Ecology Disrupted
Part of Curriculum Collections.
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These case study units engage students in real scientific research that has been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. The research is introduced through the use of videos produced by the Museum. The overarching goals of these units are to:
- Connect regular daily life activities to disruption of ecological function
- Analyze authentic scientific data
- Learn about real scientists and their stories
Browse through the set of Additional Case Studies from other educators who have used the Ecology Disrupted materials to make their own lessons, and to learn how to contribute your materials to the site.
UNIT SUMMARY
Major highways that connect Los Angeles and Las Vegas run through bighorn sheep habitat. These highways allow travel between Los Angeles and Las Vegas in just four hours, but what do they mean for the sheep?
Essential Question:
How might being able to drive between Los Angeles and Las Vegas in just four hours put bighorn sheep at risk?
Key Topics:
- Habitats
- Populations
- Inbreeding
- DNA
- Measuring and Map Analysis
- Genetic Diversity
Level:
7th - 12th grade
Pacing:
6 class periods
In winter, salt is regularly applied to melt ice on roads in the Northeast. But road salt runoff drains into streams and drinking water. The salt buildup has made some urban, suburban, and rural streams 25 percent as salty as seawater.
Essential Question:
How might snowy and icy roads affect Baltimore area’s water supply?
Key Topics:
- Abiotic and Biotic Factors
- Water
- Runoff
- Ecosystems
- Graphing
Level:
7th - 12th grade
Pacing:
7 class periods
Students analyze historic and present-day food webs and graph historic and present-day Chesapeake Bay data to learn how food web complexity is easily overlooked, and why that complexity is important for healthy ecosystems.
Essential Question:
In what ways have people caused the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem to become more vulnerable to algal blooms and dead zones?
Key Topics:
- Food Webs
- Nitrogen Cycle
- Dead Zones
- Overfishing
- Estuaries
- Graphing
Level:
7th - 12th grade
Pacing:
4 class periods
Ecology Disrupted is a collaboration between the American Museum of Natural History and The City College of New York.
Funding for this web site provided by the National Science Foundation Grants DRL-0918629 and DRL-0918583
Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.