Shaw Lesson Plans – 6th Grade Science – Week Ending March 9, 2012
Monday: 3/5
SEs: 6.12E – describe biotic
and abiotic parts of an
ecosystem in which organisms
interact
Students will understand
that an organism depends on
living and nonliving things
found in the environment for
survival and that our living
world is highly organized
Tuesday: 3/6
SEs: 6.12E – describe biotic
and abiotic parts of an
ecosystem in which organisms
interact
Students will understand
that an organism depends on
living and nonliving things
found in the environment for
survival and that our living
world is highly organized
Wednesday: 3/7
SEs: 6.12E – describe biotic
and abiotic parts of an
ecosystem in which organisms
interact
Students will understand
that an organism depends on
living and nonliving things
found in the environment for
survival and that our living
world is highly organized
Thursday: 3/8
SEs: 6.12F – diagram the
levels of organization within
an ecosystem including
organism, population,
community, and ecosystem
Students will learn why the
interactions among
organisms and their
environments are important,


Warm-Up
Ecosystems Video “Biology Concepts for Students: Ecology” with Notes

"Biomes: Our Earth's Major Life Zones"
Considers the interplay of living and nonliving things and how this is important to Earth's delicate balance
Defines and describes the distinctive communities of life that inhabit the unique regions of the earth, such as deciduous forests, tundra, taiga,
tropical rain forests, deserts, grassland, and fresh and salt water environments.

Reflection – What was the purpose of today’s activity?
Materials: Paper, Pen/ Pencil, & Interactive
Balanced Literacy/ESL Strategies: Direct teaching important
Journal/Notebook
words, model performance of all tasks, simplify language, write
on the board while talking, use graphics to illustrate concepts,
ELPS: 3(D), 3(E), 3(I), 5(B), 5(G)
continue Word Walls and Graphic Organizers, K-W-L Strategy,
and Think-Pair-Share



Warm-Up
Ecosystems and Biomes - Vocabulary
Reflection – What was the purpose of today’s activity?
Materials: Paper, Pen/ Pencil, Interactive
Journal/ Notebook
ELPS: 3(D), 3(E), 3(I), 5(B), 5(G)
Balanced Literacy/ESL Strategies: Direct teaching important
words, model performance of all tasks, simplify language, write
on the board while talking, use graphics to illustrate concepts,
continue Word Walls and Graphic Organizers, K-W-L Strategy,
and Think-Pair-Share

Warm-Up

Ecosystems – EduSmart Notes

Reflection – Whats? What did we learn today? So what?
Materials: Paper, Pen/ or Pencils, Interactive
Balanced Literacy/ESL Strategies: Direct teaching important
Journal/Notebook
words, model performance of all tasks, simplify language, write
on the board while talking, use graphics to illustrate concepts,
ELPS: 3(D), 3(E), 3(I), 5(B), 5(G)
continue Word Walls and Graphic Organizers, K-W-L Strategy,
and Think-Pair-Share



Warm-Up
Ecosystems Sort Cards
Reflection – What was the purpose of today’s activity?
Materials: Paper, Pen/ or Pencils, Interactive
Journal/Notebook
ELPS: 3(D), 3(E), 3(I), 5(B), 5(G)
Balanced Literacy/ESL Strategies: Direct teaching important
words, model performance of all tasks, simplify language, write
on the board while talking, use graphics to illustrate concepts,
continue Word Walls and Graphic Organizers, K-W-L Strategy,
and Think-Pair-Share
and share the information in
cooperative learning
interactions
Friday: 3/9
SEs: 6.12F – diagram the
levels of organization within
an ecosystem including
organism, population,
community, and ecosystem
Students will learn why the
interactions among
organisms and their
environments are important,

Warm-Up

Ecosystems Sort Cards

Reflection – What was the purpose of today’s activity?
Materials: Paper, Pen/ or Pencils, Interactive
Balanced Literacy/ESL Strategies: Direct teaching important
Journal/Notebook
words, model performance of all tasks, simplify language, write
on the board while talking, use graphics to illustrate concepts,
ELPS: 3(D), 3(E), 3(I), 5(B), 5(G)
continue Word Walls and Graphic Organizers, K-W-L Strategy,
and Think-Pair-Share
and share the information in
cooperative learning
interactions
ELPS:
3D – Speak using grade-level content area vocabulary in context to internalize new English words and build academic language proficiency
3E – Share information in cooperative learning interactions
3I – Adapt spoken language appropriately for formal and informal purposes
5B – Write using newly acquired basic vocabulary and content-based grade-level vocabulary
5G – Narrate, describe, and explain with increasing specificity and detail to fulfill content area writing needs as more English is acquired
Special Education Modifications:
Sentence prompts; extended time for completion; grade based on effort; reduction in number of questions
Enduring Understandings:
That organism depends on living and nonliving things found in the environment for survival and that our living world is highly organized.
Essential Questions:
What is an ecosystem? Why are the interactions among organisms and their environments important?
Key Concepts:
Ecosystems
Environments
Communities
Ecology
Organisms
Essentials Vocabulary:
abiotic - nonliving parts of the environment
abiotic factor – the nonliving factors in an environment such as water, climate, and soil
biome – a large area on Earth’s surface that is defined by the plants and animals living there
- Tropical Rainforest (Think about Brazil)
- Tropical Savanna (Think about Africa)
- Desert (Think about the Middle East)
- Mediterranean Woodland (Think about coniferous forests)
- Mid-latitude Grassland (Think about Oklahoma)
- Mid-latitude Deciduous Forest (Think about the East coast of North America)
- Tundra (Think about frozen plains of Alaska)
- Ice Caps (Think about the poles)
biotic - living parts of the environment
biotic factor – living things, such as plants and animals, that are part of an ecosystem
ecology - is the study of the responses and interaction of living things with their environment
ecosystem - all the living things and the non-living thing resources in a particular area
decomposers - an organism that breaks down organism, releasing simple chemical compounds
habitat – the environment where an organism normally lives or occurs
organism - a living thing
that carries out the basic life functions on its own
population - a group of individuals with the same species that interact with each other
community -all the populations of different species in a given area that interact in some way and depend on one another for food, shelter, and other
needs
producers- organism that use energy from the Sun to make the nutrients they need to survive
consumers- organisms that eat food made by producers. Consumers can be herbivores, carnivores, omnivores
mimicry- when one organism benefits by resembling anther organism
Module Assessment:
1. Which of the following list includes only biotic parts of an ecosystem?
a. Rain, grass, sees, mice
b. Log, dead grass, fungus, bird
c. Sand, air, water, sunlight
d. Bacteria, soil, minerals, worms
2. A(n) _______ is all the living things and nonliving things in a particular area that interact with one another.
a.
Biome
b.
Community
c.
Ecosystem
d.
Population
3.
Which of the following correctly shows the organization in an ecosystem, from the smallest to the largest level?
a. Community, ecosystem, organism, population
b. Ecosystem, community, population, organism
c. Organism, population, community, ecosystem
d. Population, community, ecosystem, organism
4. Which of the following is an example of how an abiotic component affects a community?
a. A wet spring leads to an increase in the frog population
b. A betel from another continent kills a population of trees
c. A fungus infects a population of bats and many die
d. An increase in flies leads to an increase in the swallow population
5. What is the largest geographic area that contains all the ecosystems on Earth?
a. Biome
b. Biosphere
c. Ecosystem
d. Environment
Module Assessment Answers:
1. C
2. B
3. C
4. A
5. B
PCP:
6.12E – describe biotic and abiotic parts of an ecosystem in which organisms interact
6.12F – diagram the levels of organization within an ecosystem including organism, population, community, and ecosystem
Have students make the Levels of Organization in “The Environment” booklet or foldable
Create a biome on your classroom wall that the students are required to decorate Journals
Instruct students to select a local ecosystem to explore and analyze. Students can refer to places they have gone to: Camp Carter, Botanic Gardens, or
the Fort Worth Zoo. The following are some suggestions for how to identify an appropriate ecosystem for analysis:
- The ecosystem can be small, such as terrarium, aquarium, or small pond
- The ecosystem can be larger, such as a wooded area near home or school
- The ecosystem can be the local community itself
- In their notebooks, students should provide a brief description of the ecosystem they have selected
- Students should include the following during their analysis of their ecosystem
- A list of biotic and abiotic components
- A list of producers, consumers, and decomposers
- A diagram of the levels of organization within an ecosystem including the organism, population, community, and ecosystem
Resources:
Gateways to Science Grade 6
Glencoe Science Book Chapter 6
FOSS Population & Ecosystems Teacher Guide
FOSS Diversity of Life Teacher Guide
Comparing Ecosystems Handout
Analyzing Ecosystems Handout
Tier 1:
FOSS Diversity of Life Investigation I
FOSS Diversity of Life Lab Notebook
Tier 2:
Part 1 – Living or Nonliving
Students will work in groups to organize objects into living and nonliving categories and define the characteristics of objects that are living or biotic
versus nonliving or abiotic
Part 2 – Is anything alive in here?
Students will determine if five materials are living and record the evidence that supports their data
Tier 3:
Schedule tutoring before or after school.
FOSS Populations & Ecosystems Investigation 2FOSS Pop & Eco Teacher Pages
FOSS Pop & Eco Lab Notebook
https://portal.fwisd.org/myframeworks/Curriculum%20Docs/FOSS%20Populations%20and%20Ecosystems%20Lab%20Notebook.pdf
FOSS Pop & Eco Sort Cards:
part 1
part 2
1. Ecosystem Card Sort
Read through the teacher guide on pages 72-75 prior to beginning Investigation 2: Part 1. Review the words lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere,
biosphere and ecosphere with the students and tell them you will be looking closer at the ecosphere during this module (pages 64-65). As a class you
will start with an individual organism of a species and move to a population, then a community and end with an ecosystem.
2. Students will review the basic definitions used for ecological studies. Student groups learn about how ecosystems are organized. Students will
conclude Part 1 with a reading on communities.