Science Lessons

by

Randi Miller

Week #1: The Tundra

Introduction

In Science class , we are starting a new unit on terrestrial biomes and animal leadership. This week you will learn what a biome is, about the different roles of plants and animals in food chains, and the plants and animals that live on the tundra. You will study one animal in particular -- the gray wolf.

The Task

By the end of this week, you will have completed six worksheets about biomes and the tundra. You will also have written a 1-2 page research paper on gray wolves.

Resources

To accomplish these tasks, you will need pages 1-13 in your Terrestrial Biomes packet. You will also do research on gray wolves in the library. Be sure to look at books other than just encyclopedias. There are some interesting web sites about gray wolves on the internet.

The Process

You should go through the following steps in order to accomplish your tasks this week:
  1. Read "Looking Around Us" on page 1 of Terrestrial Biomes and complete the accompanying worksheet on page 2 using complete sentences.
  2. Read "The Roles of Plants and Animals" on page 3 and complete the worksheets on page 4 and 5.
  3. Read "The Tundra" on pages 6 and 7 and complete the worksheet on page 8.
  4. Read the section titled "Plight of the Musk Oxen" on page 9 and complete the worksheet on page 10.
  5. Read the section titled "The Presence of Man" on page 11 and complete the worksheet on page 12.
  6. Working with your partner, research wolves in the library. Spend one day looking through books, and one day looking at the web pages listed under Resources.
  7. Write a 1-2 page paper on wolves. Your paper should include some general information, information on the social structure of wolf packs, who their pack leaders are, and how they ensure the survival of the rest of the pack.

Learning Advice

Prior to reading each section in Terrestrial Biomes, you should look over the questions on the accompanying worksheet. Then, when you read the section, highlight or underline the information that will help you answer the questions.

Evaluation

This week you will be graded on how well you answered the questions on the worksheets using clear, complete sentences. You will also be graded on how well you described the wolf's social organization and role of pack leaders in your research paper.

Conclusion

By the end of this week, you should have learned about biomes, the role of plants and animals in food chains, the tundra, and about the social structure of wolves and how their pack leaders ensure the pack's survival.

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Week #2: Temperate Forests and Rain Forests

Introduction

In Science class this week, you will learn about two different kinds of forests: temperate forests and rain forests. You will study one animal in particular -- the gorilla.

The Task

By the end of this week, you will have completed nine worksheets about temperate forests and rain forests. You will also have written a 1-2 page research paper on gorillas.

Resources

To accomplish these tasks, you will need pages 21-40 in your Terrestrial Biomes packet. You will also do research on gorillas in the library. Be sure to look at some books other than encyclopedias. There are some cool web sites on gorillas that you should look at on the library's computers.

The Process

You should go through the following steps in order to accomplish your tasks this week:
  1. Read "the Temperate Forrest" on page 21 of Terrestrial Biomes and complete the accompanying worksheet on page 22 using complete sentences.
  2. Read "Woody and Friends" on page 23 and complete the worksheets on page 24.
  3. Read "Changes in the Forrest" and "Succession" on pages 25 and 26 and complete the worksheet on page 27.
  4. Read "Conservation" on page 29 and complete the worksheet on page 30.
  5. Read "The Tropical Rain forest" on page 31 and complete the worksheet on page 32.
  6. Read "Animals" on page 33 and complete the worksheet on page 34.
  7. Read "Birds" on page 35 and complete the worksheet on page 36.
  8. Read "Adaptions" on page 37 and complete the worksheet on page 38.
  9. Read "The Presence of Man" on page 39 and complete the worksheet on page 40.
  10. Working with your partner, research gorillas in the library.
  11. Write a 1-2 page paper on gorillas. Your paper should include general information, information on the social structure of gorillas, who their leaders are, and how the leader ensure the survival of the rest of the gorillas.

Learning Advice

Prior to reading each section in Terrestrial Biomes, you should first look over the questions on the accompanying worksheet. Then, when you read the section, highlight or underline the information that will help you answer the questions.

Evaluation

This week you will be graded on how well you answered the questions on the worksheets using clear, complete sentences. You will also be graded on how well you described in your research paper the social organization of gorillas and how the role of the gorilla leaders help the survival of the others.

Conclusion

By the end of this week, you should have learned about temperate forests and rain forests, and the plants and animals that live within them. You should also be familiar with the social structue and leadership roles of gorillas.

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Week #3: The Taiga and Grasslands

Introduction

In Science class this week, you will learn about taiga forests, and grasslands. You will study one animal in particular -- the elephant.

The Task

By the end of this week, you will have completed six worksheets about taiga forests and grasslands. You will also have written a 1-2 page research paper on elephants.

Resources

To accomplish these tasks, you will need pages 15-19 and pages 42-47 in your Terrestrial Biomes packet. You will also do research on elephants in the library. Be sure to look at books other than just encyclopedias. There are some cool web sites on elephants you should look at on the library's computers.

The Process

You should go through the following steps in order to accomplish your tasks this week:
  1. Read "The Taiga Forrest" on page 15 and 16 of Terrestrial Biomes and complete the accompanying worksheet on page 17 using complete sentences.
  2. Read "The Presence of Man" on page 19 and complete the worksheet on page 20.
  3. Read "The Grasslands" on pages 42 and complete the worksheet on page 43.
  4. Read "Habitat Types" and "The Mammals" on page 44 and complete the worksheet on page 45.
  5. Read "Endangered Species" on page 46 and complete the worksheet on page 47.
  6. Read "The Presence of Man" on page 39 and complete the worksheet on page 40.
  7. Working with your partner, research elephants in the library.
  8. Write a 1-2 page paper on elephants. Your paper should include general information, information on the social structure of elephants, who their leaders are, and how the leaders ensure the survival of the rest of the elephants.

Learning Advice

Prior to reading each section in Terrestrial Biomes, you should first look over the questions on the accompanying worksheet. Then, when you read the section, highlight or underline the information that will help you answer the questions.

Evaluation

This week you will be graded on how well you answered the questions on the worksheets using clear, complete sentences. You will also be graded on how well you described in your research paper the social organization of elephants and how the role of the elephant leaders help the survival of the others.

Conclusion

By the end of this week, you should have learned about temperate forests and rain forests, and the plants and animals that live within them. You should also be familiar with the social structure and leadership roles of elephants.

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Week #4: Deserts

Introduction

This week in Science class you will learn about deserts, take a field trip to the Wild Animal Park, and discover similarities and differences between the social structure and leadership roles of humans and the different animals we studied.

The Task

By the end of this week, you will have completed three worksheets on deserts, and you will have written two 2-page research papers. The first paper will compare and contrast the social structure and leadership roles of two animals we studied. The second paper will compare and contrast the characteristics and roles of animal leaders and human leaders.

Resources

To accomplish your tasks this week, you will need pages 49-55 in Terrestrial Biomes, your research papers on wolves, gorillas and elephants, and notes from your Humanities class about the characteristics and roles of human leaders.

The Process

  1. Read "The Desert" on page 49 of Terrestrial Biomes and complete the worksheet on page 50.
  2. Read the sections "Varied Terrains and Adaptions" and "Life Forms" on page 51 and complete the worksheet on page 52.
  3. Read the sections "The Presence of Man" and "Relationships and Adaptations" on pages 53 and 54 and complete the worksheet on page 55.
  4. Enjoy our field trip to the Wild Animal Park. You will be able to see some of the animals we studied in their natural biome settings. Take along some paper to take notes. Did you learn anything new about elephants or gorillas?
  5. Choose two of the following animals to write your first research paper about: wolves, gorillas, elephants.
  6. Begin organizing your thoughts and information by listing data about the social structure, the characteristics and roles of leaders, and how the leader helps the survival of the others for both animals you chose. Use your research papers to help.
  7. Examine your lists to find similarities and differences of the animals you chose.
  8. Write a 2-page paper comparing and contrasting the social structure, the characteristics and roles of the leaders, how the leaders help the survival of the others for the two animals you chose.
  9. To begin your second paper, list the characteristics and roles of leaders that were common to the animals we studied. Use your research papers to help.
  10. Use your notes from Humanities to create a list of the characteristics and roles of human leaders.
  11. Examine your lists to find similarities and differences between animal and human leaders.
  12. Write a 2-page research paper comparing and contrasting the characteristics and roles of animal and human leaders.

Learning Advice

Prior to reading each section in Terrestrial Biomes, you should first look over the questions on the accompanying worksheet. Then, when you read the section, highlight or underline the information that will help you answer the questions.

Evaluation

The two research papers you wrote this week will comprise a large part of your grade on this unit. You will also be graded on how well you completed the three worksheets about deserts.

Conclusion

Our unit on terrestrial biomes and animal leadership has now come to an end. You have learned about six different terrestrial biomes, and studied three animal species in depth. How do animal leaders help the survival of the other animals? How are animal leaders similar to human leaders? How are they different? You should have discovered the answers to these questions, as well as many others during this unit.

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