Students Learn
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Environment is
everything that
surrounds and
influences an
organism.
An environmental
factor is one part of an
environment. It can be
living or nonliving.
Lesson
Investigation 1
Terrestrial
Environments
Part 1: Setting Up
Terrariums
Students Do
Students plant terrariums,
mapping where they put pea,
corn, barley, radish, and
clover seeds. Students decide
how much water the plants
need.
A relationship exists
between a number of
environmental factors
(such as how much
water plants get) and
how well organisms
grow.
Environments change
over time.
Designing an
investigation involves
controlling the
variables so that the
effect of one factor can
be observed.
Part 2: Recording
Changes
Every 2 to 3 days students
record observations about the
changes taking place in the
terrariums.
Investigation 2: Bugs
and Beetles
Part 1: Making Animal
Runways
Students construct aluminum
foil runways in order to
conduct investigations or
organisms’ environmental
preferences.
Every organism has a
set of preferred
environmental
conditions.
Isopods prefer moist
environments; beetles
prefer dry
environments.
Every organism has a
set of preferred
environmental
conditions.
Isopods and beetles
refer dark
environments.
Content from each art
above is assessed.
Part 2: Responding to
Moisture
Using the constructed runways,
students conduct an
investigation of how isopods
and beetles respond to the
environmental factor of light.
Part 3: Responding to
Light
Using the constructed runways,
students conduct an
investigation of how isopods
and beetles respond to the
environmental factor of light.
Part 4: Designing an
Animal Investigation
Students design an anal
investigation focusing on an
environmental factor not yet
tested.
Every organism has a
range of tolerance for
each factor in its
Investigation 3: Water
Tolerance
Part 1: Setting Up the
Students isolate one factor,
water, in the environment of
plants, and set up an
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environment.
Experiment
Organisms have
specific requirements
for successful growth,
development, and
reproduction.
Optimum conditions
are those most
favorable to an
organism.
Part 2: Observing the
Plants at 5 and 8 Days
Aquatic environments
include living and
nonliving factors.
Water and temperature
are two nonliving
environmental factors
to consider when
setting up a goldfish
aquarium.
Carbon dioxide
produced by aquatic
organisms changes the
acidity of the water.
Investigation 4
Part 1: Goldfish
Aquariums
An aquatic
environment can
contain many different
organisms.
Organisms of different
kinds living together
form a community.
The chain of feeding
relationships between a
series of organisms is
called a food chain.
Brine shrimp are
crustaceans that live in
marine or salt-pond
environments.
An environmental
factor is one part of an
environment. It can be
living or nonliving.
Organisms have ranges
of tolerance for
Part 3: New Organisms
Part 3: Observing
Plants at 11 or More
Days
Part 2: Acid in Water
Investigation 5: Brine
Shrimp Hatching
Part 1: Setting up the
Experiment
experiment to determine the
range of water tolerance for
the early growth of four
different plants.
Students make observations
after 5 and 8 days of growth.
Using the Plant Profile Sheet,
students disassemble their
planters and compare the
growth of each plant in the
different environments.
Students use freshwater
aquariums and observe them
over a period of time. In this
part they observe goldfish
and monitor the environmental
factors of water and
temperature.
Students use bromothymol
blue indicator to compare the
acidity of the water in the
goldfish aquarium to a class
aquarium containing only
plants. Students relate the
acid in the water to carbon
dioxide produced by the fish.
Students create a more
diverse aquarium by
introducing pond snails and
plants into the goldfish
aquarium.
Students investigate the
environmental factor of
salinity in hatching brine
shrimp eggs. They conduct a
controlled experiment to
determine which of four salt
concentrations allow brine
shrimp eggs to hatch.
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environmental factors.
Within a range of
tolerance, there are
optimum conditions
that produce maximum
growth.
Brine shrimp eggs can
hatch in a range of salt
concentrations, but
more hatch in
environments with
optimum salt
concentration.
By altering the
environment to
optimum salt
concentration, brine
shrimp eggs that were
once dormant can
hatch.
Organisms have ranges
of tolerance for
environmental factors.
In a controlled
experiment, one
variable is manipulated
while all others are
held constant.
Plants have different
tolerances for salt.
Apply environmental
concepts.
Part 2: Determining
Range of Tolerance
Students monitor saltwater
environments. They determine
which environments are
conducive to hatching brine
shrimp.
Part 3: Determining
Viability
Students are challenged to
manipulate the environment to
see if they can get the
dormant eggs to hatch and
grow.
Investigation 6: Salt of
the Earth
Part 1: Setting Up the
Environment
Students select a topic from
their study of environments to
investigate in greater depth.
The results of their project are
shared with the rest of the
class in a formal presentation.
Part 2: Observing
Plants
Students monitor growth of
their plants at 5, 9, and 13
days after planting. They
determine the salt tolerance
of the four plants.
Students select a topic from
their study of environments to
investigate in greater depth.
The results of their project are
shared with the rest of the
class in a formal presentation.
Part 3: Choosing Your
Own Investigation