What+is+an+Ecosystem

=**Lesson One - Ecosystems**=

__Essential Question__: What is an ecosystem?

__Objective__: SWBAT define an ecosystem

__Materials:__ Class Poster (KWL) Sticky Notes Science Journals [|What is an Ecosystem] Activity Websites:
 * 1) [|What is an Ecosystem (KidCyber)]
 * 2) [|Geography4Kids - Biosphere]
 * 3) [|Earth Floor - Biomes]
 * 4) [|Definition of an Ecosystem]



__Do Now__: On a sticky note, students write down what they believe an ecosystem is. When finished, students will place their post it note on a large KWL chart under K

__Mini Lesson__: Take picture (ie: grasslands) and ask “what do you see? What is this? What about the ants, water, etc?” Start building a foundation for “ecosystem” definition. Then show the Ecosystem YouTube Video and have students take notes on “What is an Ecosystem?” After watching, list examples of Ecosystems that were mentioned in the video and other “not so traditional” ecosystems.

__Activity:__ Students will work in groups to read and report on the content from one of five different websites about ecosystems. Students will be required to take notes in their science notebooks and share their finding with the classroom using a Google Doc set up to share results. After everyone has shared out, and students have added notes from all groups into their science journal, the class will develop a working definition of “ECOSYSTEM”

__Project Task__: What is an Ecosystem? Handout

__Assessment__:
 * 1) Classwork - Google Doc and Classroom Discussion
 * 2) Concept - Can students explain what an Ecosystem is in their Science Journal
 * 3) Homework - Completion of "What is an Ecosystem" handout

__Standards__:

3. Individual organisms and species change over time. 5. Organisms maintain a dynamic equilibrium that sustains life. 7. Human decisions and activities have had a profound impact on the physical and living environment.
 * MST Learning Standards **
 * Standard 4—Science - Intermediate **

2. Technological tools, materials, and other resources should be selected on the basis of safety, cost, availability, appropriateness, and environmental impact; technological processes change energy, information, and material resources into more useful forms. 3. Computers, as tools for design, modeling, information processing, communication, and system control, have greatly increased human productivity and knowledge. 5. Technology has been the driving force in the evolution of society from an agricultural to an industrial to an information base. Students:
 * Standard 5 – Technology - Intermediate **


 * NYS - The Living Environment Core Curriculum**
 * Grades 5-8**

4. recognize and analyze patterns and trends 5. classify objects according to an established scheme and a student-generated scheme 7. sequence events 8. identify cause-and-effect relationships 9. use indicators and interpret results
 * General Skills **

6. classify living things according to a student-generated scheme and an established scheme 9. identify structure and function relationships in organisms
 * Living Environment Skills **

Individual organisms and species change over time. 3.1b Changes in environmental conditions can affect the survival of individual organisms with a particular trait. Small differences between parents and offspring can accumulate in successive generations so that descendants are very different from their ancestors. Individual organisms with certain traits are more likely to survive and have offspring than individuals without those traits. 3.2a In all environments, organisms with similar needs may compete with one another for resources.
 * Key Idea 3: **

Human decisions and activities have had a profound impact on the physical and living environment. 7.1a A population consists of all individuals of a species that are found together at a given place and time. Populations living in one place form a community. The community and the physical factors with which it interacts compose an ecosystem. 7.1c In all environments, organisms interact with one another in many ways. Relationships among organisms may be competitive, harmful, or beneficial. Some species have adapted to be dependent upon each other with the result that neither could survive without the other. 7.1d Some microorganisms are essential to the survival of other living things.
 * Key Idea 7: **

Describe the effects of environmental changes on humans and other populations. 7.2a In ecosystems, balance is the result of interactions between community members and their environment.

__Blooms__:

Knowledge:
 * Selecting important information from nonfiction text to include in science journal.
 * Recalling facts and using them in group discussions and writing
 * Defining what an ecosystem is.

Comprehension:
 * Explains what an ecosystem is.
 * Rewrites what is learned from texts and lessons in class to support his or her learning
 * Predicts what type of species they will be barcoding
 * Summarizes their finding about various subjects covered in unit

Analysis
 * Compare and Contrast different Ecosystems