Unit 4: Ecology

1. Unit 4: Ecology

2. Essential Questions • What is ecology? • What factors affect population sizes and growth rates? • How do humans exploit the environment and how does this effect various ecosystems? • How can humans positively effect the environment? • What are some current conservation efforts, and where are conservation efforts heading?

3. Day 1: Ecology and Ecosystems • Required Readings: • 2.1: Ecology and Ecosystems • Learning Objectives: • To understand that living organisms require certain conditions for their survival • To understand that living organisms interact with one another, and with their non-living environment • To define population, community and ecosystem • To realize that available resources change throughout the year

4. Starter • List the different ecosystems that you know • What is the climate like in these ecosystems? • What animals and plants are present in the ecosystems? • Time: 10 minutes

5. Activity 1 • Choose one of the biomes below and complete the graphic organizer for your biome • Tundra • Tropical rain forest • Taiga • Desert • Temperate deciduous forest • Grasslands • Savanna • Marine • Fresh water • Time: 20 minutes

6. Activity 2 • Create a poster for your biome • Include the following items: • Weather & climate • Plants, animals and their relationships • Ecological concerns or issues • Time: 25 minutes

7. Activity 3 • Ecosystems at school • Go around the school and complete the “ecosystems at school” activity • Find 2 different “ecosystems” in different locations • Time: 25 minutes

8. Closing and Homework • What do the following words mean? • Biotic • Abiotic • Community • Ecosystem • Population • Complete your biome poster • Complete the ecosystems at school activity

9. Day 2: Factors affecting population size & Human population growth (45 minutes) • Required Readings: • 4.8 & 4.9 • Learning Objectives: • To understand what is meant by environmental resistance • To list examples of biotic and abiotic factors which limit population growth • To explain the form of a typical growth curve • To know that the evolution of humans from hunter-gatherers to permanent settlers caused changes in the environment • To understand the form of a human population growth curve

10. Starter • Time: 10 minutes

11. Activity 1 • We will complete the activity “How many bears can live in the forest?” • Time: 30 minutes

12. Homework • Human population growth is exploding at an exponential rate. • The graph on the next page shows the population growth, as well as some predictions • What are the 3 revolutions that have occurred to aid in this exponential growth? • The red, orange, and green lines on the graph are predictions for what could happen to human population growth. What are the different situations that could lead to each of these predictions? • Choose your home country and create a population pyramid for it (if data is not available, choose any other country) • Does it have an LEDN or MEDN structure? Explain • What are the different factors that have contributed to the particular structure it has?

14. Day 3: Agriculture