MS-LS2-1

SCUSD NGSS Curriculum Guide ====**MS-LS2-1: Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of resource availability on organisms and populations of organisms in an ecosystem. ** [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on cause and effect relationships between resources and growth of individual organisms and the numbers of organisms in ecosystems during periods of abundant and scarce resources.] ====

Science Background for the Teacher:
[overview of relevant science background for teacher]

Key Vocabulary:

 * organism || cause and effect || ecosystem || resource ||
 * population || scarce || abundant || carrying capacity ||
 * limiting factor || symbiotic relationships ||  ||   ||

Possible Assessments (formative and/or summative):
Give students the predator-prey graph to discuss/ analyze why the graph is the way it is, how the population of the predator effects the population of the prey. http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/edexcel_pre_2011/environment/populationsandpyramidsrev5.shtml

Key Student Activity:
Students will go through the various population simulators and examine the different populations in an ecosystem over time.
 * Readings from district-adopted textbooks:
 * Chapter 16 Interactions of Living Things assessments
 * Chapter 17 Biomes and Ecosystems assessments
 * Chapter 11 Chemistry of Living Things (carbon and other elements are essential to living things p.336
 * Chapter 2, Section 2 Necessities of Life p. 56
 * Chapter 5, Section 1 Cell Energy
 * Chapter 13, Section 1 Photosynthesis p. 396

Key Teacher Demo/Activity:
[Description of teacher demo or activity. Include necessary materials, if known.]

Common Student Misconceptions:

 * Plants are overlooked. Students forget plants have mitochondria and undergo cellular respiration..
 * Students say that humans need oxygen to breathe, they forget that the oxygen from photosynthesis and food they eat ultimately is used cellular respiration. (“You need to breathe for your lungs.”)

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Things to Avoid/Correct:
[Descriptions of imprecise language or other mistakes related to this topic that might have to be corrected at a higher grade band.]

====<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Other Resources (text, video, simulations, activities, models, etc..): ====

http://www.shodor.org/interactivate/activities/RabbitsAndWolves/

http://tea.armadaproject.org/activity/elliott/howmanypenguinsdoesittake_main.html

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Lesson plan for carrying capacity. See page 4 for Extension Activities. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #3b5998; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-decoration: none;">[]

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Another fox, rabbit, grass simulation that will graph biomass

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #3b5998; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; text-decoration: none;">[]