Biomes Unit Plan

Mark Eilers

Unit Plan Project

Unit Plan: Scope and Sequence

Topic: Energy Flow and Cycles of Matter

Grade Level: 7 Duration 12 Days

Summary:

This unit will engage students in studying the topic of biomes as well as the links and relationships between biomes and climate zones. By using instructional strategies such as pictorial aids, investigation, and interactive models, students will gain an understanding on how entire ecosystems function. The unit will be presented to the students using the 5 E’s instructional model for learning (Engagement, Exploration, Explanation, Elaboration, Evaluation).

Learning Goals:

Students will understand…

• How to classify biomes based on characteristics such as their topography, soil types, temperature,

Day 2-5: Exploration: Activities will be designed to give my students the opportunity to research a specific biome with also giving them an understanding for that specific biome and an example of an ecosystem associated with that biome. Day 7-8: Explanation: My students will be allowed to explain what they have learned about their biome by creating a representation of their biome and an example ecosystem associated with that biome. During this time, students will present their biome projects to the class. Days 9-11: Elaboration: The activity for this portion of the unit will engage students and ask them how a natural disaster would affect the biotic and abiotic factors of their chosen ecosystem. Students should be able to use their expert knowledge on the biome of their choice for the assignment. Afterwards, students will learn how abiotic and biotic factors impact and influence an

• Biome: A large region characterized by a specific type of climate and certain types of plant and animal communities.

• Biotic: Living things in an ecosystem.

• Carnivore: An organism that eats animals.

• Carrying Capacity: The largest population that an environment can support at any given time.

• Cellular Respiration: The process by which cells use oxygen to produce energy from food.

• Climate: The weather conditions in an area over a long period of time.

• Consumer: An organism that eats other organism or organic matter.

• Decomposer: An organism that gets energy by breaking down the remains of dead organism or animal wastes and consuming or absorbing the nutrients.

• Ecosystem: A community of organisms and their abiotic, or nonliving, environment.

• Food Chain: The pathway of energy transfer through various stages as a result of the feeding patters of a series of organisms.

• Food Web: A diagram that shows the feeding relationships between organisms in an ecosystem.

• Habitat: The place where an organism usually lives.

• Herbivore: An organism that eats only