NGSS  Standard   Disciplinary  Core  Idea
HS-LS2-7. Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing negative impacts of human activities on the environment and ways to sustain biodiversity.
LS2.C: Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience
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Moreover, anthropogenic changes (induced by human activity) in the environment—including habitat destruction, pollution, introduction of invasive species, overexploitation, a n d climate change—can disrupt an ecosystem and threaten the survival of some species. (HS-LS2-i)
Performance  Expectation
Students  will  either  choose  or  be  assigned  a  case  where  human  activity  has  negatively  affected   biodiversity  and  propose  and  evaluate  possible  solutions.
Science  and  Engineering  Practices
Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions
Constructing explanations and designing solutions in 9–12 builds on K–8 experiences and progresses to explanations and designs that are supported by multiple and independent student-generated sources of evidence consistent with scientific ideas, principles, and theories.
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Design, evaluate, and refine a solution to a complex real-world problem, based on scientific knowledge, student-generated sources of evidence, prioritized criteria, and tradeoff considerations. (HS-LS2-i)
CCSS  –  ELA
CCSS  -­‐  Math
Cross-­‐Cutting  Concepts
Stability and Change
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Much of science deals with constructing explanations of how things change and how they remain stable. (HS-LS2-i)

Procedure for Culminating Activity:
1.
Students will research and brainstorm human activities that have had positive and/or negative impacts on the biodiversity of the environment:
(Gather Evidence – Asking questions and defining problems, analyzing data)
· Mining
· Overfishing
· Herbicides
· Pesticides
· Deforestation
· Introduced/nonnative species – European starling, Kudzu in FL, Asian carp
· Any Endangered species – recovery plans
· Illegal trade of plant and animals (e.g. ivory, bear gall bladders)
· Unstructured tourism – hiking, motor vehicles in wilderness areas
· Pollution – oil spills, chemical spills, leaking landfills
· Artificial selection of animals (e.g. dogs, cattle) or plants (e.g. corn, wheat, bananas)
· Noise pollution (e.g. in national parks and the stress on organisms)
· Light Pollution (e.g. sea turtle migration)
· Climate change (e.g. polar bear survival and sea ice)
· Acid Rain (e.g. damage to water and forests)
2.
Students will work to come up with their own as well as remediation that have already been tried to sustain or increase biodiversity (e.g. reclamation, captive breeding, ecotourism to reduce poaching, germ bank, sanctuaries).
(Constructing Explanations – Designing solutions)
3.
Students will have to answer the following questions within their presentation:
· What is the biodiversity problem you are investigating?
· What background information do you have about the problem? (you need at least three valid scientific resources)
(Gather Evidence – obtaining Information)
· What kind(s) of biodiversity are impacted: genetic, species, ecosystem?
(Gather Evidence – obtaining Information)
· What are at least two possible solutions for the problem?
(Constructing Explanations – designing solutions)
· What are the negative human impacts on the biodiversity issue?
(Gather Evidence – Obtaining information, analyzing data)
· What are the positive human impacts on the biodiversity issue?
(Gather Evidence – Obtaining information, analyzing data)
· What do you personally view as the best way to remedy the problem? Back up your view with sound, scientific reasoning.
(Communicate Reasoning – Arguing from evidence, communicating information)
4.
Students share their research along with what they would do differently to refine or reduce the negative impacts and debate the efficacy of the plan(s).
(Communicate Reasoning – Communicate information, arguing from evidence)
Sample Rubric:

Introductory and Knowledge Building Activities:
1.
What is your definition of Biodiversity? Share. What level – genetic, species, ecosystem? (CCC – scale)
Teacher instruction about the different types of diversity: genetic, species, ecosystem. This can come from the classroom textbook or sites such as:
Earth Day Network - http://www.eeweek.org/assets/EDN%20Lesson
%20Plans/Biodiversity%20and%20Climate%20Lesson%20Plan.pdf
Can show pictures of very diverse areas (e.g. coral reef) and sparse (e.g. a dirt pile). Which would you rather look at and explore? Why? Of what value is this?
2.
Biodiversity introductory activity (e.g. vials with varying amounts of candies as well as type related to biomes or ecosystem type, river biodiversity activity with MM’s and changing conditions).
Biodiversity Who Cares? From the Chicago River Classroom http://www.chicagoriver.org/upload/Biodiversity_Who_Cares.pdf
Biodiversity lab (with higher math skills required to calculate Biodiversity indices)
3.
Students will take and discuss the Biodiversity IQ Quiz – from the Illinois Department of Natural
Resources, Chicago Wilderness, WWF (altered to use some area specific plants and animals). http://dnr.state.il.us/education/classrm/biodiversity/PDF/ACT1-1.PDF
4.
Disease Transmission and Biodiversity. a.
A look at one of the benefits of Biodiversity (from Access Excellence). Students each receive an index card with the letter D on one side. They are to get five other people to sign their card. The leader picks one person and they read off the names on their card. Those people also got the disease and are dead. Those people read the names on their card… b.
Turn the cards over. There should be two of each type of card representing different types of plants or animals. They obtain five different names. Same as part a but they only die if they are the same species. c.
Discussion… the benefits of a diverse ecosystem.
Additional Resources/Extensions/Activities for further Investigation of the concept:
1. TEDTalks – John Hasaona: How poachers became caretakers

- Stewart Brand: The dawn of de-extinction. Are you ready?
2. TV Series – Jeff Corwin “Cambodian Poachers”
3. A zoo, preserve, field trip or webinar or guest speaker such as a game warden to re-inforce and further clarify some of these concepts.
4. Journey to Planet Earth: State of the Ocean’s Animals (PBS)
5. Readings from Jeff Corwin’s book - 100 Heartbeats – The Race to Save the Earth’s Most Endangered
Species
6. Investigation into the Antimicrobial Properties of Native Plants – students make and test extracts of native plants on the growth of Gram negative (E. coli) and Gram positive (B. subtilis)

Dimension  1:    Science  and  Engineering  Practices
• Asking  questions  (science)  and  defining  problems  (engineering)
• Developing  and  using  models
• Planning  and  carrying  out  investigations
• Analyzing  and  interpreting  data
• Using  mathematics,  information  and  computer  technology,  and  computational  thinking
•
Constructing  explanations  (science)  and  designing  solutions  (engineering)
•
Engaging  in  argument  from  evidence
•
Obtaining,  evaluating,  and  communicating  information
Dimension  2:    Cross-­‐Cutting  Concepts
•
Patterns
•
Cause  and  Effect:  Mechanism  and  Explanation
• Scale,  Proportion,  and  Quantity
• Systems  and  System  Models
• Energy  and  Matter:  Flows,  Cycles,  and  Conservation
• Structure  and  Function
• Stability  and  Change
Dimension  3:    Disciplinary  Core  Ideas
Physical  Sciences
•
PS1  Matter  and  its  interactions
• PS2  Motion  and  stability:  Forces  and  interactions
•
PS3  Energy
•
PS4  Waves  and  their  applications  in  technologies  for  information  transfer
Life  Sciences
• LS1  From  molecules  to  organisms:  Structures  and  processes
• LS2  Ecosystems:  Interactions,  energy,  and  dynamics
• LS3  Heredity:  Inheritance  and  variation  of  traits
• LS4  Biological  evolution:  Unity  and  diversity
Earth  and  Space  Sciences
•
ESS1  Earth’s  place  in  the  universe
•
ESS2  Earth’s  systems
•
ESS3  Earth  and  human  activity
Engineering,  Technology  and  Applications  of  Science
•
ETS1  Engineering  design
•
ETS2  Links  among  engineering,  technology,  science  and  society