Michigan Ecosystems
Question of the Day: How is the ecosystem balance maintained?
Vocabulary words:
 Climate Change
 Environmental Impact
 Balance in Ecosystems
 Resource Depletion
 Pollution
 Ecological Role or Niche
Review:
What is an Ecosystem?
Discuss types of populations
Discuss communities of organisms
Discuss the attributes and value of an ecosystem
(Such as the interdependence of biotic and abiotic factors)
What is the effect of people on an ecosystem?
Michigan Ecosystems & Handout
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnWoHRop-o4
Great Lakes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEFSw6qXYw4
Define ecosystems in Michigan: forests, wetlands, ponds, lakes, dunes and rivers
Assign equal number of students to each ecosystem.
Have students spend some quiet time hypothesizing the following for their assigned ecosystem:
1) Types of populations
2) Communities of organisms
3) Sources of Energy
4) Abiotic Factors
Homework: Research their assigned ecosystem and validate or invalidate their hypothesis.
Michigan Ecosystems Homework
Choose a Michigan Ecosystem:
Hypothesize (in class):
Types of Populations
Source of Energy
Abiotic Factors
Homework:
1) Research your chosen Ecosystem.
2) Confirm or invalidate your list above.
3) Divide up the research amongst your team
4) Bring pictures from internet or magazines to class of species (producers,
consumers, and decomposers), herbivores, omnivores and carnivores.
Enough to construct a complete Food Web in class
5) Sketch a Food Web on the back of this paper for discussion in class
6) Bring representations of Abiotic Factors in the chosen Ecosystem
7) Bring pictures of human interaction in this Ecosystem.
Our State, Our Ecosystem
Question of the Day: Where do we live? Where do we work? Where do we play?
Vocabulary words:
 Climate Change
 Environmental Impact
 Balance in Ecosystems
 Resource Depletion
 Pollution
 Ecological Role or Niche
Homework Follow-up: Michigan Ecosystems
Create wall mural for each ecosystem.
Discuss the student’s ecosystem research. Engage all students with each of the ecosystems.
 What were your hypothesis?

What did you learn from your research?

What was the value of the abiotic factors to the ecosystem?

What are the common organisms we are familiar with in this ecosystem?

What organisms did you discover, that you had never heard of?

What would happen if one of the abiotic factors was significantly reduced or eliminated?

What would happen if one of the organisms, all got sick and died?
Label the flow of energy
Create a food web
Discuss:
The effect of climate change (what is changing? Who does it affect? Does that cause other changes?)
What is the Environmental Impact of People? Farming? Industry? Hunting? Recreation?
Balance of Ecosystems
What is an example of Resource Depletion?
How does Pollution affect each ecosystem? What kind of Pollution is affecting this ecosystem?
Ecological Role or Niche
How do we fit into this picture?
You’re an Omnivore Song
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDwUVpOEoE4&list=PLDFAAB53FAC40EF9D&index=38
Decomposers
http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/tdc02.sci.life.oate.decompose/decomposers/
Michigan Ecosystems Video
List Michigan Ecosystems
List three (3) organisms
List three (3) abiotic
in each Ecosystem:
factors in each Ecosystem
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
Name YOUR impact on one of these Ecosystems: ____________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________