8/15/2010 

   

IAN GAGNON 

FOREST ECOLOGY AND MEASUREMENT FOR PHYSICAL SCIENCE 

 

Target Grade/Subject; 10th Grade Physical Science/Life and Environmental Science/Reading 

Unit Description 

The driving forces behind what exists in the environment are rooted in physical science. These are fundamental disciplines, and should be addressed when looking at what we have in the environment today. This unit covers physical processes that drive the water and carbon cycle, measurements, conservation of mass, and energy. 

Goal 

Common student opinion of science is of that there is no practical purpose for what is learned. It is the goal of this unit to allow students to see what is learned in class as both practical and beneficial.  

Sources 

MEECS Water Quality Unit 

Kolb, T.E., and M.R. Wagner, and W.W. Covington.  July 1994. Utilitarian and Ecosystem Perspectives. Concepts of Forest Health. Journal of Forestry. p. 1‐6. 

Geisel,Theodor Seuss. 1971. The Lorax. New York, Random House. 

http://www.seussville.com/Educators/lorax_classroom/educatorlorax_discuss.php 

Objectives 

Lessons 1‐5 

Lesson 1 

Development of definitions for class and activities are important for student understanding. The first lesson involves making a foldable of terms used in the unit (from Project CRISS). This foldable encourages students to develop their own definition, draw a picture of the term, and any explanation or example of the subject. If the first time constructed, you need to show multilple times how to make the foldable as well as an example of what is expected. This assignment is attached and rubric in assessment section. 

Lesson 2 

This lesson introduces and illuminates why accurate measurements are important. Students will be given volume equations for simple objects like cubes,rectangular blocks, and cylinders. They will then take what they know and apply it to measurements taken in forest land using Biltmore sticks,diameter tapes, and clinometers if available.  

Lesson 3 

This lesson involves photosynthesis and how mass is conserved using stoichiometry. Students will determine biomass of native tree species and determine how much reactants and products are present. They will also use the carbon sequestration activity to determine energy use by themselves and what it equates to in terms of fuel use.     

Lesson 4 

This activity involves the water cycle and the driving forces behind it. Students will get hands on interactions between water and how its temperature changes with interactions with other substances that absorb heat and those that do not. Students will determine whether this cycle is open,closed,or isolated. Lesson 8 in the MEECS manual will be used for them to develop an understanding of storm water and its temperature can influence life that depends on this cycle.  

Lesson 5 

This activity involves students utilizing the KWL plus format to discover what value forests are to them. From previous activities, they will connect cycling of water and carbon with how healthy their forests are. The Concepts of Forest Health article and the Lorax will be read by students in groups as illustration to how use of forest resources are driven by human need.  

 

Benchmarks (Florida Sunshine State Standards) 

SC.912.P.10.1 

Differentiate among the various forms of energy and recognize that they can be transformed from one form to others. 

SC.912.P.10.2 

Explore the Law of Conservation of Energy by differentiating among open, closed, and isolated systems and explain that the total energy in an isolated system is a conserved quantity. 

SC.912.P.10.4 

Describe heat as the energy transferred by convection, conduction, and radiation, and explain the connection of heat to change in temperature or states of matter. 

SC.912.P.10.5 Relate temperature to the average molecular kinetic energy. 

SC.912.P.10.19 

Explain that all objects emit and absorb electromagnetic radiation and distinguish between objects that are blackbody radiators and those that are not. 

 

SC.912.N.1.1  Define a problem based on a specific body of knowledge, for example: biology, chemistry, physics, and earth/space science, and do the following:      1. pose questions about the natural world, 2. conduct systematic observations, 3. examine books and other sources of information to see what is already known,  4. review what is known in light of empirical evidence,  5. plan investigations, 6. use tools to gather, analyze, and interpret data (this includes the use of measurement in metric and other systems, and also the generation and interpretation of graphical representations of data, including data tables and graphs), 

 7. pose answers, explanations, or descriptions of events,  8. generate explanations that explicate or describe natural phenomena (inferences),  9. use appropriate evidence and reasoning to justify these explanations to others,  10. communicate results of scientific investigations, and  11. evaluate the merits of the explanations produced by others.  

 

Materials 

L1;Drawing paper,colored pencils,crayons 

L2;Data sheets,Biltmore sticks,diameter tapes,measuring tapes,clinometers 

L3;diameter tapes,calculators,data sheets on carbon sequestration 

L4;materials listed in MEECS manual Lesson 8 

L5;KWL format sheet,Lorax handout 

Procedure 

Lesson 1 

1. Take plain half sheets of paper,overlay them with a centimeter tab on each individual paper until all eight are on top of each other. 

2. Fold over so that all tabs are on the same side of foldable. 

3. Staple foldable at the very top and make a heading on top of foldable. 4. Write individual concepts on each tab made. 5. Find definitions in class library or textbook and write them in your own words. 6. Draw an example of each with description if necessary. 7. Color your foldable to help illustrate what each means. 

Lesson 2 

1. Have students determine volume calculations on simple objects (cylinders,blocks). 2. Introduce them to tree measurement methods from notes supplied by Jim Rivard. 3. Show them the equipment and describe how it is used. 4. Take them to the field and have them take measurements of their trees. 5. Utilizing the data sheets, they will determine stand density. 6. Back in class, they will average their sample and determine volume of tree and compare with 

other groups constructing a class graph. 

Lesson 3 

1. Students will be introduced to chemical reactions using demonstration of making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, which they will make their own directions and go over as a class. 

2. From this demo, they will be shown that an equation like photosynthesis (simplified) can show similar products and reactants with catalysts that masses can be used to determine how much of each component will be made or utilized.  

3. Go over notes on Carbon Seqestration in Forests. 4. In field have students work on activity in pairs to determine energy use and carbon 

sequestration needed to balance their activities. 

Lesson 4 

1. Using a incandescent bulb and two cans with water(one black and one white) demonstrate the temperature change in each can graphically over five minute intervals for the first twenty minutes of class. 

2. Explain how heat affects different materials. 3. Have students make a class Venn Diagram of conduction,convection, and radiation. 4. Procedures outlined in MEECS manual Lesson 8. 

Lesson 5 

1. Students will compare values of forests by writing how they rank utilization for economic,ecological, or aesthetics. Discussion will include energy used to make trees grow as well as their role in carbon sequestration.  

2. Students will use the standard KWL format for what they know about forest health and how they value forests. They will complete what they learned after reading groups finish Concepts of Forest health and the Lorax by Dr. Seuss. 

3. In groups of two, students will complete the Lorax activity sheet. 

Discussion 

One goal  of our school is to get students more involved utilizing as many activities and readings as possible. My classes mainly have low level readers in it, and hopefully embedding the readings into the activities more will get them more interested in reading in general.  Much like starting a fire‐it just takes a spark. 

Assessment 

Rubric for Foldable is attached 

Notes/Supplemental materials 

Storm Water  Is Not Just Rain Brochure  

Notes on Forest Measurement from James Rivard 

Notes on Carbon Sequestration in Forests from Maria Janowiak 

Foldables Scoring Rubric

----------- 4 3 2 1

Information

All requested information is

present and correct. There

is also additional

information

All requested information is

present and correct.

All requested information is

present and mostly correct.

Some requested

information is present and

correct.

Drawings

All requested drawings are present, neat and correct.

There are also additional drawings.

All requested drawings are present, neat and correct.

All requested drawings are present and

correct.

Some requested

drawings are present and

correct.

Timeliness

XXXX Foldable was done on the

due date.

Foldable was done 1 day

late.

Foldable was done 2 days

late.

• Each foldable counts as a homework grade on the announced due date. They may also be counted as a quiz grade or reference for test, which will be announced.

• The foldables for a chapter will be graded at the conclusion of the chapter. The grade will count as a test grade.

• If you are absent the day a foldable is assigned, you must come after school to get the information needed to complete the assignment.

• Foldables should be kept in a three ring binder as you will need them to study for exams throughout the year as well as the final exam at the end of the year.

Foldable on _________Forest ecology and measurement_____________ Make a foldable with the following terms. You may use any order that you like. You should include in your foldable your definition, a drawing or diagram, an example of the topic, and finish by coloring your creative masterpiece.

Terms DBH Volume of cube,cylinder Energy Photosynthesis Radiation Convection Conduction Scientific method Basal area Chemical energy Temperature Conservation of mass Open system Closed system Isolated system

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Lorax Discussion Sheet Name__________________________

1. What was the land of the Lorax like before the Once-ler arrived? Did it seem like someplace you'd like to live? What parts of your own environment would you be sad to see go?

2. What kind of person is the Once-ler? Why won't he listen to the Lorax? The Lorax says to the Once-ler, "You are crazy with greed." Why does the Lorax say that? Do you agree or disagree?

3. Why does the Lorax speak for the trees? Why is it important to speak up for others? Have you ever spoken up for someone else? Has someone else ever spoken up for you?

4. How does the Once-ler's Thneed business hurt the land of the Lorax? What happens to the Swomee-swans, the Brown Bar-ba-loots, and the Humming-fish? How could things have been different if the Once-ler listened to the Lorax?

5. What do you think the boy hearing the story will do with the Truffula seed that the Once-ler tosses to him? What would you do if you were the boy?

6. Do you think the Lorax and his friends will come back if new Truffula Trees grow? Where do you think they have been?

7. The Once-ler says, "Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." What does the Once-ler mean? Can one person make a difference? Can you? What are some things you can do to better your own environment?

8. How does the Once-ler feel about what his Thneed business did to the Lorax and friends?

9. Dr. Seuss used bright colors on some pages of the book and dull colors on others. Did you notice this? Why do you think he did that?

10. Why is The Lorax called a cautionary tale?