Kaplan S Depth and Complexity Lesson

ECOSYSTEMS

KAPLAN’S DEPTH AND COMPLEXITY LESSON

Overview of Activity

· This activity can be completed as a culminating activity after a study of ecosystems activity and the factors that affect organisms living within those ecosystems. Or, it can be used as a research activity to learn more about ecosystems. This activity serves as a great way to assess what students have learned about ecosystems and the organisms that live in them.

· After a brief review of factors that affect ecosystems, students will complete activity sheets that correspond to their ability levels. Each student will get to choose one activity to complete.

· Then, students will display their work by creating their own ecosystems, showing the factors that affect the organisms living within those ecosystems. These ecosystems will be on display in the classroom.

How This Strategy Benefits Students

· Kaplan’s depth and complexity benefits above-grade-level students because it offers them appropriate challenges through complex questioning.

· On-grade-level students benefit from questions based on Kaplan’s depth and complexity because there is room for growth and challenge at their levels of readiness.

· Students functioning below-grade-level can strengthen their skills through questioning from Kaplan’s model at their levels of readiness. They can also grow as they are challenged with the higher level of questioning.

· Because they are mainly deficient in language, English language learners can find their levels of readiness with individual guidance from you. Activities should be language rich to accommodate theses learners’ needs.

Learning Standards

· Students know factors that affect the number and types of organisms an ecosystem can support.

· Students summarize and paraphrase information in texts.

Preparation

1.) Copy the group activity sheets (triangle group, square group, circle group, star group) for students.

2.) Gather art supplies students can use when completing their activities.

Whole Class Activity

1.) Introduce this activity to your students after reviewing ecosystems, or use this lesson as a culminating activity.

2.) Create homogenous groups for this lesson. Distribute copies of the activity sheets to students based on their ability levels. The triangle group is comprised of above-grade-level students. The square group is the on-grade-level students. The circle group includes the below-grade-level students and the star group is comprised of the English language learners (ELL).

3.) Have students read the directions and review the pages before beginning. Instruct each student to choose one activity to complete.

4.) Meet with your ELL students and talk them through the activities on their activity page. It is best if you model examples for these students. There are all levels of complexity and depth on the Star Group activity sheet. Help each ELL student choose the activity that challenges his or her ability.

5.) When students have completed their activity sheets, jigsaw the groups to make them heterogeneous groups. Have students share their work with others in their groups to check the accuracy of their work.

6.) Finally, break the students into new heterogeneous groups, based on the ecosystems they focused on in their activities. If the students did not focus on one type of ecosystem, ask them to choose an ecosystem, such as a pond, a forest, or the ocean. Have groups turn the classroom into various ecosystems, showing organisms that live there, the factors that affect their daily lives, and the items needed for them to survive in their ecosystems. They should display their work from the activity sheets in their ecosystems.

Assessment

1.) Evaluate each student’s work. You can use the following questions to help you assess their work:

· Did they follow directions?

· Are they able to explain their work?

· Were they able to give reasons for their answers when necessary or answer the questions from their activity sheets completely?

2.) Review these assessment questions above with your students to make sure they have a chance to prove their work to

Name

TRIANGLE GROUP

Directions: Choose one activity from the list below to complete.

Ethics- Why is it important to keep water clean in an ecosystem? Create a “filmstrip” that would show why keeping water clean is important and how it affects an ecosystem. Your filmstrip can be drawn on paper, or you can choose to act it out for the class.

Over Time- How have the changes in temperatures effected ecosystems over time? Create a time line that shows the temperature effects, beginning with the affects temperatures may have had on dinosaur survival, and concluding with the effects temperatures may have on glaciers melting today.

Points of View- Many people feel that animals preying on other animals are parts of nature, and therefore, is a natural occurrence. However, others believe that animals should be protected, even from natural predators. What is your point of view on the matter? Show it by creating an advertisement on poster board, persuading others to agree with your point of view.

Interdisciplinary- Create a collage using drawings or magazines pictures that shows how available resources, temperatures, diseases, and competition for living space can all have an affect on organisms. Then, show how these factors can affect nonliving things in ecosystem.

Name

SQUARE GROUP

Directions: Choose one activity from the list below to complete.

Patterns- What resources are needed for an animal’s survival? Create a “shopping list” that shows what needs all animals have in order to survive.

Trends- How might the animals living in an ecosystem feel about humans coming into their environment and creating new structures there? Write a protest letter from an animal’s point of view, explaining why they are unhappy with the human’s involvement in their ecosystem, and why and how it is affecting them.

Unanswered Questions- What might happen to the various ecosystems in the future? How might they change? How might they stay the same? Choose an ecosystem. It could be a pond, a forest, or even a coral reef. Draw a time lapse “photo” showing how the ecosystem looks now, and how it might look thirty years from now, based on factors that affect it.

Big Ideas- Why is it important to have predators in an ecosystem? Choose a predator from a particular type of ecosystem. Then, write a children’s book from the predator’s point of view, explaining why he or she is important to the ecosystem.

Name

CIRCLE GROUP

Directions: Choose one activity from the list below to complete.

Language of Discipline- The following are factors that can affect an ecosystem: resources, soil, temperature, water, disease, and competition with other organisms. Create an ecosystem encyclopedia, explaining each of these factors and how they affect an ecosystem. Use pictures in your encyclopedia as well.

Details- Choose one type of ecosystem. Then, create a large mural that shows the following: the animals living in that ecosystem, the affects some of the animals have on the other animals and nonliving things, and other factors that affect the ecosystem.

Patterns- Choose two ecosystems. How are they similar? How are they different? Compare them on a Venn diagram.

Rules- You have been made “king of the forest ecosystem.” What rules would you make for your ecosystem that all living and nonliving things must follow in order for them to survive? Create your list of rules on a large sheet of paper.

Name

STAR GROUP

Directions: Choose one activity from the list below to complete.

Big ideas- How does the sun play a major role in the ecosystem? Draw a large sun. Then, write a list of the ways it affects all ecosystems.

Patterns- Choose three ecosystems. How are they similar? How are they different? Use magazine pictures and drawings to show the three ecosystems’ similarities and differences.