Yakima WATERS “5-E” Inquiry Lesson
Vegetation Mapping Analysis
Once data is collected it is often difficult to decide the best way to analyze and display results.
Students at Ellensburg High School recently collected vegetation data at Umtanum Creek in an
attempt to determine if the vegetation along the creek is healthy. This lesson will allow the
students to take the next step and analyze the data they collected in order to come to a
conclusion about the health of the vegetation along the creek.
This lesson is targeted to 10th grade. The lesson is expected to take 55 minutes.
Standards
Science 9-12 INQB Inquiry investigation
Science 9-12 INQC Inquiry explain
Science 9-12 INQD Inquiry communicate clearly
Standards Justification
Students will be asked to construct graphs and perform some simple calculations using the data
they collected. They will need to determine which data is worth graphing and how to best
represent that data to others (9-12 INQB). They will also need to use their data to calculate the
percent of native species at the site. Once a student analyzes their data through graphs and
calculations they will need to explain its importance (9-12 INQC) and clearly communicate how
their data collection helps to answer the initial research question (9-12 INQD).
Outcomes
Knowledge: Students will be able to identify the components of a graph and understand the
importance of their data.
Skill: Students will be able to calculate the percent cover of native species and construct graphs
to identify trends in the data. They will be able to use those trends to make conclusions about
their hypothesis.
Materials and Equipment



PC computer lab with individual workstations at Ellensburg High School
Teaching computer station with LCD projector
Student handbook from field trip containing data and sample calculations.
 Students working in groups of 2 (preferably with someone from their group on the field
trip), with the number of groups dependent on class size. Each group works on a single
computer.
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Prior Knowledge
It is assumed students understand vegetation within a riparian area is in good condition if few
invasive species are present and that they remember other important information from the
field trip site. It is also assumed they were able to take good notes and fill out their data tables
correctly in the field. Students should be able to compile and calculate their data using
example calculations in their field notebook.
Safety
Since this lesson plan takes place in the computer lab, students will follow rules of the lab such
as no food or drinks.
Engage (5 min)
Ask Students:
 What would you do if your house was destroyed in a natural disaster?
 Where would you live?
 How would you get food if you also lost all your money in the disaster?
Even if your family loses everything, you probably assume someone will help you get back on
your feet. Humans have many aid programs such as the Red Cross who help families out during
times of need so they will not starve or get sick due to a lack of shelter. As humans, this makes
us really fortunate.
But what do other creatures do when something destroys their home? How can mammals,
birds, reptiles, and insects that live in the shrub steppe survive if something changes their
environment and makes it hard for them to live?
Invasive plants may not seem like that big of a deal to us, but several animals need native plants
to survive. Without native habitat they may not be able to hide from predators, such as if an
invasive grass chokes out the shrubs and trees they need to hide underneath. Several species
such as sage grouse also rely on specific plants in order to eat and without those species they
will starve.
In order to determine if the plant community along Umtanum Creek is in good condition, we
collected data during the Ellensburg High School Field Trip. It is now time to analyze that data
to see if the vegetation at our sample location is healthy enough to support local wildlife.
Explore (30 min)
The goal of this lesson is to investigate how the presence of invasive species can affect the
health of the vegetation cover. Leading questions:
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Are there more native or introduced plants at the study site?
Is there enough cover for wildlife?
Is the vegetation healthy overall and if not, what can we do?
Begin by having the students find the vegetation data they collected in their field journals. Ask
students:
Native vs. Introduced Plants (Calculations)
 How do you determine if you have more native or introduced plants?
 Can you calculate the percent of native species? What resources can help you with this?
 If there are more native species, is the study site healthy?
 Was the study site a good representative of what you saw along the whole creek?
Would you choose a different site if you were able to study this area again?
Amount of Cover for Wildlife (Graphing)
 What data would you use to determine if there was enough cover for wildlife?
 What category from the data you collected would be most useful in determining cover
for wildlife?
 What kind of graph would be best to compare the cover within the different categories
of data you have?
 What variable would you put on the x-axis? What variable would you put on the y-axis?
Using Teaching computer station with LCD projector show an example of how to enter data
from table into Excel and make sure students understand the step by step process of making a
graph. Make sure students understand how data within their table is linked to the graph and
how changing numbers in their table can affect their graph.
Explain (15 min)
As students are working on their graphs and calculations, ask questions relating to how they
approached the assignment. Make sure students explain in their own words what they
discovered about the study site. If students need assistance, ask leading questions to help
them understand the concepts of the lesson fully.
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What does their graph tell them about the cover available for wildlife? Did they see
more grass/forbs or trees/shrubs? Which do animals prefer for cover?
Why did they choose to graph the categories shown on their graph?
What do the different categories represent in terms of the health of the vegetation?
Do they understand the sample calculation in order to determine the percent native
species? What data did they use to do this calculation?
Were other species recorded other than what is listed in the table on page 9 of their
field journal and if so did they include them in their calculations?
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Extend/Elaborate (5 min)
Have a large group discussion about everyone’s data. Does everyone have the same finding?
Why do groups agree or disagree? Did it matter which transect your data was collected along?
Was the site a good place to sample along Umtanum Creek? How does everyone feel about
their initial hypotheses now that the data has been analyzed? Can they accept or reject their
hypothesis and why? Is there anything humans can do to improve the vegetation along
Umtanum Creek?
Evaluate (0 min, included with Explanation Section)
While students are explaining their graphs and calculations, they will be graded using the rubric
below. Students will also need to print their work so further grading and comments can occur
outside of class time. This will allow the teacher to see how each student understands the
assignment and score their progress based on what they have been able to accomplish during
the explore period. If it appears students have not had time to complete both the calculations
and the graph, more time will be allotted the following day or the rubric will be modified to
better reflect what students had time to accomplish.
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Performance Rubric
Element
Knowledge
(1, 25%)
Skill (1,
70%)
Excellent
(5 pts)
Student is able
to provide a
clear, concise,
and accurate
description of
the health of the
study site and
Umtanum Creek.
Clearly
articulates how
steps are related
to data analysis
to answer a
scientific
question.
Student is able
to develop a
novel graph and
complete
calculations
successfully.
Explanation for
results is clear,
concise, succinct
and accurate.
Good
(4 pts)
Student is
mostly able to
provide a clear,
concise, and
accurate
description of
the health of
the study site
and Umtanum
Creek.
Articulates how
steps are
related to data
analysis to
answer a
scientific
question.
Student is able
to develop a
graph testing a
single variable.
Experiment is
controlled.
Explanation for
results is clear,
concise,
succinct and
accurate.
In Development
(3 pts)
Student is
somewhat able to
provide a
description of the
health of the
study site and
Umtanum Creek.
Has some trouble
explaining how to
apply data
analysis to
answer a
scientific
question.
Needs Rethinking
(2 pts)
Student has
trouble providing
a description of
the health of the
study site and
Umtanum Creek.
Has considerable
trouble explaining
how to apply data
analysis to answer
a scientific
question.
Not Scorable
(1 pt)
Student is unable
to provide any kind
of description of
the health of the
study site and
Umtanum Creek. Is
unable to apply
data analysis to
answer a scientific
question.
Student is able to
develop a graph
but combines
variables.
Calculation is
competed and
mostly correct.
Explanation for
results is
adequate.
Student is able to
develop a graph
but does not use
correct variables.
A calculation is
attempted.
Explanation for
results is only
partial, at best.
Student does not
develop a
graph...only plays
with the variables
or generally
observes others.
No calculation is
completed.
Explanation for
results is missing.
Teacher Background Info
Strengths & Pitfalls - My background knowledge in this area is a major strength, but my biggest
concern is students will not remember what we covered during the field trip when data
collection occurred. This could result in going over some of the facts again. I am also
concerned about consistency in data collection since there were three group leaders at the site
so the data may vary greatly depending on who the leader was and what time of day the
students were at the station.
Background Info – It is important for students to be able to display their data graphically and
also perform calculations in order to better understand their data. In this assignment students
are asked to calculate the percent cover of native species. This is a simple calculation in which
students must tally the number of native species they observed along with the total number of
species observed at the site. The number of native species is then divided by the total number
of species and multiplied by 100 to get a percentage of native species (Winward, 2000). An
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example of this calculation is also shown in the EHS 2009 Biology Field Journal. The higher the
percentage of native species at a site, the healthier the vegetation is. The other task for this
assignment is to graphically represent their data. They should be able to make a bar graph with
percent cover on the y-axis and different vegetation categories on the x-axis. Students can use
their graph to determine if the vegetation at the site is homogenous or heterogeneous. The
more diverse the cover at a site, the better it will be at supporting wildlife within and along the
riparian zone (Flombaum and Sala, 2006).
In addition to science standards noted above, this lesson addresses:
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Mathematics in performing the calculations
Listening and observation skills in order to be able to complete the tasks in the required
time.
Resources
Refer to EHS 2009 Student Field Trip Journal to find how data was collected for this lesson.
Flombaum, P. and Sala, O.E. 2006. A non-destructive and rapid method to estimate
biomass and aboveground net primary production in arid environments. Journal of Arid
Environments. 69:352-358.
Winward, Alma H. 2000. Monitoring the Vegetation Resources in Riparian Areas. USDA.
For. Serv. RMRS-GTR-47. 49 pp.
Author: Jennifer Lannoye, Yakima WATERS Project, CWU, 2009-2010
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