Curated OER
Down, Dung and Dirty
Students observe the changes seen in succession and the biodiversity of a community through its species richness and evenness. They create a dung culture in a clear plastic cup from horse, goat or cow dung then observe the numbers of...
Curated OER
Flowers and Plants
Students are assigned to bring five flowers. They explore flowers to distinguish different physical features of flowers. They compare and contrast different flowers to determine what features they have in common. Students develop an...
Curated OER
Dibble Pond Ecosystem
Students collect specimen and analyze it. In this biology activity, students analyze and evaluate the diversity found in specific environment. They use the correct terminology as they do their write up for the experiment.
Curated OER
And Then there Were Nun: Trees that could be endangered by the Nun Moth Invasion
Students read and article and become familiar with the danger to trees from the Nun Moth. In this Nun Moth activity, students work in groups to create visual images of vocabulary words. Students reflect on the article by assessing...
Curated OER
Connecticut Wildlife: Biodiversity and Conservation Status of Our Vertebrate Populations
Students explore the different types of vertebrates found in their area. In this environmental science lesson plan, students perform a case study on the Common Raven. They analyze data collected from research and create charts and graphs.
Curated OER
Depending On Each Other. Communities And Ecosystems
Seventh graders investigate how the ecosystems of the world has influence upon the immediate and nonimmediate environments. The interelationships of food webs is discussed. The class researches one type of ecosystem for a class project...
Curated OER
Bat Habitat
Ninth graders engage in a lesson plan to find the role of bats in the complexity of certain ecosystems. They identify where bats live and the daily role played in the ecosystem. Students also construct a bat house to help control the...
Curated OER
Ecology
Explore the rainforest with this fact building PowerPoint. With 11 slides filled with biome images, this would work well with a lecture about the different types of ecosystems. Pictures of the desert, rain forest, and forest are identified.
Curated OER
Down, Dung and Dirty
Students investigate the stages of succession in animal dung communities. They create a dung culture using fresh cow, goat or horse dung then record data on the fungal species that appear over a two week period.
Curated OER
Monitoring Aquatic Ecosystems Lesson Plan
Students perform an experiment to test the quality of the water in a marsh.
Curated OER
Ecosystems
Sixth graders perform various labs, create presentations, and do hands on activities to explore the ecosystem.
Curated OER
Daphnia and Algae: A Study of Pond Dynamics
Students observe interrelationships and interdependencies of organisms which may generate stable ecosystems. They also study that living organisms have the capacity to produce infinite sized populations, but environments and resources...
Curated OER
Making a Food Web and Learning About Ecosystems
Third graders examine the difference between a food web and food chain. They also examine the importance of the sun in a food web and food chain. Students understand what happens when you remove parts of the chain.
University of Kentucky
Beneficial Bug Scavenger Hunt
Many people think of bugs as annoying pests to be squashed, but most insects and spiders are beneficial, eating the actual pests or pollinating plants. After reviewing some of the common bugs in your area (they may differ from those...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Modeling Food Webs in Darién, Panama
It's a jungle out there! Young biologists journey to Darien, Panama to examine the intricate relationships between the organisms that inhabit the jungle. Groups begin by demonstrating an understanding of energy flow in ecosystems, then...
PBS
Bird is the Word
Tracking area birds can tell a lot about an ecosystem. Learners use that understanding as motivation to observe and record bird populations in their area. They use journaling to store their information and ultimately choose one bird as...
Curated OER
Interactions of Living Things
Is it a producer, carnivore, omnivore, scavenger, or decomposer? Different relationships among organisms are explored here. It is a simple, multiple choice assignment. Use it as a quick warm-up or quiz.
Chicago Botanic Garden
Leaf Litter Ecology Lab
Some organisms spend their entire lives in leaf litter. The third in a series of six is a great lesson exploring the community of leaf litter. Groups gather and then spread leaf litter over white paper and remove leaves/twigs while...
Sea World
Arctic Animals
Discover the coldest animals in the world with a lesson about the Arctic habitat. Kids use a glossary and information sheet about animals found in the Arctic Circle to complete several activities, including tracking the lemming...
NOAA
Invertebrates
Crabs and lobsters ... yum! The 18th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program focuses on invertebrate marine life. After the lecture slideshow, learners conduct an activity to sample...
American Museum of Natural History
Feed the Birds
Scholars use a large carton, string, an emery board, and bird food to create a hand-made bird feeder. After completing the craft, pupils keep a journal to track their observations.
Earth Day Network
The Neolithic Revolution
With the abundance of food products we can easily access in our society today, it is easy to forget the toll this can take on our global environment. Young learners will discover how the transition to agriculture and domesticated living...
Curated OER
Acid Rain
Create a simulation of acid rain in your classroom with lemon juice and bean plants to help kids study the effects of pollution on plants. In addition, learners will listen to a story and write responses based on guiding questions.
Curated OER
Survivor
Seventh graders investigate changes in the ecosystem within the school year. They see that ecosystems, communities, populations, and organisms are dynamic and change over time. They, in groups, collect data in quadrants in the fall,...