Curated OER
Carrying Capacity
Young biologists identify how plants and animals are affected by changes in their ecosystem and environment. The concepts of succession, maintenance of habitats, interrelationships, and adaptation are all discussed. This well-developed...
Curated OER
How Many Penguins Does It Take? Studying Carrying Capacity and Limiting Factors
How does a population's habitat determine the size of that population? Teach learners about carrying capacity and limiting factors with an engaging roleplay activity. Class members pose as a colony of penguins who must gather food amidst...
Curated OER
The Lesson of the Kaibab
Young scholars plot the Kaibab deer population from 1905 to 1939 and analyze the changes over time. In this populations lesson plan, students investigate the causes of changing populations of the Kaibab deer and they find the carrying...
Curated OER
Carrying Capacity of Ecosystems
Students define population and carrying. In this algebra instructional activity, students explore exponential growth and decay based on animals and things that grow or decrease exponentially. They graph their findings and discuss their...
Science 4 Inquiry
The Ups and Downs of Populations
Life has its ups and downs ... especially if you're an animal! Biology scholars engage in a population study through an inquiry-based lesson. Pupils work together to explore the factors that affect deer populations, then examine the...
Curated OER
Population Game
Young scholars assess the carrying capacity of the land. For this animal population lesson, students participate in a role-playing scenario to discover the factors affecting animal populations.
Curated OER
Investigating Space Requirement of Seed Plants
Students use scientific methods to investigate the effects of overpopulation of seed plants on growth in a limited living space. Students relate seed plant population findings to that of other organisms.
Curated OER
Exploring Ecology
Students explore the basics of ecology through numerous hands-on and relevant activities. They participate in an online food chain demonstration, which explores food web dynamics. They dissect owl pellets, examine the prey's bones, and...
Curated OER
Designing and Floating Boats
Learners participate in an experiment to determine if a toy boat will sink or float. They make the boats out of different materials and determine its carrying capacity by adding pennies. They graph their findings on a classroom graph.
Curated OER
Diversity and Adaptations of Organisms
Eighth graders discuss ways in which to protect endangered species. They examine the concept of carrying capacity. They discuss the importance of carrying capacity for wildlife and people.
Curated OER
MEASURING THE DENSITY OF WATER
Learners perform an experiment to measure the density of tap water vs. salt water.
Curated OER
Solid Waste Recycling
Students seek scientific and technological solutions to envrionmental problems. They record class activities in a journal. They identify relationships among living things and their environments.
LABScI
Population Dynamics: The Predator-Prey Lab
Wolves eat better when the bunny population increases, but how long does that last? A series of 12 biology lessons uses the sixth installment to explore the predator-prey relationship between bunny and wolf populations. Young scientists...
Curated OER
Population Growth
Learners grow duckweed, observe what happens when an organism population is allowed to grow without predation or competition, view videos about invasive species, and develop a proposal for controlling the growth of an invasive species in...
Curated OER
Overpopulation
Learners examine population growth and how it impacts our environment. In this population lesson students identify the causes and consequences of overpopulation.
Curated OER
Some Similarities Between the Spread of an Infectious Disease and Population Growth
Students compare and contrast the spread of infectious diseases and population growth. In this biology lesson, students identify the exponential growth pattern of spreading diseases. They relate this to HIV infection and AIDS.
Curated OER
An Interdisciplinary Deer and Human Population Study
Students answer the question, "What environmental problems arise due to animal and human overpopulation and what might need to be done to combat these problems?" They play games, graph data and write proposals about the question.
NOAA
What Killed the Seeds?
Can a coral cure cancer? Take seventh and eighth grade science sleuths to the underwater drugstore for an investigation into emerging pharmaceutical research. The fifth installment in a series of six has classmates research the wealth of...
Curated OER
Struggle for Existence and Population Growth in Aphids
Students examine the population of aphids. They identify adaptations they have made for their environment. They make predictions, test their hypothesis and collect information that either proves or disproves their theory.
Curated OER
Native Species Restoration and its Impact on Local Populations
Students watch video clips of ecosystems and answer questions relating to them.
Curated OER
Radish Seed Garden
Fifth graders explore the effects of overpopulation in an ecosystem while applying the scientific method. They discuss overpopulation and its meaning. Students as an organism competes for space in an overpopulated area. They plant...
Curated OER
Oranges and Stopwatches
Students measure various attributes of an orange. They discuss the attributes of an orange that can be measured, develop a list of attributes and describe how they can measure it, and rotate through four stations measuring the volume,...
Curated OER
757 Glider Kit
Students work together to complete a 757 Glider kit. They use a GPS to discover how it operates in all weather landings. They complete different obstacles with the glider as well.