Interdependence TEKS & National Standards TEKS: 8.11B The student knows that interdependence occurs among living systems and the environment and that human activities can affect these systems. The student is expected to: Investigate how organisms and populations in an ecosystem depend on and may compete for biotic and abiotic factors such as quantity of light, water, range of temperatures, or soil composition. National Standards: The number of organisms an ecosystem can support depends on the resources available and abiotic factors, such as quantity of light and water, range of temperatures, and soil composition. Given adequate biotic and abiotic resources and no disease or predators, populations (including humans) increase at rapid rates. Lack of resources and other factors, such as predation and climate, limit the growth of populations in specific niches in the ecosystem. Prior Knowledge
Objectives
5.9A: Observe the way organisms live and survive in their ecosystem by interacting with the living and nonliving elements. 6.12E: Describe biotic and abiotic parts of an ecosystem in which organisms interact. 7.10A: Observe and describe how different environments, including microhabitats in schoolyards and biomes, support different varieties of organisms. Students will be able to distinguish how organisms depend on abiotic and biotic factors to survive. Students will be able to identify what happens when two species in the same environment occupy the same niche. Students will be able to elaborate how habitats resources affected by competition. Students will be able to complete a scientific hypothesis and a CER. COMPETITION
Engage Entry Document: Squirrel PPT: “It’s a Squirrelly World”
Explore
Explain
Research for the hypothesis: students will research about gray squirrels • Have students read the 2 blogs about CERs (claim, and red squirrels, and gather information in order to create a evidence, reasoning) and how to do them. hypothesis. • http://alwaysformative.blogspot.com/p/claimevidence-reasoning.html • http://www.edutopia.org/blog/science-inquiry-claimevidence-reasoning-eric-brunsell
Class Discussion: go over what the power • Squirrel Lab: students will go outside an perform the squirrel lab. • CER Discussion: the teacher will put up the example point was say. Some will be predators (coyotes), some will be the pray (red squirrels document of the CER examples (claim, evidence, • What important information they need to and gray squirrels). Some students are the resources (food, shelter, reasoning), and the class will discuss about what it is, know from the power point. water). The population starts out with only red squirrels, and when the and how to do it. The instructor will go over the • Independent variables, dependent teacher says go, the pray runs towards the resources, the other teacher examples with the class variables, and what a hypothesis calls for. then instructs the coyotes to get their pray. If a pray is tagged by a • Complete conclusion questions and go over as a class. • Go over what is needed to form a coyote before they get their resource, then they become a predator, if hypothesis they get a resource then the resource becomes a pray, but if they do not • Fill out independent variable and get tagged and do not get a resource they die, go through dependent variable decomposition, and then become another resource. Before the pray • Have students read the hypothesis blog. starts to get a resource they must make their sign of what resource they Then have a clarification discussion as a are going after, wave like motion for water, rub belly for food, house class. The class discusses how to create a over head for shelter. The coyotes (predators) do alligator jaws as they hypothesis, and the teacher clarifies on what are going after their pray. After about 5-8 years the teacher introduce is misunderstood. the gray squirrel. When the prays are released to go get food, the red squirrels must hop on one leg (because in their research they found the red squirrel was slower than the gray one). Do 20 trial run, and eventually the red squirrel population comes down to one or two and the gray squirrel population explodes. • Materials: • PPT (entry document) • Lab Handout for students • Hypothesis link • Computer with internet access
• Materials: • Computer with internet access • Cornell Notes page • Cite Sources page • Student lab handout
• Materials: • CER Examples • Computer with internet access • 2 blog sites
• Resources: • http://completeyourdissertation.com/ blog/270/creating-strong-hypothesisstatements/ • Squirrel lab instructions for teacher • STEM Scopes website
• Resources: • Wikipedia for modifications for regular student class • Red Squirrels Wikipedia • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_squirrel •Grey Squirrel Wikipedia • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_gray_squirrel
• 2 blog sites: •http://alwaysformative.blogspot.com/p/claimevidence-reasoning.html • http://www.edutopia.org/blog/science-inquiryclaim-evidence-reasoning-eric-brunsell • Rubric • CER Examples
Elaborate
Evaluate
• Students will practice creating CERs by creating a draft. • The teacher will evaluate the students final CER drafts. • The teacher will walk around and read students drafts, and share with class some of the ones that are on the right track. • Students should pair up with their critical friends and critique each others CERs before they turn in their CERs for a quiz grade. Critical friends will be professional about their critiques and students will take constructive criticism in a professional manor. • Go over CER rubric • Materials: • CER example • CER rubric • Computer with internet access • Resources: • The blog links for student reference • http://alwaysformative.blogspot.com/p/claim-evidence-reasoning.html • The example page for student reference •http://www.edutopia.org/blog/science-inquiry-claim-evidence-reasoning-ericbrunsell
• Materials: • CER rubric • Grade book
Teachers Guide For Squirrel Lab
PPT/ ENTRY DOCUMENT
References Brunsell, E. (2012, September 25). Designing science inquiry: claim + evidence + reasoning = explanation. Edutopia . Retrieved October 25, 2012, from http:// www.edutopia.org/blog/science-inquiry-claim-evidence-reasoning-eric-brunsell Buell, J. (2012, September 9). Always Formative: Claim Evidence Reasoning. Always Formative. Retrieved October 26, 2012, from http://alwaysformative.blogspot.com/p/ claim-evidence-reasoning.html Eastern gray squirrel . (2012, October 25). Wikipedia . Retrieved October 25, 2012, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_gray_squirrel Jain, R. (n.d.). Creating strong hypothesis statements. Dissertation coaching tips blog. Retrieved October 25, 2012, from http://completeyourdissertation.com/blog/270/ creating-strong-hypothesis-statements/ Red squirrel. (2012, October 26). Wikipedia . Retrieved October 25, 2012, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_squirrel University. (n.d.). Stemscopes. Stemscopes. Retrieved October 25, 2012, from https://coppellisd.stemscopes.com/