Instructions for Diamond 9
This is a discussion activity in which the pupils can share their thoughts about the issue of biodiversity loss and weight the different strategies and approaches in saving species and preserving biological material. As their evaluation depends on one’s personal point of view, there is no correct or wrong answer.
Biodiversity is the variety of living things including variability within and between species, habitats and ecosystems. Its preservation is important for the functioning of ecosystems because every species has a specific and vital role in foodwebs or other interdependent systems.
Normally, species adapt to new conditions through advantageous changes in their DNA. This happens over a long period of time and is the driving force behind evolution. The greater the genetic variation within a species is, the more easily the species can adapt.
Climate change and global warming pose a threat to biodiversity because they are happening faster than species can react to the changes. Thus, the number of individuals in a species declines and the problem gets worse due to decreased genetic variation within the species. In addition, secondary or indirect effects of climate change such as desertification and rising sea levels could be the actual triggers or add to the primary problems.
Therefore, we need to thoroughly consider what we should do about climate change and global warming and how much interference with nature is appropriate in order to preserve biodiversity.
Download and print out the board and the card sheet. Make sure you print in colour. For making the set long-lasting, either laminate it or print on thick paper, before you cut the cards and the question underneath into shape.
Hand out one board and one set of cards + question per group which should consist of not more than four people if possible.
Let the pupils discuss about the options in the following order:
1)blue cards (2), which depict general strategies of how to spend the money
2)orange cards (3), which are about which species to be saved
3)green cards (4), which illustrate the different strategies of preservation.
After each step, in which the pupils have prioritised, ask them to put the cards on the board. Allow more time for the second and the third step as the children probably will have to shift their cards.
Each group could read out or show how they organised their cards and give reasons for their decisions. Alternatively, the pupils could have look at the boards of other groups in order to compare them with their own followed by a general discussion with the whole class.