5b: Students know matter is transferred over time from one organism to others in the food web and between organisms and the physical environment.

Transcription

1 5 E Lesson Plan Title: Energy and Biomass Pyramids Grade Level and Course: 6 th Grade, Earth Science 10 th grade, Biology Materials: Role cards: 16 diatoms (primary producers) 8 copepods (primary consumers) 4 herring (secondary consumers) 2 chum salmon (tertiary consumers) 1 killer whale (the teacher!) Plastic or paper chips or markers (48 green) Chart Paper Instructional Resources Used: (concept maps, websites, think-pair-share, video clips, random selection of students etc.) Think- Pair-Share: Teacher will show students a picture of animals grazing in the field. Teacher will ask students to think about where the energy used by all organisms comes from, and how energy is cycled within the ecosystem. Students will think, discuss with an elbow partner, then share out with the rest of the class. Teacher will script students answers on the board. California State Standards: (written out) 6 th Grade, Earth Science 5b: Students know matter is transferred over time from one organism to others in the food web and between organisms and the physical environment. 10 th grade, Biology 6f: Students know at links in a food web, some energy is stored in newly made structures but much energy is dissipated into the environment as heat. This dissipation may be represented in an energy pyramid. Lesson Objectives: Students will be able to model the flow of energy within a food web and model the distribution of energy using an energy pyramid. Differentiation Strategies to meet the needs of diverse learners: English Learners: Using index cards, students will create picture cards to illustrate a food web within their immediate environment, and identify the roles of different organisms. Special Education: Students will use pictures clipped from magazines to categorize organisms as producers, consumers or decomposers and link these organisms to show energy flow. GATE: Students will perform mathematical calculations to estimate the

2 amount of energy present at each trophic level of an energy pyramid, when given amount of energy available at the producer level. ENGAGE Describe how the teacher will capture the students interest. What kind of questions should the students ask themselves after the engagement? Teacher will engage students in a discussion about what foods they ate that day, and guide students as they trace the source of energy for each food. Questions students should ask themselves: 1. What kinds of organisms are classified as producers? Consumers? Decomposers? 2. How are energy and biomass pyramids used to model the flow of energy within the ecosystem? 3. How much energy is available at each trophic level, as energy flows within an ecosystem? EXPLORE Describe the hands-on laboratory activity that the students will be doing. List the big idea conceptual questions that the teacher will ask to focus the student exploration. Students will participate in a role-playing activity where they will forage for food while attempting to avoid being eaten by predators. Killed prey organisms will pass on their energy to predators by handing over their energy circles. At the end of the activity, students will create food chains and a food web representing the activity, and create an energy pyramid to model the flow of energy within the ecosystem. Big Idea Conceptual Questions: 1. How well do energy pyramids model the flow of energy in an ecosystem? 2. How much energy do organisms use, and how much of that energy is lost as it is passed along in an ecosystem? 3. How do energy pyramids compare and differ from biomass pyramids? EXPLAIN What is the big idea concept that students should have internalized from doing the exploration? List the higher order questions that the teacher will ask to solicit student explanations for their laboratory outcomes, and justify their explanations. Big Idea Concept: 1. In food chains and webs, energy flows from producers to consumers. When producers and consumers die, their energy is returned to the earth by decomposers. 2. Energy pyramids model the distribution of energy within an ecosystem. 3. Biomass pyramids model the distribution of living matter within an ecosystem. Higher order Questions: 1. Does energy transfer completely from one level to the next? 2. Where should the sun be added to the pyramid?

3 EVALUATE 3. Why are there only a limited number of top predators (i.e. killer whales in the ocean)? How will the student demonstrate their new understanding and/or skill? Students will create a poster using 3 models (food chains, food webs, and energy pyramids) to illustrate energy flow within their community. Trophic levels of organisms drawn will be identified. What is the learning product for the lesson? Student posters. EXTEND Explain how students will develop a more sophisticated understanding of the concept. How is this knowledge applied in our daily lives? 1. Students should create a poster to visually compare energy pyramids, biomass pyramids and pyramid of numbers. 2. Students should come up with their own models to show energy distribution within an ecosystem to include decomposers. Background Knowledge for the Teacher: Food chains and webs are used to represent the flow of energy through a community from one trophic level to the next. Some other models employed to show the distribution of energy, matter, or numbers of organisms within an ecosystem are energy pyramids, biomass pyramids, and pyramid of numbers respectively. On an energy pyramid, the greatest amount of energy is found at the base (producer level) and energy decreases as it moves along the trophic levels. In general, 90% of energy is lost as energy moves from one trophic level to the next. Source: Medley, Dean. Biology: reviewing the essentials. New York, N.Y.: Amsco School Publications, Print. Student pages are attached.

4 Energy and Biomass Pyramids Objectives: Students will participate in an activity to role-play how energy if transferred from one organism to the next within an ecosystem Materials: Role cards 16 diatoms (primary producers) 8 copepods (primary consumers) 4 herring (secondary consumers) 2 chum salmon (tertiary consumers) 1 killer whale (the teacher!) Plastic or paper chips or markers, to represent energy (48 green) Chart Paper Procedures: a. Display and explain the following oceanic food chain to the class: Diatom Copepod Herring Salmon Killer Whale b. Students randomly draw an organism from a bag. c. The diatoms and copepods enter the play area first. Each diatom is given 3 green energy circles. At go, the copepods attempt to eat the diatoms by tagging them. When a diatom is tagged, it must give up one of its energy circles. d. After 30 seconds, the herring enter the area. When a herring tags a copepod, it receives two energy circles. e. After 30 more seconds, the salmon enter. They receive four circles when they tag a herring. f. Finally, the killer whale enters. It receives eight circles per salmon tag. g. At the conclusion of the game, have students record the number of energy circles accumulated by each level on a chart. Have students make observations about the greater energy needs of each higher level.

5 Results: Organism Diatom Energy Circles Accumulated Copepod Herring Salmon Killer Whale Analysis Questions: 1. What trends do you notice in where the energy circles are? 2. Does energy transfer completely from one level to the next? 3. If you were to place your organisms and numbers on a pyramid, how might it look? 4. Where should the sun be added to the pyramid? (the source of all energy) 5. What are some possible explanations for why all of the energy does not transfer to the next level? 6. Why are there only a limited number of top predators (i.e. killer whales) in the ocean? 7. Write a paragraph to summarize how energy is transferred between organisms in an ecosystem, using examples from the activity you just completed.

6 Diatoms:

7 Copepods:

8 Herring:

9

10 Salmon: Killer Whale: