GRADE: Sixth

CONTENT STANDARD: Environmental Science

CONTENT TOPIC: Populations and Ecosystems

CONCEPT: Factors influence the stability of ecosystems.

CONTENT OBJECTIVE: 6G3.00 To understand the factors which influence the stability of ecosystems

INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES: The learner will:

3.01 describe some factors which influence the stability of ecosystems.

I. Human activities
II. Climatic conditions
III. Natural disasters
IV. Man-made disasters
V. Predators that prey on relationships
VI. Population changes

TN COMPONENT OF SCIENCE: Process Of Science

TN GOAL:

To enable students to demonstrate the process of science by posing questions and investigating phenomena through language, methods and instruments of science

1.4 ANALYZING - Data should be examined to find patterns and relationships that may suggest cause and effect or support inferences and hypotheses.

1.4a Data should be examined to find patterns and relationships.

BENCHMARK: Information is organized into simple tables and graphs to identify relationships.

TIME REQUIRED:

45 minutes per outline topic

Poster board, pictures, plastic sweater box or bag, twist-tie or rubber band, insects, soil, wood, plants and animals, articles, materials for making a bottled ecosystem (described below)

(Hold up a poster board with ECOSYSTEM written on it.) Let's look at a new word today. Let's divide the word into two words ECO and SYSTEM. We will discuss this new word in our new chapter.

Ecology is the branch of biology that deals with the interaction between living organisms and their environments. A community involves the living things in an area and how they affect each other. An ecosystem is a community of organisms or living things (Biotic) as well as the non-living things (Abiotic) that the organism interacts with. The living things consist of plants, animals, etc. and the nonliving things consist of solar energy, water, air, soil, etc. Ecosystems can exist at many levels. (Show three pictures - a forest, a desert, a lake, or other) They may be as small as a pond or as large as a tropical rain forest. Organisms decay, contributing nutrients to the soil which are then used by other organisms in the ecosystem. The energy used is almost always derived from the sun.

The stability of an ecosystem may be disrupted by non-human (Fire, flood) factors or by human (Urbanization, pollution) factors. A large disturbance (Volcanic eruption or prolonged drought) may alter or destroy an entire ecosystem.

When you study an ecosystem, you study how the nonliving and living things affect each other.

(Make a chart with these headings:

Populations

Number of Individuals

Day 1

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Keep a record of the population changes. Your ecosystem will contain more organisms than you can imagine.)

(Allow adequate time for discussion of human activities, climatic conditions, natural disasters, man-made disasters, predators, and population changes. One day per outline topic is suggested. After discussing natural disasters, have students clip out articles about natural disasters. This could lead to discussions of forest fires, droughts, rich lands, etc.)

(A miniature ecosystem can be created in a large bottle or a wide-mouth glass jar that has been thoroughly cleaned. Add a layer of crushed rock or pebbles to the bottom of the jar, then a layer of sand and soil. Add enough pond water to fill the jar to a height that allows for an air space above the water level. Allow the water to settle for about 3 days, until the water has cleared. Then, after anchoring some small water plants, add some small fish and snails. Place the mini-ecosystem in a location which provides indirect sunlight and a moderate room temperature. When the plants and animals all appear to be healthy and thriving, stopper the bottle or jar and allow the enclosed ecosystem, now balanced, to exist as a miniature balance of nature.)

Describe how people have been changing the face of the earth since prehistoric times. Name some big structures which people have built, like dams for instance. Tell how some of these structures changed the environment.

This week we have discussed ways that ecosystems have been changed by many factors. Tell your neighbor three of these factors. (pause, then summarize) From your chart of the population changes, what conclusion can you form?

Write a sentence including each of the following ecology words:

1. pollution 2. erosion 3. habitat 4. nature 5. wildlife 6. adapt 7. conservation

8. extinct 9. preserve 10. decompose 11. recycle 12. population 13. ecologist 14. species

For a terminating activity, let's all choose one factor and write a paragraph (or two) describing the factor and how it is responsible for environmental action. Following this, we will share our paragraphs with each other orally.

This is the time this file has been accessed since 02/25/98.

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