Kristine Calderon

Title of Lesson: Create your own habitat

Length of Lesson: 50 min; weekly observations

Description of Class: High School Biology

Source of Lesson: http://www.eduref.org/cgi-bin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/Lessons/Science/Ecology/ECL0014.html

http://accessexcellence.org/AE/ATG/data/released/0079-KarinWesterling/index.html

TEKS:

(1) Scientific processes. The student, for at least 40% of instructional time, conducts field and laboratory investigations using safe, environmentally appropriate, and ethical practices. The student is expected to:

(A) demonstrate safe practices during field and laboratory investigations; and

(B) make wise choices in the use and conservation of resources and the disposal or recycling of materials.

(2) Scientific processes. The student uses scientific methods during field and laboratory investigations. The student is expected to:

(A) plan and implement investigative procedures including asking questions, formulating testable hypotheses, and selecting equipment and technology;

(B) collect data and make measurements with precision;

(D) communicate valid conclusions.

(4) Science concepts. The student knows the relationships of biotic and abiotic factors within habitats, ecosystems, and biomes. The student is expected to:

(A) identify indigenous plants and animals, assess their role within an ecosystem, and compare them to plants and animals in other ecosystems and biomes;

(C) evaluate the impact of human activity such as methods of pest control, hydroponics, organic gardening, or farming on ecosystems;

(D) predict how the introduction, removal, or reintroduction of an organism may alter the food chain and affect existing populations; and

(E) predict changes that may occur in an ecosystem if biodiversity is increased or reduced.

(5) Science concepts. The student knows the interrelationships among the resources within the local environmental system. The student is expected to:

(A) summarize methods of land use and management;

(B) identify source, use, quality, and conservation of water;

(D) identify renewable and non-renewable resources that must come from outside an ecosystem such as food, water, lumber, and energy;

(E) analyze and evaluate the economic significance and interdependence of components of the environmental system; and

(F) evaluate the impact of human activity and technology on land fertility and aquatic viability.

Overview: This lesson allows students to observe and maintain a bottle habitat and assess the impact of different environmental disturbances.

Objectives:

SWBAT

1. Identify parts of an ecosystem

2. Observe an ecosystem

3. Describe how an environmental disturbance affects an ecosystem

Resources, Materials, and Supplies:

2 two-liter pop bottles for each group
water source
light source
guppies
elodea
duckweed
water snails
sand
scissors
computer

Safety Considerations : They will be using animal life—don’t kill them.

Supplementary Materials: None

Engage

What the teacher does	Questions	Student Response
Ask students questions about the kinds of non-domesticated animals they see around the Austin area.	Where are they located? What do they eat? What are possible predators? What do they need to survive?	Various Answers
Explain that they will be creating a habitat that they will be observing over the course of the unit.

Explore

What the teacher does

Questions

Student Response

Demonstrate how to create the bottle habitat.

1. Cut the top off one bottle, at the shoulder (where it tapers). Cut the base off another bottle and score it with holes. This is the cover.

2. Fill bottom of bottle with sand, two inches deep.

3. Add water--slowly, to minimize sand displacement--and then root three ten-centimeter elodea stalks firmly in the sand. Sprinkle a small amount of duckweed onto the water's surface.

4. Let the aquaria stand overnight to let the sand settle, and to allow chlorine from water to dissipate (if tap water is used).

5. Add two guppies and two snails.

Have students group into fours and begin assembling the habitats.

Explain

What the teacher does

Questions

Student Response

Explain that they will be recording observations daily.

What are the-

changes in population

plant growth

water quality

animal growth?

Ask students what they expect to observe during the course of the experiment.

What would happen to your plant population if you added more snails?

What environmental factors do you think influenced the growth of your fish/snails/plants?

What do you think would happen if the fish population doubled?

Quadrupled?

Elaborate

What the teacher does	Questions	Student Response
Have students research pond ecology and the organisms involved in the project

Evaluate

Have students write a Local Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) describing the expected effects of an environmental disturbance (e.g. pollution, flood, paving over the ecosystem to make a Wal-Mart parking lot, Shark hunting, introduction of a foreign species, etc.). Identify the effect of the disturbance on the species in your ecosystem.

Use the list below to help you make the following declarations:
A. Extinct: Species which are completely decimated.
B. Endangered: Species which are in imminent danger of extinction.
C. Threatened: Species which are at significant risk of becoming endangered but are not in immediate danger of becoming extinct.
D. No expected change: Species with moderate to large populations, whose numbers are expected to remain stable.
E. Increased: Species whose populations increase. May be potential pests.

Prepare your EIS describing what happens to each species. The EIS should also state why you are making your predictions. Include ideas for mitigation (lessening) of the environmental impact. Be prepared to share your results with the rest of the class.

http://www.eduref.org/cgi-bin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/Lessons/Science/Ecology/ECL0014.html

http://accessexcellence.org/AE/ATG/data/released/0079-KarinWesterling/index.html