Introduction
Target Audience: Biology Grades 9-12
Project Description
This project based unit was developed to have students investigate the required factors for an ecosystem. During the three-week unit, students are introduced to many different concepts including how human activity has shaped the land, air, and water of the Earth, biomes, photosynthesis, the water cycle, the carbon cycle, and energy transfer within an ecosystem modeled by food webs. These concepts will be utilized throughout the unit as students build their own terrariums out of two-liter soda bottles.
In the first week, students are introduced to the term “Anthropocene,” a word used to describe the Age of Man, a short time span in which humans have improved the lives of many people, but have also caused drastic changes to the planet. After the project engagement, students are presented with the project challenge and driving question, “What combination of plants, animals, and inorganic resources is required to successfully create an enclosed, sustainable, artificial biosphere?” In order to answer this question, students will be expected to build a terrarium based on a biome of their choice. For the rest of the week, students investigate and learn about different biomes and the water cycle. Days are given for students to apply what they learn to their own terrariums.
In the second week, students will gain a better understanding of photosynthesis and its reactants with a two-day benchmark lesson. Photosynthesis will also be related to the carbon cycle and energy transfer within an ecosystem. In addition, students will be building food webs to demonstrate their knowledge of producers, consumers, and decomposers. Just like the first week, students will be given time to investigate the new concepts in their own terrariums.
The third week will start with students visiting the Butterfly Rainforest at the University of Florida. This field trip will give students a chance to interact and observe a large-scale, fully-operating, enclosed ecosystem. They will compare the Butterfly Rainforest to their own enclosed ecosystems. Questions such as “are there any resources that must be continually added to the Butterfly Rainforest,” “what could be done to make it completely sustainable, and “how does this relate to your terrarium?” will be addressed. The rest of the week will give students time to make final observations of their terrariums and organize their findings for a poster presentation where students will present their recommendations of what is required to build a sustainable ecosystem. Their posters will be created as if an engineering firm had contracted them to do the model ecosystems as preliminary research for large-scale artificial biospheres that could house humans and animals.
Final Student Product
Students will create a terrarium that has a minimum of two species and that is modeled after an existing biome on Earth. Over the course of the three-week unit, students will keep a log book that records the abiotic and biotic factors added to the terrarium and their amounts as well as daily observations of the terrarium’s health, which is based upon self-made measurements of success. Terrariums can be modified at any time, but specific rationale based upon the unit’s lessons and a detailed account of the change must be provided within the log book.
In addition to the log book and terrarium, students must complete a poster presentation. The challenge is presented to students with SafeHaven, a fabricated engineering firm, hoping to create artificial biospheres large enough to house humans in response to the changes human activity has caused on Earth. Because the biospheres are still within the research phase, they are in need of qualified individuals to build and investigate small-scale, enclosed ecosystems. The poster presentations will present their conclusions to the driving question as if they were presenting it to representatives from SafeHaven. Students will present these posters to their peers. This product demonstrates students’ knowledge of what is needed to create a sustainable and enclosed ecosystem based upon the concepts addressed in the unit and answers the driving question.
Rationale
The term Anthropocene is a relatively new term to describe a time in which human activity has caused drastic changes around the globe, including altering the nitrogen and carbon cycles, deforestation, and increasing carbon dioxide emissions which affect global temperatures. This project based unit introduces the current concept to students and allows them to investigate a potential solution. This way, students are not just learning the important factors for a successful ecosystem, but are applying their knowledge to create their own ecosystem for a real-world application. Because there is not one correct answer to the driving question, students are expected to critically think about the solution, a necessary and important skill for whatever career they pursue.
Project Description
This project based unit was developed to have students investigate the required factors for an ecosystem. During the three-week unit, students are introduced to many different concepts including how human activity has shaped the land, air, and water of the Earth, biomes, photosynthesis, the water cycle, the carbon cycle, and energy transfer within an ecosystem modeled by food webs. These concepts will be utilized throughout the unit as students build their own terrariums out of two-liter soda bottles.
In the first week, students are introduced to the term “Anthropocene,” a word used to describe the Age of Man, a short time span in which humans have improved the lives of many people, but have also caused drastic changes to the planet. After the project engagement, students are presented with the project challenge and driving question, “What combination of plants, animals, and inorganic resources is required to successfully create an enclosed, sustainable, artificial biosphere?” In order to answer this question, students will be expected to build a terrarium based on a biome of their choice. For the rest of the week, students investigate and learn about different biomes and the water cycle. Days are given for students to apply what they learn to their own terrariums.
In the second week, students will gain a better understanding of photosynthesis and its reactants with a two-day benchmark lesson. Photosynthesis will also be related to the carbon cycle and energy transfer within an ecosystem. In addition, students will be building food webs to demonstrate their knowledge of producers, consumers, and decomposers. Just like the first week, students will be given time to investigate the new concepts in their own terrariums.
The third week will start with students visiting the Butterfly Rainforest at the University of Florida. This field trip will give students a chance to interact and observe a large-scale, fully-operating, enclosed ecosystem. They will compare the Butterfly Rainforest to their own enclosed ecosystems. Questions such as “are there any resources that must be continually added to the Butterfly Rainforest,” “what could be done to make it completely sustainable, and “how does this relate to your terrarium?” will be addressed. The rest of the week will give students time to make final observations of their terrariums and organize their findings for a poster presentation where students will present their recommendations of what is required to build a sustainable ecosystem. Their posters will be created as if an engineering firm had contracted them to do the model ecosystems as preliminary research for large-scale artificial biospheres that could house humans and animals.
Final Student Product
Students will create a terrarium that has a minimum of two species and that is modeled after an existing biome on Earth. Over the course of the three-week unit, students will keep a log book that records the abiotic and biotic factors added to the terrarium and their amounts as well as daily observations of the terrarium’s health, which is based upon self-made measurements of success. Terrariums can be modified at any time, but specific rationale based upon the unit’s lessons and a detailed account of the change must be provided within the log book.
In addition to the log book and terrarium, students must complete a poster presentation. The challenge is presented to students with SafeHaven, a fabricated engineering firm, hoping to create artificial biospheres large enough to house humans in response to the changes human activity has caused on Earth. Because the biospheres are still within the research phase, they are in need of qualified individuals to build and investigate small-scale, enclosed ecosystems. The poster presentations will present their conclusions to the driving question as if they were presenting it to representatives from SafeHaven. Students will present these posters to their peers. This product demonstrates students’ knowledge of what is needed to create a sustainable and enclosed ecosystem based upon the concepts addressed in the unit and answers the driving question.
Rationale
The term Anthropocene is a relatively new term to describe a time in which human activity has caused drastic changes around the globe, including altering the nitrogen and carbon cycles, deforestation, and increasing carbon dioxide emissions which affect global temperatures. This project based unit introduces the current concept to students and allows them to investigate a potential solution. This way, students are not just learning the important factors for a successful ecosystem, but are applying their knowledge to create their own ecosystem for a real-world application. Because there is not one correct answer to the driving question, students are expected to critically think about the solution, a necessary and important skill for whatever career they pursue.
Presentation of Project | |
File Size: | 7439 kb |
File Type: | pptx |