THE ECO-CONNECTION*2012

Transcription

1 THE ECO-CONNECTION*2012 Grade Level: 5th Setting: (part I) field trip to a natural area in Fort Collins, (optional part II) at Eco-Week. Theme/Bottom Line: Living things are connected to non-living elements in an ecosystem through their interactions. (Landforms are a non-living element.) Description: Students look for living and non-living elements interacting as evidence of an ecosystem, first in a one meter square, then in a larger area, then optionally at Eco-Week to understand the importance of the non-living elements including landforms. BIAS: Awareness Recommended Time- 30 minutes Recommended Group Size: students FOSS Kit: Landforms/EcoWeek State Standards: Earth Systems Science 3.2 Evaluate evidence that Earth s geosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere interact as a complex system. Earth s surface changes constantly through a variety of processes and forces. Materials: Worksheet, clipboard, pencil, hand lens for each student Index cards Noise maker for naturalist (naturalist provides their own) Meter stick frame Extra copies of the Eco-Table and worksheet. Nat Note: For this activity it is imperative that you study the eco-table and have a clear understanding of the elements of an ecosystem and how they interact. Background information is provided in the kit. The goals of this lesson are to: Teach students the definition of an ecosystem, living and non-living things interacting in a system Help them understand the difference between non-living and not living/dead (seems simple, until you start to apply the concept) Highlight the importance of non-living elements (especially landforms)- which probably is a surprise to students who usually focus on the living things in nature as the most important. PART 1: Introduction: 1. Ask students if they are going to eco-week? Ask if anyone knows what eco means. (eco is home in Greek) So that means that eco/logy is the study of homes. But.. whose home? (Our home; the planet we share with other living things.) Living things depend on each other to survive. For example you eat animals and plants. But.. plants need some things we haven t mentioned yet. (water, sunlight, soil) Right! Now you have defined an ecosystem. It is: #1 living things, #2 non-living things and #3 the interactions that occur

2 between them. Landforms are a non-living element. Perhaps landforms seem boring to you- we hope that after this activity, you ll appreciate the importance of landforms to all living things in nature. Or as we say, Colorado landforms rock! 2. Next lay out your one meter square and ask if a space this small can be an ecosystem. Remind them of the three necessary components (living things, non-living things, and the interactions between them.) This would be a great time to point out the difference between non-living and not living/dead. Dead once was living (dead plants, dead animals) but nonliving never was alive (such as temperature, water, elevation, shade/sun, rocks, weather). This may seem obvious but you will need to repeat it often. 3. The concept of interactions may be difficult at first. Ask the students how many of them own or use computers. Ask them to name the parts of the computers ( monitor, keyboard, cables, power tower, software etc.) Now ask them if any of these component parts are of any use by themselves. They will all be in agreement that the parts need to be hooked up to each other in order to work. Draw the comparison to nature. We have loads of component parts ( rocks, plants, sunshine, insects, animals etc) but they have to interact with each other in order to make an eco-system. Like the computer SYSTEM. 3. Now divide the group into 4 teams by calling out rocks, water, sunlight, landforms as you point to each student. Have each team stand on one side of the meter square. Ask the students to study the space and as a team name one living to living interaction or one living to non-living interaction OR one non-living to non-living interaction. Nat Note: All teams may have trouble because the interactions may not be immediately obvious. We want students to learn observation skills and thinking of nature in a new way. Give students some time to think and look. Then offer lots of suggestions and guidance. This part of the lesson teaches students what to look for and how to look. Don t hold back on your examples; point out what you see! Don t worry about giving away the answers- that is the purpose of this section. The eco-table suggests teachable elements that may be present. 4. Ask the students if they are surprised that such a small area can be an ecosystem. Ask if they think the Natural Area is also an ecosystem. They can see living and non-living elements all around them. But they will have to search to find the interactions! Body: 1. Direct students to the Eco-Connection Search page in their journal; give each student a hand lens, clipboard and pencil. 2. Remind the students of the evidence they looked for in the meter square (living elements, non-living elements and interactions). They will be working in the same four teams. All four teams are going to search for interactions. Remind students to think about landforms as one of the non-living elements that can interact with a living element or a non-living element. 2. To challenge the teams to look carefully, explain that you have secretly chosen 2 or more interactions that you think are very unique. You have written them on index cards; show the cards folded and put them in your pocket. You have also flagged 2 unique interactions which each team must visit and try to observe what interaction is occurring. Nat Note: When you choose both the secret and flagged interactions, try to pick examples that are obviously visible but stretch the interaction concept such as a healthy green plant sitting there on its own (if its green it is getting sunlight, it doesn t have to compete for light).

3 3. Time the exploration for 10 minutes. Discuss the boundaries, call back signal and rules.stay on the trail! Remind the students to help their team mates and write enough to be able to explain what they find. 4. While they are searching circulate and help them look for the less obvious components. Use the chart for ideas and refer back to what you pointed out in the meter square. 5. When time is up call the group back together. Have the teams share some of their best findings. If a team found one of your secret interactions, use your noisemaker (whistle, duck call, party horn whatever you have) to celebrate the find. Show the index card to prove the match. After each team has had an opportunity to share, then ask about the flagged locations and see if they observed the interaction you intended when you flagged it. They might have observed other correct responses. Recognize those and point out that there are lots of interactions going on here. In fact the more they look, the more they will find! Conclusion: 1. Compliment the students on their observational skills, and great team work. Call out some of the really cool interactions they found. Thank them for their work. 2. If applicable, remind the students about their upcoming Eco-Week. Ask what might be different in that location. What non-living landform element will be there? (mountains) How will that change the living elements they find? 3. Landforms are an important factor in creating different living conditions (elevation, temperature, wind and moisture). That is one reason landforms are so important to study. Ask the students if they can now see the eco-connection between landforms and the rest of nature. Nat Note: Students can repeat this activity at their eco-week location or at school. Offer the teacher a copy of the worksheet and the Eco-Tables. This lesson was written by Zoë Whyman, Susan Schafer, and Dolores Daniels of the City of Fort Collins Natural Areas Department.

4 ECO-TABLE (but these are just a good start!) Living Biotic Soil (bits of once living plants and animals) Grasses Flowers Trees and Leaves Shrubs Algae (perhaps in water) Fungus/lichen Non-living Abiotic Soil (crumbled rocks) *Landforms/ Elevation (very important in Colorado elevation creates temperature and moisture variations that create life zones as you rise in elevation). Rocks *Landforms/Water as well as dryness (very imp in CO- water availability separates the riparian habitats from the prairie habitats) Interactions (what is happening) Decay (bacteria, insects, moisture interacting with plant or animal) Any green plant (evidence that living plant is interacting with nonliving sunlight) Damaged plants (weather interacting with plants, seasons interacting with plants) Seeds, roots, parts of plants Standing dead plants, downed branches Dead plants or parts indicate it was once living Bits of plants in the soil Insects Spiders Mammals Birds Amphibians Sunlight as well as shade Weather (such as wind, snow, rain, ice) (weather is influenced by landforms- e.g. wet and dry sides of mountains) Temperature Landforms/ Aspect (direction a location faces)- for example, north facing slopes are cooler and more moist thus have different vegetation patterns. Scat (animal ate a plant or animal) Wetland or upland plant presence- (indicates water availability) Any plant rooted in soil (living interacting with non-living and previously living)

5 Tracks Fur Feathers Bird calls Skins Teeth Scat Bones Nests Galls Ant hills Bacteria Seasonal changes (the earth s tilt in relation to the sun, causes day length to vary, temperatures to vary, moisture variations and weather patterns) Chemistry (the availability of different nutrients/ elements/ pollutants in soil or air influences which plants can live there, thus which animals can feed on the plants) Disease (2 living elements interacting such as a gall on plant which is caused by an insect interacting with plant) Blowing grasses are spreading seeds- (a living thing, grass interacting with nonliving, wind) Birds calling/chasing each other (2 living things interacting) Homes (ants (living) may use rocks (non-living) to build home; snakes (living) may burrow into soil (living and non-living), snakes (living) may warm themselves on a rock (nonliving) or in the sun (nonliving)