Introduction
As you have been learning in class, all living things depend on each other to survive. If just one link is missing, a whole chain can fall apart. This second webquest will help you get a better understanding of just how important each part of an ecosystem is.
Standards
S4L1 Students will describe the roles of organisms and the flow of energy within an ecosystem.
a. Identify the roles of producers, consumers, and decomposers in a community.
b. Demonstrate the flow of energy through a food web/food chain beginning with sunlight and including producers, consumers, and decomposers.
c. Predict how changes in the environment would affect a community (ecosystem) of organisms.
d. Predict effects on a population if some of the plants or animals in the community are scarce or if there are too many.
S4L2 Students will identify factors that affect the survival or extinction of organisms such as adaptation, variation of behaviors (hibernation) and external features (camouflage and protection).
a. Identify external features of organisms that allow them to survive or reproduce better than other organisms that do not have these features. (e.g. camouflage, use of hibernation, protection, etc.)
b. Identify factors that may have led to the extinction of some organisms.
ELA4W1 The student produces writing that establishes an appropriate organizational structure, sets a context and engages the reader, maintains a coherent focus throughout, and signals a satisfying closure. The student:
b. Writes texts of a length appropriate to address the topic or tell the story.
c. Uses traditional structures for conveying information (e.g., chronological order, cause and effect, similarity and difference, and posing and answering a question).
d. Uses appropriate structures to ensure coherence (e.g., transition elements).
The student produces informational writing (e.g., report, procedures, correspondence) that:
a. Engages the reader by establishing a context, creating a speaker’s voice, and otherwise developing reader interest.
b. Frames a central question about an issue or situation.
c. Creates an organizing structure appropriate to a specific purpose, audience, and context.
d. Includes appropriate facts and details.
e. Excludes extraneous details and inappropriate information.
f. Uses a range of appropriate strategies, such as providing facts and details, describing or analyzing the subject, and narrating a relevant anecdote.
g. Draws from more than one source of information such as speakers, books, newspapers, and online materials.
h. Provides a sense of closure to the writing.
ELA4W4 The student consistently uses a writing process to develop, revise, and evaluate writing. The student
a. Plans and drafts independently and resourcefully.
b. Revises selected drafts to improve coherence and progression by adding, deleting, consolidating, and rearranging text.
c. Edits to correct errors in spelling, punctuation, etc.
Task
You are a ranger at Unicoi State Park. You have been getting calls from many of the people who live near the park. It seems their gardens are disappearing literally overnight. They are turning to you for help. Your task as a ranger is to determine what is eating the gardens and other plants. Why has this become such a problem so suddenly, and what can be done about it?
To be successful in this mission, you need to be a person who:
- Enjoys investigating. You will have to look at clues to figure out what is happening.
- Understands and can follow the scientific method.
- Can write a clear hypothesis.
- Can describe a problem and give a solution in writing.
- Is good in math, depending on the solution you choose.
Process
You will use the knowledge and skills you have acquired thus far to help you complete this task.
- Follow the photo links to examine clues.
- Write a hypothesis to explain why you think the gardens are being destroyed (Hint: the ecosystem is out of balance).
- Use Inspiration™ to create a food chain for this local ecosystem to support your hypothesis.
- Choose one of the two solutions below. Show your hypothesis to the Chief Ranger (Mr. Bishop), and he will give you the password to unlock the solutions.
Resources
| Photographic evidence | To help identify the suspected consumers. |
| UGA Museum of Natural History | Information about Georgia wildlife. |
| eNature Field Guides | Information about wildlife, including pictures of tracks. |
| Home Depot | Fence prices |
| Home Depot | Fence post prices |
| Lowe's | Fence prices |
| Lowe's | Fence post prices |
Evaluation
Conclusion
Congratulations for completing the “Don’t Get Your Web in a Knot: Ranger!” webquest. I hope you now have a better understanding of the role we all play in the Circle of Life.
Credits
The following resources were used in the creation of this webquest:
- eNature.com Field Guides (2007). Retrieved from http://www.enature.com/home/
- Homer TLC, Inc. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.homedepot.com/
- Lowe's Companies, Inc. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.lowes.com/
- The University of Georgia Museum of Natural History (2008). Retrieved from http://naturalhistory.uga.edu/~GMNH/gawildlife/index.php?page=speciespages/list_species&class=Mammalia