Checklist for Task 2 Energy and Matter Flow
Course name/grade
level
Task Description
Task Rubric
Biology 9-12
This task asks you to construct a food web, food pyramid, and biogeochemical cycles for your
specific ecosystem.
In this task you are asked to represent your food web with the correct direction of energy flow,
classify organisms based on their mode of nutrition, diagram and calculate the energy flow of a
food chain, and diagram the carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle, and hydrological cycle with an
emphasis on photosynthesis and respiration.
4 Advanced
Food web provides at least 10 correct photos of species with common names from the specified ecosystem
 Correctly represents energy flow direction with arrows flowing from lower to higher trophic levels (e.g. grassdeer)
 Correctly color-codes organisms by their mode of nutrition and provides a key. (e.g. all producers are green.)
 Energy pyramid correctly drawn for longest food chain
Correct calculation of the amount of energy at each trophic level in the energy pyramid
 Neatly and correctly diagrams the carbon cycle with emphasis on all of the following:
o
o
o
o
Photosynthesis
Cellular Respiration
Decomposition
Fossil Fuel Combustion
 Accurately describes cycling of carbon through the carbon cycle
 Neatly and correctly diagrams the water cycle with an emphasis on all of the following:
o
o
o
o
Photosynthesis
Cellular Respiration
Transpiration
Evaporation
o
o
o
o
Precipitation
Condensation
Runoff
Infiltration
 Accurately describes the cycling of water in the water cycle
 Neatly and correctly diagrams the nitrogen cycle
 Accurately summarizes the nitrogen cycle and describes the role of bacteria and the importance of nitrogen for
living organisms
3 Proficient
Food web provides 8-9 correct photos of species with common names from the specified ecosystem
 Correctly represents energy flow direction with arrows flowing from lower to higher trophic levels (e.g. grassdeer)
 Correctly color-codes organisms by their mode of nutrition and provides a key. (e.g. all producers are green.)
 Energy pyramid correctly drawn for longest food chain
Correct calculation of the amount of energy at each trophic level in the energy pyramid
 Neatly and correctly diagrams the carbon cycle with emphasis on at least 3 of the following:
o
o
o
o
Photosynthesis
Cellular Respiration
Decomposition
Fossil Fuel Combustion
 Accurately describes cycling of carbon through the carbon cycle
 Neatly and correctly diagrams the water cycle with an emphasis on at least 6 of the following:
o
o
o
o
Photosynthesis
Cellular Respiration
Transpiration
Evaporation
o
o
o
o
Precipitation
Condensation
Runoff
Infiltration
 Accurately describes the cycling of water in the water cycle
 Neatly and correctly diagrams the nitrogen cycle
 Accurately summarizes the nitrogen cycle and describes either the role of bacteria or the importance of
nitrogen for living organisms
2 Developing
Food web provides 6-7 correct photos of species with common names from the specified ecosystem
 Represents energy flow direction with arrows flowing from lower to higher trophic levels with 1-2 minor mistakes
 Color-codes organisms by their mode of nutrition with 1-2 mistakes or does not provide a completed key
 Energy pyramid correctly drawn for a food chain
 Calculates the amount of energy at each trophic level in the energy pyramid with one or two mistakes
 Neatly and correctly diagrams the carbon cycle with emphasis on at least 2 of the following:
o
o
o
o
Photosynthesis
Cellular Respiration
Decomposition
Fossil Fuel Combustion
 Accurately describes cycling of carbon through the carbon cycle
 Neatly and correctly diagrams the water cycle with an emphasis on at least 4 of the following:
o
o
o
o
Photosynthesis
Cellular Respiration
Transpiration
Evaporation
o
o
o
o
Precipitation
Condensation
Runoff
Infiltration
 Describes the cycling of water in the water cycle with one or two mistakes
 Diagrams the nitrogen cycle with one or two mistakes
 Summarizes the nitrogen cycle with one or two mistakes and describes either the role of bacteria or the
importance of nitrogen for living organisms.
1 Emerging
Food web provides less than 5 correct photos of species with common names from the specified ecosystem
 Represents energy flow direction with arrows flowing from lower to higher trophic levels with major mistakes
 Color-codes organisms by their mode of nutrition with major mistakes or does not provide a completed key
 Energy pyramid is present but incorrectly drawn for a food chain.
 Incorrectly calculates the amount of energy at each trophic level in the energy pyramid
 Diagrams the carbon cycle with emphasis on at least 1 of the following:
o
o
o
o
Photosynthesis
Cellular Respiration
Decomposition
Fossil Fuel Combustion
 Incompletely describes the cycling of carbon through the carbon cycle
 Diagrams the water cycle with an emphasis on at least 2 of the following:
o
o
o
o
Photosynthesis
Cellular Respiration
Transpiration
Evaporation
o
o
o
o
Precipitation
Condensation
Runoff
Infiltration
 Incompletely describes the cycling of water through the water cycle
 Incompletely diagrams the nitrogen cycle
 Incompletely summarizes the nitrogen cycle and does not describe either the role of bacteria or the importance
of nitrogen for living organisms
0 Not submitted