Studying Biomes and the Carbon Cycle

Jessica Bronte, Science, Martin Luther King Middle

Curriculum Unit (pdf)

Synopsis

This curriculum unit introduces students to the intricate relationships between plants and animals, human impacts, and the effects of a changing climate within a variety of environments. Students will research six different biomes on our planet to learn about the unique biotic and abiotic factors that characterize each biome. Then, they will be introduced to the basics of climate change and asked to apply their prior knowledge of photosynthesis and food webs, as well as plant and animal adaptations for survival, to predict what changes might occur in a particular biome given the increasing global temperature. Finally, students will participate in a Socratic seminar where they will apply what they have learned and share their ideas about the impacts of climate change. Students will also learn about a student climate activist, Greta Thunberg, and be asked to grapple with the power of student voice within a society. 

 

This unit focuses around the essential question, “How are changing global abiotic factors impacting the biotic factors within particular biomes?”