Ecosystem problem solving

Students will apply their knowledge of ecosystems and the interdependence of plants and animals to creatively solve problems.

A lesson plan for grade 5 Science

By Kelley Turner

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Learning outcomes

Students will:

• Gain a better of understanding of how parts of an ecosystem work together as well as gain an appreciation of the importance of balance in the ecosystem.
• Practice their problem solving and critical thinking skills.
• Get a clearer idea of the kinds of problems “real” scientists solve.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

1 hour

Materials/resources

Fuzzy Situation cards

Pre-activities

Students should have a clear understanding of an ecosystem (‘eco’ = home, habitat; ‘system’ = parts working together). They should be able to identify the living and nonliving factors in the ecosystem and label a food chain according to producers, consumers (primary, secondary, tertiary, etc.), and decomposers. The students should fully understand the importance of balance in an ecosystem.

Activities

1. Divide the class into five groups.
2. Give each group a “Fuzzy Situation” (see attachments). Tell the students that they should be creative but reasonable when solving their fuzzy situations. For example, if they want to create a plant that does not need the sun for energy, that’s fine. But they must tell what the plant will use for energy instead.
3. Have the students discuss their situations and come up with solutions to the problems. The teacher may provide assistance to stimulate thinking, but remember, these problems are supposed to be difficult! Emphasize the importance of using their problem solving skills to think through the problems.
4. Have each group make a presentation to the class. In the presentation, they should read their fuzzy situation to the class, answer the questions in the fuzzy, and talk about how they solved the main problem in their situation. They should make a drawing of their ecosystem or a diagram of their food chain to include in their presentation. These presentations should not be elaborate but should instead give the rest of the class an idea of the variety of problems other students had.

Assessment

Teachers may evaluate the presentations for content (scientific knowledge) and quality (grammar, projection, etc.). Also, if teachers choose, they may include a group evaluation form where each student may evaluate his/her peers in the group.

Supplemental information

Attachments:

• Fuzzy Cards
• Group Evaluation Form