Project GLAD
North Franklin School District-Washington
Freshwater Ecosystems
Level 5
IDEA PAGES
I. UNIT THEME: An ecosystem is a community of dependent and interdependent
organisms. Pollutants can have a great effect on the balance among organisms and
human cultures within an ecosystem.
II. FOCUS/MOTIVATION
 Observation Charts
 Inquiry Charts
 Realia
 Big Book
 CCD: Cognitive Content Dictionary
 Read aloud
 Super Scientist Awards
III. CLOSURE/ASSESSMENT
 Science Night
 Home school connections
 Science notebooks
 Processing all charts and learning logs
 Class/team social action plan
IV. CONCEPTS
 An ecosystem is a community of organisms and its interaction with its environment.
 Organisms can be categorized by the functions the serve in an ecosystem: producers,
consumers, or decomposers.
 Organisms in an ecosystem have dependent and interdependent relationships, which
can be illustrated by food webs.
 Factors that affect growth and reproduction of organisms in an ecosystem include light,
water, temperature, and soil.
 Natural and human-made events can “disturb” an ecosystem.
 Pollutant is anything that can harm living organisms when too much of it is released
into an ecosystem. Pollution is a condition that results when pollutants interact with the
environment.
 Pollutants can affect the stability of an ecosystem; solutions can be developed to
minimize or alleviate the effects of pollutants.
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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V. GLE STANDARDS – Grade 5
Reading:
Component 2.1 Demonstrate evidence of reading comprehension.
2.1.3 Apply comprehension monitoring strategies before, during, and after reading: determine
importance using theme, main idea and supporting details in grade-level
informational/expository text and/or literary/narrative text.
 State the main idea of a passage and provide several text-based details supporting it.
 State the theme/message and supporting details in culturally relevant literary/narrative text.
 Organize main ideas and supporting details in a graphic organizer to enhance
comprehension.
 Select, from multiple choices, a title that best fits the selection and provide details from the
text to support the choice.
 Select, from multiple choices, a sentence that best states the theme or main idea of a story,
poem, or selection.
2.1.4 Apply comprehension monitoring strategies before, during, and after reading: use prior
knowledge.
 Connect current issues, previous information and experiences to characters, events, and
information within and across culturally relevant text(s).
 Activate prior knowledge about a topic and organize information into a graphic organizer
to aid in comprehension of text.
2.1.5 Apply comprehension monitoring strategies before, during, and after reading: predict and
infer from grade-level text.
 Make, confirm, and revise prediction based on prior knowledge and evidence from the text.
 Cite passages from text to confirm or defend predictions and inferences.
 Select, from multiple choices, a prediction, or inference from literary/narrative text (e.g.,
how a poet or author feels, how a character feels, what a character will do, what is likely to
happen next or at the end of the story or poem).
 Organize information to support a prediction or inference in a graphic organizer.
 Select, from multiple choices, a prediction or inference that could be made from the text.
2.1.6 Apply comprehension monitoring strategies to understand fiction, nonfiction,
informational text, and task-oriented text: monitor for meaning, create mental images, and
generate and answer questions.
 Monitor for meaning by identifying where and why comprehension was lost and use
comprehension-repair strategies to regain meaning.
 Generate and answer questions about the text before, during, and after reading to aid
comprehension.
 Use questioning strategies to comprehend text.
 Draw, write about, or verbally describe the mental images that occur while reading.
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Organize information in a graphic organizer appropriate to the text and purpose for reading
to organize information and comprehend text.
Use pre-, during, and after-reading tools designed to activate and record prior knowledge to
understand text (e.g., prediction guides, KWL charts, DRTA).
2.1.7 Apply comprehension monitoring strategies during and after reading: summarize gradelevel informational/expository text and literary/narrative text.
 Create a summary including the main idea and the most important text-based facts, details,
and/or ideas from informational/expository text (e.g., newspaper or magazine articles).
 Summarize the plot/message in culturally relevant literary/narrative texts.
 Select, from multiple choices, a sentence that best summarizes the story or selection.
 Organize information using a graphic organizer appropriate for summarizing
informational/expository text and literary/narrative text.
Component 2.2 Understand and apply knowledge of text components to comprehend text.
2.2.4 Apply understanding of text organizational structures.
 Recognize and use previously learned text organizational structures (simple listing,
sequential order, description, compare and contrast, chronological order) to aid
comprehension.
 Identify and use text written in the text organizational structures of cause and effect and
order of importance to find and organize information and comprehend text.
 Differentiate between text organizational structures of informational/expository text and
literary/narrative text.
Component 2.3 Expand comprehension by analyzing, interpreting, and synthesizing
information and ideas in literary and informational text.
2.3.1 Analyze informational/expository text and literary/narrative text for similarities and
differences and cause and effect relationships.
 Find similarities and differences within and between texts using text-based evidence (e.g.,
facts and opinion in newspaper vs. poetry; authors’ points of view in different works).
 Identify and interpret cause and effect relationships within a text using evidence from the
text (e.g., how the transcontinental railroad influenced the development of the West).
 Select, from multiple choices, a sentence that tells how two text elements are alike or
different (e.g., character, setting, information).
 Select, from multiple choices, a sentence that explains or describes cause and effect
relationships (e.g., what caused something to happen, what was the result of an action).
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Component 2.4 Think critically and analyze author’s use of language, style, purpose, and
perspective in informational and literary text.
2.4.5 Understand how to extend information beyond the text to another text or to a broader idea
or concept by generalizing.
 Generalize after reading multiple texts (e.g., how characters show bravery or misuse
power).
 Explain how information in a text could be used to solve a problem and cite text-based
examples (e.g., use information from an article about when fruits and vegetables are in
season to save money at the grocery store).
Writing:
1.1 Prewrites to generate ideas and plan writing.
1.1.1. Applies more than one strategy for generating ideas and planning writing.
1.2. Produces draft(s).
1.2.1. Produces multiple drafts.
1.3. Revises to improve text.
1.3.1. Revises text, including changing words, sentences, paragraphs, and ideas.
1.4. Edits text.
1.4.1. Applies understanding of editing appropriate for grade level
1.5. Publishes text to share with audience.
1.5.1. Publishes in more than one format for specific audiences and purposes.
1.6. Adjusts writing process as necessary.
1.6.1. Applies understanding of the recursive nature of writing process.
1.6.2. Uses collaborative skills to adapt writing process.
1.6.3. Uses knowledge of time constraints to adjust writing process.
2.1. Adapts writing for a variety of audiences.
2.2.1. Demonstrates understanding of different purposes for writing.
2.3. Writes in a variety of forms/genres.
2.3.1. Uses a variety of forms/genres.
3.1. Develops ideas and organizes writing.
3.1.1. Analyzes ideas, selects a narrow topic, and elaborates using specific details and/or
examples.
3.1.2. Uses an effective organizational structure.
3.2. Uses appropriate style.
3.2.2. Uses language appropriate for a specific audience and purpose.
3.2.3. Uses a variety of sentences.
3.3. Knows and applies writing conventions appropriate for the grade level.
3.3.2. Spells words appropriate for the grade level accurately.
3.3.3. Applies capitalization rules.
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Science:
1.2. Structures: Understand how components, structures, organizations, and interconnections
describe systems.
1.2.1. Analyze how the parts of a system go together and how these parts depend on each other.
1.2.4. Understand that Earth's system includes a mostly solid interior, landforms, bodies of
water, and an atmosphere.
1.3.8. Understand that living things need constant energy and matter.
1.3.10. Understand that that an organisms ability to survive is influenced by the organisms
behavior and the ecosystem in which it lives.
2.1. Investigating Systems: Develop the knowledge and skills necessary to do scientific
inquiry.
2.1.1. Understand how to ask a question about objects, organisms, and events in the
environment.
2.1.2. Understand how to plan and conduct simple investigations following all safety rules.
2.1.3. Understand how to construct a reasonable explanation using evidence.
2.1.4. Understand how to use simple models to represent objects, events, systems, and
processes.
2.1.5. Understand how to report investigations and explanations of objects, events, systems,
and processes.
2.2. Nature of Science: Understand the nature of scientific inquiry.
2.2.1. Understand that all scientific observations are reported accurately and honestly even
when the observations contradict expectations.
2.2.3. Understand why similar investigations may not produce similar results.
2.2.4. Understand how to make the results of scientific investigations reliable.
2.2.5. Understand that scientific comprehension of systems increases through inquiry.
3.1. Designing Solutions: Apply knowledge and skills of science and technology to design
solutions to human problems or meet challenges.
3.1.1. Understand problems found in ordinary situations in which scientific design can be or
has been used to design solutions.
3.1.2. Understand how the scientific design process is used to develop and implement solutions
to human problems.
3.1.3. Analyze how well a design or a product solves a problem.
3.2. Science, Technology, and Society: Analyze how science and technology are human
endeavors, interrelated to each other, society, the workplace, and the environment.
3.2.4. Understand how humans depend on the natural environment and can cause changes in
the environment that affect human’s ability to survive.
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ELD Listening and Speaking Standards
EALR 1: The student uses listening and observation skills to gain understanding.
Component 1.1 – The student will focus attention.
Component 1.2 – The student will listen and observe to gain and interpret information.
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Respond to multi-step directions and to questions.
Use descriptive sentences to retell stories in detail including characters, setting, and plot
Use context to determine appropriate meaning of multiple meaning words.
Component 1.3 – The student will check for understanding by asking questions and
paraphrasing.
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Use descriptive sentences with some content vocabulary to paraphrase.
EALR 2: The student communicates ideas clearly and effectively.
Component 2.1 – The student will communicate clearly to a range of audiences for
different purposes.
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Use descriptive sentences to participate in social conversations with peers and adults.
Use descriptive sentences to tell a story, inform, explain, entertain, and persuade.
Component 2.2 – The student will develop content and ideas. Develop a topic or theme;
organize thoughts around a clear beginning, middle, and end; use transitional sentences
and phrases to connect related ideas; and speak coherently and compellingly.
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Connect sentences using the words and, and then, after and but
Component 2.3 – The student will use effective delivery. Adjust speaking strategies for a
variety of audiences and purposes by varying intonation, pitch, and pace of speech to
create effect and aid communication.
Component 2.4 – The student will use effective language and style. Use language that is
grammatically correct, precise, engaging and well-suited to topic,
audience, and purpose.
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Use simple sentences to share information with class, using appropriate volume.
EALR 3: The student uses communication strategies and skills to work effectively with
others.
Component 3.1 – The student will use language to interact effectively and responsibly
with others.
Component 3.2 – The student will work cooperatively as a member of a group.
Component 3.3 – The student will seek agreement and solutions through discussion.
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Use simple sentences to actively participate in social and academic conversations on
unfamiliar topics.
Demonstrate turn-taking in a conversation and a group discussion, responding
appropriately to nonverbal cues.
Use simple sentences to explain ideas clearly in-group discussions, including personal
experiences.
Begin to use established group rules and assume various assigned roles to further progress
of a group.
Use simple sentences to brainstorm solutions to problems.
ELD Writing Standards
EALR: The student writes clearly and effectively
Component 1.1- The student will develop concept and design
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Choose and maintain focus on topic
Use simple sentences to write:
 a narrative with a beginning, middle, and end
 an expository paragraph about one topic
Use basic transitions
Component 1.2- The student will use style appropriate to the audience and purpose
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Use simple sentences to write paragraphs for different purposes
Begin to choose appropriate words to convey meaning and express voice to different
audiences
Begin to use simple figurative language and idiomatic language
Component 1.3- The student applies writing conventions
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Write simple sentences with inconsistent word order and subject/verb agreement
Begin to edit writing for punctuation, capitalization, and spelling
EALR 2: The student writes in a variety of forms for different audiences and purposes
Component 2.1 – The student will write for different audiences.
Component 2.2 – The student will write for different purposes.
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Write simple sentences to tell a story, inform, entertain, reflect, question, and record
information
Distinguish among appropriate ways of writing to different audiences
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Component 2.3 – The student will write for different audiences.
Component 2.4 – The student will write for different purposes.
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Use simple sentences to write in a variety of forms (essays, narratives, journals, poems,
reports, explanations, memos, experiments)
Revise own writing for appropriate audience
Use picture dictionary to correct spelling
EALR 3: The student understands and uses the steps of the writing process.
Component 3.1 – The student will pre-write – generate ideas and gather information.
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Use pictures and modeled graphic organizers to generate ideas for simple stories
Component 3.2 – The student will revise– elaborate on a topic and supporting ideas.
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Create rough drafts which include simple and descriptive sentences
Component 3.3 – The student will revise- collect input and enhance text and style.
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Revise own writing for appropriate audience
Offer feedback on other’s writing
Component 3.4 – The student will edit- use resources to correct spelling, punctuation,
grammar, and usage.
Component 3.5- The student will publish- select a publishing form and produce a
completed writing project to share with chosen audience.
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Use picture dictionary to correct spelling
Publish selected writing in appropriate format
EALR 1: The student understands and uses different skills and strategies to read.
Component 1.1: Use word recognitions skills and strategies to read and comprehend text.
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Use words and/or phrases to participate in a discussion of a story listened to or read.
EALR 1: The student understands and uses different skills and strategies to read.
Component 1.2: Use vocabulary (word meaning) strategies to comprehend text.
Component 1.3: Build vocabulary through wide reading.
Component 1.4: Apply word recognition skills and strategies to read fluently.
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Use new vocabulary in simple sentences to discuss, prior knowledge, illustrations to predict
and confirm word meaning and concepts from literary and informational texts.
Use words and/or phrases to participate in discussions of short, illustrated stories and show
understanding of vocabulary.
Use descriptive sentences to discuss prior knowledge, pictures, illustrations, context, and
diagrams to clarify word meanings and concepts.
Use new vocabulary in own oral and written communication.
Integrate new vocabulary from text into written and oral communication across content
areas.
Use simple sentences in discussion or on a graphic organizer to connect prior experience
and knowledge to characters, events, and information within a text.
Use simple sentences to retell story in sequence and to identify story elements. (also 2.1.5)
Use simple sentences to describe images from story in literary text.
Identify information from charts and graphs.
Use appropriate graphic organizer to connect current issues, prior experience and
knowledge to characters, events, and information across texts.
EALR 2: The student understands the meaning of what is read.
Component 2.3: Expand comprehension by analyzing, interpreting, and synthesizing
information and ideas in literary and informational text.
Component 2.4: Think critically and analyze author’s use of language, style, purpose, and
perspective in informational and literary text.
 Use gestures to indicate and draw pictures to represent cause and effect relationships and
compare and contrast in simple short texts read aloud.
 Use a word, gesture, or drawing to group objects with common attributes.
 Use words or phrases to identify the simplest forms of literary devices (e.g., simile,
metaphors, and alliteration).
EALR 3: The student reads materials for a variety of purposes.
Component 3.1: Read to learn new information.
Component 3.2: Read to perform a task.
Component 3.3: Read for career applications.
 Follow simple text directions composed of pictures, single words, or phrases to perform a
task.
EALR 3: The student reads materials for a variety of purposes.
Component 3.4: Read for literary/narrative experience in a variety of genres.
 Use drawings, word, or gesture to respond to or distinguish between two genres (e.g.,
fiction and non-fiction).
 Use simple sentences to identify and discuss the culture and/or traditions described in a
piece of literature.
 Use specialized vocabulary to compare and contrast cultures and traditions from a variety
of literature.
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EALR 4: The student sets goals and evaluates progress to improve reading.
Component 4.1: Assess reading strengths and need for improvement.
Component 4.2: Develop interests and share reading experiences.
 Use word, phrase or gesture to indicate preference for certain books read aloud.
VI. VOCABULARY
classification
producer
germinate
consumer
ecosystem photosynthesis
respiration
observation stable
predator
food chain
pollution
variable
balance
swamp
prey
generalist
specialist
decomposer scavenger evaporation
condensation precipitation watershed
water table
leach
environment organism
habitat
carbon dioxide
oxygen
climate
omnivore
carnivore
herbivore microorganism
wetland
flora
fauna
water cycle
energy
aquatic
control group hypothesis
variable
marsh
interdependent relationship
symbiotic relationship
contamination
toxic
tertiary
synergy
VII. RESOURCES AND MATERIALS – Teacher
 Ecosystems – Carolina Biological Supply Company, 1996
 Ecosystems – The National Academy of Sciences and the Smithsonian Institution, 2004
 Come Back, Salmon Sierra Club, 1992
 Life on Earth Little, Brown & Co. 1979
 Aquatic Habitats: Exploring Desktop Ponds Regents of the University of California,
1998
RESOURCES AND MATERIALS – Fiction
Pond Year Kathrn Lasky
The Raft Jim LaMarche
The Wump World Bill Pete
The Lorax Dr. Suess
RESOURCES AND MATERIALS – Non-fiction
River of Life, Miller; Clarion Books
River Discoveries, Wadsorth; Charlesbridge Publishing
The Drop in my Drink, Hooper/ Coady; Penguin Group
Pond Donald M. Silver, Patricia Wynne, Patricia J. Wynne
Pond Life: A Golden Guide from St. Martin's Press, Reid; Golden Press, 1967
Scum, Silberberg
Ping: A Frog in Search of a New Pond, Gold
Pond, Morrison
Pond and River (Eyewitness Books Series), Parker; DK Publishing, 1988
Animals of Rivers, Lakes and Ponds, Donovan
At the Pond, Schwartz; Creative Teaching Press, Inc. 1997
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Near One Cattail: Turtles, Logs and Leaping Frogs, Fredericks
By Lakes and Rivers, Paul
Exploring Freshwater Habitats, Snowball;
Biology of Freshwater Wetlands, Van Der Valk
Pond Animals, Galko
Biology of Lakes and Ponds, Bronmark, Hansson;
ABC of a Summer Pond, Friedman;
Swamp, Silver, Wynne; McGraw Hill, 1997
Marshes and Swamps, Gibbons; Holiday House 1998
Magic School Bus Gets Eaten: A Book about Food Chains, Relf; Scholastic Books
A River Ran Wild: An Environmental History, Cherry; Harcourt Brace & Co. 1992
Freshwater Habitats (Watts Library): Life in Freshwater Ecosystems, Toupin
Freshwater Pond, Hibbert
Algal Ecology: Freshwater Benthic Ecosystem
Bioassessment of Freshwater Ecosystems: Using the Reference Condition Approach
Bailey, Reynoldson, Norris;
Lipids in Freshwater Ecosystems, Arts;
Biological Monitoring of Freshwater Ecosystems, Loeb;
Who Eats What?: Food Chains and Food Webs, Lauber; Harper Collins 1995
Food Chain Frenzy (Magic School Bus Chapter Books Series #17), Capeci
What Are Food Chains and Webs? Kalman, Langille;
Rolypolyology
Cricketology
RESOURCES AND MATERIALS – Poetry
Song of the Water Boatman and the Other Pond Poems, Joyce Sidman
Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices Paul Fleischman
The Earth is Painted Green: A Garden of Poems About Our Planet Scholastic
PEOPLE/COMMUNITY
Franklin Conservation District
TECHNOLOGY
VHS, Living on the Edge, Tom Horton Chesapeake Bay Foundation, 1992
http: //ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/earthrivers.html
http: //www.twingroves.district96.K12.il.us/wetlands/rivers/rivers.html
http: //42explore.com/rivers.html
http: //www.infovisual.info/01/028_en.html
http: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ecosytem
http: //library.thinkquest.org/11353/ecoystems.html
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http: //www.hps.gov/archive/ever/eco/index.html
http: //www.danielwilson.uklinux.net/ecology
http: //www.certifiedaquascapecontractor.com/ponds.php
http: //en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquadic_ecosyste
http: //www.mnp.nl/mnc/i-en-1147.html
http: //www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/marssim/simhtml/info/whats-a-carnivore.html
http: //www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/marssim/simhtml/info/whats-a-omnivore.html
http: //www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/marssim/simhtml/info/whats-a-herbivore.html
http: //www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/marssim/simhtml/info/whats-a-decomposer.html
http: //www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/marssim/simhtml/info/whats-a-pollinator.html
http: //www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/marssim/simhtml/info/whats-a-plant.html
http: //www.arcytech.org/java/population/facts_foodchain.html
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Project GLAD
North Franklin School District-Washington
ECOSYSTEMS
Level 5
UNIT PLANNING PAGES
I. FOCUS/MOTIVATION
 Cognitive Content Dictionary with signal word
 Observation charts
 Big Book: What is a Fresh Water Ecosystem?
 Poetry
 Realia – Finished Ecocolumn
 Ecologist Awards
 Personal interaction
 Inquiry Charts “How Living Things Depend on Each Other”
 Read aloud A River Ran Wild, Come Back Salmon
II. INPUT
 Pictorial Input – The Riverbank Environment
 Comparative Pictorial Input – Watershed model: healthy vs. unhealthy
 Graphic organizers – United State’s freshwater bodies with Washington inset map
 Six Kingdoms of Living Things
 Narrative input The Raft
 10/2 lecture with primary language
 Newspaper interest pieces
 Read aloud-Expository text-National Geographic
III. GUIDED ORAL PRACTICE
 Chants/Poetry
 The Food Chain Bugaloo
 The Pollution Here There
 Producers and Consumers? Yes Ma’am
 The Ecosystem Sound Off
 I Can Spell Ecosystems
 Process Grid: Expert Groups sharing process grid information
 Exploration Report
 Mind Mapping
 T-graph/team points
 Picture file cards
 Sentence Patterning Chart “animals”
 Team Tasks (Anything modeled by teacher)
 Home School Connection
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UNIT PLANNING PAGES
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IV. READING/WRITING
A. Total Class
 Cooperative strip paragraph: responding, revising and editing “Pollution”
 Narrative – Story Map
 Listen and Sketch River Discoveries
 Found Poetry: Blue Heron
 Poetry Frame and Flip Chant
 DRTA
 Memory Bank
B. Small Group: Anything modeled by teacher
 Team tasks
 ELD preview/review
 Ear-to-ear reading
 Labeling of charts
 Focused reading
 Flexible reading groups
-ELD group frame retell with all inputs
-Cooperative strip paragraph with struggling/emergent
-Clunkers and Links with SQ3R
 Big books
 Expert groups – Lake, Pond, River, Marsh, Swamp
(Flora, Fauna, Characteristics, Dangers/threats and Pollutants)
C. Individual
 Learning log
 Journals
 Personal response
 All team tasks into individual tasks
 Sustained Silent Reading
D. Writer’s Workshop
 Mini Lesson
 Write- includes planning
 Author’s chair
 Conference
 Publish
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UNIT PLANNING PAGES
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V. EXTENDED ACTIVITIES
 Field Trip- McNary Wildlife Refuge
 Guest Speaker
 Construct Ecocolumns
 Experiments with Ecocolumns (pollution)
 Technology- Internet Research
 Reader’s Theater
 Art
 Music
VI. CLOSURE/EVALUATION/ASSESSMENT
 Portfolio assessment: Teacher and self-assessment
 Assessment of personal process grid
 Team presentation
-Teacher/student rubric
 Personal Explorations
 Science night: parents attend, kids present the unit
 Home/School Connection
 Letter Home
 Science notebook
 Processing the charts and learning logs (especially inquiry)
 Student-made tests
 Jeopardy/Family Feud
 Team/Class Social Action Plan
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Project GLAD
North Franklin School District-Washington
ECOSYSTEM: GRADE 5
SAMPLE DAILY LESSON PLAN
DAY 1:
FOCUS/MOTIVATION
 Super Scientist Awards- 3 standards
 Cognitive Content Dictionary with Signal Word: interdependence
 Observation Charts
 Inquiry Chart
 Big Book – What is a Freshwater Ecosystem?
 Portfolios
INPUT




Graphic Organizer: US Map with Washington inset
-10/2 lecture
-ELD review
-Learning Log
Input Chart: River Ecosystem with Food Chain
-Personal Interaction
- Ecoli: spinach, hamburger (“How has the recent food contamination affected you?”)
-10/2 Lecture
-Learning Log
-ELD review of River Ecosystem
Chant
GUIDED ORAL PRACTICE
 T-Graph for social skills
 Picture file
-Free exploration
-Classify/categorize
-Exploration report
 Chant
INPUT

Narrative-“The Raft”
-Learning Log
-ELD review
READING/WRITING
 Writer’s workshop
- Mini Lesson – Getting started
- Write
- Author’s Chair
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SAMPLE DAILY LESSON PLAN
Page 2
CLOSURE



Journals
Process charts
Home/School Connection
DAY 2:
FOCUS/MOTIVATION
 Cognitive Content Dictionary: habitat
 Process Home/School Connection
 Review Input with word cards
 Big Book
 Review Narrative with Word Cards and Conversation Bubbles
INPUT


Graphic Organizer- Compare/Contrast Watershed Model (pollution)
- 10/2 lecture with primary language
-Learning Log
-ELD review
Chants
READING/WRITING
 Poetry-highlighting, sketch, picture file cards
GUIDED ORAL PRACTICE
 Picture File-classify by pollution, human impact, flora, fauna
 Groups share one category
 Personal Interaction
-Think about your impact on water systems
READING/WRITING
 Flexible Groups-Expert Groups
-Team Tasks
 Writer’s workshop
- Mini Lesson
-Write
-Author’s Chair
CLOSURE




Read Aloud- Come Back Salmon
Process inquiry
Journals
Home/School Connection
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SAMPLE DAILY LESSON PLAN
Page 3
DAY 3:
FOCUS/MOTIVATION
 Cognitive Content Dictionary: microorganism (“very tiny”- with fingers)
 Process Home/School Connection
 Review comparative with word cards
GUIDED ORAL PRACTICE
 Poetry- Chant/Sound Off
 Sentence Patterning Chart (SPC)
-Reading/Trading Game
-Flip Chant
 Chants-highlight/sketch, picture file cards
READING/WRITING
 Expert Groups
- Team Tasks
- Oral Team Evaluation
GUIDED ORAL PRACTICE
 Mind Map
 Process Grid
READING/WRITING
 Cooperative Strip Paragraph
-respond
-revise
-edit
 Writer’s Workshop
-Mini Lesson –
-write
-Author’s Chair (start conferencing later)
CLOSURE



Process inquiry
Journals
Home/School Connection
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SAMPLE DAILY LESSON PLAN
Page 4
DAY 4:
FOCUS/MOTIVATION
 Cognitive Content Dictionary: “Stumper Word” student selected
 Process Home/School Connection
 Learning Logs
-Sketch and label a five-part food chain found in a river ecosystem
 Poetry/Chants
INPUT

Story Map of Narrative
READING/WRITING
 Flexible Group Reading
- Clunkers and Links/At or Above
- Group Frame/ELD Story Retell (Narrative)
 Team Tasks
 Reading/Writing Workshop
 Read Aloud- A River Ran Wild
-10/2 lecture
-Learning Log
-ELD review
 Strip Book
 Listen and Sketch- River Discoveries
CLOSURE


Oral Book share groups
Turn in learning logs for assessment
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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SAMPLE DAILY LESSON PLAN
Page 5
DAY 5:
FOCUS/MOTIVATION
 Cognitive Content Dictionary: “Stumper word” student selected
 Process Home/School Connection
 Chants/Poetry
INPUT

Introduce Social Action Plan
- Team presentations
- Team process grid
GUIDED ORAL PRACTICE
 Venn diagram, herbivores/carnivores
-10/2 Lecture
-Learning Log
-ELD review
READING/WRITING
 Flexible Group Reading with Coop Strip Paragraph/Struggling-Emergent Readers
-Team Tasks; evaluation and presentation
 Ear-to-Ear reading with Poetry Booklet
 Found poetry- “The Great Blue Heron” National Geographic
READING/WRITING WORKSHOP
 Mini lesson
 Write
 Author’s Chair
 Publish
CLOSURE







Presentations/publishing
Focused reading with personal Cognitive Content Dictionary
Letter Home
Process Inquiry Chart
Share action plans
Process week- “What helped you learn?”
Thank You bookmark
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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A freshwater ecosystem is…
*The environment or surroundings
of an aquatic system with
drinkable water, or water with
almost no salt content.
*It’s a habitat, a place where
organisms such as fish, amphibians,
aquatic plants, invertebrates and
birds live.
It’s the relationship between
organisms and their environment.
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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A freshwater ecosystem is…
*A lake or pond, a river or stream,
a swamp or marsh.
*There are large and small
organisms, water and soil.
*Don’t forget people!
It’s the relationship between
organisms and their environment.
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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A freshwater ecosystem is…
*Made up of generalists and
specialists.
*Generalists are animals not
choosy about what they eat or
where they live.
*Specialists are animals who have
specific diet or habitat
requirements.
It’s the relationship between
organisms and their environment.
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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A freshwater ecosystem is…
*A food web of producers and
consumers.
*Producers collect energy from
the sun to make their own food
from carbon dioxide in the air.
*Consumers eat other organisms
to get the energy and materials
they need to grow and survive.
It’s the relationship between
organisms and their environment.
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Lisa Davis, Susan Finkbeiner, Jarra Scott, Will Syrie - Project G.L.A.D (07/07 JB)
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A freshwater ecosystem is…
*Made of herbivores, carnivores
and omnivores.
*Herbivores eat only plants.
*Carnivores eat only meat.
*Omnivores eat a combination of
both plants and animals.
It’s the relationship between
organisms and their environment.
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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A freshwater ecosystem is…
*A series of interconnected food
chains.
*It begins with a producer, which
is eaten by a consumer, which is
eaten by another consumer and so
on.
*Example:
Plant ―›Cricket ―›Frog ―› Snake
It’s the relationship between
organisms and their environment.
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A freshwater ecosystem is…
*A place of interaction between
living and non-living things.
*All parts are connected.
*If something happens to one
element, the other living and nonliving things in the ecosystem are
affected.
It’s the relationship between
organisms and their environment.
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A freshwater ecosystem is…
*Affected by pollution.
*Pollution can be natural or human
made. Some common types of
pollution are acid rain, road salt
runoff and fertilizer leaching.
*Pollution leads to water and soil
contamination as well as species
extinction.
It’s the relationship between
organisms and their environment.
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A freshwater ecosystem is…
*A sensitive environment.
*It is people’s responsibility to do
their part to protect this delicate
ecosystem.
*What can you do to help preserve
fresh water ecosystems?
It’s the relationship between
organisms and their environment.
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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Carnivore
Herbivore
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Narrative
Adapted from
THE RAFT
by Jim LaMarche
1.) “There’s nobody to play with,” Nick complained.” She doesn’t
even have a TV.” It was going to be a long summer. Dad was
working at a new plant for the summer. So Nick was going to
Grandma’s. “Remember she’s not your normal kind of
grandma,” dad said.” She calls herself a river rat; she’ll have
plenty for you to do!”
2.) Dad was right. Grandma found plenty for Nick to do. He
stacked the firewood, helped her clean the gutters and change
the spark plugs on her truck. The afternoon was almost over
when she handed Nick a cane pole, bobber and some red worms.
“Fish fry tonight!” she said. “That river’s full of colorful trout,
drop your line near the cattails and you’ll find them.” Down at
the dock Nick looked things over. The cattails were too close to
shore-there couldn’t be any fish there. Nick went to the end of
the dock and threw his line out as far as he could. He then sat
down to wait and wait and wait. The bobber never moved.
“There’s no fish in this lousy river!” he said out loud. They had
hamburgers for dinner.
3.) The next evening Grandma said, “Give it another try. I’ll bet
you catch something.” Nick threw his line into the water and
stretched out on the dock to wait and fell asleep. The loud
chirping and chattering of birds woke Nick. A flock of swallows
moved toward him hovering above something floating on the
water. It drifted downstream closer and closer until it finally
bumped against the dock. Although it was covered with leaves
and branches, Nick could tell it was a raft. “Why was it floating
by itself down the river?” Nick wondered. He reached down and
pushed aside some of the leaves. Beneath them was a drawing of
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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a rabbit. It looked like ancient cave paintings-wild and free like
he had seen in books. Clearing more of the leaves away, Nick
discovered a bear, a fox, and a raccoon-all with the wild look of
the rabbit. Nick wondered who had drawn them and where they
had come from.
Nick ran up to the cottage and asked Grandma for some rope.
“There’s some in the shed,” she said, “help yourself.” Nick ran
back to the raft and pushed it into the reeds along the river’s
edge, then tied it to the dock so it wouldn’t drift away. All the
while birds flew overhead swooping down toward the raft as
though if it were a friend. A crane waded through the reeds to it.
A turtle swam up from the bottom of the river.
4.) Nick was down at the dock the next morning when Grandma
appeared with a lifejacket and long pole. “Let’s go,” grandma
said as she tossed the lifejacket, pushed off the river bottom, and
moved into the smooth current.
They poled the raft up the river and slowly drifted back down.
The swallows kept them company, soaring, swooping and
singing.
5.) After the first ride with grandma, Nick had little time for
anything else but rafting the river. He poled up and down the
river wondering what flora and fauna he would see. One
morning he spied three raccoons along the shore and a turtle
climbed aboard and spent the morning sunning itself. Another
afternoon he saw a family of foxes slip though the trees along the
river.
6.) When the weather became too hot and sticky to sleep
indoors, Grandma helped Nick put a small tent on the raft. One
night a noise woke him up. There in the moonlight stood a huge
buck drinking at the edge of the river. The next morning Nick
asked Grandma for some paper to sketch on. She brought out a
big sketchpad and a pouch filled with pencils and crayons. “I’ve
been saving these for you,” she said. “Better take these too.” She
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held out a snorkel and mask. “Never know what you might see in
the river.”
7.) The sun was hot the next day so Nick poled into the shade of
a willow to wait and see what animals the raft would bring. It
wasn’t long before a great blue heron whooshed down with a
crayfish in its bill. Nick grabbed a pencil and began to sketch. He
felt invisible as the heron ate its lunch right in front of him. Then
the heron preened its feathers, looked up the river and flew off.
8.) One day Nick poled upriver farther than he had ever gone.
Near a clump of cattails he startled an otter family. They dove
underwater and played around the raft. Nick remembered the
snorkel and the mask. He slipped them on and hung over the
edge of the raft watching the otters play, chasing fish, and each
other.
9.) Somehow on the river it seemed like summer would never
end. But of course it did. On Nick’s last day he woke up extra
early and crept down to the dock. The air was cool and a low
pearly fog hung over the river. Nick untied the raft and quietly
drifted downstream. Ahead of him, through the fog, Nick saw
two deer moving across the river, a doe and her fawn. When they
reached the shore, the doe leaped easily across the steep bank,
then turned and waited for her baby. But the fawn was in
trouble. It kept slipping down the muddy bank. The doe returned
to the water to help, but the more the fawn struggled, the deeper
it became stuck in the mud. Nick pushed off the river bottom and
drove the raft hard into the muddy bank. He stepped into the
ankle-deep mud and whispered to the fawn, “I won’t hurt you.”
Nick placed his arm around the fawn. Gradually, it stopped
struggling. He pulled again and again. Slowly the fawn eased out
of the mud and Nick carried the fawn up the bank to its mother.
10.) Quietly Nick returned to the raft. He watched the doe nuzzle
and clean the baby. Nick knew what he needed to do. He pulled
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out a stubby crayon from his pocket, and drew the fawn in all its
wildness, onto the old gray boards of the raft.
11.) After supper Nick showed Grandma the drawing of the fawn
and told her the story. “It’s perfect,” she said. “But we need one
more thing.” She hurried back to the cottage. When she came
back, she had tubes of oil paint and two brushes. Grandma
helped Nick trace the drawing with the oil paint and brushes.
“That will keep it,” she said. “Now you’ll always be part of the
river.” “Just like you Grandma,” Nick said, “A river rat.”
Grandma laughed. “Just like me,” she agreed.
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Food Chain Bugaloo
I’m in the food chain and I’m here to say,
Living things need energy everyday.
Eat to grow and grow to live,
Then a meal for others you may give.
Energy for plants and animals too,
Doing the food chain bugaloo!
Green plants use energy from the sun,
To make food for everyone.
On land and in the water too,
Providing food is what they do.
Energy for plants and animals too,
Doing the food chain bugaloo!
Then a snail comes poking along,
Eating water grass all day long.
The plant’s energy it does steal,
To become a fish’s meal.
Energy for plants and animals too,
Doing the food chain bugaloo!
The fish eats lots ‘cause very soon,
He’ll be eaten by a raccoon.
Raccoon eats the fish he has found,
Till one day he dies, and lies on the ground.
Energy for plants and animals too,
Doing the food chain bugaloo!
Finally the food web can finish the scene,
Breaking down molecules from the once living thing.
Returning nutrients to the earth,
Allowing future plants a chance at rebirth.
Energy for plants and animals too,
Doing the food chain bugaloo!
So now you see in each food chain,
Every death is another’s gain.
Energy passed from sun to plant,
Animals living on what others can’t.
Energy for plants and animals too,
Doing the food chain bugaloo!
By Lisa Davis/Will Syrie
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Yes Ma’am!
Is this a producer?
Is this a producer?
How do you know?
How do you know?
Give me some examples.
Give me some examples.
Yes Ma’am!
Yes Ma’am!
It makes its own food.
It uses energy from the sun.
Algae and seaweed.
Grass and plants.
Is this a consumer?
Is this a consumer?
How do you know?
How do you know?
Give me some examples.
Give me some examples.
Yes Ma’am!
Yes Ma’am!
It gets energy from other organisms.
It eats other living things.
Cows and elk.
Coyotes and hawks.
Is this a herbivore?
Is this a herbivore?
How do you know?
How do you know?
Give me some examples.
Give me some examples.
Yes Ma’am!
Yes Ma’am!
It doesn’t eat meat.
It eats only plants.
Snails and caterpillars.
Deer and seals.
Is this a carnivore?
Is this a carnivore?
How do you know?
How do you know?
Give me some examples.
Give me some examples.
Yes Ma’am!
Yes Ma’am!
It only eats meat.
It eats other animals.
Fish and birds.
Cougars and sharks.
Is this an omnivore?
Is this an omnivore?
How do you know?
How do you know?
Give me some examples.
Give me some examples.
Yes Ma’am!
Yes Ma’am!
It eats plants and meat.
It eats vegetation and other animals.
Chickens and raccoons.
Bears and people.
By: Jarra Scott
Lisa Davis
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
Lisa Davis, Susan Finkbeiner, Jarra Scott, Will Syrie - Project G.L.A.D (07/07 JB)
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I CAN SPELL
I can spell fish, FISH
I can spell snake, SNAKE
I can spell bug, BUG
But I can’t spell ecosystem!
I can spell soil, SOIL
I can spell light, LIGHT
I can spell air, AIR
But I can’t spell ecosystem!
I can spell rain, RAIN
I can spell food, FOOD
I can spell life, LIFE
But I can’t spell ecosystem!
I can spell grow, GROW
I can spell root, ROOT
I can spell seed, SEED
But I can’t spell ecosystem!
Yes I can! Yes I can! E-C-O-S-Y-S-T-E-M!
By: Lisa Davis/Jarra Scott/Will Syrie
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Pollution
Pollution here, pollution there,
Pollution, pollution, everywhere!
Salt pollution burning,
Acid pollution raining,
Chemical pollution leaching
And all pollution destroying.
Pollution in a habitat,
Pollution near a stream,
Pollution around an ecosystem,
And pollution affecting me.
Pollution here, pollution there,
Pollution, pollution, everywhere!
POLLUTION! POLLUTION! POLLUTION!
By Lisa Davis/Susan Finkbeiner
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
Lisa Davis, Susan Finkbeiner, Jarra Scott, Will Syrie - Project G.L.A.D (07/07 JB)
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Animals
Animals here, animals there,
Animals, animals, everywhere!
Carnivorous animals hunting,
Aquatic animals spawning,
Feathered animals preening,
And herbivorous animals foraging.
Animals in an ecosystem,
Animals under the water,
Animals on a riverbank,
And animals among the flora.
Animals here, animals there,
Animals, animals, everywhere!
ANIMALS! ANIMALS! ANIMALS!
By Lisa Davis/Susan Finkbeiner
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Sound Off
We just know what we’ve been told,
Ecosystems are worth their weight in gold.
Work together so all survive,
Balance allows everything to survive.
Sound off: All survive!
Sound off: To stay alive!
Sound off: 1,2,3,4, LIVING THINGS!
Flora and fauna, micros too,
Need synergy for all they do.
The sun provides the energy,
So plants produce with efficiency.
Sound off: Synergy!
Sound off: Energy!
Sound off: 1,2,3,4, LIVING THINGS!
Producers make food consumers need,
Plant and grasses for their feed.
All along nutrients they send,
On one another they depend.
Sound off: Producers!
Sound off: Consumers!
Sound off: 1,2,3,4, LIVING THINGS!
If one is gone the chain is broke,
Eco-balance is not joke.
If one is gone another dies,
Extinction happens before our eyes.
Sound off: Relationships!
Sound off: Dependency!
Sound off: 1,2,3,4, LIVING THINGS!
Pollution can be the thing to blame,
So habitat must be kept the same.
Soil, water, air it’s true,
Clean and pure for me and you.
Sound off: Clean and pure!
Sound off: For me and you!
Sound off: 1,2,3,4, LIVING THINGS!
By Will Syrie/Lisa Davis/Susan Finkbeiner
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Name______________________________________
Home School Connection
Sketch and label an insect you find in or around your
house. Discuss this with a family member.
Parent Signature__________________________
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Name_______________________________________
Home School Connection
With your family, find 3 things that are decomposing in
your yard, garbage, or refrigerator. List and sketch all 3
things.
Parent Signature___________________________
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Name_______________________________________
Home School Connection
Sketch and write about a time you went to a lake or river
with your family. Describe what you saw and did.
Parent Signature___________________________
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Name_______________________________________
Home School Connection
Have someone in your family tell you about a place
where humans changed the environment over time and
what they observed. Sketch and write about what they
tell you.
Parent Signature___________________________
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Nombre______________________________________
Conexión Escolar en el Hogar
Dibuja y etiqueta a un insecto que encuentres en o alrededor
de tu casa. Platica esto con un miembro de tu familia.
Firma de uno de los Padres:______________________
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Nombre ____________________________________
Conexión Escolar en el Hogar
Con tu familia, encuentra 3 cosas que se estén
descomponiendo en tu jardín, basura, o refrigerador. Lístalas
y dibuja todas las tres cosas.
Firma de uno de los Padres:______________________
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Nombre: ____________________________________
Conexión Escolar en el Hogar
Escribe sobre algún tiempo en el que hayas ido a un lago o a
un río con tu familia. Describe lo que viste y lo que hiciste.
Firma de uno de los Padres: _____________________
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Nombre:___________________________________
Conexión Escolar en el Hogar
Haz que alguien de tu familia te cuente de algún lugar en
donde los humanos hayan cambiando el medio ambiente a lo
largo del tiempo y lo que ellos observaron. Trasa y escribe
que tu familia dicen.
Firma de uno de los Padres:______________________
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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Expert Group
Lakes
Characteristics
A lake is a large body of water surrounded by land on all sides. Lakes form in hollows
of the earth’s surface, called basins. Its sources include rainfall or melting snow and ice
that flow in from small streams or rivers. Lakes are like ponds, but wider and deeper.
Flora
Lakes have many types of flora. Water hyacinths and water lilies are common. Some
lake plants are so small you might not know they exist. They are called phytoplankton.
Larger plants like duckweed float on the surface. These plants are food for lake
animals.
Fauna
Many kinds of fauna live in and around a lake. A number of the same animals that live
in or at the edge of a pond, river or stream can also be found in or near a lake.
Freshwater fishes such as pike, trout and perch and other aquatic animals like snails and
beavers make their homes in lakes. Forest animals like moose and deer use lakes for
drinking water, and lakes provide water plants for moose to eat. Frogs, salamanders and
other amphibians go to lakes to lay their eggs. Owls, kingfishers, herons, swans, geese,
ducks and otters hunt for food in lakes.
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Threat or Danger
People are the main threat or danger to a lake. People enjoy using lakes for recreation such as
boating, fishing and swimming. Lakes are also used as transportation for people (ferries) and
goods (barges). When people litter on the shore, or spill trash or fuel off of boats, the water
gets polluted. Then the fish and plants die, upsetting the balance of the delicate ecosystem. We
must all take care to preserve the beauty and value of our lakes.
Interesting Facts
Did you know lakes could be man-made? A reservoir is a man-made lake. It is created
when a dam is built on a river. Lake Roosevelt is a reservoir behind Grand Coulee
Dam.
The world’s deepest lake is Lake Baikal in eastern Russia. It is 5,315 feet deep at its
deepest point. It holds more than a fifth of the world’s freshwater. It has 336 rivers
flowing into it.
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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Expert Group
Swamp
Characteristics
Swamps have shallow, murky, slow moving or still water. The ground is squishy and
wet (like a waterlogged sponge). The air is heavy and muggy with moisture. Most
swamps began as marshes where plants piled up and decayed, making more soil so trees
and shrubs could grow and become a swamp.
Flora
There are many dead and decaying (rotting) plants in a swamp. Trees, bushes and
shrubs can grow in the rich, moist soil. Cypress trees can also be found there. Cypress
trees are huge, towering trees that bulge out at the bottom. These bulges stick out of the
water and create places for snakes, birds and frogs to rest. Mushrooms lavish the
moisture rich environment. These fungi help break down rotting logs into simple
nutrients that plants can reuse. Moss is a plant that also flourishes in the swamp
environment. The moss’s tangled leaves have special hollow cells that soak up water.
As old moss dies, new moss grows on top of it.
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Fauna
Many dangerous animals live in the swamp. Alligators love to float just under the
swampy water line with only their eyes, ear and nose showing- it is easy to mistake the
alligator for a log. Cottonmouth snakes also make their home in the swamp, enjoying
the murky environment. Swamps are infested with mosquitoes and other blood-sucking
insects. These insects use the proteins from the blood to lay healthy eggs. They can lay
nearly 300 eggs after a blood meal. Centipedes creep and toads croak the day away.
Bass and sunfish can live in the murky water. Blue herons also make their home in the
swamp. They use their long, skinny bills to catch their prey.
Threat or Danger
Swamps can evaporate and dry up. The water levels change with the amounts of rainfall
they receive. If a swamp is near drying up, all animals living there need to find another
place to survive. The vegetation will die.
Interesting Facts
Swamp bottoms can create smelly gas. It is gas from microscopic bacteria that live in
places with next to no oxygen (like water logged soil). The gas is in the water too. It
smells like rotten eggs! You can see the gas bubbles rise and burst at the surface of the
water in a large megaburp. The burp can lift large chunks of moss along with it. The
chunks can be large enough to form an island on the swamp’s surface. After wind and
birds drop seeds on these moss islands, plants start to go.
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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Expert Group
Marshes
Characteristics
Marshes are wetlands. They are made up of soaked, wet ground or are covered with
shallow water over a muddy bottom. They are found in open, wide lowlands, along
seacoasts, and around ponds, lakes and riverbeds. Some marshes are found in the
kettleholes left behind from receding glaciers. In order to be called a marsh it must
remain wet (not dry up) at least half the year. Typically, a marsh does not have very
deep water. From the mud, plants take root to send their stems, leaves and flowers up
above the water. In the deepest marshes, floating plants with some leaves submerged,
take the place of algae or duckweed.
Flora
A freshwater marsh is home to many grassy plants such as reeds, cattails, duckweed
and rushes. There are no trees or woody plants. The plants can live there because they
require a lot of water to survive. Freshwater marshes have been compared with other
organism’s kidneys for their ability to clean up the water supply.
Fauna
A variety of birds, insects and mammals can live in a marsh. Muskrats and minks
coexist with salamanders and turtles. Numerous kinds of fish such as golden shiners
swim in the shallow waters and feed on insects and duckweed. Geese and cranes can
feed on the mosquitoes and dragonflies. In addition, freshwater marshes have been
crucial to the survival of over one-half of the nation’s migratory birds.
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Threat or Danger
Marshes are vital storage places for one of Earth’s most precious resources, water.
While storing large amounts of water, these areas reduce the chance of flooding in other
places. Also, their plant life helps to stop the erosion of the surrounding land. Many
kinds of plants and animals need wetlands to survive. When wetlands are filled with dirt
to create more land to build on, they are destroyed forever. Many acres of marshes have
already been destroyed. Some scientists believe that more than one-third of the
endangered and threatened animals and plants in the United States depend on wetlands
to survive.
Interesting Facts
Wetlands have been around since the beginning of the Earth and make up six percent of
the Earth’s land area. Two-thirds of all wetland areas in the United States are found in
Alaska. The largest marsh in the world is found in Florida. It is called the Florida
Everglades and covers about 4,000 square miles. Sadly, less than half of the 215 million
acres of wetland that were in the continental United States still exist.
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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Expert Group
Ponds
Characteristics
A pond is a small lake, and its water is still which means that it does not move with a
current. A pond is an ever-changing world of swimmers, divers, rowers, crawlers,
climbers, and skaters. It is where plants grow in, on, and out of water. Over time a
pond can fill up with dead plant material and turn into a marsh. Ponds can be natural or
man-made. Some farmers make ponds so their animals have water to drink. Some
people build ponds because they are pretty attract interesting animals to their yards.
Even beavers make ponds.
Flora
Lots of flora can grow and thrive in a pond environment because the water is shallow
enough for the sun to warm and penetrate it. Grass like sedges and cattails grow around
the edges of ponds. Water lilies seem to float on the water, but they actually have roots
in the mud at the bottom of the pond. Duckweed, water lettuce, and water hyacinth
float free with their roots hanging down in the water. Algae float on the water, too, but
it is hard to see unless there is a lot of it. You might notice a greenish look to a pond,
which means that it has a lot of algae.
Fauna
Ponds provide a perfect habitat for many kinds of fauna. Crayfish, catfish, and sunfish
live in ponds. Many other animals live in or near ponds or come to drink the water and
hunt for food. Amphibians such as salamanders and frogs begin their lives in ponds.
Deer come drink and eat green plants. Raccoons come for a drink and hunt many pond
animals like frogs, fish, and duck eggs. They also eat plant roots and berries. All kinds
of birds live near a pond including herons, kingfishers, geese, swans, and ducks. Ducks
love duckweed that floats on the pond, but they also eat insects and water animals.
Water striders and mosquitoes are just a few of the insects that love this moist, wet
environment. Snails eat the algae.
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Threat or Danger
Because ponds are not fed continuously by river or streams, they can become very
shallow as dead plants and silt build up causing the bottom mud to thicken into soil.
This causes the pond to become a marshy meadow. Droughts are a major threat to
ponds. Without replenishing rains ponds will quickly dry up through evaporation. A
spring, feeding the pond, may also dry up destroying the pond forever. When the rains
stop, so does the life of the pond. Another danger to a pond is humans. Too many
ponds are just thought of as holes in the ground with water, and are not taken care of
like other water habitats. People throw debris and garbage into them, which harm the
animals.
Interesting Facts
Ponds can freeze in the winter, but interestingly enough it is that same layer of ice that
insulates the animals from the harsh winter winds and temperatures. The animals that
live there have to adapt to survive. Pond birds usually leave and migrate south to
warmer climates. Frogs, turtles and insects hide in the mud at the bottom of the pond.
All these creatures winter in a deep sleep. They hardly breathe and their hearts barely
beat. The little energy they need comes from stored body fat.
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Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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Freshwater Ecosystems
Type
Characteristics Flora
Fauna
Threat/
Danger
Interesting
Facts
River
Lake
Pond
Marsh
Swamp
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Freshwater Ecosystems
Type
River
Lake
Pond
Characteristic
s
Flora
Fauna
Threat
Danger
Interesting
Fact
-A moving body of
water that flows from
its source to the
sea/ocean
-Source is on high
ground where river
starts, then fed by
ground water and rain
water
-green algae on
bottom
-cushion moss
on rocks
-feeds on
cattails near the
banks
-trees
-over hanging
brush
Trout,
salmon,
crayfish, deer,
river otter,
bank
swallows,
herons
Pollution: sewage,
chemicals from
factories, oil spill
from boats or tankers
Dam: sediment stops,
habitat changes
-a large body of water
surrounded by land on
all sides
-wide and deep
-form in hallows called
basins
-Source: rainfall,
melting snow & ice
from streams or rivers
water hyacinths,
water lilies,
duckweed,
phytoplankton
pike, trout,
perch, snail,
beaver,
moose, deer,
frog,
salamander,
owl,
kingfisher,
heron, swan,
geese, duck,
otter
-people
-people litter on the
shore
-people spill trash
and fuel into the
water
-pollutants cause fish
and plants die
-upsets the ecosystem
-a small lake, a still
body of water
-ever changing
-can fill up with dead
plant material and turn
into a marsh
-natural or man-made
by farmers, people, or
beavers
grass like
sedges,
water lilies,
duckweed,
water lettuce,
water hyacinth,
algae
Crayfish,
catfish,
sunfish,
salamanders,
frogs, deer,
raccoon,
heron,
kingfishers,
geese, swans,
ducks, water
striders,
mosquitoes,
snails
-shallow
- plants and mud
build up, bottom mud
thickens into soil,
pond becomes a
marshy meadow
-drought/evaporation
-humans
-debris/garbage
-harm animals
-River water is
never clear, it
carries mud,
leaves and other
bits and pieces.
-May be as many
as 5 kinds of
sharks that live in
rivers
-Rivers
“meander” swing
side to side snake
like
-can be manmade
- reservoir is a
man made lake,
created when a
dam is built on a
river
-deepest lake is
Lake Baikal in
eastern
Russia/5315 feet
deep
-Lake Baikal
holds 1/5 of the
worlds freshwater
-336 rivers flow
into Lake Baikal
-freeze in winter
and insolate the
animals from the
harsh wind and
temperatures
-in cold weather,
pond birds
migrate south to
warmer climates
- frogs, turtles &
insects hide in the
mud at the bottom
of the pond to
Freshwater Ecosystems Level 5 WA
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Marsh
Swamp
-soaked, wet ground
covered by shallow
water around edges of
lakes, rivers, ponds,
kettleholes
-must remain wet at
least ½ a year
grassy plants,
reeds, cattails,
duckweed,
rushes
-Shallow, murky water
-slow moving, still
water
-ground squishy and
wet
-air muggy
-plants pile up and
make more soil
rotting/decaying
plants, trees,
brushes, shrubs,
cypress trees,
moss,
mushrooms/fun
gi
-No trees or
woody plants
Geese, crane,
muskrat,
salamander,
mosquito,
water striders,
turtle,
dragonfly,
mink, Golden
shiners,
migratory
birds
-stores large amounts
of water/ reduces
flooding
-plants stop erosion
-plants/animals need
wetlands to survive
-Often drained or
filled by people for
farm land or
construction
/development
alligators,
cottonmouth
snake, dragon
fly, mosquito,
toad, blue
heron,
muskrat, bass,
sunfish,
centipede
-can evaporate and
dry up
-water levels change
-animals must leave
-vegetation will die
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survive.
-make up 6% of
Earth’s land
-2/3 found in
Alaska
-Florida
Everglades is the
biggest marsh in
the world- 4,000
sq. miles
-less than half of
the wetlands of
US still exist
-swamp bottoms
create smelly gas
-the gas is made
by microscopic
bacteria
-gas bubbles rise
a burst as a mega
burp
-large chunks of
moss lift off the
bottom and form
islands/plants
grow on the
islands