Wetlands Activities: Ecosystems

LESSON 1

Unit:

Wetlands

Lesson:

Ecosystems

Instructional Goal:

Students will be able to describe an ecosystem.

Materials:

Pictures of various ecosystems; student journals; pencils; paper for groups

TEKS:

2.2A,C,E,F 2.3A,B,C 2.5A,B 2.6A,B,C,D

Procedure:

Show students pictures of rain forests, ponds, deserts, grasslands, etc.

Have students pay close attention to plants, animals and features of each area.

Explain that each area is called an ecosystem and all of the living things within it depend upon one another for survival.

Break students up into groups of 3 or 4 and have them map out possible food chains from one of the ecosystem pictures.

Come back together and share food chains with rest of group.

Mount the food chains on a bulletin board for students to see.

Discuss the possible outcomes of animals moving from one ecosystem to another ( polar bear to rain forest or alligator to the desert).

Have students describe the climates of the various habitats.

Allow students to write in their journals about ecosystems, naming their favorite animals and describing the habitat in which it lives (students may illustrate their animal in its habitat).

Assessment:

Group participation and cooperation, food chain and journal response

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