This post will contain all of the grade 7 lessons on ecosystems. Students will be learning about the interactions within the environment, and identifying factors that affect the balance of an ecosystem. They will design and construct a model biosphere and use it to investigate interactions between components and how matter is cycled within the environment. Later in this section, students will describe the roles and interactions of producers within an ecosystem and distinguish between primary and secondary succession. We will begin by learning how to identify biotic and abiotic elements in ecosystems and describe the interactions between them.

Lesson 1: Biotic and Abiotic Factors

1. List the biotic and abiotic factors in this handout (make a copy for yourself and save it to your ecosystems folder)
2. Download a copy of this 4.1 ‘What is an Ecosystem?‘ text to your ecosystems folder
3. Read the information and answer questions 2, 3, and 4 at the end of the text

Lesson 2: Ecosystem Unit Vocabulary

1. Ecosystems Vocabulary Student Sheet (To be filled in using the 4.1 & 4.4 note)
2. Ecosystems Vocabulary Student Sheet – Solutions
3. Vocabulary worksheet
4. Vocabulary of Ecosystems Worksheet – Solutions

Lesson 3: Interactions among Living Things

1. Read the 4.4 Interactions among Living Things note
2. Note the terms competition, predator, prey, and mutualism and add them to your vocabulary student sheet
3. Choose a date for the upcoming vocabulary quiz.

Lesson 4: Biospheres

1. Making a Biosphere Recipe
2. Making a Biosphere Rubric

Lesson 5: Food Chains and Food Webs

1. Read the ‘Food Chains and Food Webs‘ text
2. Create a doc called ‘Food Chains and Food Webs’ in your ecosystems folder and answer questions #1 – 5 from the text

 

3. Watch the video above

4. Make a copy of the Food Webs video worksheet, fill it out, and submit it to your hand-in folder

Lesson 6: Carbon and Water Cycles

1. Download a copy of this ‘Matter Cycles‘ text to your ecosystems folder
2. Answer questions #2, 4, & 5 from the text
3. Read the Carbon Cycle and Water Cycle Handout

Lesson 7: Roles of Organisms in an Ecosystem

1. Read the Roles of Organisms in an Ecosystem note
2. Answer questions #1, 2, & 3 from the text
3. Note the terms photosynthesis, producers, consumer, herbivore, carnivore, scavenger, omnivore, detrivore, decomposer and add them to your vocabulary student sheet

Lesson 8: Energy Flow

1. Read the Energy Flow in an Ecosystem note
2. Answer questions 1, 4, and 5 in your Ecosystems folder
3. Complete the Cycling of Matter labeling handout.

Lesson 9: Primary and Secondary Succession

1. Read the Succession note
2. Answer questions 1, and 2 in your Ecosystems folder
3. Succession Video Assignment – link

Lesson 10: CoSpaces Project

1. Introductory Activity and Tutorial
2. CoSpaces Rubric and Assignment
3. Coding Cheat Sheet

Introductory Videos