Mrs. DuBose’s Class: AdVeNtUrEs iN ScIeNcE

When the gray wolf was eradicated from Yellowstone National Park in the 1920s, more was lost than just the noble and fascinating predator. The park’s entire ecosystem changed. Now, nearly a dozen years since the wolves returned, the recovery of that system to its natural balance is well underway.  In the Valley of the Wolves is a riveting documentary that provides understanding into ecosystems, adapations, food chains, niche, animal interactions and more!! Teachers, I have a created movie questions that go along with the movie for your classroom use. Click here

Hi Super Scientist

This week we enjoyed learning about ecosystems.  We enjoyed watching Finding Nemo and applying what we have learned about ecosystems: abiotic and biotic factors, habitat, symbiosis, and food webs. We created our own cycle of life by creating food chain from National Geographic magazines. 

A food chain includes plants, or producers, plant-eating animals called herbivores, a meat-eating animals called carnivores, animals that eat both plants and other animals (omnivores), and tiny creature, or decomposers, that break down dead plant or animal remains

Symbiosis basically means ‘living together’ . These symbiotic interrelationships can be divided into three main categories; Mutualism, when both species involved benefit from the relationship, Commensalism, when one species benefits and the other isn’t affected, and Parasitism, when one species benefits, and the other is harmed in the process.

Commensalism                              Parasitism                           Mutualism
(credit to Dirk Redecker. University of Basel Botanical Institute)

Commensalism: One partner living on the other with no obvious effect on the second.
Parasitism: One partner living on the other with detrimental effect on the second.
Mutualism (symbiosis in a strict sense): Advantages for both partners.

CAN YOU GUESS IS IT..

MUTUALISM, PARASITISM, OR COMMENSALISM??

What is a habitat?
A habitat is a special place where a plant or animal calls home. Just like you have a home or place to live, so do animals and plants. When we talk about an animal or a plant’s home it is more like a neighborhood than a “house.” An animal needs four things to survive in its habitat—food, water, shelter, and a place to raise its young. Just like you have to go to the store to get food, an animal leaves its “shelter” to get the things they need to live. If the population’s needs aren’t met, it will move to a better habitat.

Working Together
There are many plants and animals that will share the same habitat. The animals and plants that live together in a habitat form a “community.” The community of living things interacts with the non-living world around it to form the ecosystem.

Because resources like water and food may be limited, plant and animal species often compete with each other for food and water. The only way that they can all live together is if they occupy slightly different niches or hold different “jobs” in the community. No two species can occupy exactly the same niche. They all have their own jobs or niche in the community.

A niche is the smallest unit of a habitat that is occupied by a plant or animal. The habitat niche is the physical space occupied by the plant or animal. The ecological niche is the role the plant or animal plays in the community found in the habitat.

In class we went outside and observed the soil profile and had an DIRTY good time.  Your job is to be a SOIL SCIENTIST and investigate the layers of soil at your house. Your job is to create a soil profie (similar to the picture on the left) and label and name the soil horizons or layers.  You are to put the soil you collect into small sandwhich bags and attach them to a poster .  You get to be as creative and artistic as you want.

-Collect a baggie of each type of soil and staple to a sheet of THICK construction board and answer the following questions.  This will be added as 20 points EC on a TEST grade.   Click the more button to see the project details!

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Hi Super Scientist!

Your job is to go outside and be science investigators or in this instance GEOLOGIST. You are to go out and find examples of weathering, erosion, mass wasting taking place in our surroundings. You may also include examples of crustal change that have occurred. Take pictures of your findings and record the location and type of weathering, erosion, or mass wasting taking place.

DIRECTIONS

1. You will receive 2 point for each correctly identified, labeled photo up to 20 points total.
2. Neatness and effort are included as part of the point total; hence, sloppy or haphazard projects will not be considered for extra credit.
3. PHOTOS MUST BE YOUR OWN!! There are plenty of good examples in the Youngsville/Louisburg/Franklinton area.
4. There are 4 different ways you can display your findings
   1. POSTER: Mount the pictures onto a ridgid background (poster or science fair board) and full label each photo with a brief explanation of what is taking place at that particular location.
   2. POWERPOINT: Past your digital pictures in POWERPOINT and create a SLIDESHOW.
   3. SLIDE.COM: This is for my lovers of the cool gadgets on the Internet. You can upload your digital photos to www.slide.com (must create an account) and then create a cool slideshow that you can add music too, special effects, and borders and MORE!
   4. VIDEO:  If you always wanted to be a music producer, you can use your video camera to record your findings and then EDIT and CREATE a masterpiece that takes us along your VOYAGE.  You can use Window Movie Maker (to edit your video you created) or Windows PhotoStory (to narrate over your digital picture and add cool special effect)
5. To get FREE tutorials on SLIDE, WINDOW MOVIE MAKER, OR PHOTOSTORY..click on your choice

What to look for:

Evidence of weathering:

• plant growth
• ice wedging (freezing and and thawing)
• oxidation (rusting)
• carbonation (carbon dioxide..usually weathering of marble or limestone..Graveyards)
• Living Organism (lichens and moss)

Forms of erosion:

• Deposition of sediments (look for different sediments building up):
• Mass Wasting:  landslides, rock falls, slump, soil creep

THIS WEEK’S ADVENTURES:
This week are learning how Earth’s surface changes due to the dynamic duo: Weathering and Erosion. Weathering is the breakdown of rocks due to mechanical/physical weathering or chemical weathering. Mechanical weathering is rock breaking down but keeping its chemical composition. This can occur through plant growth, abrasion, ice wedging, animal action, and release of pressure. Chemical weathering can occur when rocks are broken down but under go a chemical composition change. This can occur through water, acid rain, oxidation (rusting), living organism, or carbon dioxide. After weathering breaks down the rock, erosion swoops in to carry sediments off through wind, water, or ice. Students will use their knowledge of mechanical and chemical weathering and simulate these processes on our sugar cubes (fake rocks). Students will later in the week use various objects to try conserve their soil.  This activity will help them understand the importance of protecting the soil from erosion.  Check out the dynamic duo below: Weathering an Erosion video and the dire consequences that can happen when we don’t protect the soil–Dust Bowl.

ANIMATIONS:

In class this week we have learned what a minerals is using the mnemonic device: CRINS which stands for Crystal (repeating pattern), Recipe (definite chemical composition), Inorganic (non-living) Naturally formed, and Solid. Next, students learned the 8 ways that geologist can identify minerals: C3DFHLS- Color, Cleavage, Crystal structure, Density, Fracture, Hardness, Luster, and Streak.  Students had quite an enjoyable time applying these properties to figure out the identity of mystery minerals.  Lastly, students learned the 2 ways minerals can form-from evaporating solutions and from the cooling of magma and lava. Students learned that when they drink Kool Aid they are essentially drinking a solution because sugar is dissolved in water.  They also learned that through the process of crystallization crystals are able to grow. Students were quite BEDAZZLED of the large size of crystals from a geode and the size of crystals from obsidian.  I posed the questions as to why do you think the crystals were different sizes and their was always that ONE shining star in each class who correctly guess it had to do something with the temperature of the magma and lava.  The quicker the molten rock cooled, the SMALLER the crystal.  SLOW = BIG CRYSTALS FAST=small crystals

Taking their understanding a step further, I asked them how do you think we could create our own crystals?  Many students quickly grasped that we could create our own solutions and allow the solution to evaporate over several days.  Students had a great learning experience creating their borax solutions and seeing their crystals start to grow.  I used sugar last year and it started to get mold.  This year I used Borax at the recommendation of another science teacher due how quickly crystallization starts.

LEAVE A COMMENT..Share your experience creating your crystal or going on the mineral scavenger hunt

Don’t forget minerals are EVERYWHERE and WE USE THEM EVERYDAY!…To go on a mineral scavenger hunt, click on the picture below

If you are interested in growing your own crystals, try Grow Your Own Crystal Experiment on page 2..  If you want to earn 15 points extra credit to test grade, you must do the LAB REPORT that accompanies it!

This week we wrapped up Earthquakes.  We learned that seismic waves are broken into 3 types. The instrument that is used to record the ground movement during an earthquake is called a seismograph.  The first wave to arrive is called the P wave or primary wave.  It arrives first and moves like a slinky for it compresses solids and liquids in a back and forth motion.  The second wave to arrive to called the S wave or secondary wave and it goes through solids only by cutting through rock at right angles (side to side and up and down).  The last wave to arrive is called the surface wave.  It is the most destructive type of wave because it moves along the surface of the land.  With this knowledge, students made a seismogram by shaking their table to create seismic waves for a weak and strong earthquake.  Students observed the the STRONGER the earthquake the BIGGER the wave.

Using their knowledge of P and S waves, students realized that the longer the dead time is between the P and S wave arrival, then the farther the earthquake was from the epicenter (the directly on earth’s surface above the focus or the point underground where the earth originates.  The last part of the puzzle was for students to realize how scientist find the epicenter of an earthquake.  Students realized that using 3 seismographs students can find the epicenter by finding where all 3 seismographs intersect.  Students had a enjoyable time being seismologist on their Earthquake Webquest.

Lastly, we discussed how scientist predict and analyze earthquake strength and damage. The Mercalli Scale (which measures the dollar amount of damage), The Richter Scale which measures the size of the seismic waves), and the Moment Magnitude Scale (which measures the amount of energy an earthquake releases). Also new to students will be the instruments used to monitor faults. We will be discussing Creep Meters (which measure ground movements in opposite directions), Tiltmeters (which show how much the crust is tilting) and GPS satellites. Before our test on Friday, students checked their Volcano and Earthquake packet and  played a Partner Challenge Crossword Puzzle as we reviewed Volcanoes and Earthquakes

Don’t you just love when what you are teaching just so happens to be in the news!! Well we have TWO volcanoes that have sprung to live.  An undersea volcano has erupting near the island of Tonga, shooting smoke and ash THOUSANDS of feet into the sky above the Pacific Ocean.   “In the short term it is very damaging and will have limited, localized effects,” Bellwood, a marine biologist said, noting that the ash could kill reefs and marine animals alike. “But an underwater explosion is really a wonderful thing, it’s creating new land. This kind of activity helps develop reef systems and helps preserve marine life.”

On the other side of the world, 10, 200 ft Mount Redoubt has erupted so far six times and sent volcanic ash cloud 9.5 miles (50, 000 ft) into the sky, dusting nearby towns, sparking a swarm of earthquakes, and spurring massive mudflows. Based on seismic data, a lava dome appears to be forming in the volcano’s crater, volcanologist Peter Cevelli of the Alaska Volcano Observatory said March 24.  Early data suggest the volcano could continue erupting for days or even months. “I doubt this eruption is over,” Cervelli said. “In fact, it may be just beginning.”

Aren’t Earth’s plates totally AMAZING!!

LEAVE A COMMENT..Share what do you think??