Lesson Plan #1
In this first lesson we wanted to focus on Defining ecosystems. We carried out the lesson through the CDM (Concept Development Method). By the end of the lesson we wanted the students to be able to:
- Identify different ecosystems based off of picture.
- Identify characteristics of the specific ecosystem and what animals will live there through sticky notes placed on the board.
- Define what an ecosystem is with the class in writing.
To carry out this lesson we needed to have the students to have background knowledge on the familiarity of different physical characteristics, temperature, and resources a specific area might have. Also, based off of these attributes be familiar on the different kinds of animals that would live where.
Before you decide to jump right into the lesson, here is a brief overview on how we wished to carry out the lesson: “The students will be separated into five groups. Each group will be given and assigned to a different photo,which is seen on the whiteboard, to describe and explore. Later, we will come back together as a whole class to collect each groups data. After, we will return to groups again to develop a generalized definition and then share it as a whole class”.
Out of all of the different ecosystems we could have chosen from, we chose to focus on only 5 different types: Tundra, Grassland, Desert, Rain forest, and Marine. If you want to read a more in depth description of this lesson, click here: Defining Ecosystems