS4.D Biodiversity

and Humans

Science standard(s)
-

MONDAY

Same as above

Explore!

Messing About:
Biosphere

Project Work Time

Data Collection.
Hows it going?
Check in with students.

Final chance to revisit

biosphere. Time for
journaling as well.

Students choose their

direction with final
project.
The Final Lap!
Time to finalize final
projects.

Groups present their

projects to principle/
next years students.

Reflection Time.
Presenting and
reflecting on
Biospheres.

Our planet is in the middle of a huge dilemma: the sixth extinction. Scientists estimate that we are losing species
at a shockingly high rate, higher than it has ever been in the past. 30-50% of all plant and animal species could go
extinct by the middle of this century.
What can be done to stop this terrible tragedy? Through conservation of land and water areas we can help to
protect the earth. How do we know what needs to be protected though? What can we do to learn about the health of an
ecosystem? How can we improve the health of an ecosystem? These are all questions that we will be exploring as we
travel through this month long unit on ecosystems.
According to Roger Tory Peterson, Birds are indicators of the environment. If they are in trouble, we know
well soon be in trouble. What Roger says here is correct, birds are indicators, bio-indicators. Over the next month
well be looking at birds and several other animal and plant groups that are also considered bio-indicators. We will
learn what a healthy ecosystem looks like and how to keep it that way or what an unhealthy ecosystem looks like and
how to improve it.
Assessing the quality of an ecosystem can come from observing the biodiversity of an area. This can be
overwhelming and time consuming, so scientists often choose a representative group in assessing environmental health.
Through this exploration of different indicator groups we will also learn the pros and cons associated with each group
and why some groups are more popular than others. So strap in, sit back and relax, because the challenge statement is
upon us.
YOUR CHALLENGE: Work together to assess and protect the biodiversity surrounding the school. Over the
next 4 weeks you will be Scientists, tasked with exploring the nature of an ecosystem and determining what makes it
healthy or unhealthy. Through the use of various bio-indicator groups as a method to assess an ecosystem, you will
explore your schools campus. How can you discover if your schools ecosystem is healthy? How can you say it is
not? Your observations and findings will be a part of a long term study to preserve and perhaps improve the health of
the schools property.