Urban Ecosystems 3: Cities as Population Centers

The "Bottled Bacteria" activity instructions are a bit unclear, but the remaining activities investigating limiting factors in ecosystems are well-written. Learners model the exosystem of a bear and a herd of deer. They set up a...

Students investigate the importance of food surpluses to the historical development of urban ecosystems.

Second in a series of five lessons, this lesson encourages preteens to consider cities as urban ecosystems. First, they keep a food diary for a few days. They visit the Natrional Agricultural Statistics Service website for current data...

[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] How quickly is the human population growing? If we look at worldwide human population growth from 10,000 BCE through to today, our growth looks like exponential...

Cities are compared to living, breathing, metabolizing organisms. Fourth in a five-part series of lessons, this one focuses on the flow of materials through a city. Links to interesting websites and images make your delivery of...

Students discover that material and energy uses by a city come from outside the city boundaries. They realize that the pathway of these material is linear instead of cyclical as they are in natural ecosystems.

Students map the green spaces around their school and predict the impact of population growth on green spaces in their region.

Eighth graders discuss the role of trees as one of the most important natural resources. In groups, they examine how the forests nearby helped to shape their urban city. Using the internet, they research the use of the forest in early...

Students investigate ideas for getting energy from space. In this space-based power lesson, students read articles about ideas for alternatives to fossil fuels. Students define and give examples of vocabulary words. Students answer...

What is an urban heat island? Middle school meteorologists find out by comparing temperatures at different locations on campus. They relate their findings to what might be happening in a concrete jungle and how it impacts local weather....