Biomes: Ecosystems on Land
In this unit, students will begin to make connections between the biotic and abiotic parts of the environment. A basic overview of some of the important variables that influence climate will be given, including latitude, rainshadow, prevailing winds, and ocean currents. Students will learn the distinctions between the different types of biomes, and learn to use climatographs to quantify their climates. The unit ends with a section of ecosystem succession.
Land Biomes Unit Plan
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Purpose: This is an outline of the major lessons covered within this unit, their suggested sequence, a time estimate for each topic, and important objectives and vocabulary covered by this unit. Links are provided for any website, video clip, worksheet, or lecture Powerpoint needed by the instructor.
This unit plan is primarily written for instructors of upper-level high school students and introductory college-level students.
Land Ecosystems and Ecological Succession Powerpoint
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Purpose: This lecture provides students with an overview of the major types of biomes, or land-based ecosystems. The major geographic features that affect climate are explored, including latitude and proximity to water. Climatographs are used to compare and contrast the temperature and precipitation within each of the ecosystems. Finally, a brief overview of ecological succession is given.
Essential Concepts: Biomes, ecosystems, rainshadow effect, latitude, climate, critical factor, desert, grassland, mountain, forests, rainforest, tropical, temperate, polar, tundra, climatogram, climatograph, worksheet, powerpoint, lecture, habitat, niche, abiotic factors, biotic factors, ecological succession, primary succession, secondary succession.
Land Ecosystems and Ecological Succession Notes Outline
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Purpose: Taking efficient notes can be a big challenge for many students, especially when working from a Powerpoint lecture. This outline gives students a means to take notes that guides them toward important concepts and avoids the pitfalls of writing word-for-word or simply not taking notes at all. The outline is written as a series of questions, fill-in-the-blanks, or diagrams.
Essential Concepts: Biomes, ecosystems, rainshadow effect, latitude, climate, critical factor, desert, grassland, mountain, forests, rainforest, tropical, temperate, polar, tundra, climatogram, climatograph, worksheet, powerpoint, lecture, habitat, niche, abiotic factors, biotic factors, ecological succession, primary succession, secondary succession.
Measuring Abiotic Factors in Nature Lab
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Purpose: There are many abiotic, or nonliving variables that determine what kind of biome is present and what living organisms can thrive in a given area. In this assignment, students will use tools to measure the relative humidity, temperature, wind, and sunlight levels in a variety of places around their school. They will make these measurements both at ground-level and 5-6 feet up.
Essential concepts:Abiotic factors, temperature, humidity, wind speed, sunlight.
Climatographs - Graphing Practice Worksheets
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Purpose: Climatograms, also known as climatographs, take the two most important factors for ecosystems on land and graph them together. This helps create a nice visual way to compare climate data from two disinct ecosystems. This is a set of worksheets that has students practice making climatograms for different types of forests, deserts, and grasslands.
Essential concepts:Climatogram, climate, temperature, precipitation, deserts, forests, grasslands.
Seasons and Solar Angle Lab
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Purpose: Students of all ages struggle with the concept of seasons being the consequence of the tilt of the Earth relative to the sun as it goes through its orbit. In this lab, students will use a heat lamp to simulate the sun, then change the position of the Earth simulate summer, winter, spring, and fall for the northern hemisphere.
Essential concepts:Latitude, equator, poles, solar angle, seasons, temperature.
Mapmaker Activity - Temperature, Precipitation, Vegetation
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Purpose: This activity uses the interactive mapmaker tool hosted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Students will create their own color-coded mini maps showing the areas of highest and lowest temperature, precipitation, and vegetation, making connections between the three as they go.
Essential concepts: Abiotic factors, climate, temperature, precipitation, productivity
Planet Earth Series by BBC Nature
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Purpose: The Planet Earth series was groundbreaking when released. It contained stunning visuals of ecosystems and organisms never before recorded on video. This unit is ideal for showing one or more of these episodes. This section of Aurum Science has a collection of resources specifically for the Planet Earth Series.
Essential Concepts: Planet Earth, grasslands, plains, forests, deciduous forests, coniferous forests, taiga, tundra, deserts, shallow seas, fresh water, deep ocean.
Planet Earth II Series by BBC Nature
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Purpose: This is a second Planet Earth series conducted by the BBC. While each episode is not as ecologically rich as the first, it does have some pretty remarkable footage, and shows some unusual biomes, including islands and cities.
Essential Concepts: Planet Earth II, grasslands, forests, deserts, cities, mountains, islands.
Google Earth Field Trip - Rainshadow Effect
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Purpose: The rainshadow effect describes the differences in precipitation levels between the windward side of a mountain range, which faces incoming moist air currents, and the leeward side, which lies in the dry shadow of the mountain. In this virtual field trip, students will use Google Earth to visit areas on both the leeward and windward sides of the Cascade mountains in the Pacific Northwest United States, Andes Mountains in South America, and Himalayan mountains between the Indian subcontinent and China.
Essential concepts: Rainshadow effect, mountains, temperate rainforest, evergreen forest, desert, altitude, temperature, precipitation, ecosystems.
Succession at Mt. St. Helens Activity
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Purpose: When Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980, the surrounding ecosystem was devestated by heat and ash. Ecologists that first inspected the carnage expected it would take centuries for life to recover. However, succession took place much faster than expected, with many organisms returning within a decade or two. In this activity, students will track the type and number of different species in the years following the eruption, and identify the species as pioneers, intermediates, or climax based on their arrival.
Essential concepts: Primary succession, secondary succession, pioneer species, intermediate species, climax community.
Land Ecosystems and Ecological Succession Study Guide
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Purpose: Once the instruction for the unit is completed, students can complete this study guide to aid in their preparation for a written test. The study guide is divided into two sections: vocabulary and short answer questions. The vocabulary is taken directly form the lecture, sequentially. The short answer questions are meant to model the type they may see on the exam. This specific study guide only covers the land ecosystems section of this unit
Essential Concepts: Biomes, ecosystems, rainshadow effect, latitude, climate, critical factor, desert, grassland, mountain, forests, rainforest, tropical, temperate, polar, tundra, climatogram, climatograph, worksheet, powerpoint, lecture, habitat, niche, abiotic factors, biotic factors, ecological succession, primary succession, secondary succession
